

























270 

20 

PERSONHOOD AND FORMATION: A 

PHILOSOPHICAL INSIGHT FROM AFRICAN 

PERSPECTIVE 
 

Francis FABIDUN 
Department of Philosophy, 

St. Albert the Great Major Seminary, Idowu-Offonran 
francisfabidun@gmail.com 

 
Abstract 
The paper identified a direct link between the concepts of personhood 
and formation. The establishment of this link is warranted by the 
interdependency in their functionality analogous of the metaphysical 
theory of matter and form. Formation does not take place in vacuum; 
human beings are the ones formed for the office of the shepherds of 
souls in the Church. It follows necessarily, therefore, that the person of 
the seminarian avails the formation program the bedrock for its 
functionality. The paper acknowledged the importance of formation as it 
is obvious in the plenitude of documents from the Church at different 
levels and epochs emphasizing that the seminarian be formed after the 
mind of Christ. Moreover, it noted that such documents are very often 
grounded on various perspectives and theories on the human person 
from philosophy and theology. Nevertheless, the paper argued strongly 
from the African purview on the human person that understands the 
human person as a being ontologically connected and in a relational 
existence with other realities. Recognizing this in the formation process 
will go a long way in enhancing the formation program of Seminarians. 
To achieve its aim, the paper consequently employed the tools of critical, 
analytical and comparative methods of inquiry. This revealed that with a 
philosophical insight from an African perspective, there exists an 
understanding of the similarity between personhood and formation, the 
latter being a series of conscious activities which an individual is not born 
with, but something one sets out intentionally to achieve.  
 



Section II: Philosophical Perspectives And Human Formation    271 

Keywords: Personhood, Formation, Matter and Form, African 
Perspective, Christ-like shepherds 
 
Introduction 
An individual is usually considered in African culture in relationship 
with others in the community. The relational consideration among 
Africans always emphasizes the need to consider others. Mbiti’s 
philosophy of inclusiveness rightly captures this communal orientation 
in the expression – ‘I am because we are’. This constitutes an underlining 
factor in African postulation on personhood. This paper considers the 
African notions along different perspectives on personhood and 
formation noting that the African consideration on the issues of 
personhood and formation of an individual might prove to be more 
insightful and fruitful when applied to the formation of African 
Seminarians than what is bequeathed to us in Western philosophy. 
Furthermore, the paper uses the Aristotelian theory of form and matter 
to show the connection on how African consideration of an individual 
person informs the nature of the formation given to him. 
  
Personhood 
In the general parlance, the term, person is considered as an individual. It 
is a term which is employed to give a comprehensive name to man’s 
being – a name expressing itss entire reality in an unequivocal way. It 
never refers to animals or plant but only man.1It is a term that describes 
man in a unique manner, and as possessing abilities which are exclusive 
to the human race. Such abilities include reason, morality/freedom, 
consciousness and personal identity among others. This is in line with 
the philosophical consideration of man as a being characterized by 
consciousness, rationality, and a moral sense, and traditionally thought of 
as consisting of both a body and a mind or soul.2 Aristotle aptly captures 
this that among animals “endowed with sense” humans were distinct in 
that “the human race exists by means of art also and the powers of 
reasoning”. 

Batista Mondin traces the origin of the concept of personhood to 
Christianity where man is understood as a being with his singularity, 
unique and unrepeatable, with substantial equality and dignity - one 
created in the image of God (imago Dei).3 This “image and likeness” of 
God in man is understood as be a man’s soul. The Christian notion 
explains what is generally held in Greek philosophy that there exists in 
personhood is a manifestation of the combination of the spiritual and the 
no-spiritual. The Greek and Latin cultures existed before Christianity 
but do not recognize the absolute value of the individual, rather absolute 
value depend essentially on class, ranks, wealth and race.4 Hence race 



