Buckley, Timothy Michael

Timothy Buckley was the last of the early Irish Spiritan priests who worked in the Igboland of the southeast Nigeria. His death on October 1, 2007, closed a significant chapter in the missionary activities of the earliest missionaries who brought the Catholic faith to the Igbo people of Nigeria. This placed the continued mission in the hands of recent missionaries and indigenous priests, all drawn from various sections of the priestly class, diocesan and religious alike. At his death many stories started coming in. Building around his personality, the stories point at how his simple and ordinary life as an Irish Spiritan in Igboland has touched many lives and inspired many acts of Christian faith in the land.[1]

His acts of charity and extraordinary commitment to pastoral life laid the foundation for many grassroot Catholic missionary activities in the current dioceses of Enugu, Nsukka and Awgu in southeast Nigeria today. He worked among these people and even at the outbreak of the Nigerian-Biafran civil war, he refused to return to Ireland in order to share in carrying the cross of this people he loved so much. Apart from the few months when he was taken outside of Nigeria for security reasons, he returned and remained among the Biafrans (the Igbo people of southeast Nigeria) during the war and risked his life for them until the end of the war. As Bishop John Okoye of Awgu diocese remarked in Fr. Buckley’s funeral oration:

 Fr. Buckley had to leave for his country at the beginning of the Nigerian/Biafran civil war. But love for Awgu people brought him back to Awgu to minister to those who were behind the line, when Awgu and its environs fell to the federal troops. At the end of the civil war, Fr. Buckley was there to welcome and to rehabilitate the returnees from the war. Fr. Buckley’s zeal for souls was matched only by his charity. His charity was intense and total self-giving. He never kept back his time, his few possessions for himself alone. [2]

After the war, he stayed and lived the rest of his life in Igboland and died among them years later.

His Early Life

Timothy Michael Buckley was born to Thomas Buckley and Mary Buckley (née O’ Keeffe) in County Kerry, in the Republic of Ireland on September 19, 1924. He was baptized at St. Senan U.D. of County Clare with the name Timothy Michael Buckley.[3] He spent 53 years of his 83 years of life working in Nigeria, from just a year after his priestly ordination in 1951.

Little Tim, as his family called him, then attended St. Patrick’s secondary school in Tarmons, Tarbert of Co. Kerry in the Munster region of the Republic of Ireland. Later, he was admitted to Rockwell College, of the Spiritan congregation in 1939 and was there until 1943.[4] After two years at Rockwell college, Timothy proceeded to the Kilshane novitiate for his proper formation to the priesthood [5]. On July 15, 1951, he was ordained a Spiritan Catholic priest at Holy Cross Seminary, Clanliffe, Dublin in Ireland.

A year later, he was assigned to be part of the missionary team to Africa in 1952 according to his sister, Mary Curtin (nee Buckley).[6] As he remarked to Irene Christian Lynch in her book, Beyond Faith and Adventure. Irish Missionaries in Nigeria Tell Their Extraordinary Story: “I arrived in Port Harcourt in a chartered plane which carried a large number of us who were arriving for the first time.”[7] On their arrival in Port Harcourt, Nigeria, the archbishop of Onitsha then, His Grace, Most Rev. Dr. Charles Heerey, C.S.Sp. was already there to pick them up and to take them down to Onitsha area. From that time on, he spent the rest of his 53 years of priestly life among the people of Igboland until his death in 2007.

Christian Mission in the Igbo Heartland

He worked at St. Michael’s parish, Awgu and expanded the parish from a small local one to many neighbouring towns, stretching through Mgbowo, Ndeabor, Mgbidi, Okpanku, Oduma, Nenwe, Owelli, Amoli, Ihe and Agboogugu. These areas where he sowed the seed of the Gospel have become vibrant mission churches today and have been elevated into the diocese of Awgu. The current Bishop of Awgu, John Ifeanyichukwu Okoye was baptized by Buckley. In the days of his mission there at Awgu, he recalled how he had to trek long miles to the towns and villages of the mission area on foot, planting the seeds of Christian faith.

