Page 9 - LOTN Autumn Issue 48 2021

DIOCESE
Fr Peter Ezekoka

publishes first book

hile many of us have struggled to make sense
of lockdown, an African priest working in the
WDiocese of Aberdeen has taken inspiration from
it to publish his first book.
Father Peter Ezekoka arrived in the North-east in 2018
with fellow Nigerian Father Kingsley Chigbo and now they
are serving the parishes of St Thomas’, Keith, St Peter’s,
Buckie, St Margaret’s, Huntly, and St Mary’s, Fochabers.
If coping with the drastic drop in temperatures wasn’t
challenging enough, the subsequent arrival of COVID
brought its own dramatic changes. “Life went indoors and
online,” said Fr Peter. “We started live-streaming our Masses,
and the camera became our medium of evangelisation.
“One day I sat down at my computer typing a reflection,
and an idea came into my head ….. maybe you should
begin writing the book you always wanted to write.
“I decided that a book about my experience in Christ and Proceeds from sales will go towards the education of
why we must keep on following him, despite the ups and children in Nigeria. Fr Peter, who is celebrating his fifth
downs of life, would be apt in lockdown.” anniversary as a priest, said: “I see it as a personal mission
He recalled a retreat at St Mary’s, Kinnoull, Perthshire, to do the little I can to support deserving children and
where he had preached on discipleship to a group of students in several schools in the south-eastern part of
Charismatic Catholic Christians, focusing on ways to Nigeria to succeed in their educational pursuit.”
respond effectively to God’s call. “It was a proudly spiritual The book, with a foreword by Bishop Hugh Gilbert, was
and invigorating experience for me,” he said. launched after Mass at a social evening at St Thomas’
The new book is called I Will Follow You, But…. “There attended by members of the local parishes. Fr Kingsley,
will always be ‘buts’, that is the challenges and concerns parish priest, sang Comfort Ye My People from Handel’s
whenever decisions to follow Christ are made,” added the Messiah and a blessing was given by Fr Maximilian Nwosu,
priest. “Discipleship is never a bed of roses. It’s a journey for St Mary’s, Beauly.
the strong.
“Because of how ideas in the book have been couched in Copies are available, priced £10, from Orb's Community
stories, I hope it is something that will be quite engaging Bookshop, Huntly, on Ebay by searching the author's name or
and inspirational for anyone who reads it.” by emailing Fr Peter: petre_eze@yahoo.com

Highland Ordinariate autumn outing

n Saturday 16th October the Personal Ordinariate
of Our Lady of Walsingham held a highly
Osuccessful day pilgrimage to St Ninian’s, Tynet and
St Gregory’s, Preshome in Moray.
In 2009, Pope Benedict XVI published an Apostolic
Constitution called Anglicanorum coetibus, which allowed
groups of Anglican laity and their pastors to enter into full
communion of the Catholic Church, whilst retaining elements
of their heritage which are in keeping with the Catholic faith.
To enable this to happen Ordinariates were set up, and so it
was the Highland Ordinariate group that organised this day of
worship and pilgrimage.
The theme of the day was to look at the ways the Catholic
community had survived the Penal Periods in the 17th and 18th
centuries and to acknowledge that many of the same strictures The principal celebrant of the Mass was Fr Len Black, with
faced Episcopalians in Scotland at that time. Indeed, many who fellow Ordinariate priests, Fr Cameron Macdonald and
attended the day had been received into full communion with Fr Stanley Bennie concelebrating

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