272 Formation of the Human Person in the 21st Century 

superiority was common before the Christian era when personhood 
attained an important position as against race because of the effect of the 
salvific events of Christ's paschal mystery on the salvation of the soul of 
an individual regardless of race, colour or tribe. 
 Interestingly, early Greeks philosophers have a long history of 
postulations on the human person. For instance, Plato presents a 
dualistic theory on the human person as comprising of the body and the 
soul. He goes to say that the soul is the principle of life and movement – 
the essential core of the human person, while the body is inanimate and 
therefore susceptible to physical actions by this principle of life.5 
Furthermore, Plato holds that the soul is not completely unified, because 
there are competing forces warring within the human person which are 
known by personal inner experience. Consequently, he divides the soul 
into three factions: the appetitive soul which pulls man to the direction of 
physical gratification and material acquisition; the rational soul which is 
the voice of reason; and the spirited soul which is the willful and dynamic 
faculty within the soul.6 Plato found intelligence as “the most divine 
thing in man, the most essentially human attribute because (it is) the 
only part of himself which he does not share with the animal kingdom.7 
 Augustine, in line with the Platonic understanding of the human 
person, holds that the human person is composite of the body and soul. 
He also further attributes specific roles to the soul such as the self on 
which the highest truth can be attained. It is the soul alone that can attain 
communion with God – the highest truth. It is the image of God and is 
immaterial.8 This was the beginning of using Philosophical principles for 
Christian postulation on imago Dei that which Augustine defined as “that 
principle within us by which we are like God, and which is rightly said in 
Scripture to be made ‘after God's image”’9 
 Rene Descartes, the father of Modern Western Philosophy, also 
argues along the dualistic conception of man, namely that the human 
person is a composite of soul (mind) and body. The body for him is 
made up of physical substances that interact with the physical world, 
while the soul is a spiritual substance; it is the “I” (ego), the thinking self, 
the seat of pure thought that generates ideas.10 This power of the soul 
enables man to be conscious of himself without at the same time being 
conscious of the world. This view will be rejected later on by the 
existentialist philosophers of the 20th century, particularly Martin 
Heidegger who conceives man as a-being-in-the-world.11 
  Battista Mondin broadened the understanding on the human person 
beyond issues of man's composition, noting that the human person can 
be understood on the ontological, dialogical and psychological levels. 
The ontological understanding entails the person as an individual of the 
human species; a unique individual substance with a rational nature. 



Section II: Philosophical Perspectives And Human Formation    273 

This involves the “I” in my being that can neither be represented by 
another nor inhibited in another – the person as he remains in himself. 
On the psychological level, the person is the fact of consciousness, which 
is being aware of reality pertaining the existence of the ‘’I’’. On the 
dialogical level, the person is understood as a relational being that 
interacts with the world and other beings.12 
 Mounier supports Mondin’s claim on the dialogical person by 
introducing the concepts; vocation, action and communication. For 
Mounier, the person has a meaning that cannot be substituted, his place 
in the universe of persons cannot be occupied – this is his vocation. 
Action explains that the life of a person is a research until death, an 
anticipated unity that cannot be actualized – a person is an incessant 
action. He further points out that communication explains that the 
person is a being that encounters others, a being who interests himself 
with another in such a manner that he respects his “I”.13 
 Furthermore, Martin Buber in contributing to the discussion on 
man proposes that the meaning of the person lies in his relational ability 
with things other than himself. In other words, man derives meaning 
through the rapport man has with things. This is because man lives on 
the shoulder of things; he alters them, uses them, and governs them14. In 
a nutshell, the person is the “I” – the individual that is composed of body 
and soul and constantly interacts with other beings and with world. 
 
Formation 
Formation is a common practice in human communities. It consists of 
series of activities geared toward making an individual or communities 
imbibe certain knowledge, tradition, morals and value system. In the 
earliest times, formation was mostly meant for those to be charged with 
leadership responsibilities to prepare them for governance. In the ancient 
Egyptian civilization, for instance, princes were given special and 
exclusive education by the priests serving at Pharaoh’s palace. Amedeo 
Cencini posits that formation has three dynamisms which are the 
educative, formative and the accompaniment. The educative dynamism 
seeks to draw out the level of awareness of what the person is, so that the 
person gets the maximum fulfillment of his potentialities; this leads to 
self-awareness and self-fulfillment. The individual is assisted to develop 
his natural potentials and encouraged to perfect them for the 
enhancement of his personality. The formative action implies that the 
subject is trained to acquire a new identity – formation becomes a 
discovery of the new and truer self, molded with the truth of the ideal.15 
This is the result of a process marked with shelling of certain aspects of 
the individual and acquiring positive qualities of the task in view.    



