Mbaka: Priest, politician or renegade?
CATHOLIC priests in Nigeria have always captured the public imagination. Some of them have served in government positions, some were prominent in the fight and struggle for democracy, some of them have proved their mettle as poets, teachers, musicians, social critics, and public affairs commentators, but Rev. Fr. Ejike Camillus Anthony Ebenezer Mbaka is a cut above the rest, not necessarily in terms of intellect or persona, but in terms of how he has been able to use the pulpit to acquire a rock star status.
It is therefore not surprising that everything about him is with a touch of the histrionic. This is exactly what happened when he was transferred, last week, from a parish where he had served for 20 years: from Christ the King Parish, GRA Enugu, to Our Lady of the Rosary Parish, Umuchigbo, Njinike, Enugu. Characteristically, this radical priest and social activist turned what should be a routine administrative posting by his Bishop into a melodrama and an assault on the authority of the Church. You would think he had been sentenced to a jail term, the way he whined and wept and appealed to sympathy.
“I’m going to suffer because I have no place to put my head. I am going to suffer because I have no place to keep the Adoration Ministry’s assets…The Adoration Ministry is passing through suffering right now even though I’ve accepted that it is the will of God. Is the will of God through suffering? It is a mega suffering. The quantum of the assets of the Adoration Ministry is the only thing I am bothered about for now. Where am I going to keep them? I am going to stay in one small room that has only one small bed, one small table, little toilet and bathroom. So where am I going to keep all the Adoration assets?” I couldn’t believe that this was a Catholic Priest.
His pain was so palpable. He even took a shot at the Church: “I won’t fight anybody or even dream of battling anybody. If anybody allows the devil to use him, the same that advised you to make a mistake will laugh at you when you cry over the error.” This was a clear suggestion that the devil was using his boss, the Diocesan Bishop of Enugu, His Lordship Calistus Onaga, against him, Mbaka and the Adoration Ministry. Rev Fr. Mbaka further spoke with a touch of vanity about how he single-handedly built the Christ the King Parish, Enugu, with proceeds from the sale of his music albums. This priest is certainly special. He objects to suffering even if the Lord Jesus Christ, whose disciple he is, is the embodiment of sacrifice and suffering. He talks about assets in a capitalistic sense and yet his reputation rests on his commitment to the poor. He finally says he accepts the “suffering”, sounding like a victim.
Mbaka’s melodrama was nothing short of an act of protest and incitement. It didn’t take long before a mob-like group trooped to the GRA, Enugu to help him move his things to the new church where it is said he will be an assistant priest. If his followers had laid their hands on the Diocesan Bishop, only God knows what they would have done to him for allegedly demoting their hero. It also didn’t take long before the spokesperson for the All Progressives Congress (APC), Southeast Caucus, Osita Okechukwu issued a statement alleging that Mbaka was being victimised because he is pro-Buhari and pro-APC.
Okechukwu‘s intervention was a needless busybody act. He only stopped short of asking the Diocesan Bishop to reverse himself or get labeled as an enemy of the government of the day. Nor did it take long before the Catholic Church also put its feet down, stating clearly that no priest is above the Church. Mbaka definitely needed that reality check. But he had succeeded in politicizing his transfer and dragging the Catholic Church into mainstream, partisan politics with the Church holding the short end of the stick.
It is perhaps for this reason that the Catholic Bishop of Abuja Metropolitan See, Cardinal John Onaiyekan once asked that Rev. Fr. Mbaka should be sanctioned. He actually accused him of talking “rubbish” when he openly condemned President Goodluck Jonathan and insisted that the electorate should vote for Muhammadu Buhari, then Presidential candidate of the APC, who according to him, was destined to win the 2015 Presidential election. “I do not believe in my mind that the way things are in Nigeria, any Catholic priest has the mandate to decide which of the political contestants should be voted for… I don’t believe a priest should be doing that…If he was in my archdiocese, I will have sanctioned him long ago for the kind of utterances he makes.”
Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama, president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN), also similarly disowned him. Even with those protestations, Mbaka remained untouchable. He is on record as having declared in a secessionist mood, for example, that the sovereignty of Nigeria is not sacrosanct. “If we must be one Nigeria, let it be one Nigeria, but if it can’t be one Nigeria, let us divide…let us tell ourselves the truth.” He has also since the 2015 elections, made a high profile visit to the Presidential Villa to see President Buhari. He was actually shown arriving in a private jet, waving to the crowd as if he was on a Papal visit to the seat of power! How did one priest, out of over 30 million Nigerian Catholics, become so powerful and untouchable?
Rev. Fr. Mbaka’s seeming invincibility lies in his significance and relevance. His Ministry is a loud comment on the relationship between the Church and the congregation. Mbaka is the founder and Spiritual Director of a Ministry within the Catholic Church known as Adoration Ministry Enugu Nigeria (AMEN). Gifted, creative and clever; he is without any doubt a liberation theologian. He runs a prophetic church, a church that believes strongly in the power of the Eucharist, and which in every sense is a church of the poor. His source of inspiration must be those liberation theologians and other radical priests who have proven that for the church to be relevant, it must be relevant to the interests, concerns and expectations of the congregation, particularly the underprivileged poor.
More than any other catholic priest in Nigeria, Mbaka has taken the Catholic Church beyond the confines of liberal conservatism to the ordinary man in the market place. He speaks the poor man’s language, he appeals to their imagination. He is the bridge between the Pentecostal churches and the Catholic Church in Nigeria. He has mastered the tricks, the rhetoric, the antics and the persona of the former, and he applies this with a touch of sassiness that is original. He urges members of his ministry to “Pray Until Something Happens” (PUSH). In an overtly religious and superstitious country like Nigeria, there is never a shortage of persons who are ready to push until the impossible happens.
He organises vigils titled: “E no dey again”. That is precisely what the people want to hear. They want to hear that problems, disease, unemployment- “e no dey again!”. Mbaka also has a Foundation, the Multi-Life Savers Foundation. Note the emphasis on the saving of lives! He pays hospital bills, he gives out cars, he builds houses for people, he pays school fees, and he sponsors events. He sings. He dances. He is not your typical Catholic priest. He is rich. He talks about assets. Other priests go to him for financial assistance. He is an all-round entrepreneur in church garments. He provides hope. With all this, Fr. Mbaka is far ahead of his bosses within the Catholic hierarchy. Persons of other faiths and Christian denominations troop to his Ministry to seek spiritual counselling. Politicians seek his endorsement. He controls the mind of multitudes. The Catholic Church is probably in need of reinvention, and the seeds of that process may well lie in the example and eclecticism of Mbaka and his likes in other parts of the Catholic world.
The plain truth is that the average church-goer today is looking for something different which the orthodox churches and their mode of worship do not offer. The poor who make up the congregation are as impatient as the politicians who have made them poor. They want immediate salvation, practical solutions to their problems; they want their blessings here and now, not in a world to come. Mbaka and the Pentecostal pastors understand this and so they bring the church closer to the people’s needs. But there is a flipside and it is hubris.
Hubris is risky and pernicious. It is what makes Fr. Mbaka appear so contradictory. It is what has distanced him from his original vows as a priest, making him talk of cash and assets as if he were an investor on Broad Street. It is what makes him complain of suffering and see his transfer as a punishment, rather than as an opportunity for further evangelism of The Word. He must have started out as a humble priest, but today, he has mastered the use of the media for self-projection and he is not contented with being a priest, he is now enjoying the life of a celebrity, hugging the limelight, seeking personal glory. He runs a ministry of miracles, of wonders and signs and he sees visions of possible assassinations, either of himself or the politicians that he supports. No one should be surprised if this Pentecostal Catholic priest goes about with bodyguards. He shares this hubris with many other religious figures who seek to share power with politicians and co-govern Nigeria. They see visions about everything: from elections to diseases and foreign exchange rates. They have created a New Order under which they command the electorate, political parties and governments.
