Kumbo, now that we have a new Bishop, let?s get to work

Ireneaus Chia Chongwain

The new Bishop of Kumbo, Mgr George Nkuo, was Friday September 8 consecrated during a High Mass that was said in Kumbo, precisely on the campus of the St Augustine’s College by His Eminence Christian Cardinal Tumi. The consecration marked the end of festivities that followed the appointment last July 8, 2006 of Mgr. George Nkuo as the Bishop of Kumbo by Pope Benedict XVI. After the consecration, it is now time for the new Bishop to settle down to tackle the daunting task that awaits him. But what exactly are some of the challenges the new Bishop will be called upon to address?

Daunting may be too hard a word to use because the task ahead of each and every one of us is not always as great as the power behind us.
And talking about power, we are sure the new Bishop is endowed with it, as this has been seen in the manner in which he has served the Church in various portfolios over the years. Besides, the will of God never takes one where the Grace of God will not protect him or her.
The first task that awaits the new bishop, as expressed by some Catholic faithful in Yaounde, will be to maintain the high moral and administrative standards that were set by the former Bishop of Kumbo, His Grace Cornelius Esua. It is not always easy to step into the shoes of competent predecessors because people almost always have the tendency to measure using the yardsticks left behind by predecessors.
For close to a century, the lives of the people of Kumbo have been shaped and continue to be shaped variously by the Catholic Dogma. Bishop Nkuo will have the responsibility to maintain a healthy balance between the traditional Catholic doctrine and local realities, belief systems and exigencies, while remaining faithful to the main doctrinal tenets of the Catholic Church. Creating this balance is not always easy as perceptions are sometimes so disparagingly wide that finding common ground is not always evident.
Overcoming this hurdle will require charisma and tact, and even more in terms of interpersonal skills and religious diplomacy. The population of Kumbo is predominantly Catholic, but this enviable position is being threatened by an “aggressive” invasion from the new, or what others have chosen to describe euphemistically as the “Pentecostal” churches.
While this “invasion” may not be limited to Kumbo, as the presence of these churches have equally been signalled in every nook and cranny of the country, there is the pressing need to reinforce the Catholic belief system everywhere, especially so as recent reports indicate that Catholics are providing single, largest, fertile nurseries from which these churches are transplanting their seedlings.
While safeguarding the Catholic doctrine in Kumbo, Bishop Nkuo will have to explore ways of fostering interfaith dialogue especially in Kumbo where the Moslem religion is equally indisputably forging strong.
Religious rivalry has resulted in unhealthy religious practices and disloyal competition as different religious denominations address doctrinal issues in a manner that stultify the views held by other religions, sowing confusion more than anything else, in the minds of their different followers.
Cultivating a consistent and clear Catholic vision with regards to contemporary issues and problems may help indicate the right path for Christians groping about in the haze and confusion of the present day religious public space. There are reports of dwindling Christianity worldwide especially amongst the youth on whom the future of the church depends.
These youths, who constituted a privilege segment for Pope John Paul II, are turning to a new kind of religion- the religion of materialism. Getting the Kumbo Catholic youth involved and interested in Church affairs, is just one area that the new bishop cannot afford to ignore. The Kumbo Diocese has produced the highest number the Catholic priests, sisters and brothers in the whole of the Northwest Province.
The challenge remains not only ensuring that this tradition is maintained, but that those who have the vocation be given the chance to meet their lives’ dreams. Festivities are over; the time for work has come.
As Christian Cardinal Tumi said last week in Kumbo during the consecration mass, Bishop Nkuo was neither chosen because he was the most religious, nor the most qualified amongst the rest of his fellow brethren, but simply because it was God’s will.
And God does not necessary call only the most qualified, but qualifies those called and endows them with the vision to forge ahead; consequently there is no task too daunting for the chosen to surmount.