Breaking News :Pope Francis appoints auxiliary bishop for Archdiocese of Onitsha, as Bishop Valerian Okeke prepares for retirement

Pope Francis has appointed Monsignor Chidi Isizoh as the Auxiliary Bishop of the Catholic Archdiocese of Onitsha, Anambra reports www.odogwublog.com.

This was contained in a statement made available to newsmen in Onitsha yesterday by the Catholic Archdiocese of Onitsha.

The statement was signed by Rev. Fr. Benjamin Ogbunuko, Personal Assistant to Most Rev. Valerian Okeke, the Archbishop of the Catholic Archdiocese of Onitsha.

``To the glory of God and in the name of the Archbishop Okeke; may I have the honour of informing you that Pope Francis has appointed Monsignor Chidi Denis Isizoh as the Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Onitsha.

``And also assigning him as the titular Bishop of Legia.

``The Bishop-elect, Monsignor Chidi Denis Isizoh, has been up to the time of his appointment an official of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue in the Vatican since 1995.

``He is originally a member of clergy in Archdiocese of Onitsha,’’ it said.

It said that the Bishop-elect Isizoh was born on Jan. 24, 1956 in the Archdiocese of Onitsha; and attended primary schools at St. Raphael's Awkuzu and St. Vincent's, Ogbunike between 1964-1967/1970 with an interruption due to the Nigerian civil war.

The statement said that Isizoh entered the All Hallows Junior Seminary, Onitsha between 1971 and 1976. Later he went to the major seminary for studies in philosophy at Bigard Memorial Seminary, Ikot Ekpene between 1977 and 1981.

It noted that he studied theology at Bigard Memorial Seminary in Enugu from 1981 to 1985 and was ordained a priest on Sept. 28, 1985 for the Archdiocese of Onitsha.

``After ordination he held pastoral offices at the All Hallows Junior Seminary, Onitsha; as parochial vicar at SS. John and Paul Parish Awada and he was chaplain of several institutes and schools in Onitsha.

In 1989, he was secretary and assistant to Cardinal Francis Arinze who was then the Ordinary of Catholic Archdiocese of Onitsha,’’ it said.

It noted that Isizoh later studied Sacred Scripture at the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome. He holds a doctorate in Biblical theology from the Pontificia Università Gregoriana in Rome, Italy.