274 Formation of the Human Person in the 21st Century 

            A consideration of how the Church views formation will enhance 
this discuss; the Second Vatican Council emphasizes the importance of 
formation in its remark that the renewal of the Church depends in great 
deal upon the priestly ministry animated by the spirit of Christ; hence 
priestly formation is of critical importance to the Church.16  
Furthermore, formation is not a private affair or instantaneous; it does 
not take place at a particular moment, like a season. Rather, it touches 
upon the past, present and future of the individual as a pedagogical, 
theological, initial and permanent process that prepares one to consecrate 
oneself to God. Formation is offered to whoever has discovered a plan 
from on high for the self. This is because it is a mystery and divine action 
which shapes the image of Christ in the heart of those called by God.17 
This entails being accompanied in a journey of transformation. 
Accompanying means a journey of faith; formation then entails helping 
the subject to journey towards God and to experience God18 
 Furthermore, Pope John Paul II in Pastores Dabo Vobis highlighted 
four areas of formation; human formation, intellectual formation, 
spiritual formation and pastoral formation. Human formation helps the 
individual to attain affective maturity, form his moral conscience, attain 
series of good human qualities, balanced personality, and good use of 
freedom. This is the bedrock for other aspects of formation. According 
to the document, “The whole work of priestly formation would be 
deprived of its necessary foundation if it lacked a suitable human 
formation.”19 A balanced human formation cannot be substituted for or 
with anything.  

Spiritual formation helps the seminarian to share in the holiness 
of Christ by entering into an intimate relationship with Christ. Along 
with other faithful, the candidate to the priesthood strive towards deeper 
communion with God. According to the Holy Father, the educational 
process of a spiritual life, seen as a relationship and communion with 
God, derives and develops from this fundamental and irrepressible 
religious need.20 
Spiritual formation, as we have just seen, is applicable to all the faithful. 
Nevertheless, it should be structured according to the meanings and 
connotations which derive from the identity of the priest and his 
ministry.21 

An integral part of the spiritual formation is prayerful 
contemplation of the Word of God (Lectio Divina) through which the 
seminary is familiar with the God whom he humbly listens to, and he 
response to him in prayer. This will be his guide as he seeks Christ in the 
people. 



Section II: Philosophical Perspectives And Human Formation    275 

Next is the intellectual formation which seeks to help the 
individual acquire academic knowledge; it requires proper training in 
Philosophy and Theology. According to the Pope,  
Intellectual formation is deeply connected with, and indeed can be seen 
as a necessary expression of, both human and spiritual formation: It is a 
fundamental demand of the human intelligence by which one 
"participates in the light of God's mind" and seeks to acquire a wisdom 
which in turn opens to and is directed toward knowing and adhering to 
God.22  

These three areas of formation are geared towards pastoral 
formation which seeks to build the candidate into a priest – shepherd of 
souls, after the example of Christ, the good shepherd.23  
The whole formation imparted to candidates for the priesthood aims at 
preparing them to enter into communion with the charity of Christ the 
good shepherd. Hence their formation in its different aspects must have 
a fundamentally pastoral character.24 

This is the most practical aspect of formation. It is the most vivid 
expression of how well other aspects are properly integrated in the 
individual. It will be the manifestation of an inner disposition to make 
Christ in a way that is peculiar to the people he pastors. 
 
Hylomorphism 
This section is important because it provides the theoretical framework 
for this discuss. Aristotle developed the concept of Hylomorphism as he 
completed issues connected to the process of “changing” and 
“becoming”. While rejecting the atomist conception that everything is 
made up of tiny fundamental building blocks of matter, and that change 
is a rearrangement of these fundamental units, Aristotle holds that all 
things in nature are composed of form and matter – they are intrinsic 
principles that make a body come to be as what it is understood to be.25 
Put succinctly, hylomorphism is the theory that all physical things are 
composed of two principles of being: the prime matter which is an 
undefined primitive, and a substantial form, which is a definite mode of 
existence.26 
 For Aristotle, all material things are characterized by two elements of 
mutability and the different individuals of a species. Form also called 
formal cause is the essence which accounts for the actual existence of a 
thing. It is that which determines matter – it defines matter to a 
particular individual substance. It is also conceived as the design or 
arrangement of a body in nature. Matter – material cause, indicates the 
material constituents of a body. It is substance by which a body is made. 
Matter is indeterminate in itself but determined by form. It is a principle 
that makes form physical.27 These two principles are co-dependent and 



