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Facts About Rev Fr Carlo Zappa and His Christianization of the Enuani Area

 Facts About Rev Fr Carlo Zappa and His Christianization of the Enuani Area 


- Emeka Esogbue



Perhaps, no Christian missionary played a greater role in the evangelization of the Enuani Region of Anioma as did Rev Fr. Carlo Zappa. Fr. Zappa played a significant role in Christianizing the Enuani area of Anioma.


* He was born in Milan, Italy on December 23, 1861 and was ordained a priest on June 8, 1884. 

* Fr Zappa was sent to Asaba by the Poirier because Sir Robert Marshal, an official of the Royal Niger Company with its headquarters in Asaba insisted that he was needed.

* He served in the Society of African Missions. 

* He was later appointed the Prefect of the Upper Niger

* He established the St. Joseph's Catholic Church, the first church in Asaba in 1888.

* Rev Fr Zappa moved the Roman Catholic mission headquarters from Lokoja to Asaba

* The Asaba site was purchased for the missionaries by Sir James Marshal.

* He was in Issele-Uku, Ibusa, Illah, Ogwashi-Uku, Okpanam and Onicha-Olona, in this order to found other mission stations

* The mission station in Ibusa called St. Augustine's Catholic Church was founded in 1898.

* The foundations of the mission stations presented interest in their various ways but that of Ibusa is notable because it involved war between the people and forces of Royal Niger Company. Once the Ibusa forces surrendered to the British, Fr Zappa who had been making efforts before the war, raced to the community on foot from Asaba to get the elders to agree to the establishment of the mission station in the community. 

* Rev Fr. Zappa is regarded as the first to document "Ahaba" as "Asaba" thus changing the name that the community bears at present.

* Fr. Zappa faced the stiffest opposition in Ibusa where the elders of the settlements opposed Christianity and his bid to plant a mission station.

* Fr. Zappa died in the Anioma community of Asaba on January 30, 1917 where he had spent a significant part of his missionary work and was buried in the community.

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