My Dear Brothers and Sisters, I greet you all in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Today, we have all gathered as Marshallans and as Catholics, to celebrate the Sir James Marshall Day, a day set aside to celebrate a Catholic layman, Sir James Marshall, whose untiring efforts led to the re-introduction of the Catholic Faith in the Gold Coast in 1880.
Sir James Marshall was horrified about the non-existence of Catholicism in the Gold Coast when he arrived from England to take up the position of a Judicial Assessor in the Gold Coast. The Catholic Church had been brought to the shores of the Gold Coast by the Portuguese in 1482 but had collapsed in the mid 1600s for close to 250 years before the arrival of Sir James Marshall. He spared no efforts to ensure, against all odds, that the Catholic Church was re-established in the Gold Coast.
The Noble Order of Knights of Marshall was so named to immortalize the memory of such a distinguished lay Catholic whose name occupies a pride of place in the history of the Catholic Church in Ghana.
As you can see, the name Sir James Marshall epitomizes resilience and a passion for what is Noble. He was indeed convinced that the establishment of the Catholic faith in the then Gold Coast will make possible the receipt of God’s grace and salvation by the people of the land.
Sir James Marshall therefore comes across as an Evangelist par excellence and a shining example of a lay Catholic faithful who is called upon to propagate the Gospel and bring the salvation message to the doorstep of people.
As we celebrate the Day, let us be inspired by the zeal and achievement of Sir James Marshall and boldly spearhead the Church’s New Evangelization call.
While wishing you happy celebrations, I would like to call on you all to fearlessly strive to promote unity among our ranks as Marshallans and as Catholics and work as Christian soldiers towards ensuring peace in our country in this year of elections.
May the Peace of the Lord be with you all.