276 Formation of the Human Person in the 21st Century 

intrinsically necessary to the existence of a natural body. They share a key 
relationship simply expressed in the position that form actualizes 
matter.28 
 As regards the human person, the soul or the mind; which is the 
principle of life, is regarded as the form, that is, the essence of the human 
person. The body is understood as the material cause of the human 
person. This is because the body is the substance or material aspect of the 
human person and the soul is the principle of individuation that defines 
what it means to be human; it is that which primarily makes the human 
different from other natural bodies.29 
  
The Formation Process Vis-À-Vis Aristotle’s Hylomorphism 
It is with this understanding of the complexity of the human person that 
formation is discussed here. Formation is aimed at the salvation of souls, 
but this salvation is achieved through the discipline of the body (1Cor. 9: 
27). Hence the body serves as a necessary and indispensable channel to 
the salvation of the soul. As regards the person to be formed, this 
principle of form and matter helps the understanding that the body is 
intrinsically connected with the soul. So, the final point of formation is 
the mind of the individual – it is formation of the mind. The mind holds 
the basic principles that inform the voluntary operations – human 
actions, of the rational man. This emphasizes the position that the body 
is not the end point of formation but the soul that bears the rational 
capacity of the human person. All the elements of formation are 
internalized in the nonphysical aspects of an individual. 
 
The Priest – Shepherd of Souls 
The goal of priestly formation can be expressed in the phrase “until 
Christ is formed in you”. The Church expresses this as being formed 
into another Christ – Alter Christus and even in the exercise of the 
sacraments, the Priest is not only another Christ but Ipse Christus- Christ 
himself. The various activities in the years of formation prepare the 
candidate for the Catholic priesthood, a position that places him at the 
service of God’s people to humbly and carefully guide them to attain the 
salvation of their soul. This explains why formation necessarily 
concentrates on providing the human, spiritual, academic and pastoral 
development required to enable the ordained priest to respond faithfully 
and effectively to both God’s call and the needs of the Church 
represented in the pastoral demands of his flock.  
 Priestly formation must provide the spiritual and personal growth 
guidance that elicits from the candidate for Priesthood, a prayerful and 
mature commitment to the way of Christ. This is so that he may speak 
from the context of the church tradition; fully and authentically 



Section II: Philosophical Perspectives And Human Formation    277 

articulate the gospel of Christ; and appreciate God’s word and the 
efficacy of the sacramental life of the Church.30 

The emeritus Pope Benedict XVI, however sounds a note of 
warning on the tendencies of being drawn away from focusing on these 
when, in his homily at a priestly ordination on the 3rd of May 2009 in 
Rome, commented that the priest is in the world, but runs the risk of 
also being “of the world”. This emphasizes also that formation must 
instill in the priest the discipline of detachment from the material things 
of the world. 
 An essential element of the priestly formation is clearly pointed by 
Pope Benedict XVI in his remark that Catholic priests appear to spend 
most of their days serving Catholics, but the role and mission of the 
priest includes the service of all of humanity. According to him, the 
priest works to translate the elements of the faith into a language that is 
accessible to all in the society; he dialogues with and expresses the truth 
of God, that the human consciousness may be nourished with the 
fullness of life only attainable through Christ. By preaching Christ, the 
priest is called to be a peaceful, uniting and joyful presence among 
Christians and all people of goodwill. And in living the mission of 
Christ, he further participates and serves in Christ's threefold office as 
Priest, Prophet and King, already shared through baptism.31  
 There are further insights from the present Pope who opines that 
priests must be deeply involved in the daily experience of the flock. For 
Pope Francis, the priest being a shepherd must ‘smell like the sheep’. 
This means that he is to be out amongst the flock entrusted to him – he 
should be personally close to them. He is not to just available for the 
office of celebrating the sacraments alone as central and primary to the 
priesthood that might be, but be engaged in the lives of parishioners and 
others in the community entrusted to him.32 The Pope further 
emphasizes that a priest is not ordained for his sake but for the sake of 
God’s people. Following the example of Christ the true Shepherd, the 
priest must be a shepherd ready to lay his life for the flock through 
selfless service; he must not only feed the flocks with spiritual food but 
be sensitive enough to their physical needs. By this the gospel message of 
love will make more sense; in practice and not just spoken words.33 
 A priest is a good shepherd when his motivation is the salvation of 
the people. Hence, he makes the doctrines of the church available and 
teaches the true faith. Pope Saint John Paul II had emphasized this saying 
that the supreme act of a priest is the direction of souls: he must be 
available to his flock; impart the faith; and be humble to the prompting 
of the Holy Spirit that he may transmit fruits of love and peace.34 Finally, 
Federico Suarez puts this in another way when he says that the success of 