On a few occasions, he used a bicycle to minister in some places that had manageable roads for that. At that time, there were very few motorable roads, not to mention highways or paved roads. He moved in the village pathways and unpaved roads that were of course flanked by bushy jungles which were not homes for humans but animals.[8] All that time, it was not unusual to encounter dangerous animals like snakes and the likes. Clashes with “zealots” of native religions who felt that their religion was being threatened by Christianity were common. These natives did not want to welcome the white man and to see his religion take root in their land. Tropical torrential rainfalls, hot sunny days and the harmattan (a hot wind from the Sahara Desert), which were not part of the European seasonal climates, were some of the challenges that faced Buckley in his first place of Christian mission in Awgu.

He was next posted to Eke parish, around 1962. It was located in a vast area that encompasses the entire Udi and Ezeagu local government areas as they exist today. However, the Catholic church had already arrived in Eke by 1915.[9] As Bishop J. I. Okoye of Awgu diocese pointed out in his work, Christianity in Mbanabo, its Advent, Growth and Future: “It was indeed at Eke that the religious tree which spread its branches to other parts of Enugu Diocese was planted, watered and nurtured.”[10] There in Eke, Fr. Tim Buckley preached the Catholic faith and extended his mission to the neighboring towns around Eke like Okpatu, Abor, Ukana, Umulumgbe, Ebe, Umuoka and Egede in Udi local government area.

By 1963, he extended his mission to Eziagu area, which was under Iwollo parish then. There were testimonies on how he was working in these places. He prayed for families and divine miracles took place. He left a good and holy image at Eke and Iwollo parishes. While working in Iwollo, he had several encounters and challenges from village “masquerade groups” which often hindered the Christian activities, sometimes interrupting masses and liturgical celebrations in his parish.[11]

By 1975 he took over the pastoral jurisdiction of St. Joseph’s Parish, Emene, where he left his pastoral footprints on the sands of the locality. There he received the name “Ogozioha” (the one who blesses his people).[12] He was in Emene for 33 years and died there on October 1, 2007. While he was in Emene, his commitment to the pastoral need of the people remained constant. His prayer life and spirituality were outstanding and inspiring. There were many testimonies on the efficacy of his prayers by the parishioners and other spiritual followers of his mission. In 2005, Mrs. Eucharia Chime who lived in the St. Joseph’s parish mission quarters and who also teaches in the nearby school, testified that it was the prayers that Buckley said for her that wrought the miracle of her life. The miracle was that his prayers made it possible for her to get pregnant after many years of barrenness in her marriage. She narrated her story thus: “We were unable to beget a child, until Fr. Buckley prayed for me and my husband. After the prayers, he told me not to cry again that God would wipe away my tears. It didn’t take time, and I was pregnant. That was how I gave birth for the first time. Fr. Buckley’s prayers did the miracle of God in my life.” [13]

In a related story, another woman, Mrs. Ogechukwu Chibuoke was unable to become pregnant for a long time until Buckley’s prayers produced the miraculous breakthrough in her life in 1989. She described how he prayed for her and gave her some Marian prayers to say. This happened in January1989, and by February of the same year, 1989, she was pregnant. Nine months later, she had her first child. Today, she and her husband are happily blessed with four male children and a female child.” [14] Such were the testimonies given about him in many parts of Igbo land where he worked to lift the people up spiritually and pastorally.

The fruits of his pastoral industry and charity cannot be over emphasized. The number of people he assisted in charity is extensive. Some he trained in schools. To some, he gave food and clothes. Others he assisted in reconciliation and enshrinement of peace where there was none. Some he helped to get employment. To others, he gave money to start a business. He built houses for some using the community labour and his personal money. He helped others to adopt children. The list of his good work goes on. His deep practice of charity showed up in many areas of his apostolate. I lived with him for seven years in St. Joseph parish, Emene, and my testimony is that one thing Buckley could not do was to leave a needy person with nothing. He would even go without food to feed the hungry. He would sometimes give out food from the collective foodstuff of the parish house to the poor.

