Adolphus Ikuluke: Makurdi Catholic Diocese clears air on controversy trailing death, burial of priest

The Makurdi Catholic diocesan Laity Council has finally addressed the controversy trailing the death and burial of one of its priests, Rev Fr. Adolphus Ikuluke

IDOMA VOICE reports that the catholic cleric died on Monday after a brief illness and has since been buried.

Following his death, a catholic Priest, Fr Benjamin Tardoo Agan, CSSp has faulted the decision of the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Makurdi and his consultors not to celebrate a funeral mass for the deceased.

Fr. Agan, in a Facebook page, said he was not happy and no apology, challenging the Chikpa Wilfred Anagbe of Makurdi Diocese, to go into isolation if indeed Fr. Ikuluke died of COVID-19 since they all kept visiting while in the hospital.

Reacting, the laity council in a statement jointly signed by Mr. Daniel T Kwaghza, Diocesan President MCDLC and Mr Njie T Andrew KSJI, Diocesan Secretary General MCDLC, blasted Agan for attacking God’s anointed.

The statement said Agan has no right to question the decision of the priest over the burial of the late catholic priest.

The statement reads below.

The Makurdi Catholic diocesan Laity Council woke up yesterday and was confronted with a media statement purportedly written by one Rev. Fr. Benjamin Tardoo Agan CSSp alledging amongst other things that the diocese erred in judgement about the burial of a Priest.

While we refuse to join issues with him, we as a laity council can hardly see how a Catholic priest can make the statement said to be made by the Priest and more so use the social media to address issues in and of the church, if there are.

We as the umbrella organization of lay faithful of Makurdi diocese express concern and condemn in the strongest terms the frequent needless social media attacks on the Church and her leaders. The Bible which is the word of God admonishes not to do harm to the anointed of God. When God rejected King Saul and anointed David as King, Saul decided to go after the life of David. On this day, fate gave Saul into the hands of David, but David said he was not going to raise his hand against whom God had anointed. If David could not raise his hand on an anointed man whom God had rejected, we truly wonder why we delight in casting aspersions on the Church and her leaders.

We as the umbrella Council of the Catholic Laity of Makurdi diocese, deeply mourn our priest and father Rev. Fr Adolphus Ikuluke who died at the treatment centre of a Tertiary hospital in Makurdi and has since been buried. We condole with the Bishop of the Catholic diocese of Makurdi, the Family, Priests, Religious and Lay faithful over this loss. We call on people who are making inflammatory statements that are causing more pains to those who sincerely and genuinely love Fr. Ikuluke to desist forthwith, as such statements are making it difficult for us to Mourn our loss.

We condemn in total the attempt by the public to coerce the Church to take decisions according to the mind of the public.

We believe that the Bishop is guided by the holy spirit, the law of the Church and structure in taking decisions concerning the diocese entrusted to him by the Holy Father the Pope.

It is therefore wrong for people to attempt to force the Bishop to take a decision that is not guided by the law of the Church.