March 19, 2024

CSN AGENCIES

CSN AGENCIES

OPUS SECURITATIS

MISSION: To guarantee retirement assistance to priests who are elderly and the terminally ill through the provision of suitable social security.

VISION: A life of wellbeing for priests in old age and infirmity.

Opus Securitas is the Pension scheme for the diocesan priests in Nigeria. The idea of Opus Securitatis came in the early 1970s, with a proposal put forward to open a Pension Fund for Clergy by some of the Churches in mission territories which were already receiving assistance from Missio-Aachen in Germany. This was adopted and approved by the Superior Council of the Pontifical Mission Societies (PMS) and Opus Securitatis was launched in May 1976. In May 2003, the General Assembly of the Pontifical Mission Societies (PMS) decided to de-centralise Opus Securitatis and make it the responsibility of the respective diocesan Bishop or national Bishops Conference. The Cardinal Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples in his letter of May 25, 2004 strongly recommended that the new system of pension for the local clergy be organized for all the Arch/Dioceses together by the National Bishops Conference in order to guarantee economic stability and better administration.

PONTIFICAL MISSION SOCIETIES (PMS)

The Pontifical Mission are the Four Societies that promote and support Mission in the Church. They are a world a worldwide network of prayer and charity at the service of the Pope and the mission of the church. These societies were founded by different people at different times, in different places. The first three societies were made Pontifical in 1922 by Pope Pius X1 while the fourth was given the title Pontifical in 1956 by Pope Pius XII. The Four arms of the Pontifical Mission Societies have been given the responsibility by the Pope (hence the name ‘Pontifical’) to support the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the work of charity and social improvement around the world. The societies promote awareness, prayer, sacrifice and fundraising to support worldwide Catholic mission.
“The Church that lives in time is missionary by its very nature, insofar as it originates from the mission of the Son and from the mission of the Holy Spirit, according to the plan of God the Father” (Ad Gentes, 2).

The Pontifical Mission Societies have four arms:

  1. Propagation of Faith
  2. Holy Childhood Association
  3. St. Peter the Apostle
  4. Pontifical Missionary Union

THE NATIONAL CATHOLIC SERVICE CENTRE (NCSC)

The National Catholic Service Centre (NCSC) is an arm of the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria (CSN) which is the administrative headquarters of the Catholic Bishop Conference of Nigeria (CBCN)

The Centre was set up to act basically as a ‘Clearing House’ between the CBCN and all Embassies in Nigeria in Consular and related matters and also to handle Goods clearance and protocols, etc for the CBCN.

Some of the Functions of the Centre include:

  1. The issuance of letters of Introduction to the Embassies for Catholic Clergy, Religious and selected Church personnel who seek to obtain visas.
  2. The processing of visa applications through its protocol staff on behalf of the Clergy, Religious and Church Personnel.
  3. Representing the Catholic Church in Nigeria in Matters that concern the Embassies.
  4. Goods clearance and protocol, etc.