It is this hubris that has blinded Fr. Mbaka to the fact that the souls to be won for Christ are not only in GRA, Enugu, but in all places as well. His transfer to a smaller parish should remind him of the essence of his priestly vows: humility, simplicity, obedience, sacrifice, as well as commitment to the good of the church rather than individual heroism, values which can truly make him a priest in the Order of Melchizedek. Let him therefore, suffer if he must, and let his suffering be a blessing upon the poor and the Church, and if he as much as whimpers again, let him be posted post-haste to Sambisa Forest, where the poor are in urgent need of miracles.
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26 Comments
Hmm, Abati at his finest.
Father Mbaka has been so used to being in comfort and limelight that he now finds it hard to be relegated to obscurity.
But if you’re a cleric, servant of God and the people, you should take everything in your stride and thank God in every situation that all things work together for good for them that love God.
Mr Abati, your writeup is laced with bias and prejudice. I understand your bitterness towards Fr Mbaka since his historic prophecy sent you and your boss packing from Aso Rock after the humiliating defeat at the presidential poll. Are you so ignorant of the history of the Catholic Church to forget Ignatus Loyola, the Black Pope and founder of the Jesuit Order? And what would you tell us about the travails of the Jesuit Order within the official Catholic Church? The current Pope, Francis, is a Jesuit … a product of the militant wing of the Catholic Church! The true soldiers of Christ are not all dunces and willing tools of politicians and tyrants, as was the case when you and your boss were in charge at Aso Villa. Cheers!
EMMANUEL ANIZOBA IS THERE ANYTHING SAID ABOUT THE REV.FT MBAKA THAT IS NOT TRUE ON THIS WRITE UP. HABA BROS. THE MAN IS A CELEBRITY AND NOT A CATHOLIC PRIEST. EVEN PENTECOSTAL MINISTER DON’T TALK THE WAY HE TALKS.
Hi Sonny, are stories true because the narrator is an Authority in Historical Deception? Mr Abati may be a good storyteller, but I have the right to be skeptical about what he is striving to make me believe. You may be gullible and easily swayed by passion or prejudice, but that’s your choice and can’t be mine. HABA Sonny, TOLERATE ME SMALL NAA! Cheers!
Mbaka needs to see this posting as a positive challenge.
He should roll his sleeves…em…er…well, tighten his cassock and recreate his new parish in the image of the one he is leaving behind.
He is young and energetic, and there is no need to whine about his new assignment
Not even ‘as a positive challenge’ but a real call of Duty and a testament to his vow.
Mbaka is a man of God. God blesses whoever he wants
He should be mindful of the Politicians. They’ll ditch you at inference of light at the end of the tunnel.
I pray God give us more prists that can challenge authorities. Now you have seen how Dasuki shared military fund as Boko Haram killing many christians and burning catholic churches while GEJ supervised and Abati advise.
Abati did not advise on anything. The turncoat greedily became a vociferous cheerleader for the corrupt government as soon as he tasted their dollar currency.
As a man of God father Mbaka should not see his posting as suffering but positive change in God work. Once his strong in faith, God will appear in his situation.With step of faith God will show you why you are been posted
Catholic Church under any disguise cannot suppress truth. I am aware Catholic Church is not a democratic institution .I think Catholic Church under the Catholic Bishop of Abuja Metropolitan See, Cardinal John Onaiyekan is dead and lack direction.That is why the Pentecostal churches led by 419 Pastor Orijaofor and his Pentecostal bandwagon blindfolded ex-President Goodluck Jonathan and his govt. with fake prophesies that led to his downfall.
Catholic Church should have congratulated Rev. Fr. Ejike Camillus Anthony Ebenezer Mbaka for his courage and divine prophesies against ex-President Goodluck Jonathan and his fetish wife,Patience as against fake prophasis of the Pentecostal churches led by known 419 Pastors now bowed to shame for deceiving ex-President Goodluck Jonathan and his corrupt govt.
Mbaka is a man of God with strong character of devine conviction believe him or hate him, as many Christians did during the last election because of ignorance. God blesses whoever he wants.
QUESTIONS:
1. Where were the Catholic Bishops in Nigeria under Cardinal John Onaiyekan and all the Anglican Bishops of Nigeria when PDP under ex-President Goodluck Jonathan and his govt. were looting Nigerian monies with impunity.
