Contemporary Sexual Crises in the Church and the Challenge for Priestly Formation

Abstract

Priestly anniversaries are times for great celebrations and deep reflections on the part of the entire Church. Silver Jubilees ought to be celebrated with great pride and hope. I rejoice with Rev. Anselm Kole Jimoh as he commemorates this special moment in his priestly ministry. Many like him continue to be the hope of the Church even at times when ugly narratives of priestly sexual abuse have come to distort all that the Church stands for in our times. I have been asked to reflect on a topic that demands an honest engagement. On that note, let me transition to the purpose of this work. In this work, I intend to do the following; shed light on some of the trends of the emerging sexual abuse cases; present a critical analysis of the formation styles within Nigerian seminaries with the intent to articulate a new vision of priestly formation that will help the Nigerian Church in particular and other national churches both in Africa and other parts of the world to prevent future scandals, while properly training the men who present themselves to be trained for the ordained state.