GLOUCESTER, Mass. — The communities of Rockport and Gloucester are mourning the loss of a beloved priest who was set to return home to Nigeria with his VISA expiring later this month.
Rev. Benjamin Nadu was 54 years old and would have celebrated his 25th anniversary of ordination to the priesthood on July 7. He was serving as a chaplain as Salem Hospital and ministered at multiple churches throughout the North Shore.
“We extend our prayers and heartfelt condolences to his family, brother priests and friends in Nigeria as well as the many people Fr. Benjamin Madu ministered to here in Cape Ann and at Salem Hospital,” said Archbishop Richard G. Henning.
“We are working with the local parish, the Catholic Community of Gloucester & Rockport, and their pastor Father Jim Achadinha during this difficult time and period of mourning. We now entrust Fr. Madu to the loving embrace of our Heavenly Father and we ask the Lord to bring comfort and healing to all who mourn his passing.”
Nadu was scheduled to depart by the end of July but was ordered to return home by his Bishop in the Diocese of Abakaliki to return home earlier.
“As more information becomes available about Father Ben’s tragic passing, I will share it with our parishioners. Until then, I invite you to join me in praying for the soul of Father Ben, for his grieving family and friends all around the world, and for all who mourn the loss of this good man and holy priest. Please also pray for me, our senior priests, and our pastoral team. We are all heartbroken,” Father Jim Achadinha said in a statement to parishioners.
In a message that appeared last weekend and on the website of the parish newsletter for Our Lady of Good Voyage Church, Nadu expressed he did not want to return home, but circumstances beyond his control had warranted his time in the United States come to an end.
“My heart is broken, yet my joy remains. If I am ever given the chance to minister again to the people of Gloucester and Rockport, I would gladly do it all over again. I will miss the home I found away from home, a mother far from my mother, a father far from my father, and a people far from my own people,” he said.
“God bless you all. I will soon return to Africa, specifically Nigeria, my homeland, where nature speaks to the soul and bonds of community help ease the loneliness that has weighed on me while living alone in the “white house” in Lynnfield. I will deeply miss the seaside, where I often drive to after Mass to call my family and hear about their Sundays. There, where the ocean meets the rocks and its endless rhythm becomes the music of my post–Mass peace; there I found comfort and serenity. Goodbye from my heart.— Father Ben Okwy Madu."
A mass was held today at Our Lady of Good Voyage Church in honor of Nadu.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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