Very Rev. Fr. Julius Olaitan: Leading light Of Digital Evangelism

NETA NWOSU 

The Very Rev. Fr. Julius Olaitan is well-known as a Catholic priest in Lagos and its environs, where he has served in various capacities and where he is currently the Episcopal Vicar, Lagos Region, Archdiocese of Lagos, and Parish Priest, Regina Mundi Catholic Church Mushin, Lagos. However, beyond Lagos and Nigeria, more Catholics and Christians benefit from his priestly vocation through his Daily Reflections broadcast on social media. His homily, which begins with the familiar line “Dear friends in Christ, welcome to our daily reflection…” resonates every day on WhatsApp and other social media platforms. Remarkably, he has not missed a day’s broadcast of the Daily Reflection in the past eight years and nine months since the maiden broadcast on December 8, 2015.

As the Director of the Lagos Resource Centre during the COVID-19 pandemic, he brought his resourcefulness to bear. At a time when the lockdown restriction kept the faithful away from the Church, he started the daily broadcast of Holy Mass, recorded and sent out every morning. To further maximise the diffusion power of social media, he added a YouTube channel to his broadcasts.

“With COVID-19, I said let’s put together a team and start the YouTube channel. We got people from DSTV multichoice to train youths on how to handle the cameras. We acquired cameras and other equipment and started a little studio,” he recently reflected. His efforts expanded the scope of evangelism to the Catholic faithful, not only in Nigeria but around the world.

Without any doubt, Fr. Olaitan is easily the standout candidate for The Catholic Herald Centenary Evangelism Award. In the age of the new media and its deployment for evangelism, Fr. Olaitan performs a leading role in shaping the country’s religious digital landscape. Today, he has enhanced a religious virtual space where Catholics and non-Catholics connect for their morning devotional prayers. In the borderless space of social media, he expounds the teachings of Christ; he leads his listeners through the Mass readings; he provides commentaries on Catholic liturgy, and offers reflections on life issues and prayers. His audiocasts and videos – short, fast-paced and engaging – afford the lay faithful the necessary ‘moment with God’, shore up their faith and imbue them with strength to push through the day. Aside from his tech-savvy side, Fr. Olaitan has a record of continuous service as a priest.

Ordained a priest at 27, his 26 years of priesthood has been devoted to duties in critical positions, such as Dean of Lagos Island Deanery and Episcopal Vicar, Lagos Region, to which he was appointed in 2023, on his 25th year as a priest. As Episcopal Vicar of Lagos, he oversees a region that comprises almost 50 parishes spread across Surulere, Apapa, Yaba and Lagos Island Deaneries, combined with duty as parish priest of Regina Mundi Catholic Church , Mushin. Born on April 11 , 1971, at Odoayan, Mojoda, Epe Local Government Area, Lagos State, Fr. Olaitan received his diaconate ordination on December 27, 1997, conducted by late Most Revd. Albert Ayinde Fasina, erstwhile Bishop of Ijebu Ode Diocese. The following year, on August 8, 1998, he was ordained a priest by Anthony Cardinal Okogie, Emeritus Archbishop of Lagos, at St Dominic Catholic Church, Yaba. As with Catholic priests, he is well-learned.

His education started at the Roman Catholic Mission Primary School (1981) and Okemagba High School (1988) both in Mojoda-Odoayan. Thereafter, he began his education at the seminaries, first with a Spiritual Year pro gramme at Ss. Peter and Paul, Ekpoma (1989-1990) and followed by priestly formation at Ss. Peter and Paul Major Seminary, Ibadan (1990-1998). He went on to earn his bachelor’s degree in Philosophy and Theology, respectively, from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria (1994) and Pontifical Urbaniana University, Rome (1998).

He studied further to acquire his Masters in Religion and Culture, Theology and Philosophy in Dialogue from Mater Dei Institute, a College of Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland (2008). He started his priestly vocation as Associate Priest at St. Michael’s Catholic Church, Alapere, Ketu, Lagos State (1998- 1999) and went on to serve as the Church’s Parish Priest (1999- 2001), Administrator at Holy Cross Cathedral, Lagos (2001- 2007), and Chaplain at Church of Assumption, Booterstown, Dublin (2007-2008). He subsequently worked as the Project Director of St. Albert the Great Major Seminary, Idowu Ofonron, Ogun State (2008- 2019).

He returned to parish priest duty at Our Lady Mother of Perpetual Help Catholic Church, Ajah (2013-2015), and thereafter, assumed the same office status at Our Lady of Perpetual Catholic Church, Victoria Island, where he began the Daily Reflection project, even while also serving as Dean of Lagos Island Deanery. Among other assignments, he had also been the Chaplain and Coordinator of Small Christian Communities, Archdiocese of Lagos (1999) as well as the Director of Vocations of the Archdiocese of Lagos (2001-2007). He was at various times a member of committees such as the Priests’ Welfare Committee, Archdiocese of Lagos (2013-2023), All Purpose Committee, Archdiocese of Lagos (2013 till date) and Lagos State Pilgrims Welfare Board (2013- 2015).

He was the Chairman of the Lagos Archdiocesan Jubilee Mercy Committee (2015-2016). As a priest who is steadfastly devoted to biblical teaching, his philosophy is reflected in his admonition to young priests about the importance of preparing for homily. In the advice he gave at the first valedictory Mass and reception of the Ministries of Lectors and acolytes of St. Albert the Great Major Seminary, Abeokuta, Ogun State, on July 13, 2023, he said: “You will do yourself and the people of God a great good if you take time to prepare your homilies well. Do not be in a hurry to get done with it. That is an area where people will expect a lot from you, after all your training.”
On the success of Daily Reflection on social media, he said: “It just kept growing as people got it and they shared it with others on different platforms. I never expected it to go the way it did. Nobody began this thing with the aim of having a crowd. It’s been amazing.” The testimony of the success of Daily Reflection reverberates far and wide. People call from near and far, from Australia, Liberia, and Germany, among other places. Some of them, when they visit Nigeria, make effort to locate the priest whose voice they hear every day on various platforms where his messages are shared. All things considered, Very Rev. Fr. Olaitan is the winner of The Catholic Herald Centenary Evangelism Award. His extraordinary impact on the nation’s spiritual landscape and the world at large is worth commending.

The Catholic Herald Centenary Evangelism Award category of The Catholic Herald Awards acknowledges and honours Priests who have contributed significantly to the spread of the gospel on the social media. Reflecting on the work in the social media space, he said: “People who receive it appreciate it. And the fact that people who receive it are showing appreciation, in a way keeps the programme going because it is something I must do because of what people get out of it. ” Fr. Olaitan is committed to broadening the horizons of evangelism in the digital space. “Our own is just to cooperate with the grace of God to make sure that what he has assigned to us, that we do it to the best of our abilities and the resources that are available,” he said.

– Lady Neta Nwosu is the Editor of The Catholic Herald weekly newspaper.