Most Reverend Charles Gabriel Palmer-Buckle, the Accra Metropolitan Archbishop of the Catholic Church has said the Holy Spirit Cathedral is not just for Catholics but a national monument.

He said the Cathedral since its establishment in 1956 had been the venue for national religious activities and was currently undergoing restoration.

He said the Nkrumah government on March 3, 1957 celebrated the consecration of Ghana to God and was renewed on March 4, 2017 in the presence of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo-Addo and other government officials.

He said the re-consecration of the Cathedral was also held in the presence of the National Chief Imam, the Representatives of the Christian Council and the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission.

“It is my hope and prayer that when we have restored it, it will become a place of pilgrimage, religious tourism for all Ghanaians and for all people who come to visit Ghana because it was there before independence, independence ceremony was held in it and we are still continuing to pray for peace, love and development for Ghana’’, he said.

Most Rev. Palmer-Buckle said this in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) on the sidelines of the First Vespers of Advent in the 125th Anniversary of the Catholic Archdiocese of Accra.

The year-long celebration which started from Saturday December 2, 2017 to Sunday November 25, 2018, is on the theme: “125 Years of Catholic Mission in Accra: Renewing Our Commitment to Evangelism’’.

The slogan for the anniversary is: “Arise Catholic Faithful, Rejoice and Renew’’.

Most Rev. Palmer-Buckle called on catholic faithful to renew their commitment to the evangelisation and the spirit of fellowship and communion.

He acknowledged the grace and blessing of the Almighty God on the Archdiocese which had grown from a mission station to a Metropolitan status.

Very Reverend Father Peter Rocky Hessy, the Chairman of the Publicity and Protocol Committee of the Anniversary, highlighted some activities lined-up for the celebration, which include; brass band and cultural display at the El-Wak Sports Stadium and commemoration of the First Holy Mass in Accra.

Others activities are; Episcopal Silver Jubilee of Archbishop Palmer-Buckle, candle light procession, children’s week, health awareness, blood donation and public lectures.

He said the year-long celebration would be climaxed with a Holy Mass at the Black Star Square on Sunday November 25, 2018.

The Catholic Church in Accra began with the first Holy Mass on January 31, 1893, Rev. Fathers Otoo Hilberer and Eugene Raes, two priests of the Society of African Missions who were sent from the Elmina Mission that had started in 1880.