NATIONAL HISTORY OF THE APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER IN NIGERIA: THE HISTORIC JOURNEY TO A HISTORIC DATE Valuable evidence exists to confirm and give authenticity to the fact that the oldest Sacred Heart group in Lagos and the whole of Nigeria is 87 years old in the year of our Lord, 2009. Before a confirmation of the correct year of its establishment in Lagos, the Archdiocesan Council of the Apostleship of Prayer, League of the Sacred Heart of Jesus celebrated its 60th Anniversary in 1998 based on the oral information available at that time. During a preparatory meeting with the Archbishop, now Anthony Cardinal Okogie, he contested that we might be wrong because the Sacred Heart Devotion was older than sixty years old in Lagos. He however celebrated the Pontifical Mass held in the Holy Cross Cathedral to mark the anniversary. After the celebration, further enquiries were made from the Archbishop and our members at the Cathedral Center until the year 2003 when one Engr. Ogundipe, a member in the cathedral, informed that his mother - Mrs. Catherine Ogundipe reported joining the Apostleship in 1924 even though the devotion existed earlier. By that time she had relocated from Lagos to Ijebu Isiwo, a town in Ogun State of Nigeria. In our effort to involve Bishop Fasina of Ijebu ode Diocese with the 80th Anniversary Celebration, now based on the strength of the 1924 date gotten from Engr. Ogundipe, this author and Mr. Julius Egbunigwe, an executive member of the Lagos Archdiocesan Council travelled to Ijebu Ode on 28th April 2004. (L-R): Mr. Stephen OluMaria Akinwole, Mrs. Catherine Ogundipe (Mama Jerusalem) and Mr. Julius Egbunigwe During the meeting with Bishop Albert Ayinde Fasina, his assistance was sought to locate Mrs. Catherine Ogundipe. He confirmed personal acquaintance with Mrs. Catherine Ogundipe, a Papal Medallist, (a.k.a Mama Jerusalem) who lived in another town, Ijebu-Ishiwo. Moved by instinct, the Bishop advised that we better visit her immediately. He wrote a letter of introduction to Mama Jerusalem as she was called and he gave us his Bishops Skull Cap in an envelope as evidence that he sent us. We were also given a note on his complimentary card to a Catholic photographer who would take pictures of Mama Jerusalem during the visit. As the town Mama lived was outside Ijebu Ode Township, the Bishop also directed his accountant, Mr. Emmanuel Fatoyinbo to lead us to Ijebu-Ishiwo - a journey of about half an hour. The historic meeting lasted about an hour as Mama Jerusalem bubbled with life and joy throughout the discussion. Born in 1902, she confirmed that the Apostleship of Prayer, League of the Sacred Heart of Jesus was established at the Holy Cross Cathedral, Lagos in 1922 before she later joined in 1924. An Irish priest whose name she had forgotten introduced the League. The Irish priest was later verified and confirmed as Rev. Fr. John Selwyn S.M.A. He introduced the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus under the Apostleship of Prayer at the Holy Cross Cathedral, Lagos in 1922. To the glory of God who perhaps purposely preserved Mrs. Catherine Ogundipe alias Mama Jerusalem for this history, her gentle soul passed to the Lord on 1st July, 2004, two months after The Historic Journey to a Historic Date. May her soul and the souls of all the departed Apostles of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, rest in peace.
Posted on: Mon, 04 Nov 2013 08:48:52 +0000
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