Pope Benedict XVI will visit Nigeria due to the rising rate of killings in the country, according to the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN). It was gathered that the visit will be a sort of encouragement to Nigerians who have witnessed killings in many parts of the country.
Catholic Archbishop of Lagos Most Rev. Alfred Adewale Martins, announced the invitation in an interview with the Vatican News (the mouthpiece of the Holy See).
“Oh yes! We’re looking forward to seeing him. Yes, we did invite him and of course, as expected, he couldn’t give us a response then but we hopeful he would react to that,” the cleric added.
“If he does come, it will not only strengthen the people, it will also encourage the people to be able to cope with these different challenges.”
Although, the Catholic spiritual head had not responded to the invitation to visit Nigeria, Most Rev. Martins says the Pope was about the killings in the country.
He said, “Well, of course, we also asked him what message he wanted us to take back home as a message to our people.
“He said we should be courageous, particularly with regards to the recent troubles with the terrorists that masquerade as herdsmen.
“He told us to tell our people that he is with us in spirit and he is with us praying for us; that whatever it is that is possible in order to ameliorate the situation, he is willing to journey with us. We thought that was very good.”
