The West Africa District of the Congregation of Holy Cross was on January 1, 2023 elevated to the status of a Province. The inauguration ceremony took place on February 11, 2023 at the Holy Cross Centre in Brafoyaw, Cape Coast, and was presided over by Most Rev. Gabriel Charles Palmer-Buckle, Metropolitan Archbishop of Cape Coast. The induction of Rev. Bro. John Badu Affum, C.S.C as the first Provincial Superior marked the occasion.

 

During the ceremony, Bro. Paul Bednarczyk, C.S.C, Superior General of the Congregation, inducted the Provincial Superior and members of the Provincial Council into office. The Provincial Council comprises Bro. Emmanuel Kenneth Goode, C.S.C, Assistant Provincial Superior; Bro. Stephen Aidoo, C.S.C, Secretary; Bro. William Tawiah, C.S.C, Province Steward; Bro. Anthony Dadzie, C.S.C, and Bro. Kenneth Kunditani, C.S.C, members.

 

In his address, Bro. Bednarczyk urged the new Provincial Superior and his council members to exercise wisdom, humility, generosity, and service in their roles as Councillors of the Province. These virtues, he said, are essential to guide the Province in the right direction and ensure its growth.

 

Bro. Affum, the new Provincial Superior, expressed his appreciation to the early missionaries and Ghanaian brothers for their tireless efforts in bringing the congregation to where it is today. He also acknowledged Bro. Raymond Papenfuss, the first Superior of the Holy Cross in Ghana, and the mid-West Province, to which the District of West Africa belonged, for mentoring them to become a Province with special mention of the contribution of Bro. Kenneth Haders. Bro. Affum congratulated the East Africa Province, which was also created on January 1, 2023, and pledged to work closely together for the development of the two new Provinces.

 

Giving a brief history of the Holy Cross in Ghana, Bro. Affum stated that the mission began sixty-five years ago when three brothers from the United States arrived in Ghana to assume the administration of St. John's Secondary School in Sekondi. The Congregation currently has Communities in Cape Coast, Sunyani, Techiman, and Tamale Dioceses.

 

In his homily on the theme "Journeying in a Synodal Church, Communion, Participation, and Mission," Archbishop Palmer-Buckle urged the Provincial Superior and his councillors to listen to one another, including the novices, to promote the mission of the Congregation. The Archbishop also blessed the foundation stone for the Province Project of building an Infirmary. The Mass was concelebrated by Most Rev. Matthias Kobina Nketsiah, emeritus Archbishop of Cape Coast, Very Rev. Fr. Francis Lemaire, Vicar General of the Catholic Diocese of Sekondi-Takoradi and many Priests from the Archdiocese of Cape Coast and beyond. The Sisters of the Congregation of the Holy Cross were also in attendance.