Oke Maria: A hill with several histories

The simple community life at the top of the road leading up to Oke Maria does not reveal any of the community’s history which abounds beyond it. In existence since the early 1900s, Oke Maria is home to a shrine dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, a pre-Vatican II church, a residence dating at least […]

The simple community life at the top of the road leading up to Oke Maria does not reveal any of the community’s history which abounds beyond it. In existence since the early 1900s, Oke Maria is home to a shrine dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, a pre-Vatican II church, a residence dating at least one hundred years and a mango tree of the same age range beneath which marriages and Masses for the small community were conducted before a formal worship place was built.
Climbing up the slippery hill to the Oke Maria apparition site, which is dedicated to Our Lady of Lourdes, is a pilgrimage in every sense of the word. For one who is there with the mind-set of going to have fun and leisure while visiting a tourist site, dragging 78 kilogrammes up the less than two kilometres hill, and the much needed three breaks in-between to catch one’s breath, immediately erases the smiles.
The ‘seriousness’ of the trek, spurs one into prayer mode as if recalling the Stations of the Cross leading up to Calvary. Airily contradicting this ‘ordeal,’ is the gentle breeze which seems to encourage one on while forcing the eyes to look sideways to take in the scenic green views and the various dimensions of hilltops carpeted buy luscious green grasses which forcefully compete for attention whilst penetrating the foggy clouds hovering around them.
Arriving at the peak pushes all this aside to a solemn calm at the apparition site where the imposing white statue of the Virgin Mary stands smiling down as if in expectation of the next guest. Some savour the experience taking photographs, as others pray their hearts out or drop petitions in the box or light up candles, as our reporter also begins hers from a prepared list of prayer points.
Speaking on the origin of the shrine, Rev. Fr. Anthony Adeboyejo, rector of the Marian Shrine for about three and a half years, said: “Around 1916, a priest, Fr. Seminati, came in here and finding it a very quiet place for prayer and meditation, frequented here and began bringing people along. In no time they formed a little Catholic community and over the years, between 1916 and 1921, he started building a kind of community of faith. Gradually, people started coming here to pray. There is an unconfirmed report because it seems like it was a one-time thing, of an apparition in the 1920s. Following that people began coming here to pray.”
Adeboyejo said between 1972 and 74, there was a move to build a small chapel up the hill. But due to the weather condition and the wind constantly pulling off the roof, this had to be aborted midway. What was left of the building at that stage still stands till date.
“In 1974 on December 8th, the whole diocese gathered to place that statue there and consecrate the hill as a place of prayer. Since then the diocese has used it as such and it has become an international Marian Pilgrimage Centre,” he said.
The shrine may not necessarily have drawn more souls to the Roman Catholic fold but it definitely has brought about more devotees to the Blessed Virgin. There are a lot of people coming from all over.
Narrating an encounter, the priest said: “The year before I remember an incident where I met a group of people here from the Redeemed Church with whom we had to pray and take pictures. They began giving testimonies with one of them saying she came to the shrine the previous year to ask the Blessed Virgin to intercede for her in her prayers for the fruit of the womb. She had returned with her group to say thank you for answered prayers.”
Adeboyejo added that: “Almost every night there are people here for vigils who are not even Roman Catholics. It is a place of prayer that is open to everybody and so we never stop them.”
In February the site plays host to a national pilgrimage where visitors from Nigeria and abroad come to pay homage to the Blessed Virgin. At some point in the course of the year, some other groups come, with the site so far playing host to three of such asides the big one in February. The rainy season, Adeboyejo who is also, the parish priest of St. Patrick’s Catholic Church, Oka-Akoko, said may not allow for many visitors: “This place is quite cold and it’s rainy season. We also have private people who come over night for prayers and pilgrimage.”
February was the month chosen for the main pilgrimage of the year because it is the same as the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes which takes place around the 11th following her apparition in France. The pilgrimage centre and the February celebration are attached to this.
With the site becoming more frequented by Fr. Seminati and his growing community, there was need to build a residence where the religious and lay could retire to while they were on retreat.
The building is the oldest structure on the site and is no younger than 100 years. Built with rocks and stones, it now houses the parish priest and his assistant,and also accommodates other needs of the centre. Still holding up in its original frame and architecture, now referred to as ‘Father’s House,’ the cottage-like structure is constantly maintained as a relic which generations unborn can rely on for their history.
For many, their contact with a pre-Vatican II church is on the internet or photographs. But for the Oka people, it is a daily contact, communion and fellowship with the ancient architecture and church history. Still preserved in its original stone and brick unpainted exterior, the St. Patrick’s Catholic Church was hand-built with the efforts of the villagers who carried stones and mortars to build the place up for themselves.
Adeboyejo explained that: “There was a need for a place up worship, especially as a community of faith grew with the presence of the shrine and priest’s house. There was need for people to begin to gather in a place.”
He added that: “Before then, it used to be under the big mango tree. Most of the marriages celebrated in this church for members of the community were celebrated under the mango tree which is now close to a hundred years old. When a community of faith begins to grow, you need a building to house them.
“It is a pre-Vatican II church. Before Vatican II, the priest backed the congregation while celebrating Mass. That’s why there are three altars because then it allowed for two or three Masses to be celebrated at the same time in the same church.”
But the advent of Vatican II changed all that allowing only one Mass and congregation at a time with the priest facing the congregation.
Still fruiting and giving adequate shade beneath its aged frame, yet healthy green leaves, the mango tree is a somewhat a revered relic on the premises. Members of the community treat and nurture it with a lot of care and respect as for many, it is their genesis following the marriages of their parents or grandparents and even great-grandparents.
Estimating the number of parishioners, Adeboyejo said: “Offhand, we have about 200 to 250. But it’s not stable in the sense that most of the community members are farmers who have to go far from their localities to farm because of the lack of land due to the rocky terrain. They are usually away for close to three weeks or a month before they return home.”
The priest added that: “It’s also not an industrial community per se and therefore most of the young and working class are not at home.”
On the significance of such a sight, he said: “Faith is believing in the unseen but also what is seen helps the faith. The presence of a place like this tells us or for us in the Catholic Church, points to a divine presence. Like Psalm 19 says that ‘the heavens are telling of the glory of God the firmament shows forth the works of his hands. Day to day tells us the story of the glory of God.’ The Church sees Mary as the mother of God. In honouring her we are not worshipping her as a person but we give honour to the one who has given her this honour. She said ‘the Almighty has done marvellous things for me, holy is His name’. So we give glory to God and worship Him but we honour her.
“In this kind of environment which is a very, very traditional one, they need a sense of stability of being close to God. And from the biblical times, going up to the mountain has been a way of coming close to God. The sense of physically moving from one plain to the other, gives a sense of being physically closer to God for prayers. This place has become a reference point, especially in Oka, whether you are Catholic or not, it has become a rallying point,” the priest said.
Plans he said are underway to make the site a fully operational retreat centre with proper facilities to host large groups for long periods.
“Most Rev. Dr. Jude Arogundade, Bishop of Ondo Diocese, is working on a master-plan to locate hostels, chalets and other such facilities to make this a pilgrimage site.An altar is already being constructed and is in use in the dry season with other facilities which will make it a more attractive location to encourage people to stay for as long as they would like to. This is the reason there is a rector here to direct the spiritual needs of the people who would come,” the parish priest said.