As I sit in my hotel room here in Ilesa, Osun State, reflecting on the Church of Nigeria Communicators, Media Officers, and Diocesan Data Management Officers’ Conference, starting tomorrow, Tuesday, 24 to Friday, 27 June 2025, I am overwhelmed by a wave of memories.
By the way, this is my first time in Ilesa. This conference, graciously hosted by the Anglican Diocese of Ilesa under the episcopal leadership of The Rt Rev’d Prof. Dapo Asaju, a mentor of mine in the academic field who taught and supervised my doctoral degree, is being held in the home region of another unforgettable mentor of mine, The Ven. Dr A. A. Akinyemi, a distinguished Medical Doctor and Priest. It feels fitting, even providential, to write this tribute here, a testimony to the power and purpose of godly mentorship.
I served under the Ven. Dr A. A. Akinyemi as a curate at St Piran’s Anglican Church, Jos, in the Diocese of Jos, many years ago. *What I experienced was not simply clerical supervision; it was fatherhood in ministry. He exemplified 2 Timothy 2:2, entrusting what he knew to faithful men who would be able to teach others also. He went beyond expectations to ensure my growth.
He searched for opportunities for me to improve, in theology, in administration, and in personal development. Where I erred, he rebuked me in love, reflecting the spirit of Proverbs 27:6 – “Faithful are the wounds of a friend.” When I faced opposition or misunderstandings from higher authorities, he stood in my defence with courage and dignity. He truly took me as a son, blessing me deeply and generously, especially at his retirement.
One deeply emotional moment was when, nearing his relocation from Jos to Ibadan, he told his family not to pack his things because I was coming. Though I was delayed, he had not really needed help packing, he only wanted my wife and I to come and select books from his personal library. We left with nearly seventy books, and he insisted we take more. That same spirit of generosity showed when he gave his cope, a cherished symbol of his ministry, to one of my elder brothers in ministry who was then an archdeacon. Thankfully, he did not use it because it was not his size.
Years later, as I became an archdeacon, the cope was passed on to me – the archdeacon said, “come and carry your father’s cope for yourself now that you are an archdeacon.” Each time I wear it, I feel draped not just in vestments, but in the mantle of a man who mentored me with intentionality and grace. Like Elisha receiving Elijah’s mantle in 2 Kings 2:13, I felt the weight of responsibility, honour, and continuity in ministry.
Even from Ibadan, Baba Akinyemi, as we fondly called him, would call us. At one point, he offered to fly to Jos to visit us, saying I could not afford the fare but he could, and he simply wanted to come around to encourage us. His ministry of encouragement reminded me of Barnabas, the “Son of Encouragement” (Acts 4:36), who championed others into prominence.
Baba once told me: “Whatever happens in ministry, stay focused. God has a future for you in His Church.” That word has sustained my wife and I through seasons of discouragement when quitting seemed easier. His voice and his example anchored us. His words were in the spirit of Philippians 1:6 – “being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.”
Sadly, Baba has gone to be with the LORD – he retired before I was preferred a canon and passed before I was preferred an archdeacon. But his legacy lives on in me and many others. In contrast, we now see a painful trend: senior clergy becoming tormentors, not mentors. Instead of building, they break. Instead of raising, they resist. Younger clergy are sometimes chased out of ministry, not because they are unfaithful, but because they threaten insecure superiors.
This is not the way of Christ, who came not to be served but to serve (Mark 10:45), and who called us to do likewise. While I acknowledge the failure of some young clergy to submit to mentorship, a real issue that must be corrected, it is wickedness for any father in the faith to destroy those God has placed under their charge. Ezekiel 34:2 warns against shepherds who feed themselves but not the flock.
This essay is, therefore, a challenge, a plea, to senior clergy: become platforms, not obstacles. Be builders, not bulldozers. Be fathers, not Pharaohs. Like Paul with Timothy, let our legacies not be in what we possess, but in whom we have raised. The Church is stronger when her leaders pass on grace, wisdom, and encouragement to the next generation – “for we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building” (1 Corinthians 3:9).
May the soul of the Ven. Dr A. A. Akinyemi rest in peace, and may his example inspire a great wave of Christlike mentoring in the Church of God.
We are not alone.
God is with us.