278 Formation of the Human Person in the 21st Century 

the priestly ministry is not judged based on its efficiency but on the 
impact it has on the lives of people.35 
 
The African Perspective on Personhood and Formation 
Personhood 
The African understanding of the person has two dimensions; the 
normative-social and descriptive-metaphysical. The descriptive-
metaphysical dimension explains that the human person is made up of a 
material aspect (body) and an immaterial aspect (soul) which are 
inseparable while on earth.36 This is exemplified in the Igbo conception 
where man is made of ahu (body) and Mmuo (spirit).37 From the Yoruba 
perspective, man is a composition of at least three elements namely the 
soul, the spirit and the body. The body is material while the other two 
elements are non-material. Furthermore, in their metaphysical 
postulation, man is a composition of body (ara), soul (emi) and inner-
head (ori), the last being the metaphysical symbol of human destiny 
which is externally represented by the physical head.38 The normative-
social dimension explains the person in relation to the community – it is 
the communitarian perspective. Here, the person draws his identity and 
essence from the already existing values of the society; this has a social 
and moral derivation.39 This goes with both social and moral 
commitments as an individual within a community. Hence, Ifeanyi 
Menkiti opines that a person can only be explained with reference to the 
environing community.  
As far as Africans are concerned, the reality of the community takes 
precedence over the individual world and history. It is in an ongoing 
human community that the individual comes to see himself as a man; it 
is in first knowing his community as a fact of the psycho-physical world 
that the individual comes to know himself as a durable, more or less 
permanent fact of this world. The sense of identity of an individual only 
makes sense with reference to the community.40 
 From the above it is clear that human relationship is a primary 
element in the determination of the personhood of an individual. This 
goes a long way to emphasize and show that the human person in 
African thought system is one that is inherently and intrinsically 
connected to other individuals in the society – founded on community. 
This is also built on the belief that the physical is inherently connected to 
the spiritual in the African worldview. The activities of traditional or 
native doctors will make this vivid. Even when he lives in isolation and 
far from the main community settlement, the native doctor is kept 
abreast with the happenings in the community and constantly intervenes 
as situations warrant. He is dutiful and maintains a sense of the sacred in 
an appreciable distance, and yet very close to the people as an 



Section II: Philosophical Perspectives And Human Formation    279 

intermediary and a check to the community. Above all, he does not 
neglect the people in their need or fail to provide prompt directives.  
 
