A BRIEF HISTORY OF SS. PETER AND PAUL MAJOR SEMINARY, BODIJA
What is now known as the Seminary of SS. Peter and Paul, Bodija, Ibadan, began in Ivianokpodi, Edo State in 1908 as St. Martin’s Seminary, Ivianokpodi. It then moved to Asaba in 1927 before being transferred to Benin City in 1933 where it was called St. Paul’s Seminary. It finally came to Ibadan in 1957 and was then named Saints Peter and Paul Major Seminary, Ibadan. The Seminary is the result of a 1695 directive of the Congregation for the Evangelization of People’s (Propaganda Fide), to the effect that all missionary congregations must encourage vocations among indigenous populations, as a testament of the success of their mission and the survival and continuous growth and development of the local churches.
IVIANOKPODI (1908-1927)
Ivianokpodi, a village in Uweppa area of Etsako East Local Government Area of Edo State, in the Catholic Diocese of Auchi, was the cradle of the Seminary of SS Peter and Paul. This area was also part of the Prefecture of the Upper Niger with mission centres at Asaba, Issele-Uku, Illah, Ubulu-Uku, etc. This Prefecture later became the Prefecture of Western Nigeria, with Msgr. Carlo Zappa as its Prefect.
Msgr. Carlo Zappa’s interests and strong convictions regarding the indispensable role of catechists in the missions informed the establishment of St. Martin’s Seminary, Ivianokpodi, in 1908. Ivianokpodi was chosen because of its accessibility to the River Niger, which facilitated transportation and provided more comfortable climatic conditions for the Missionaries.
ASABA (1927-1933)
St. Martin’s Seminary was moved from Ivianokpodi to Asaba in 1927 at the present sites of St. Joseph’s Maternity Hospital and St. John Bosco Parish, Asaba. According to Late Msgr. Pedro Martins, it was here that real Seminary formation, including spiritual, academic, social and physical formation, began. Staff and Students remained in Asaba until the seminary was moved to Benin City in 1933.
BENIN-CITY (1933-1957)
At the death of Bishop Broderick in 1933, Bishop Leo Taylor succeeded him and subsequently moved the Seminary, which changed its name from St. Martin to St. Paul, and sited it on a piece of land along Airport Road, donated by Oba Akenzua II of Benin.
The Seminary of St. Paul, Benin-City, offered training in Philosophy and Sacred Theology to seminarians, who came from mainly Western and Northern Nigeria and Liberia. It was here that academic and spiritual training, including liturgy and Church history became really formalized. The Formators at that time included, Frs. James Conlon, SMA, Thomas Murran, SMA, Lawrence Carr, SMA, and Maurice McGuire, SMA.
BODIJA, IBADAN (SINCE 1957)
In the period immediately preceding Nigeria’s political independence, the city of Ibadan grew in importance. The establishment of the nation’s premier university about the same time only served to further advance the rising profile of this ancient city. Little wonder, the Church in her wisdom again determined that the time was ripe for another relocation of our great institution, this time from Benin City to Ibadan, to, among other things, facilitate academic affiliation with the University of Ibadan. Thus in 1957, the seminary of St. Paul, Benin City, became SS. Peter and Paul Major Seminary, Bodija, Ibadan. The site was acquired with the help of Bishop Richard Finn from the Are family of Ibadan.
In Ibadan, seminary training became even more formalized and more academically demanding, especially with the affiliation to the University of Ibadan. At Bodija, the Seminary officially opened with two priests, namely: Frs. M. McGuire (Rector) and Lawrence Carr and 29 Seminarians. At the time, the seminary had only two blocks of buildings, that is, the Fathers' House and St. Peter's Block.
Later on, many SMA priests joined the formation staff. Fr. James Conlon took over as Rector from Fr. M. McGuire until 1964 when he handed over to Fr. Thomas Murran. The Dominican, Fr. Louis Nadeau, took over from Fr. Murran in 1965 until the arrival of Msgr. Patrick Ugboko. In 1960, the late Msgr. Patrick Ugboko became the first Nigerian Priest to join the Staff of the Seminary and became the first Nigerian Rector of the same institution in 1969. That same year, the University of Ibadan began the award of Certificates of Diploma in Religious studies to the students of the Seminary.
