THE STORY OF MATER CHRISTI: A PREFACE TO THE LOGIC OF SUCCESS

Dele Alaba ILESANMI, PhD

The Redeemed Christian Bible College

Associate Professor of Biblical Research and Christian Education,

Testament Theological Seminary

pstdeleilesanmi3@gmail.com +234-08062197040

Success, they say, is doing ordinary things in an extraordinary way. And the
secret of success is constancy of purpose, goal, aim, or objective. However,
as Joel Barker says, “vision without action is merely a dream, while action
without vision just passes time, but vision with action can change the
world.” It is a truism that, for life to be worth living, one should have an ideal
or value to pursue, a hallmark to attain. The above expressions vividly
encapsulate the story we are about to tell.

The establishment of Mater Christi Catholic Girls’ High School, Igede-Ekiti,

on 29th September, 1997, eleven months after the creation of Ekiti State
from the old Ondo State, gave a welcome fillip to the educational system in
Nigeria from the fountain of knowledge, which provided an apt springboard
for surgical restructuring that pulled out our educational system that had
been in the doldrums for many years. Besides, her establishment has helped
to uncover and pull out the shadow, the glory of Ekiti and the people of Ekiti,
who were known as education supremos, through the unparalleled
intellectual exhibition of Mater Christi Girls, who were (and still are), in fact,
examplar extraordinaire.

Since this is the prefatory note to the story of Mater Christi, space will not
permit us to tell the story in one fell swoop. However, it is imperative at this
point to make a graphic description of this school, located on a hill called
Oke Aga, in a town where the source of the celebrated Osun River is located,
and the country home of professor Fatunla, the first Nigerian professor of
mathematics and computer science, and Charles Jemiriye (a Baptist
Reverend), who evangelised parts of Ekiti, Edo, Ondo Kogi, and Kwara State
in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

There are so many things that make Mater Christi a citadel of learning and
the paradigm of a standard secondary school. The shining school sits atop
an undulating hill in a popular area called ‘Oke Aga’. The school is lucky to
be located in a state that prides herself as the Fountain of Knowledge and
Land for Honour (Ekiti), the state that sprawls and nestles serenely in fertile
rolling hills and on the valleys of countless magnificent mountains, hills,
mounds, and intriguing rocks. In addition, the school is lucky to have been
founded in an education-loving society like Ekiti State, which produces the
highest number of educated people per square kilometre in the Black
World (Filani, 2005) and the highest number of professors in Africa
(International Conscience Report 2006/2007). No wonder the school
remains the dream of many parents for their born and yet-to-be-born
female children.

What is more? It should be noted that though IgedeEkiti may be considered

small, Mater Christi is not a “bush” school in Up County. The cosmopolitan
nature of the school is evident from where her students come from.
Although the majority of the students are from Ekiti, we have a good
number of students who are from big cities in the South West: Ibadan,
Lagos, Ilorin, Akure, Ile-Ife, and even further afield: Enugu, Anambra, Imo,
Abia, Kaduna, Abuja, and Port Harcourt. This certainly has a strong influence
on the students past and present, since they have to do all things together;
they see themselves as one, and I believe it makes the students and their
teachers more cosmopolitan and fraternal in their interpersonal relations.
This further strengthens their spirit of accommodation and acceptance.

Furthermore, looking at the nature of the school, Mater Christi Catholic Girls’
High School, a first-time visitor to the school may have a cosmetic
impression about her, going by the strict rules and solemnity. No student is
allowed to enter the staffrooms without first seeking permission; Angelus is
a daily ritual at noon, and it is mandatory for every student to observe (or
perform the ritual) the Angelus hour. Apart from this, morning mass is vitally
important; indeed, the deeply religious-catechism and rather military
structure of the school system is the backbone of the students’ lives.

Over and above, at Mater Christi, there is a high level of discipline. Indeed,
students and staff alike are courteous and go about their duties with
sobriety; there is no harassment of any sort. Apart from being the best in
Ekiti State and one of the best ten secondary schools in Nigeria in terms of
academic excellence in both internal and external academic competitions
(Dele A. Ilesanmi, 2008), Mater Christi, Igede-Ekiti, stands out in upholding
the principles of morality and modesty. The rules and regulations of the
school are based on biblical principles; she, the school, emphasises inner
beauty and purity, not only outside adornment of the body (1 Peter 3:3).
Although the outside appearance must be ‘corporate’, any student found
dressed shabbily is severely punished, or rather sent home for proper
parental redress. The girls are always impeccably dressed in their blue
gowns atop white shirts.

Moreso, Mater students are, unlike the students in the cities, such as Lagos,
Abuja, Ado-Ekiti, Port Harcourt, Ibadan, Akure, Ilorin, Abeokuta, Kano, and
so on, unique in the sense that they are not permitted to wear artificial hair
and decoration known as attachment. The students are also not allowed to
use make-up or sophisticated cosmetics. In addition to this, students are not
permitted to read or study any immodest magazines, books, or other
related materials. The use of handsets or mobile phones by students is
prohibited under pain and expulsion.