Formation 
Formation in Africa is centered on how personhood is achieved. This is 
because personhood is not something that is given but shown by the 
society and accepted by the individual. An African has to go through 
processes of incorporation or initiation. Through initiation an individual 
is transformed from what he was into who he ought to be. According to 
Ifeanyi Menkiti, to attain personhood, the individual must undergo a 
long process and ritual transformation until he or she attains the full 
complement of excellence seen as truly definitive of man. 
 During this long process of attainment, the community plays a vital 
role as catalyst and as a prescriber of norms. As far as Africans are 
concerned, personhood is something the individual could fail to attain.41 
This implies that the individual must take the ritual of incorporation 
serious in order to learn the social rules by which the community lives 
and then attain the necessary excellence in character. Formation is not 
just about growth in wisdom as one ages, it is in gathering of the traits 
considered to be definitive of full personhood which necessarily affect 
the very core of one’s being. In other words, for Africans, formation is 
internalization of traditional or societal virtues to the decree ascertainable 
that one is qualifies for the appropriate rite in the process of initiation.   
Hence, Dominic Umoh writes that in Africa, initiatory rites constitute a 
crucial mechanism which guarantees the authentic growth and 
development of individuals in their communal settings.42 
 Moreover, Augustine Nwoye puts it that formation of the person in 
Africa is influenced by a number of cultural groups. According to him, 
socialization occurs through dance, songs, story-telling and heroic 
recitation. These are avenues through which Africans are taught 
individually to reflect high level of emotional maturity as projected by 
the community. The formation program in an African setting include 
teaching of virtues like, verbal sobriety, diligence, perseverance, patience, 
moderation among others. These virtues help young Africans to be active 
and responsible members of the society. The agents of this formation 
include older adults, school leaders, and social models. Hence, there is a 
saying among the Yoruba that oju meji li n b’imo, igba ojo lo n wo d’agba (It 
takes two pairs of eyes to bear a child i.e Father and Mother, but two 
hundred eyes are required to train him). This expresses the traditional 
belief and practice that a child is not just the child of the parents, but he 
is the child of the community. Therefore, the upbringing and training is 
the responsibility of all.  



280 Formation of the Human Person in the 21st Century 

 In line with this, Dama Mosweunyane holds that formation in Africa 
is done within the platform of communalism; children are formed 
within the community, their wellbeing seen in the welfare of the group 
and society. Children are trained to participate in the culture and work 
for the sake of common good. Formation is characterized by 
transmission of skills and attitudes from generation to generation by 
words of mouth and the mode of apprenticeship. The Teachers are 
individuals with lifelong learning and experience. Hence, the children 
learn from their Teachers by listening to them and imitating their actions 
in the society.43 Formation in African Traditional Society is done within 
the community and for the good of the community. The individuals 
learn the values that are necessary for active participation, sustenance and 
growth of the Society. Formation is seen as initiation into the society to 
attain personhood. It is pertinent to note that personhood is possible 
through dialogue because it through dialogue that the moral vision of 
culture is transmitted44 in the community. 
 
An Insights from African insight into the Formation of the 
Catholic Priest 
Through the varied activities that complimented the seed of faith sown 
by the early missionaries characterized by unceasing evangelization, 
Catholicism has grown and has reached many lands of the earth with a 
variety of cultures. Africa is one of these lands that have received the 
Catholic faith despite having a culture that is uniquely different from the 
Jewish and Roman culture in which it grew. Many Africans have 
imbibed the culture of the Catholic faith in their African societies.  
 For the Catholic priest to get to the heart of the African society, it is 
necessary to have a proper understanding of the peculiarity of his flock– 
its philosophy, methods of socialization and the ideology that feeds its 
actions. This community orientation would help the priest to better 
understand his role in the society as one sent to work for the growth of 
the immediate society he finds himself and the community of the 
Church at large, after all, every high priest is chosen from among men to 
represent men in their relationship with God. (Hebrews 5:1) 
 Being aware that he is intrinsically a being connected with others will 
help him to acknowledge that he is equal with others in the sight of God 
and still a man like others. This help the priest to consider himself as a 
servant and not a king or master over his flock. This will enhance his 
interaction with the people even outside the celebration of the 
sacraments. The emphasis here is that the priest needs to be one among 
the people – like Christ, participating in their life, constantly 
communicating with them in preaching the gospel and leading all to 
God. 



Section II: Philosophical Perspectives And Human Formation    281 

 Furthermore, African traditional practice of formation is largely be 
imitation - “watch and do-as-I-do”. The entails that apprentice focus on 
the master to understand and be able to do what he has seen the master 
do. This type of formation is not based on theories. In the same way, the 
African paradigm suggest that priestly formation should can go beyond 
theories but lived principles applied in practically lead the people to God. 
 Another way to consider formation is I regards to how Africans see 
reality as a whole and ultimately sacred; there is an ontological 
connection between the visible and the invisible. This understanding 
when put into formation would help the seminarian develop a deeper 
understanding of the sacred. This understanding would also inform a 
deeper understanding of communal existence through which he learns to 
share in the community life respecting the customs, traditions, ethics and 
social boundaries of the people.  
 
