Drama in Benue Church as priest rejects bottled water brought by member for Thanksgiving

There was a commotion at St. Paul’s Parish Kontien in Gboko Local Government Area of Benue State Sunday as the Priest in charge of the Church, Rev. Fr. Boniface Ayoo, rejected the thanksgiving offertory of crates of bottle water from Kuhwa Gberindyer’s family who are his parishioners.

The parishioners, Mr and Mrs Comfort Stephen Kuhwa Gberindyer, took from their farm tubers of yam and packets of Swan water bottles for a thanksgiving to God for the birthday of their daughter Miss Msendoo Kuhwa and memorial service for their late father, Kuhwa Gberindyer of Vandeikya Local Government Area.

But to their rude shock, Rev. Fr. Ayoo rejected the offertory of bottled water, saying he was “not at a burial” and he did not need the bottled water.

The priest, who further warned the congragetion of bringing minor offertory to the church said, “nobody should ever bring bottled water before the altar as offertory for thanksgiving”.

He advised members of the church to emulate the offertory style of another celebrant that brought a goat.

“I commend this man that brought a he goat for thanksgiving, let me warn you, nobody should ever bring bottled water here for thanksgiving, we are not at a burial, please!”

The action of the Catholic priest did not go down well with the family of Ayoo who felt humiliated as well as other members of the congragetion as they angrily abandoned the service and left throwing abusive words at the priest.