On 12 September 1997, by a communiqué signed by His Eminence Christian Wigan Cardinal Tumi, then Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Douala, St. Joseph Parish, Bonaberi, was officially erected. In a subsequent verbal declaration, Cardinal Tumi placed the Parish under the patronage of St. Joseph the Worker, designating 1st May as her feast day.
The roots of this Parish, however, stretch back further still. As early as 1990, Bishop Thomas Nkuissi of the Diocese of Nkongsamba — which at that time extended to encompass Bonaberi-Douala, had already recognised the pressing need for an Anglophone faith community in the area. In Decision D/08/90, signed in Nkongsamba on 24 December 1990, he established a ‘Paroisse Sociologique pour les Anglophones de Bonaberi Centre.’ This decision formed part of a broader reorganisation of the Bonaberi Deanery, which Bishop Nkuissi had set in motion in 1988 (Decision D/02/88, signed 27 June 1988), aimed at removing the obstacles that had long hindered the Deanery from flourishing as it ought.
Upon its formal erection in 1997, the Parish was assigned temporary residence within St. Louis Parish, Bonaberi. The communiqué of erection appointed Fr. Anselm Kentus Eke, MSP, as the first Parish Priest.
As the church building reached a stage suitable for the regular celebration of Holy Mass in 1998, work on a presbytery began in earnest. The need was acute: the Parish Priest was paying rent to St. Louis Parish at the Archbishop’s own request, and the considerable distance between his temporary residence and the Parish sacristy — which for a year was accommodated in the neighbouring Palms Cottage , was a real pastoral burden.
A two-storey design was chosen, partly for practical reasons of ventilation in the tropical heat. The upper floor provides four self-contained rooms, a large parlour, and a fitted kitchen; the ground floor houses a large parlour, two offices, two stores, and a garage. The Parish Priest moved into the completed presbytery on 30 November 1999. It was furnished through the generosity of Aunty Kate Kanyi Tometi. The building has since received significant security reinforcements following armed robbery attacks, and its external walls have been tastefully tiled in more recent years.
Among the most cherished adornments of the Parish grounds is the Marian Grotto, designed and built by the Kanyi-Tometi Family of Tole, Small Soppo, Buea — three of whom are founding members of this Parish. The grotto stands alongside the church, in front of the presbytery, as a jewel of devotion built in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary and to the glory of God. It was erected in the evergreen memory of their beloved mother, Mama Bridget Engome Kanyi-Tometi — fondly remembered as ‘Sweet Mother’ — in grateful acknowledgement of the many blessings she received during her lifetime through her unwavering devotion to Our Lady.
The grotto was blessed by His Eminence Christian Cardinal Tumi, Archbishop of Douala, with Fr. William Egedegbe, MSP, serving as Parish Priest and Fr. Christian Achinivu, MSP, as Curate at the time of the blessing. Its interior was later lovingly refinished under the supervision of the late Fr. Linus Egbeji, MSP, who introduced polished wooden pews laid over the original concrete slabs, among other fine touches that enhanced both the comfort of worshippers and the security of the Blessed Sacrament, which reposes therein permanently.
Dedicated in honour of the Emeritus Archbishop of Douala, His Eminence Christian Cardinal Tumi, this magnificent hall stands as a lasting tribute to his incalculable fatherly support and blessing upon the Parish. It is the most costly and the most time-consuming single project ever undertaken by the community.
Construction began during the pastorate of Fr. William Egedegbe, MSP, the second Parish Priest; continued under his successor, the late Fr. Linus Egbeji, MSP (RIP); and was brought to completion by Fr. Alphonse Mario Chukwunenye, MSP, the fourth Parish Priest. The hall was inaugurated by the very person to whom it is dedicated — His Eminence Christian Cardinal Wigan Tumi — on 22 February 2013, during his pastoral visit to the Parish. It was blessed on Sunday, 14 April 2013, under the pontificate of Pope Francis and the episcopate of Bishop Samuel Kleda.
An architectural masterpiece, the hall is fully air-conditioned and features a mezzanine level, providing seating capacity for approximately 1,500 persons. It serves as the venue for Parish general meetings and celebrations, and is also made available for hire for weddings and similar occasions.
This Parish bookshop is dedicated in loving memory and honour of the late Fr. Linus Abang Egbeji, MSP, the third Parish Priest, who served the community from November 2007 until his untimely death in a road traffic accident on the evening of Friday, 23 February 2012. He had begun the building of the bookshop; it was completed by Fr. Alphonse Mario Chukwunenye, MSP — his former assistant, who succeeded him as Parish Priest. The bookshop was inaugurated on Saturday, 23 February 2013, at the one-year memorial celebration of Fr. Egbeji’s death, by the Superior of the Missionaries of St. Paul (MSP), who led a delegation from the congregation’s headquarters in Abuja, Nigeria.
This modest but beloved outdoor structure serves as a place of open-air worship and a gathering point for many of the Parish’s associations. It provides the setting for the altar during open-air Masses — particularly during Parish feast days when a single large celebration is held — as well as during crusades and the first part of the Easter Vigil. Built as a shelter anchored to the boundary wall at the far end of the Parish grounds, it remains, fittingly, the one structure in the Parish that stands ever open, without doors, welcoming all who approach.