2. Where were the the Catholic Bishops in Nigeria under Cardinal John Onaiyekan and all the Anglican Bishops of Nigeria
when Pastor Orijisaofor bought private jets with stolen money with the connivance of ex-President Goodluck Jonathan in a dubious circumstance.
3. Where were the the Catholic Bishops in Nigeria under Cardinal John Onaiyekan and all the Anglican Bishops of Nigeria when PDP under ex-President Goodluck Jonathan and his govt. were ruling Nigeria like Ali Baba republic.( I Steal, You steal God no go vex.)
4 What is the Catholic Bishops in Nigeria under Cardinal John Onaiyekan and all the Anglican Bishops of Nigeria views when ex-President Goodluck Jonathan defined corruption as not a crime. Ofcource,David Mark, an Abuja based strong catholic and all the 419 Pentecostal Pastors clapped for him.
The whole circumstance and conspiracy against Mbaka,the founder and Spiritual Director of a Ministry within the Catholic Church known as Adoration Ministry Enugu Nigeria (AMEN) are just mere Jealousy and greed of highest order sponsored by Abuja politicians close to Cardinal John Onaiyekan . Mbaka is Gifted, creative and clever; he is without any doubt a liberation theologian. To liberate Nigerians including Catholic Bishops in Nigeria under Cardinal John Onaiyekan,419 Pentecostal Pastors and all the Anglican Bishops of Nigeria from the Ali Baba republic under Mumu ex-President Goodluck Jonathan
The Churches are Spiritualists. They do not have to challenge the Governments directly. They do that through the pulpits; directly to the Congregations and by multiplier effect the greater lay population. Christ ordered the rules of the game. There should be no deviancy from that.
Nice reply to Abati and his abatilisation of honesty .
100% correct. And Abati lack the moral right to condemn Mbaka because he Abati, went to Aso Rock to enrich himself and forgot how he was using Guardian newspaper to fault past regimes. An opportunist.
Both and also confused
Foolish news, telling us the names of the vigils the man of God has done make me believe this is paid journalism. Picking one title out of hundreds and thousands of vigils the man of God has done is the height of misleading ignorance people like yourself
I think you guys are all arguing over nothing. Time reveals all truths. God reveals all truths in the fullness of time. We are all watching.
Mr. Abati you should have been this precise in counseling the Government you served, the likes which create the Mbaka’s from the pulpits to Wall Streets. Look, it is when governance fails that we have errant and out of hand fixers. Fr. Mbaka is a recalcitrant Priest who has thrown caution, professionalism, tact and respect for authority to the wind. His challenge for the administrations are his inalienable right as an individual but wearing, the Church robes, faults his deep routed dramatics unless the fraternity of his priesthood specifies otherwise. He is young and naïve, obviously younger than Martin Luther during the similar era of the Catholic, the Pope, the Congregations, the Governments and civil mobility. The transfer was very late in coming by his superiors. It should have been better he worked through the pulpits than from the aisles of political corridors that way there will be no defaults of his intentions: ‘Priest, Politician or Renegade?’. To be honest, his actions are confusing given the way he goes about showcasing them. I would rather have received his message through the Church avenues. His rants of where he was taken for what he deemed a disciplinary action has not deviated from his feelings when he confronted the Government you served with great discipline. Giving counsel in private is different from shellacking in public anytime. I know you noticed things that mortified you in policy but issued your caveats in private. That’s the kind of challenges the priest should be showing clearly through the Church. If that is too difficult for him to do, he should trade his frocks for ‘kaftaan’ and ‘dashiki’.
Thank God for this development that is exposing Mbaka for who he truly is: a Master Fraud whose only driving philosophy is to surpass Rev Fr Edeh (another capitalist!) in fame & material wealth! Unfortunately half a century of marginalization of the Igbo race have made the helpless masses vulnerable to him & other opportunists like him.
