The traditional ruler of the Benin Kingdom in Nigeria is calling on the leadership of Catholic Church in the West African nation to speak out against all vices against individual persons and groups in the country.
In his Wednesday, November 9 address during the third National Pastoral Congress that brought together Catholic Church leaders in Nigeria, the Oba (traditional ruler) of the Benin Kingdom, Oba Ewuare II, underscored the need for members of the Clergy, men and women Religious to be the moral compass of society.
“It is the duty of the Church to expose incidences of discrimination, exploitation, corruption, victimization, social indiscipline, ethnic hatred, jealousy, indignity and immorality towards persons and groups. The Church is expected to speak out against these societal vices,” Oba Ewuare II said at the event that was held at St. Paul Catholic Parish of Benin City Archdiocese.
The Church needs to foster unity, social justice, youth and women empowerment, he said, and added, “In the interest of the society and country, we want to hear messages from the pulpits on morality, ethics, holiness, righteousness and soul salvation.”
The Nigerian traditional ruler cautioned against the tendency, on the part of church leaders, to compromise the principle of integrity, saying, “There ought to be management rules against churches that may accept financial support from persons with doubtful integrity.”
“The Church should not be seen to hesitate to encourage citizens to take their duties to the State seriously with due regard to integrity, honesty, accountability and a sense of fairness to all,” Oba Ewuare II said,
The ruler who was known as Eheneden Erediauwa before his coronation as the 40th leader of the kingdom in 2016 further said, “The original role of the Church is to promote morality, act as the conscience of the state and serve as an important engine for unity and development.”
“The picture of the early Church is that of a people bound together in one spirit and one mind. This is the direction of contribution that the nation looks forward to, from the Church,” Oba Ewuare II said, adding, “It is in the interest of the church to avoid denominational feuds and Pentecostal over-exuberance.”
“In the area of education,” the Oba said, “the ordinary man looks forward to Christian schools where he would pay far less than those schools managed by profit seeking business men.”
In his address on the second day of the November 8-11 third National Pastoral Congress, Oba Ewuare II said Church leaders “should be a moral guardian to everyone, particularly those in power and authority.”
The traditional leader who said he was baptized in the Catholic Church as an infant underlined the need for “religious tolerance” among members of the different religions including the African Traditional Religion (ATR) in the West African nation.
“One cannot end this presentation without emphasizing the need for religious tolerance amongst the different religions in Nigeria more so that even the African Traditional Religion usually viewed as Pagan religion is no longer discriminated against in the Vatican!” said Oba Ewuare II.
He went on to encourage the embracing of ATR in solving some of the challenges in Africa's most populous nation.
“You may wish to explore the possibility of the benefits of African Traditional Religion in the support of the state,” he said, adding that the Palace of the Oba of Benin has been helpful in assisting The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) to arrest the trend of the infamous Human Trafficking in Edo State.
Oba Ewuare II said that the ATR “may also be more effective than the law in matters of insecurity and stealing of our commonwealth.”