Over three thousand Ghanaians attended an Ecumenical and Inter-Faith Service at the Holy Spirit Cathedral in Accra on Saturday March 4, for the re-consecration of Ghana to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
The Service which was part of activities to mark the 60th Independence Anniversary of Ghana on March, 6 was attended by His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo,
and his spouce, Rebecca; Professor Mike Oquaye, Speaker of Parliament, Chief Justice Georgina Theodora Wood and other Government functionaries.
Organized by the Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference (GCBC), the Service was presided over by His Eminence Giuseppe Cardinal Bertello, Special Papal Envoy.
He was assisted by His Excellency, Most Rev. Jean Marie Speich, Apostolic Nuncio to Ghana and Most Rev. Philip Naameh, President of the GCBC.
Also present were the Clergy from the Christian Council of Ghana, the Anglican Communion, the Pentecostal and Charismatic Council, the Office of the Chief Imam led by Sheik Dr. Nuhu Shaributu, National Chief Imam and Maulvi Umar Faruk Yahaya of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission as well as Traditional Rulers.
In a Reflection, Cardinal Bertello said “Today gives us another reason to rejoice, for during the celebration of these First Lenten Vespers, Ghana will be re-consecrated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.”
“Today, we will renew what occurred sixty years ago, when, on March 3, 1957, a few days before the proclamation of Independence on March 6, the country was consecrated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, a consecration that was later repeated in the year 2007 on the Golden Jubilee of its birth as a nation,” he noted.
He said “These celebrations manifest the close bond between your country and the Sacred Heart of Jesus, a bond that is reinforced by the attention dedicated to its devotion in civic and social life.”
“With the act of consecration, the full and exclusive lordship of God over Ghana is acknowledged. During the crucial moment, when this newly independent nation was striving to grow in the path of responsibility and autonomy, Ghana did not forget Christ; it turned to Him with humbleness to offer itself and beseech blessings from heaven, the Cardinal noted.”
In a goodwill message, President Akufo-Addo urged Ghanaians to eschew corrupt practices in order to bring prosperity to the people, noting that this could be done only through hard-work, enterprise, creativity and with the determination to fight corruption in the public life.
He expressed his appreciation to the Catholic Church for organising an event that had brought together all Religious Bodies, a deed which he said “goes a long way to foster peace and unity among all persons irrespective of their Religious backgrounds.”
In a welcome address at the Ecumenical Service, Most Rev. Philip Naameh, Archbishop of Tamale and President of the GCBC, stated that “Africa is reputed to be incurably religious, so is Ghana too, and today, we the Ghana Catholic Bishops, our Priests and Religious, our Lay men and women, our youth and children, have invited you, to the Ecumenical and Inter-faith Prayer Service at which we hope to re-consecrate Ghana our motherland, her enormous heritage of natural resources, human wealth and potential, and her cultural diversity to God our Creator Almighty and Most Merciful.”
The Archbishop stated that the religious act of consecrating persons, places and objects to God abound in the Holy Scriptures; making references to Genesis 28:17-19, where Jacob consecrated the stone he had used as pillow and dreamt upon the night before to God; he poured oil on it and dedicated it to God calling the place BETHEL, the House of God.
He said in 1 Samuel 10:1ff and 16:12-13, the Prophet Samuel anointed Saul, and later on David to become kings of the People of Israel successively. King David also consecrated Sion, the city of David to God similarly. And King Solomon was reported to have consecrated the Temple to God in 1 Kings 8:1ff.
The Act of Consecration of Ghana to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, was first celebrated on Sunday, March 03, 1957, here in the hallowed precincts of this Holy Spirit Cathedral, Accra, by Archbishop William Thomas PORTER, SMA, then Archbishop of the Gold Coast in the presence of the Pope’s Envoy in the person of Most Reverend James R. KNOX; and specially in attendance was Dr. Kwame NKRUMAH, Prime Minister and Mr. Kojo BOTSIO, Minister of Trade and Labour. This consecration event took place three days before Ghana’s Independence.”
By Angela Ofosu Boateng and Damian Avevor
