St. Andrew Apana Erected As Parish

The joy of the people of St. Andrew Catholic Church, Apana and the entire Apana community knew no bounds as their Mass Centre was raised to the status of a Parish recently by His Lordship, Most Rev. (Dr.) Gabriel G. Dunia, the Catholic Bishop of the Diocese of Auchi after a period of a hundred and one (101) years of the Church's existence.
The event which attracted many dignitaries from all walks of life included the most elderly person in Apana community, Pa Isaac Oshiokhamhele. The ceremony began with a Holy Mass which was celebrated by the Bishop and assisted by a host of Priests and Religious.
In his homily, the Chief Shepherd informed all that for one to achieve greater heights, he or she needs to work hard to add to what he or she already has and enjoined parishioners to put in more effort as that is what will make them great. He condemned the act of being complacent after attaining a certain height, adding that they need to keep striving in all their endeavours.
The homilist told the Church that when St. Andrew, the Saint the church is named after and whose Feast they were celebrating, was called by Jesus Christ, he abandoned his duty of fishing and followed Jesus immediately. St Andrew did not stop at that but even in the course of preaching and evangelization, it was he who called Peter to come see the Messiah. Continuing, the homilist told parishioners not to relent in their effort to achieve greater heights. He prayed God to bless them abundantly.
During the Mass, the Bishop pronounced the decree which established the Church as a Parish, which coincided with the celebration of the Feast of St. Andrew and following this erection of the Parish, the Bishop appointed the erstwhile rector of the Mass Center, Rev. Fr. Goderick Shaba as Parish Priest to oversee the affairs of the Parish.
Shortly before the close of the Mass, the Laity President of the newly created Parish, Mr. Uduapi Philip delivered a vote of thanks on behalf of the Parish Priest, the Lay faithful and the entire Apana community. He also thanked the Almighty God who made the day a reality, noting that the Bishop allowed himself to be used by God, having started the journey with them to where they were presently. He equally thanked Priests who were present and the entire parishioners for creating time to attend the event in spite of their tight schedules. He prayed Almighty God to support them in time of their need and for journey mercies back to their respective destinations.
High point of the whole event was the entertainment of guests outside the church with food, drinks, and various cultural dances and music under the full coordination of the Master of Ceremonies (MC) Mr. Anthony Osi Omogbai.