In 1973 the Seminary completed the process of her affiliation to the Pontifical Urban University, Rome, for the award of the Bachelors Degree in Sacred Theology (Divinity). John Cardinal Onaiyekan succeeded Msgr. P. Ugboko as Rector in 1978. He handed over the office of Rector to Msgr. John Aniagwu in 1982. Very Rev. Fr. Benedict Etafo succeeded Msgr. John Aniagwu in 1994. His tour of duty came to a close in 2006, when he was succeeded by Very Rev. Fr. Michael Sasa (2006-2012). In the period before the appointment of a new rector, Msgr. A. Olawunmi (2012-2013) took over the reins of leadership as the acting rector. In 2013 Very Rev. Fr. Francs Adesina was appointed the rector of the Seminary and on the 17th of January 2020, he was appointed the bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Ijebu – Ode, and Very Rev. Fr. Anthony Ovayero Ewherido was made the acting rector. On the 24th of May 2020, Very Rev. Fr. Anthony Ovayero Ewherido was appointed as the Rector. His fruitful tenure lasted two years as he was appointed Catholic Bishop of Warri on 28 December, 2022. His former Vice Rector, Very Rev. Fr Anthony Oluwagbemiga Igbekele, became Acting Rector and was made the substantive Rector of the Seminary on January 1, 2024. He was formally installed by the Chairman of Seminary Commission, Most Rev. Gabriel ‘Leke Abegunrin on January 7, 2024, the Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord.
The Seminary, though regional, has been of service not only to the Ecclesiastical provinces of Lagos (Archdiocese of Lagos, Diocese of Abeokuta and Diocese of Ijebu-Ode), Ibadan (Archdiocese of Ibadan, Diocese of Oyo, Diocese of Osogbo, Diocese of Ekiti, Diocese of Ondo, Diocese of Ilorin) and Benin City (Archdiocese of Benin, Diocese of Warri, Diocese of Issele-Ukwu, Diocese of Auchi, Diocese of Uromi and Diocese of Bomadi), but also to dioceses such as: Sokoto, Abuja, Enugu, Lokoja, Idah, Umuahia, Uyo, Calabar, Ogoja, Aba, Abakaliki, Port Harcourt, and Nsukka. In addition, several societies of Apostolic Life as well as Religious Institutes have either had their candidates trained or have their candidates under training in our Seminary. Among them are the Society of African Missions (SMA), Missionaries of Africa, the Oblates of St. Joseph, the Redemptorists, the Schoenstatt Fathers, the Vocationists, Society of St. Paul, Franciscan Capuchin Friars, and Oblates of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the Dominicans (before the birth of the Dominican Institute).
Thus far, the Seminary has witnessed thousands of ordinations and from the ranks and files of these are the Metropolitans of the Ecclesiastical Provinces of Abuja, Lagos, Ibadan and Benin City, as well as Local Ordinaries of the dioceses of Abeokuta, Auchi, Ondo, Ijebu-ode, Ekiti, Warri, Oyo, Osogbo, Issele-Uku, Ilorin, Warri, Cameroon and Cape Palmas in Liberia. For the records, late Most Rev. Lucas O. Nwazeapu, Bishop Emeritus of Warri was the first graduate of the Seminary.
The Indigenization of the Seminary coincides with that of the country with the appointment of the first Nigerian member of staff in 1960. Since then, considerable progress has been made in the effort to build an institute relevant to the need of the indigenous people. Currently, all members of the Formation Team are indigenous priests.
Since 1969, the leadership of the Seminary has also been indigenous with all the Rectors appointed being alumni of the institution. The Seminary has not only been a fertile ground for the Catholic priesthood, it has also contributed to the pastoral life of the community within which it is located.
