It was a floodgate of encomiums as the Imo State Government House Chaplain of Government, Monsignor Dr. Ralph Madu, was laid to rest.
Madu was interred at the Assumpta Cathedral burial ground, Owerri
In his homily during the Holy Mass the preceded the burial, Catholic Bishop of Aba Diocese, Most Reverend Dr. Augustine Echema, has admonished Christians to never allow the vicitudes and vagaries of life to weigh them down but rather face everything with faith and trust in God.
A native of Nunya Isikwuato LGA of Abia state, Monsignor Madu died after a brief illness at the age of 65.
The floodgate of praises was opened by Governor Hope Uzodimma in the tribute he read at the end of the Holy Mass at the Cathedral, where he described the late Monsignor Madu not just as “a good man” but “as a great man with cerebral life in Christ and in the service of humanity.”
The Governor said Monsignor Madu’s passing was shocking, sudden and sorrowful, but noted that nobody can “question the will of God who is the author and finisher of all human lives.”
Uzodimma said that late Msgr. Madu left a lot of accomplishments that “challenges we the living to see his lifestyle as a pointer to what we are supposed to emulate so that when we leave this world we will not only be mourned but the living will celebrate our achievements.”
The governor severally described the late Msgr. Madu who was the immediate past Secretary General of Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria as a “gold fish that had no hiding place”, recalling that the deceased achieved and accomplished a lot in every position he found himself.
Uzodimma said within the short period Msgr. Madu worked as the Government House Chaplain, he impacted the lives of many people who came in contact with him both spiritually and physically.
The governor said that solace should be taken in the remarkable achievements of the late Monsignor in the short period of time he lived.
In a funeral oration in honour of the late Monsignor Madu, by the Owerri Catholic Archdiocese, presented by the Chancellor, Very Revd. Msgr. Alphonsus Oha, said, “Msgr. Madu will be greatly missed for his passion for church development and community empowerment, in his inspiring affability and tactical diplomacy, his high sense of humor and big heartedness, his wise counsels and educative publications, outstanding pastoral solicitude towards the members of the Knights of St. John international whom he served as spiritual director at different levels for over twenty years.”
The late Monsignor was a former Editor of the Leader Newspaper and Director of Assumpta Press, among many other positions he held in the Catholic Church.