Conclusion 
The various perspectives of examined in the paper show a connection 
between personhood and formation. In this paper, personhood refers to 
what it means to be a human person, while formation can rightly be 
referred as a conscious activity to fortify personhood, which can simply 
be expressed as the nature and nurturing of an individual. From the 
African perspective, it is emphasized that priestly formation, like 
initiation rites, always focus on grooming priests to be human, insightful, 
mature, instructed, developed and community oriented persons. This is 
line with the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria’s advocacy that 
“seminary formation should enable priests to lead a truly priestly life and 
at the same to be men of their people. It is in the bid to achieve this that 
the paper posited that formation should be taken to the hearts and 
custom of our people to enable the priest/seminarian to adhere to beliefs 
and practices that, in spirit of the Gospel, help him to maintain a 
communal-oriented individuality as entrenched in traditional African 
heritage. 
 
Endnotes 
                                                      
1Battista Mondin, Philosophical Anthropology, Bangalore: Theological 

Publications,1985, p. 243. 
2 "Person (philosophical)." The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition. 1970-1979. 

The Gale Group, Inc. 23 Mar. 2020 https://encyclopedia2.thefreedictiona 

ry.com/Person+(philosophical) 
3Battista Mondin, History of Medieval Philosphy, Bangalore: Theological Publications 

in India, 1991, p. 7. 
4Ibid,p. 244. 



282 Formation of the Human Person in the 21st Century 

                                                                                                                         
5 Samuel Stumpf& James Fresier, Philosophy: History and Problem, New York: Mc-

Graw High Education, 2003, p. 59. 
6William F. Lawhead, The Voyage Of Discovery, A Historical Introduction To 

Philosophy, 4th Ed, USA: Cengage Learning, 2015, p. 65. 
7 G. M. Grube, Plato's Thought, Boston: Beacon Press, 1958, p. 121. 
8Samuel Stumpf and James Fresier, Op.Cit., p. 130. 
9  Augustine ca. 397/2002. 
10William Lawhead, Op. Cit., p. 257. 
11Martin Heidegger, Being and Time, New York: 1962, p. 25. 
12 Battista Mondin, Philosophical Anthropology,p. 255. 
13 Battista Mondin, Philosophical Anthropology,p. 255. 
14 Battista Mondin, Philosophical Anthropology, p. 255. 
15Amedeo Cencini, Spiritual and Emotional Maturity: Guiding Young People in 

Religious and Priestly Formation, Nairobi: Paulines Publication Africa, 2004, p. 9. 
16 “Presbytorum Ordinis”, Austin Flannery, O. P., Vatican Council II, vol, I, USA: 

Ambassadors Publications, 1988, p. 863. 
17Amedeo Cencini, Spiritual and Emotional Maturity, p. 9. 
18Ibid,p. 11. 
19 Pastores Dabo Vobis. No. 43. 
20 Pastores Dabo Vobis, No. 45. 
21 Ibid. 
22 Pastores Dabo Vobis, No. 51. 
23Pope John Paul II, I will give you Shepherds: Apostolic Exhortation: Pastores Dabo 

Vobis, Nairobi: Paulines Publications Africa,2004, pp. 67-88. 
24 Pastores Dabo Vobis, No. 57. 
25S. V. Aristotle, Robert Audi, The Cambridge Dictionary Of Philosophy, Second 

Edition, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. 
26www.CatholicCulture.org 18/03/2020. 
27William F. Lawhead, The Voyage Of Discovery, A Historical Introduction To 

Philosophy, 4th Ed, USA: Cengage Learning, 2015, pp. 82-84. 
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Journal of Philology, vol. 82, no. 1, 1961, pp. 50–77. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable 

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30Paul Kehinde Oredipe, Saint Paul and Priestly Formation: Impetus for Today, Benin 

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31https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/library/priest-as-pastor-servant-and- 

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32Dennis Coday, Pope Quotes: The Smell of Sheep, http://www.ncronline.org 

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33Paul KehindeOredipe, Op.Cit., p. 59. 
34JohnPaul II, Novo IncipenteNostro, 6th April 1979 in Austin Flannery OP, Vatican 

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35 Federico Suarez, About Being A Priest, London, Scepter Publication, 2005, p. 18. 
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