Activities marking the final week of the year-long centenary celebrations of St Paul’s Anglican Church, Ile-Ife, begin tomorrow with a visit to the Correctional Centre of the Nigerian Prisons Service Ile-Ife.
It will be followed on Wednesday by a three-day evangelical revival across the city and a novelty match at the prestigious Oduduwa College.
The grand finale will feature awards to the families of the past three kings of Ile-Ife- Ooni Ademiluyi Ajagun, 1910-1930; Ooni Adesoji Aderemi, 1930-1980; and Ooni Okunade Sijuwade, 1980 – 2015- will hold at the church on Sunday, November 19, 2023.
Announcing the activities in a press release, the chairman of the Centenary Anniversary Committee, former Ambassador to Cuba, Senator Segun Bamigbetan Baju, states that the monarchs will be honoured for their contributions to the growth of the cathedral.
For example, he said while Ooni Ademiluyi Ajagun donated the place on which the church was established in 1923, Ooni Adesoji Aderemi adopted the church for royal state functions. His successor, Ooni Sijuwade, maintained the protocol.
Senator Baju recalled how the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo also adopted the church for the thanksgiving service of the installation of his wife, the late Chief Mrs.Dideolu Awolowo, as the Yeyeoba of Ife.
Narrating how the original building in 1923 was expanded twice in 1927 and 1972, Senator Baju recalled that the late Bishop Timothy Olufosoye, who blessed the new church in 1972, declared that it had the largest auditorium among the Anglican churches in Nigeria.
