Ikenna Okpaleke

"Then He opened their minds ..." (Luke 24:45).

[U.S. Mission Nigeria @USinNigeria]

Join us in welcoming Dr. Cajetan Iheka to Nigeria!

Starting August 20, the @Yale Professor of English begins a 10-month Fulbright appointment at the @UnilagNigeria. Dr. Iheka serves as director of Yale's Whitney Humanities Center, Chair of the Council on African Studies, Head of the Yale Africa Initiative, and Editor-in-Chief of African Studies Review.

At UNILAG, he will lead seminars and training for early-career faculty and postgraduate students. He will also lead course development, contribute to graduate curriculum redesign, and mentor faculty through teaching and publishing workshops.

Did you know that since 1960, there have been over 1,200 @FulbrightPrgrm scholars throughout Nigeria, many of whom currently occupy leadership positions in government as well as public, private and international institutions?

#USinNigeria

[Mary Ekemezie @MaryEkemezie]

One issue that the last 11+ years with APC has shown us is the depth of the rot in the Nigerian system, and the inversion of the moral framework of Nigerians. As part of my commitment to creating a new Nigeria, I am starting a formation course for young adults aged 18 to 35 years

[Sheila of the Most High @sheilatebra]

One of Satan's goal is to destroy your ability to love people because that's what makes you like Jesus the most. That's why he attacks your forgiveness, your patience and your compassion. Because when you stop loving people, you stop reflecting Jesus. Guard your heart and continue loving

[Ikenna Okpaleke @passyik]

@Bigluminous @FrUgochukwu The idea is that bodily death isn't the end of life, and so, for believers, death opens the door to eternal life in God. With that positive view, we can choose white vestments instead of purple. Purple emphasises the mourning aspect of death, which is also fine.

[Ikenna Okpaleke @passyik]

@Cassidyfr84 Happy birthday to you my brother. Blessings and cheers!

[Ikenna Okpaleke @passyik]

@FrUgochukwu Happy Birthday brother. Blessings and cheers!

[Chidi Anselm Odinkalu, CGoF @ChidiOdinkalu]

Anthony Cardinal Olubunmi Okogie was born #OnThisDay in 1936. He became a priest at 30 in 1966. 5 yrs later, he was made a Bishop & he became Catholic Archbishop of Lagos 7 yrs after ordination at 37.

In 2003, he was elevated to the Cardinalate.

In his prime, Cardinal Okogie was the most formidable voice for dignity, justice, accountable government, & against military rule. Today, he turns 90.

He can look back at his priestly & episcopal service with pride & gratitude.🎂🙏🎂

[Pope Leo XIV @Pontifex]

The World Cup begins tomorrow, and many will watch the matches. Soccer reminds us of something we must not forget: life is not a race to show off on our own, but a path we learn to walk together. Anyone who does not know how to pass the ball, even if they have talent, has not yet understood the game. Anyone who does not know how to live with and for others has not yet understood life. #ApostolicJourney

[Catholic Sat @CatholicSat]

Pope Leo XIV drops a wreath of flowers into the sea of the Port of Arguineguín in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, in tribute to the African migrants who died attempting the dangerous Atlantic route into the European Union.

[Osaretin Victor Asemota @asemota]

Never forget.

[Chidi Anselm Odinkalu, CGoF @ChidiOdinkalu]

This week embodies arguably the most consequential anniversaries in #Nigeria's post-colonial history.

On 27 May, 1967, Military Head of State, Yakubu Gowon, turned his mutual contretemps with the Military Governor of the Eastern Region, Emeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu, into a territorial issue with the creation of 12 States out of the 4 regions of the country. Of the 12 States, 25% came from Ojukwu's Eastern Region.

In response, the Eastern Region's #LeadersOfThought who were in meeting in Enugu at the time went into an emergency session, at the end of which they called on Ojukwu to declare a secession by Biafra.

After 3 days, a besieged & reluctant Ojukwu acceded to their prompting & #OnThisDay in 1967 declared the birth of Biafra as a Republic, all but making war inevitable.

Two months later, the #ShootingWar began with the launch of hostilities in Gakem. They were to last 30 months thereafter.

The war ended with Biafra's capitulation on 15 Jan 1970. Nigeria won the war. But did it do enough to win the peace? Has the Civil War truly ended?

