Theophilus Okere must arguably be a titan. For such a titanic personality, it is no use to make the usual citation filled with dates, dates of primary and secondary education, university graduation and official positions held here and there. Our opinion is that, such is not necessary here since; we are before a man who consistently says very little or nothing about himself. Let our citation therefore be like the description of the elephant by blind men, and let this be a series of encounters and the inspiration theses afforded, seen of course, from a particular and personal perspective.
Giant Theologian
Greater Philosopher
Okere is indeed a great theologian, in any case, one of the greatest we ever had in Nigeria. His mind brings to memory the great Archbishop F. J. Sheen, also a Louvanist like Okere, who was difficult to categorize as a philosopher or as a theologian. But Sheen did full doctorates in philosophy and theology. Okere owes his theological prowess to his basic professional theological studies in the seminary, his versatility and his deep knowledge. Many years ago a priest listened to his sermon on Mary, and came out exclaiming that for all his four years of theology in the seminary, he did not learn as much on Mary as he did from Okere’s sermon. It is therefore not for nothing that in 1985, it was around him that some young theologians rallied to lay the foundation of the Catholic Theological Association of Nigeria (CATHAN). He became the first president of this theological association. Today, a score of years after CATHAN has established itself as an uncommon association, not having for three years missed even one of its annual conferences. Okere was also the first editor of its journal, The Nigerian Journal of Theology. NJT has also a special reputation, being, in addition to the Bigard Theological Studies, the only theological journal in regular circulation in the whole country, not missed an issue. It is fitting to this great theologian that today a collection of all his sayings: “Theophilus Okere in his own words” is also being published.
It is like putting one’s money where one’s mouth is, since in 1985, Okere said to the gathering of a galaxy of theological experts in Nigeria at Bethany house in Onitsha that “a theologian that has never been heard has never been heard of.”
But Okere’s voice has been heard in many forums and in different contexts. That voice sounds louder in philosophical studies. Internationally, he owes much of his reputation to his ground breaking thesis “Can there be an African Philosophy?” part of which was published as African philosophy: A Historico- Hermeneutical Investigation into the Condition of its Possibility. These two works belong to the most influential writings in contemporary African Philosophical discussion. They became the foundation of the hermeneutical current in African philosophy. Its view that the philosophy of a people, and a fortiori, African philosophy should emerge from the hermeneutics of their culture became the rallying call for such thinkers as Tsaney Serequeberhan of Eritrea, Ntumba Tsahiamalenga and Nkombe Oleko of the Democratic Republic of Congo. In his recent book: Brief History of African Philosophy, Barry Hallen gives this current and Okere himself a special place among the important philosophy movement in the African continent in our time. Hence, Okere’s prowess in philosophy has earned him a special place on the pages of the history of African Philosophy. When we arrived at Louvain in Belgium in 1988, we realized that he was the only Nigerian philosopher known widely to French speaking philosophic workers. He is also one of the few Nigerian philosophers repeatedly quoted in internationally published works both in discussions and in bibliographies. There is indeed hardly any comprehensive work on African philosophy, especially from the United States, which omits a mention of his name.
• Professor J. Obi Oguejiofor, a Catholic priest, wrote in from Nnamdi Azikiwe University Awka