By Olivia Obijiaku
Parish Priest of St Ann’s Parish, Zango Tama, Rev Fr. Patrick Atama has affirmed the need to visit Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. Making this known at the Mass he celebrated in Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Wednesday, September 3, 2025, the priest leaned on the day’s Gospel in which Jesus went to a lonely place to pray, in catechizing participants that Jesus awaits them in the tabernacle and the Chapel of Adoration, so that He may commune with them.
The priest who observed that some people shout more in the place of prayers than they reflect and listen to God, proffered approaching the special places of encounter with sincerity of heart, pure purpose, and right disposition, even as he promised them that their lives would be transformed in positive ways by so doing.
“That is why the Catholic Church is unique.” Fr. Atama asserted. “This tabernacle symbolizes the Presence of God. The Chapel of Adoration, there, is a lonely place created for us to also enjoy a moment with God – a quiet time with Him. Jesus is always waiting for us to come and converse with Him. But do we have time for Him? How many of us patronize these places? If you need peace, go into that Chapel in sincerity of heart, and open mind and open spirit, and you will never leave the same way. That is the testimony of the Blessed Sacrament. That is the testimony of prayer.
Kicking against disturbing neighbours, mostly in the midnights, while praying, the clergyman clarified that, “Prayer is not all about shouting. Sometimes, we want to show others that we are praying. Some people think that God will not hear them if they do not shout. Do not disturb others when praying, if not, it will become sin against charity. Do not disrespect others in the name of praying to God. So, we have to take precaution.”
“Meditation and reflection are the most abandoned kinds of prayer today. There are moments you just need to sit down quietly wherever you are and listen as God speaks to you. You must not speak always, in order for you to know that you have prayed. No, there are moments you need to avoid all distractions of life and then listen to that inner voice speaking to you from within. Without prayer, we are all powerless as Christians.”
“How do you pray in a lonely place? Learn to create time to be with God in prayer. Prayer is very important in our journey of life as Christians. Preach the Gospel through the attitude of your life; through the manner of your life and through your interactions with people. Your care and kindness to others speak a lot to others. You must not use words.”
On the healing of Peter’s mother-in-law as reflected in the Gospel, the priest, charged them to extend the mercy and blessing they receive from God to others. He referenced that the healed served Jesus and other, after she was healed, highlighting the virtues of humility and service in her action.
Fr. Atama called for imitation of both virtues, exhibited by the woman and the saint of the day, St Gregory the Great, Pope and Doctor, intimating that despite his noble and wealthy background, when St Gregory encountered God, he abandoned everything to follow God, becoming a monk and a Pope. “Humility and service go hand in hand. Humility is the highest virtue in Christianity. If you have humility, then you will be able to serve God in truth and in spirit. You will be able to serve your brothers and sisters.”
