St. Paul’s Catholic Church, Egbelu-Umuhu, Enyiogugu, was filled with gratitude and joyful celebration on Sunday, August 2, 2026, as the faithful joined members of the Nze family, priests, religious, friends, and well-wishers for the First Thanksgiving Holy Mass of the newly ordained Rev. Fr. Kester Nze.
The thanksgiving celebration followed his priestly ordination on Saturday, August 1, 2026, at the Maria Assumpta Cathedral, Owerri, where he was ordained by the Catholic archbishop of Owerri, His Grace, Most Rev. Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji.
Presiding over the Eucharistic celebration, Fr. Kester offered heartfelt thanksgiving to Almighty God for the gift of his priestly vocation, acknowledging the Lord’s abiding faithfulness and sustaining grace throughout his journey to the altar.
Delivering the homily, Rev. Fr. Norbert Opara reminded the newly ordained priest of the sacred trust and immense responsibility inherent in the ministerial priesthood. He urged Fr. Kester to stand strong in his fidelity to Christ and His Church, always placing God at the center of his priestly life and ministry.
Fr. Opara further encouraged him to rely continually on divine providence as he begins his pastoral mission, reminding him that fruitful priestly ministry is sustained not merely by human effort but by complete dependence on God’s grace.
With grateful hearts, all gathered offered special prayers for the new priest, invoking the guidance of the Holy Spirit and asking God to bless him with wisdom, perseverance, holiness, and fidelity throughout his priestly ministry.
In his vote of thanks, Fr. Kester expressed profound gratitude to God for the gift of his vocation and thanked the priests and deacon in attendance, his family, parishioners, friends, and numerous well-wishers for their prayers, encouragement, and generous support, which contributed to the successful celebration of both his priestly ordination and thanksgiving Mass.
The celebration concluded in an atmosphere of thanksgiving and Christian fraternity as the congregation joined in songs of praise, warmly welcoming their son into the sacred priesthood and offering fervent prayers that God would continue to strengthen, guide, and sustain him in faithful service to the Church throughout his ministry.
