Mather Hospital Catholic Chaplain Father Matthew Udobi has received certification from the National Association of Catholic Chaplains, which “advocates for the profession of spiritual care and educates, certifies, and supports chaplains, clinical pastoral educators, and all members who continue the healing ministry of Jesus in the name of the Church.”

Certification recognizes that he has gained “competency and skills” in that role which can be regularly evaluated and acknowledged.

Fr. Matthew, a priest of the Catholic Diocese of Awka, Nigeria, came to Mather Hospital last year as a full-time chaplain. He became a seminarian in Nigeria at the age of 11 and was ordained in 2011, serving for six years in parishes in his home diocese. In 2017 he was sent by his bishop to the U.S. to study at St. John’s University, where he received a Master of Science degree in international communication in May 2019.