Sometimes, he gave cooked food in the Fathers’ House that belonged to another priest, absent at mealtime, to a poor hungry person who was hanging around. When a priest in the parish house missed the community mealtime, and was unable to find his food upon return, it was often presumed that Buckley had offered his food to the poor who often came around. And if he was asked about the missing food, Buckley would naturally respond. “I gave it to one hungry fellow there. The poor lad was hungry. Are you so hungry? Come over to my room. I have some biscuits and chocolates, and tea if you care.” [15] He acted like a holy “Robin Hood” in the presbytery. And when, unexpectedly, the food items for the month like rice, beans, yam etc ran out, before the end of the month, there was no doubt about the agent of the shortage. And whenever questions arose about the missing food items, he would be the first to say “I took them. I gave them out, anything wrong?” Are we starving already?” and the cook would chuckle, which is revelatory and indicative.

One day, he gave out a bag of rice in the house under my administration. I confronted him, saying that he was hurting the welfare of the entire parish house. He quietly responded, “Has all the food finished”, and I retorted, “Yes” and then he added “God will provide….” But I did not allow him to finish, and I shouted, “Today? When?” To which he said: “Soon!” Then I persisted further, “As soon as when? Did you make any plans?” He quietly replied, “No, I didn’t make any plans, but God will provide.” I looked at him in disbelief and stormed out in anger.

Then something miraculous happened! A man came by two hours later after my little confrontation, as I was standing by my car, ready to drive down to the bank for money to buy some foodstuff. Given the urgency of the food crisis, I did not want to give this man my attention. But he persisted, saying that he was not going to take more than five minutes of my time; and that he needed me to just take a few minutes, to bless him and his family in the church before driving out. His desperation made me enter the church via the sacristy as he requested.

When I came in, I saw three persons seated in the front pew next to a heap of the “unexpected.” In the heap was a bag of rice, two cartons of peak milk, over 20 tubers of yam, a big bag of beans, a set of Cadbury materials – Ovaltine, Lipton and the like, two bags of semolina flour and two cartons of juice drink. They told me they had brought all these for the ministers of God in St. Joseph’s parish as a thanksgiving offering to God. They said that it was their own way of doing such things in private rather than in public celebrations. Later, they added an envelope of N20, 000. I asked if they had planned the visit with Fr. Buckley and they responded that they had not. That was the miracle of feeding the Fathers’ House as Buckley had “prophesied.” The items before me proved his faith in God’s provision and helped me to believe also. I cancelled my rush to the bank. From that day on, after I told the other priests about the miraculous event, no one worried about Fr. Buckley taking food secretly and giving it to the poor.

Conclusion: He Was a Witness to the Light (John 1:7)

Fr. Timothy Buckley died in Emene on October 1 and his burial mass took place on October 18, 2007 at Holy Ghost cathedral Ogui, Enugu. His burial was attended by over thirty thousand people, from different states of Nigeria and beyond. He was buried in a very memorable mausoleum in St. Joseph parish, Emene near the grotto of Mary, Mother of Perpetual Succor, with an epitaph engraved in a sharp sand marble marker that reads: “He came as a witness to testify to the light that all might believe through him.” (John 1:7).[16] To date, people still visit his grave site to pray and to ask for his spiritual intercession. Some testify to divine favors obtained by his intercession. His missionary activities in this part of Africa distinguished him as a symbol of the ordinary parish priest whose pastoral courage and commitment is a reference point for extraordinary missionary impacts and inspirations.

His life was a message of humility and simplicity that touched many lives. He constantly wore his white clerical soutane as a symbol of his call. Outside his pastoral work, he wore cheap shorts and shirts and resisted any gift that he considered expensive. He never owned a personal bank account and gave out any money or gift item to the poor and the needy. Some of the children that he baptized into the Catholic Christian faith have become bishops, priests, and exemplary Christians. Many still seek his intercession in prayers in hopes of divine intervention and miraculous healing. His legacy was his inspiring holiness through the sincere and humble life of faith, and this has made him a missionary icon among the people of Igboland, in southeast Nigeria.

