Callistus Valentine Onaga,

D.D. A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity. In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ra ...

, (b. September 29, 1958) is the fifth

Roman Catholic Bishop In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an Holy Orders, ordained Minister (Catholic Church), minister who holds the fullness of the Sacraments of the Catholic Church, sacrament of Holy orders in the Catholic Church, holy orders and is responsible ...

of the Diocese of Enugu.

Early life and pastoral appointments

Callistus Valentine Onaga is the fifth child of Vincent and Victoria Onaga. His mother was the daughter of

Tribal Chief A tribal chief or chieftain is the leader of a tribal society or chiefdom. Tribe The concept of tribe is a broadly applied concept, based on tribal concepts of societies of western Afroeurasia. Tribal societies are sometimes categorized as ...

Chukwuani of Ozalla Nkanu. Onaga attended St Anthony’s Primary School, Agbudu,

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

, from 1964 to 1972. He received his

secondary education Secondary education or post-primary education covers two phases on the International Standard Classification of Education scale. Level 2 or lower secondary education (less commonly junior secondary education) is considered the second and final pha ...

at the Sacred Heart Seminary in Nsude, Nigeria, from 1973 to 1975. He earned his

Bachelor of Divinity In Western universities, a Bachelor of Divinity or Baccalaureate in Divinity (BD or BDiv; la, Baccalaureus Divinitatis) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded for a course taken in the study of divinity or related disciplines, such as theology ...

degree in

sacred theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the s ...

from the

Urban University An urban university (which in some cases may be referred to as an urban-grant university or metropolitan university) is a U.S. term for an institution of higher learning that is socially involved and serves as a resource for educating the citizen ...

in Rome in 1987, and was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...

to the priesthood on August 8, 1987. Within the diocese, Onaga held several positions, including

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

at St. Mary’s Church in

Enugu Enugu ( ; ) is the capital city of Enugu State in Nigeria. It is located in southeastern part of Nigeria. The city had a population of 820,000 according to the 2022 Nigerian census. The name ''Enugu'' is derived from the two Igbo words ''Énú ...

Vicar General A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop's ...

Administrator Administrator or admin may refer to: Job roles Computing and internet * Database administrator, a person who is responsible for the environmental aspects of a database * Forum administrator, one who oversees discussions on an Internet forum * N ...

of Holy Ghost Cathedral, and committee chairman for the inauguration of the Diocese of Awgu.

Episcopal appointments

On February 9, 2009, Onaga was appointed by

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...

as the Enugu diocesan bishop after the resignation of Anthony Okonkwo Gbuji. He was

as the Bishop of Enugu on May 2, 2009, by

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

Renzo Fratini Renzo Fratini (born 25 April 1944) is an Italian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church and diplomat of the Holy See. He became an apostolic nuncio in 1998 and ended his career as nuncio to Spain. As he resigned in 2019, the Holy See distanced itse ...

. His principal co-consecrators were Archbishop Valerian Okeke and Bishop Gbuji. Later that same day, Onaga appointed

Monsignor Monsignor (; it, monsignore ) is an honorific form of address or title for certain male clergy members, usually members of the Roman Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" ca ...

Luke Adike as the diocesan Vicar General, and Very Rev. Fr. Ambrose Chineme Agu as the Diocesan Secretary and Chancellor.

Appointments

Onaga is a member of the Association of Episcopal Conferences of Anglophone West Africa as an

ordinary Ordinary or The Ordinary often refer to: Music * ''Ordinary'' (EP) (2015), by South Korean group Beast * ''Ordinary'' (Every Little Thing album) (2011) * "Ordinary" (Two Door Cinema Club song) (2016) * "Ordinary" (Wayne Brady song) (2008) * ...

. He is a member of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Nigeria. At its first

Plenary Meeting A plenary session or plenum is a session of a conference which all members of all parties are to attend. Such a session may include a broad range of content, from keynotes to panel discussions, and is not necessarily related to a specific style ...

in 2009, this conference recognized his appointment as a diocesan bishop. As the diocesan bishop, Onaga is the legal holder of its microbank.

2010 visit to America

Onaga was the guest speaker for the Igbo Catholic Community USA (ICCUSA) Eighth Annual Convention between April 23 and 25, 2010, held in

Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...

References

Sources

''Catholic Diocese of Enugu'' www.catholicdioceseenugu.org Retrieved 2010-04-24.

''The Hierarchy of the Catholic Church'' www.catholic-hierarchy.org Retrieved 2010-04-24.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Onaga, Callistus 1958 births 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in Nigeria Nigerian Roman Catholics Roman Catholic bishops of Enugu Living people