By Nelson Manneh
The newly appointed Bishop of Banjul, Rev. Gabriel Mendy on Wednesday, January 3rd 2018 arrived at Banjul International Airport to assume his role as Bishop and head of the Catholic Diocese of Banjul. Rev. Mendy is the first Gambian to be voted as Bishop of the country.
Hundreds of the Christian faithful belonging to the Roman Catholic Diocese, family members and well-wishers, assembled at the Airport to welcome their new Bishop-elect.
Upon arrival at the airport, Bishop-elect Gabriel Mendy said he has come to continue the good job of the retired bishop; that the Catholic Church in the whole world is the same family and therefore no change should be expected from him. “I am happy and I am always happy to be in the Gambia as I am part of the country. I look forward to this big task ahead of me and I really believe that God will give me the wisdom to be able to lead his flock through the right path,” he said. He said the Gambia never had its own bishop in sixty years after being a diocese of its own; that with the help of the priests and other religious leaders, he is sure of achieving the aims of the Church as Bishop.
It could be recalled that on November 30th 2017, Rev. Gabriel was announced as the new bishop of Banjul, following the retirement request of the Rt. Rev. Robert Patrick Ellison, the current Bishop of Banjul. Bishop-elect Rev. Gabriel Mendy has returned to take over this leadership of the Catholic Church in The Gambia. The Christian community especially the Catholics who anticipated his arrival, welcomed their Bishop in their numbers at the airport.
The appointment of Rev. Mendy as Catholic Bishop of Banjul, has been greeted with joy by Gambians and Catholics all over the world. The new bishop will be ordained on the 3rd February 2018, at the Independence Stadium and a huge congregation comprising mainly Christians including Muslims, is expected to grace this auspicious occasion.