Mr Mbaka needs urgent demystification. Catholics all over the world are ‘proud’ of Mother Theresa, a saint who served God and the poor in the slums of India. But our political priest does not want to be removed from the comfort of the GRA. In Matthew 8:20 the Scripture which cannot be broken declares: Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head’. If Mr Mbaka is truly serving Christ, why all the noise about assets that were acquired through tithes and offerings?
My conversation with old school mate yesterday at beer palor….Oh boy! you hear say Abati don dey write again? N a lie, he dey Aso Rock dey chop yesterday, i see am korokoro. U sure? they said he still dey cry as Mbaka take remove food from his mouth….No o, they transfered Father Mbaka and Father Edeh too. Na normal Catholic process. You dey lie, Father Ede na Oba, he no dey go transfer. That Ruben man na big sell out. lost credibility and never saw nor said anything wrong against PDP and Goodluck regime. Akpati corruption.
And for the naive and PDP supporter, the timing has political connection and it is the duty of men of God to always call out erring public servants. From John the Baptist to Elija, Elisha, Nathan, etc….they talked to kings point blank…Mbaka did for free, what Abati was paid to do at Aso Rock. In fact, guiding the moral behaviour of leaders should have been the #1 job of pastors and prophets if not that corruption has frozen the brains of people like Orishajefor and many others.
As much as I loathe Mr Abati, who is one of the worst charlatans produced in this society, he is not the issue here. Mr Mbaka is. Hubris cannot be a virtue for a libertarian priest which Mr Mbaka claims to be. If he has become too big for the Catholic Church, he should do the honourable thing: resign his priesthood and start his own church.
…and where should we send you Mr. Abati? After your shameful and ignoble outing under the last dispensation you should be the one hiding in sambisa. In case you have not realized, you have lost every respect you have as a journalist and the last we want to hear is you coming out to sound so sanctimonious as if you still have any relevance left in you. If you want to know if am right about you, read your write up again and see how you sound. The write up is laced with so much bitterness and bias against Father Mbaka. A clear departure from the Abati we used to know pre-govt appointment. Pray, who asked for your opinion? You are a finished man. Go take a rest and sambisa will be a perfect place for you as well. You need some soul searching to do.
The unattractive but elegance writings of Abati which has left everyone with everything but honour and respect has the colouration of politically paid drummer who must conduct a research whether misleading or not to ensure he justifies and confuse his poor frozen brain pay masters. The patent issues were left for the latent and ignoble surface scribing. The mind burgling questions that should agitate every mind are; whether Mbaka is a super human, has he right to complain, has he disobeyed the church, Is the church acting on policy or driven sentiment. In all he has equal right to pass comment on issue he feel concerned and that bordered him. As a part of the system, he can not be restricted whether he speak love of a particular set or not. The ranting and full hate of a disgruntled master story teller like Abati may go to town to impress his apologist with unindebt analysis of a capitalised lies simply to fill the emptiness in them with unadulterated ignorance. I take exception to his misleading prepaid story.
The Catholic hierarchy or establishment saw no evil and kept mute during the PDP years of rape and rampant looting of the nation’s economy under President Jonathan, and with Reuben Abati as a turncoat cheerleader. In fact, a top leader of the Christian establishment decorated President Jonathan with the award of best christian virtues in leadership, at the peak of the presidential campaign. Faced with the choice between President Jonathan and Muhammad Buari, one priest with rare courage, Father Mbaka, came out to lament that Nigeria would be doomed if President Jonathan were to be reelected. Now, Abati has further informed us of the numerous charitable deeds of Father Mbaka towards the welfare of the poor and the masses. It is astonishing that the Catholic establishment that did not openly condemn the years of locust came out recently, not to to enthusiastically rally support for PMB’s anti-corruption war but to say that the war would not succeed without PMB inviting the Christian establishment leaders to a round table. Where were these Christian leaders in the corruption laden years of President Jonathan?
As a Yoruba man, Abati knows the meaning and import of “aje ke lana, omo ku loni.” It is obvious that the posting of Father Mbaka by the Catholic establishment is nothing but a push back against the priest’s bold and popular egalitarian disposition. Mbaka is not arrogant; neither is he servile. The description hubris fits Mbaka’s oppressors.
We will review and take appropriate action.