By Ernest Nutsugah, GNA
Accra, April 27, GNA – Members of the Knights and Ladies of St. John International (KSJI) have handed over a new project to the Catholic Archdiocese of Accra as part of efforts to strengthen spirituality among members of the church.
The “Hermitage Project”, estimated at GHC 800,000, is a spiritual centre dedicated to the memory of the late Rev. John Kwadwo Ammisah, former Archbishop of the Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Coast and a former Spiritual Director of KSJI Ghana.
The centre, located at Kordiabe in the Shai Osudoku District, Greater Accra Region, would serve as a place of prayer, reflection and spiritual renewal.
It comprises three bedrooms, a chapel, kitchen, visitors’ washroom, and a storeroom, completed with free professional services from KSJI members.
Members of the Accra East Grand Commandery and the Accra East Grand Ladies Auxiliary of KSJI witnessed the handing over ceremony.
Most. Rev. Anthony Narh Asare, Auxiliary Bishop of the Catholic Archdiocese of Accra, emphasised the importance of secluded retreat houses (hermitage) and encouraged the faithful to make good use of the centre.
Rev. Fr. Major John Benya Mensah, Chaplain, KSJI Accra East Grand, urged members of the Association to serve as witnesses of Christ’s resurrection, and lead other individuals in their Christian journey.
“People are looking for solitude, a place for meditation, a place where they can encounter God. It will be your duty, it will be my duty, to direct them to come and stay here and encounter God in a very special way,” he stated.
The Leadership of the Grand Commandery thanked KSJI members and other faithful who contributed to the project.
“We are asking all to visit this Kordiabe place…You can come here instead of traveling all the way out of Accra Archdiocese for your retreats,” Mr Samuel Baimbill-Johnson, Grand President, said.
Born November 27, 1922, at Elmina in the Central Region, Archbishop Amissah was ordained a priest on 11th December 1949.
He earned a Doctor of Canon Law degree from the Pontifical Urban University in Rome in 1954. On June 16, 1957, he was consecrated Bishop and later enthroned Archbishop of Cape Coast on June 8, 1960. He died on September 22, 1991.
Throughout his life, Archbishop Amissah held various positions in the Church, including President of the Bishops’ Conference of Ghana, Vice-President of Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) and Grand Spiritual Director of the Knights and Ladies of St. John from 1960 to 1991.
He also served in several national roles, including Chairman of the University of Cape Coast Council and Member of the Council of State.
GNA
Edited by Agnes Boye-Doe