CATHOLICISM IN ENUGU DIOCESE: ITS STRENGHTS AND WEAKNESSES

Abstract

Through the great adventure and sacrifices of the Catholic early missionaries under the episcopate of Bishop Joseph Shanahan, Catholicism was planted in Enugu Diocese in 1912. The new faith gradually blossomed and made an astronomical growth; from being a religion of Chief Onyema of Eke’s household, it has become the belief of thousands of household in Enugu. By and large, this faith in the diocese is now being challenged by the problems of grave moral decadence, secularism and the loss of pastoral zeal of its pastors which have adversely affected the values of the early missionaries and dissuaded the prospective converts from belonging to the faith. The aforesaid problems are the burden of this write up, and the writer firmly believes that the solutions lie on the re-discovery of the values of the church founding fathers. Imploring the tools of historical and phenomenological methods of data analysis, the writer finds out that the outcome goes a long way in proffering solution to myriad of vices bedeviling not only the Catholic Diocese of Enugu but also other Christian denominations.