Due to the fact that the school is located in a state that is regarded as,
unarguably, the largest linguistically homogenous ethnic group in Nigeria,
the people of the state are reputed for hard work, forthrightness, and a
legendary passion for intellectual pursuit.

In synopsis, the success of Mater Christi in academics, sports, and other

human endeavours is indeed predicated on, or rather facilitated by, the
principles of persistence, hard work, focus, prudence, flexibility, and
commitment. Going through the record of achievements, I would like to hit
the nail on the head. By God’s grace, Mater Christi remains the defending
champion in national, regional, state, and local government competitions in
essays, computer (internet), sports, quizzes, and debates. Indeed, the school,
Mater Christi, remains the nucleus of intelligence and talent, the epicentre
of competitions and talents, and the academic backbone of Ekiti State.
Hence, she remains unarguably the brightest sport in Ekiti education
development.

The greatness of Mater Christi Catholic Girls’ High School, Igede-Ekiti, lies in
the work and activities of the past and present staff. We must commend the
efforts of the school, especially in giving her a facelift and for their
unbending support for both internal and external competitions.

To now imaginatively enter Pius Okigbo’s world, this book is original,

startling, provocative, illuminating, and disturbing. It is original because of
the novelty of the arguments and the penetration of the logic, backed by an
enormous array of detailed records of the academic achievements. It is
startling and provocative because of the simplicity of the presentation of our
facts. It is illuminating because of the compelling logic of the success story
of our school, Mater Christi Catholic Girls’ High School, Igede-Ekiti, and it is
disturbing because the record of achievements seems unbeatable and
unachievable, which makes Mater Christi a unique and matchless citadel of
learning in Ekiti State. Indeed, Mater Christi, you are indomitable, unique,
and matchless; you are indeed the glory of Ekiti State.

This is a preface to our story; read it and enjoy yourself.

This is our story!.

This article was first published by this author in “Unswerving Mater Christi Girls, The Glory of
Ekiti State” in 2009, pp. 12–14, and reproduced here. The author was an English teacher at
the school when he wrote this piece. The book was produced by the Mater Christi Press Club.
This author was the coordinator of the press club and one of the editors of the book.
About the Author

Pastor Dele Alaba Ilesanmi, DIP. (DPIT), OND (FIN. STD.), HND (B&F), B.Ed.
(Ed. Mgmt.), PGDE (Soc.Sc. Ed.), HFC, SOD, PGDM, PGDTh., M.A., and Ph.D.)
has been a lecturer at the Redeemed Christian Bible College (Satellite
Campus) for over 15 years now and an Assistant Research Professor at
Testament Theological Seminary (online) with expertise in Christian
Education and Biblical Research with a special interest in Biblical Christian
Educational Learning Theory and Practice (a field he is currently
pioneering), Christian Education, Biblical Theory, and Theology. He is a
pastor and teacher of the Word. He is a product of different learning
institutions, such as Ekiti Parapo College, Ido-Ekiti, Federal Polytechnic, Offa,
Lead City University, Ibadan, University of Ibadan, Oyo State, Redeemed
Christian Bible College (main campus, Mowe, Ogun State, and Miracle
Campus, Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State), Northwestern Christian University, Florida,
USA, etc. Ilesanmi has served in more than 40 different capacities as a union
leader, coordinator, president, chairman, and secretary in many social
organisations simultaneously and at different times. He has trained over 200
ministers and pastors theologically, over 100 disciples of Christ, and
supervised over 15 graduate students’ projects since 2008. He has pastored
nine parishes, six Areas, and two Zones. As of 2023, he has over 70
publications to his credit, including nine books and Christian research
articles published in different reputable and registered journals and
websites. Some of these works can be found on Google Scholar, Research
Gate, Academia, Zenodo, Figshare, OSF, Academia, Scribd, Course Hero,
ChristoPress: Journal of Christian Education and Biblical Research, African
Journal of Kingdom Education, Mature: Journal of the International Institute
of Christian Theologians, Scholars, and Professionals, etc. His bestseller is
Globalising True Education: A Divine Mandate. In 2023, he developed four
theories of learning for effective teaching and learning in biblical Christian
(theological) education. The theories are theogogy, christogogy,
pneumagogy, and bibliogogy. He is an editor of two peer-reviewed journals:
the African Journal of Kingdom Education and the Mature Journal of the
International Institute of Christian Theologians, Scholars, and Professionals.
He serves as the President and CEO of ChristoPress Institute for Christian
Education and Biblical Research (CICEBR), an online-based research
institute. He is married and gloriously blessed. To connect with this author:
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4874-0759; pstdeleilesanmi3@gmail.com;
+234-08062197040