22/08/2025
TWO DAYS BEING SICK; LOST IN SIGHT BUT INDEED LIVES WITH THE LORD FOREVER.
The air in the compound of St. Joseph Cathedral, Aguleri was thick with a palpable, collective grief. Today, the Catholic Diocese of Aguleri and all God's People were not only celebrating the sacrifice of Christ, the Holy Mass, but also performing a sacred duty of farewell, laying to rest one of its brightest flames, Fr. Vincent Okala Abanogu, extinguished at the heartbreaking age of 38.
The scene was a profound testament to a life lived well, yet far too short. The somber purple coloured chasubles of the Clergy, the embroidered purple colored cope of the Bishop, with faces of priests etched in disbelief and seminarians staring at the fragile moments, make the message of this day loud and clear. There were Religious Sisters and Brothers, and a multitude of the faithful that spilled out across the Cathedral, the old leaned on walking sticks, and we can see the tears of Fr. Vincent's mum and siblings tracing the maps of his short-lived life on their faces. The entire Nteje community stood as one family, united in a heartbreak that shook the very foundations of their faith.
The most tearful moment came not with a sermon, but with a silence. As the final commendation prayers faded, and the pallbearers—his classmates, gently rolled his casket to the porch, down to the Priests Cemetery, while the chior sang: "Libera me Domine, de morte aeterna, in die illa tremenda....Save me from eternal death Oh Lord, on that dreadful day. What a moment?
As the rhythmic, gritty sound of earth met the wooden casket in a cruel, metronomic beat, each shovelful of soil thrown into the grave was a stark, physical confirmation of the unbearable truth: HE IS TRULY GONE. The sight of the red earth of Aguleri Diocese, the very land he had served and loved, now covering his remains, was a vision of heartbreaking finality.
The tears that fell today were not just tears of sadness, but tears of love and gratitude for @
