Godfrey Okoye

Godfrey Mary Paul Okoye, C.S.Sp. (19 December 1913 – 17 March 1977) was a bishop of the Roman Catholic Church in Nigeria. He was the first Bishop of Port Harcourt, serving from 3 September 1961 to 7 March 1970. After leaving the diocese of Port Harcourt, he became the second Bishop of Enugu, succeeding Bishop John Cross Anyogu.[1]

The Most Reverend

Godfrey Okoye

C.S.Sp.
Bishop of Port Harcourt
ChurchRoman Catholic
Appointed16 May 1961
In office1961–1970
Predecessornone
SuccessorDominic Ignatius Ekandem
Orders
Ordination27 July 1947
by Charles Heerey
Consecration3 September 1961
by Pope John XXIII
RankBishop
Personal details
Born(1913-12-19)19 December 1913
Ifitedunu, Eastern Region, Nigeria
Died17 March 1977(1977-03-17) (aged 63)

Biography

Okoye was born on 19 December 1913 to Okoye Nwazulu and Ada Oji in Ifitedunu in the Eastern Region of Nigeria, now Anambra State.[2] He was ordained to priesthood by Most Rev. Dr. Charles Heerey, the Archbishop of Onitsha, on 27 July 1947.[3] In 1950 he became only the second Igbo priest to be admitted into the Congregation of the Holy Spirit.[4] Okoye was heavily involved in events around the Nigerian Civil War, and his explicit support for Biafra raised concerns among fellow priests that they would be targeted in Nigeria.[5] Historian Adrian Hastings described Okoye as a "devout Biafran hawk".[6] In 1977, just before having a hernia operation, Okoye destroyed his personal files detailing his involvement in the war. He died shortly after the operation.[7]

References
  1. "Bishop Godfrey Okoye, C.S.Sp. †". Catholic-Hierarchy.org. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
  2. Amadi, Dan Chima (1995). Bishop G.M.P. Okoye : his life, his times. Lagos: Everlead Communications. ISBN 9789783336711.
  3. "Our Founder". Daughters of Divine Love Congregation. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
  4. Okwu, Augustine S. O. (2010). Igbo Culture and the Christian Missions, 1857-1957: Conversion in Theory and Practice. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 274. ISBN 9780761848844.
  5. Omenka, Nicholas Ibeawuchi (2010). "Blaming the Gods: Christian Religious Propaganda in the Nigeria-Biafra War". Journal of African History. 51 (3): 367–389. doi:10.1017/S0021853710000460.
  6. Hastings, Adrian (1979). A History of African Christianity 1950-1975. Cambridge University Press. p. 238. ISBN 9780521293976.
  7. Emenyonu, Ernest (2000). "Nationalism and the Creative Talent". Goatskin Bags and Wisdom: New Critical Perspectives on African Literature. p. 383. ISBN 9780865436718.
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