Katsina Diocese Marks One-Year Anniversary with Thanksgiving Mass, Year-End Celebration

The Catholic Diocese of Katsina on December 12, 2024, celebrated its one-year anniversary under the leadership of Bishop Gerald Mamman Musa. The celebration was commemorated with a grand Thanksgiving Mass at 6:00 PM, followed by an end-of-year celebration that brought together the entire clergy and faithful of the diocese.
The Mass of Thanksgiving served as a moment of reflection on the past year, a time to express gratitude for the blessings received, and a renewed commitment to the mission of the Church in the diocese.
Bishop Musa, who has been at the helm since the creation of the diocese, led the Thanksgiving Mass for the celebration.
In his homily, the Bishop highlighted the significant milestones achieved during the first year, including; administrative structures. He explained that administrative frameworks for the essential running of the diocese has been set-up. Those structures according to him include, office space for the diocesan chancery, appointment of functionaries for the diocesan curia and a college of consultors, setting up a marriage tribunal, and supervising the gradual independence of diocesan organizations from the mother diocese, Sokoto.
The Chief Shepherd also mentioned that vocations and ministries have experienced significant growth in the last one year including, priestly ordinations, admission of 12 seminarians, and a scholarship for one of the priests to study a course relevant for pastoral and spiritual ministry.
“It is our plan to have sufficient clergymen in the future who can serve within and outside of the Diocese of Katsina. Faith Formation, which we celebrated the graduation of 46 catechists and among them were the first set of female catechists graduates. On Sunday the 15th, we shall be celebrating the first set of candidates who are graduating from the School of the Faith.
“On Infrastructural Development, we have commenced the Adoration Centre podium and renovated the ceremonies podium in Katsina. These two places will provide adequate spaces for diocesan and regional conventions and for gatherings with large numbers of people. More still, we undertook the renovation of the Pastoral Centre in Malumfashi to make it good enough for priests retreat and other diocesan or deanery activities. On Educational Reforms, which we initiated an ongoing reformation of our schools to raise their standards and enhance their quality. On Youth Ministry, we invited and hosted representatives of Jesus Youth International, an organization of the pontifical standard. Katsina became the first diocese where they planned to begin their outreach in Nigeria.”
Also, the bishop added on his pastoral visits that, “there are two of our parishes that suffered attacks from bandits, and some members were kidnapped. Some lost their lives; others suffered psychological and physical wounds. People in Gidan Namune, which is under Layin Minista parish, have been displaced for some time now, hoping and praying for the end of banditry, kidnapping and violence in Katsina State, the rest of the northwest region, and the entire country.”
Bishop Gerald continued that, he had invited the Aid to the Church in Need at Germany to explain the situation of terrorism in the north and especially about how it affects Christians.
By way of encouragement, the Bishop spoke about when he visited one of the parishes that had experienced several attacks from bandits, and was so touched by the words of some of the members who asked him to thank their parish priest for his courage during the difficult times of the attacks, even when he was asked to leave for his safety. “his presence among them is a source of encouragement and a sign of the presence of God,” they said.
Bishop Musa expressed his vision for the future of the diocese, emphasizing the importance of unity, service, and evangelization. He equally expressed his heartfelt thanks to the priests, religious, and lay faithful for their unwavering support and dedication.
Following the Mass, the celebration continued with an end-of-year gathering. All priests of the diocese were present as it witnessed the cutting of the cake of which many societies joined to cut the anniversary cake.
The evening was filled with joyous music and group photographs, as attendees looked back on the past year with pride and optimism for the future.










