By Adolphus Ofoegbulem
In a celebration that at once demonstrated thanksgiving, intellectual witness, and enduring devotion, Navy Captain Very Rev. Fr Robert Emeka Oparaji, PhD, on Wednesday, January 7, 2026, marked the 25th anniversary of his priestly ordination, offering not only gratitude to God for the years past but also a tangible gift to his home parish, Sacred Heart Catholic Parish, Nguru Centre.
The jubilee, which followed an earlier celebration in August 2025 at St. Martin De Porres Catholic Church, Nigerian Armed Forces Resettlement Centre, Oshodi, Lagos, gracefully commenced at the Sacred Heart Parish, Nguru Centre, where the day opened with a solemn Mass of thanksgiving presided over by the celebrant himself. In his brief introduction, Fr Oparaji thanked God for the gift of the great day and for the opportunity to celebrate this great milestone
Preaching the homily, Rev. Fr. Prof. Columbus Ogbujah drew from the prophetic tradition of Jeremiah to frame the priestly vocation as one known and called by God even before birth, urging the jubilarian to remain steady in faith, interiorly grounded and unwavering in mission. He reminded him that the call once given is never withdrawn and that nothing can sever the priest from the love of God in Christ, while pressing upon him the enduring responsibility to carry the Gospel to its furthest horizons with humility, prayer, and apostolic zeal.
Rev. Fr. Anthony Nwachukwu-Odu, on behalf of Nguru priests and religious, congratulated the jubilarian. Expressing gratitude to those present, the jubilarian thanked them graciously for honoring his invitation and deeming it expedient to celebrate with him on his special day.
Following the Mass was a solemn procession to the grotto of Mary, Mother of Perpetual Help, newly constructed through the sponsorship of Fr. Oparaji and now donated to the diocese.
Receiving the gift on behalf of the diocese, the chancellor and secretary, Very Rev. Fr. Evaristus Mbata expressed gratitude for what he described as a generous offering, one that both enriches the devotional life of the Church and calls others to a similar spirit of giving for the glory of God.
The celebration was further marked by the presentation of Fr. Oparaji’s book, *“In the Path of Our Ancestors: The Traditional Religious and Cultural Basis for the Acceptance of Christianity in Igbo Land,” a groundbreaking work that courageously reclaims the spiritual agency of the Igbo people in their Christian faith.
In a moment of familial grace, the celebration further coincided with the 95th birthday of the celebrant’s mother, Ezinne Lolo Eunice Adawe Oparaji, a devout member of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and a pioneer figure within the Society of Mary Mother of Perpetual Help at Nguru. Her life of faith, quietly steadfast, was acknowledged as instrumental in inspiring both the vocation of her son and the eventual construction of the Marian grotto now entrusted to the diocese.
