Church allegedly suspends priest who banned Igbo songs in parish

The Parish Priest of Holy Trinity Catholic Church, Ewu-Owa Gberigbe in Ikorodu, Lagos, Rev. Fr. James Anelu, has been “suspended” for banning Igbo songs and choruses in his parish.

It was alleged that the Priest had angrily stopped a soul-lifting chorus during the second collection, saying that the Igbos could not keep dominating other people even in his Church.

He reportedly sighted the case of his Benin Diocese, where Igbos dominate to the point of becoming the Bishop in person of Akubueze.

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Rev. Fr. James Anelu said that the spirit of God in any place recognises only languages indigenous to that geographical location.

On saying this, the entire congregation went up in tumultuous uproar, leading to abrupt dismissal, as people massively walked out of the Mass.

The Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos, Alfred Martins, in a “disclaimer”, directed the priest to proceed on “an indefinite leave of absence”.

While announcing the suspension, Martins, in the letter dated February 7, said, “It has been brought to our notice that Rev Fr James Anelu, the priest-in-charge of Holy Trinity Catholic Church, Ewu-Owa, Ikorodu, made some completely unacceptable comments about Igbo songs being sung in the Church and unsavoury remarks that do not represent the Catholic church’s position on the common brotherhood of peoples of all tribes and religions.

“For this reason, he has been asked to proceed on an indefinite leave of absence to give an opportunity for a thorough investigation of all the matters relating to his ministry on the parish. The leave of absence takes effect from Tuesday, February 8, 2022, till further notice

“We, therefore, urge all Catholic faithful to hold on to the faith and continue in worship of God as one big family united and not separated by language, culture, or race.”