[Christopher Hale @ChristopherHale]

The Vatican struggles to make its documents consumable, so the work of spreading them often falls to lay people.

I built a one-stop shop for Pope Leo XIV's new AI encyclical — a cleaner reader for the text plus graphic explainers to make sense of it. https://t.co/pwexC4kARO

[Pope Leo XIV @Pontifex]

I renew my invitation for everyone to join me for the Prayer Vigil for Peace, which we will celebrate in St. Peter’s Basilica at 6:00 PM Rome time. #PrayTogether #Peace
https://t.co/S34tjRjvO7

[Pope Leo XIV @Pontifex]

I urge everyone to accompany this moment of delicate diplomacy with prayer, in hopes that a willingness to dialogue may become the means to resolve other conflict situations in the world as well. #PrayTogether #Peace

[Nick Freiling @NickFreiling]

A cutting reflection from Cardinal Ratzinger, Good Friday 2005:

"Pilate is not utterly evil. He knows that the condemned man is innocent, and he looks for a way to free him. But his heart is divided. And in the end he lets his own position, his own self-interest, prevail over what is right.

Nor are the men who are shouting and demanding the death of Jesus utterly evil. Many of them, on the day of Pentecost, will feel "cut to the heart," when Peter will say to them: "Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God... you crucified and killed by the hands of those outside the law."

But at that moment they are caught up in the crowd. They are shouting because everyone else is shouting, and they are shouting the same thing that everyone else is shouting. And in this way, justice is trampled underfoot by weakness, cowardice and fear of the diktat of the ruling mindset. The quiet voice of conscience is drowned out by the cries of the crowd.

Evil draws its power from indecision and concern for what other people think."

[Ikenna Okpaleke @passyik]

@Mazichidi07 @abonyi_maryann @abrobivel Send a DM too

[Ikenna Okpaleke @passyik]

@abonyi_maryann @abrobivel send a DM

[Ikenna Okpaleke @passyik]

@dr_Drofilk @frmarcellinus Georges Lemaitre

[Eziokwu @Iameziokwu]

Okay, so... Lemme explain this for those who don't understand the exact true context of this story.

In Oakland Park, Florida, Father Bob Caudill has been feeding the homeless for over 12 years now at his church, All Saints Catholic Mission. He doesn’t just hand out meals, he also provides them with clothes, showers etc to help restore their dignity, something people in their society often ignores.

The problem is that, in 2014, the city rezoned the area, making his soup kitchen technically illegal. The city isn’t saying feeding the hungry is wrong, they’re saying his operations violate zoning laws.

Since 2016, the city has been fining him $125 per day, which has now stacked up to over $500,000, with liens even placed on the church and on Father Bob personally.

It's crazy how the law can be used this way. Basically, they're doing everything they can to keep people homeless.

The enforcement of that law can pressure someone to stop doing the right thing. Instead of the government to work with Father Bob to create a permitted kitchen or a temporary solution, the city instead chose rigid punishment. The law became a weapon against the charity.

If churches worldwide actually lived up to their purpose, they’d be doing exactly what Father Bob is doing.

A church isn’t just a building, it’s a home, a sanctuary, a place where humanity matters. Feeding the hungry, sheltering the weary, and preserving dignity should be the baseline.

[Osaretin Victor Asemota @asemota]

Children will always navigate towards things you make exciting for them. My daughter, who used to hate Catholic Catechism, doesn't mind going to play tennis twice a weekend on Saturdays and Sundays with her friends. I realized that something has to be done to change the Catholic Catechism classes.

We have depended on this pedagogic model of the Cathechist and students for far too long, and maybe we should evolve it, or we will keep losing potential Catholics.

My kids are not functional Catholics, as they don't understand anything deeply. I try my best, but I think I need more help aligned with the things they enjoy doing. People have different learning models.

My son's excellent performance at his new school, with better digital tools and a broader scope, has made me realize even more that Catholic Catechism MUST evolve.

The Pentecostal churches don't have a better gospel; it is still the same, but the UX is different. I went to a friend's wedding, and the amount the church spent on digital effects and comfort blew my mind. I almost wanted to go back there. It was unassuming outside but mindblowing inside.

When my money comes, this will be my next project for my church.