Humphrey Uchenna Ani

Endnotes:

1. Cf. Humphrey Uchenna Ani, Tim Buckley, The Story of a Missionary Legend (Enugu: Black Belt Konzult, 2008), 19.
2. Bishop John Ifeanyichukwu Okoye during the funeral oration of Fr. Tim Buckley on October 18, 2007.
3. Baptism Form of Fr. Tim Buckley in Kirlrush, Cappagh, 1924; with 395 as the entry number.
4. Cf. “Biography of Very Rev. Fr. Tim Buckley, CSSp,” in The Sacerdotal Golden Jubilee of Very Rev. Fr. Tim Buckley, CSSp, on August 18, 2001, 11.
5. Cf. Ani, Tim Buckley, 48.
6. Cf. An Interview with Mary Curtin (née Buckley), the sister to Fr. Tim Buckley on August 10, 2008.
7. Cf. Irene C. Lynch, Beyond Faith and Adventure; Irish Missionaries in Nigeria Tell Their Extraordinary Story (Dublin: ICDL, 2006), 3ff.
8. Cf. Ani, Tim Buckley, 78.
9. Cf. Humphrey Uchenna Ani, “Catholic Diocese of Awgu: History and Hope,” in Brochure of the Episcopal Ordination and Enthronement of Most Rev. Msgr. John Ifeanyichukwu Okoye–The First Bishop of Awgu Diocese, Enugu State, Nigeria,15.
10. J. I. Okoye, “Christianity in Mbanabo, its Advent, Growth and Future” (B.D. diss., Bigard Memorial Seminary, Enugu,1978), 45.
11. Cf. Discussion with Fr. Buckley on his early missionary activities at Eke and Iwollo parishes in December 2006.
12. Cf. Ani, Tim Buckley, 112.
13. A discussion with Fr. Buckley’s parishioner, Mrs. Eucharia Chime on the Spiritual and miraculous power of God through Fr. Buckley’s prayers on Monday August 18, 2008. She confirmed a testimony she gave about Fr. Buckley on this miracle earlier in 2005.
14. An oral account of a testimony of miracle by the prayers of Fr. Buckley by a parishioner, Mrs. Ogechukwu Chibuoke.
15. This story is a personal experience I had with Fr. Buckley when I lived with him for over seven years. I wrote about it in his biography Tim Buckley, The Story of a Missionary Legend. Cf. Ani, Tim Buckley, 107.
16. The tomb with this inscription and the mausoleum of Fr. Buckley is still located in St. Joseph’s parish, Emene Enugu. And many Christians around Enugu still flock to his tomb site for prayers and intercession. Cf. Ani, Tim Buckley, 141.

Bibliography:

Ani, Humphrey Uchenna. Tim Buckley, The Story of a Missionary Legend. Enugu: Black Belt Konzult, 2008.

Lynch Irene, C. Beyond Faith and Adventure; Irish Missionaries in Nigeria Tell Their Extraordinary Story. Dublin: ICDL, 2006.

Okoye, J.I. “Christianity in Mbanabo, its Advent, Growth and Future.” B.D. diss., Bigard Memorial Seminary, Enugu,1978.

“Biography of Very Rev. Fr. Tim Buckley, CSSp.” In The Sacerdotal Golden Jubilee of Very Rev. Fr. Tim Buckley, CSSp, on August 18, 2001.

“Catholic Diocese of Awgu: History and Hope.” In Brochure of the Episcopal Ordination and Enthronement of Most Rev. Msgr. John Ifeanyichukwu Okoye–The First Bishop of Awgu Diocese, Enugu State, Nigeria.

This article, submitted in July 2024, was researched and written by Humphrey Uchenna Ani, PhD. He is a Catholic priest and a senior lecturer in the Philosophy Department of Bigard Memorial Seminary, Enugu, Nigeria. He is also a Research Fellow with the Lonergan Institute of Boston College, Boston Massachusetts. He hails from Egede in Enugu State Nigeria, and is the author of Tim Buckley, The Story of a Missionary Legend published in 2008.