TONNY ONYULO reports on how Christians in Nigeria are coping in the wake of attacks on churches…
Nairobi, Kenya
Anna Adeka’s dreams continue to be disturbed by the traumatic events of 5th June when an attackleft more than 50 people dead at the Saint Francis Catholic Church in Ondo state.
The 33-year-old, whose cousin was among those killed when they had gathered for Mass on the feast of Pentecost, said her sleep was haunted by memories of the attack when gunmen stormed the church and detonated explosives at the altar before firing at the worshippers, killing a lot of people including children and old people.
“Every night when I sleep, I always dream of people with big guns coming to our church and then they start shooting at people. I immediately see my cousin collapsing, and I began crying for help. When I try to wake up, I can’t. I am always powerless,” the mother of four said by phone from south-western Nigeria. “I fear when night-time comes because I can’t sleep.”
Church officials inside St Francis Catholic Church in Ondo state after the attack. PICTURE: Courtesy of the Catholic Diocese of Ondo, Communications Department
Adeka’s story mirrors those of hundreds of worshippers who survived the attack. Most of the survivors are experiencing trauma, hallucinations, depression, and psycho-social. Many have recounted not sleeping and not attending church services because of fear of attack.
On 10th August, the army said they had captured five masterminds of the massacre, blaming it on the insurgent group Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP). The jihadist group, a splinter group of Boko Haram, has been waging a guerrilla war across north-eastern Nigeria and on the banks and islands of Lake Chad.
“I believe these attacks by terrorists are meant to end Christianity in the country and trigger a religious war to destabilise the nation. I think they are achieving their target. Many churches have been destroyed and closed. Christians have been killed, kidnapped, and threatened if they happen to worship.”
– Pastor Thomas Lawal, of the Light Ministries Church in south-west Nigeria.
Africa’s most populous country, with more than 200 million people, has experienced numerous attacks from jihadist groups and armed ethnic militants for the last decade. Boko Haram, one of Africa’s largest Islamist militant groups, has carried out attacks in the northern part of the country, killing people and targeting institutions like schools, churches, military, markets, and villages.
Fulani herdsmen or Fulani pastoralists who are armed have carried out mass attacks on farmers in the country’s south-west and central regions, blaming them for occupying their land and using it for agriculture and denying them the field for grazing their livestock. Nigerian authorities have blamed the Fulani herdsmen for collaborating with terrorist groups to sustain their attacks on the state and other parts of the country. Other terrorist groups in the country include the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria and ISWAP.
Attacks by these groups have left thousands of civilians dead and millions displaced in various camps across the country. They have also been blamed for the attack at St Francis Catholic Church in Owo on 5th June.
The coffins of those killed in the attack on St Francis Catholic Church in Ondo state. PICTURE: Courtesy of the Catholic Diocese of Ondo, Communications Department.
Pastor Thomas Lawal, of the Light Ministries Church in south-west Nigeria, said the attack on church buildings, killings, and kidnapping of worshippers have demoralised worshippers in the region. Most of the Christians were not attending church services, he said.
“I believe these attacks by terrorists are meant to end Christianity in the country and trigger a religious war to destabilise the nation,” said Lawal. “I think they are achieving their target. Many churches have been destroyed and closed. Christians have been killed, kidnapped, and threatened if they happen to worship.”
Christians make up some 49.3 per cent of the population of Nigeria and Muslims 48.8 per cent, while the remaining two per cent adhere to traditional religions or beliefs, according to the report by Pew Research Center. The report shows that Christians predominate in Nigeria’s southern and central regions.
Joseph Ejuwa, a worshipper in south-west Nigeria, agreed with pastor Lawal, saying he hasn’t attended a church service for months despite being a staunch Christian. He said he has constantly feared being attacked after witnessing several incidences where terrorists have attacked churches or prayer gatherings and killed Christians.
“I can’t go to church because I fear death,” said the 35-year-old father of three. “I pray and worship in my house to avoid being attacked. It’s hard to be a Christian in this country. You can’t even dare call for an open-air crusade because you cannot be sure if you will come out alive.”
Nigeria is ranked as the seventh most challenging place globally to be a Christian, according to Open Doors data.
A woman walks toward a house damaged by Boko Haram militants, along the Konduga-Bama road in Bama, Borno, Nigeria, on 31st August, 2016. PICTURE: Reuters/Afolabi Sotunde/File photo.
Archbishop Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji, of Owerri Archdiocese in southern Nigeria, said terrorist attacks had rampaged the country, and no-one was safe anywhere. He said the violent groups had attacked places of worship, markets, and villages, killing and shedding the blood of innocent people.
The Archbishop urged the government to act quickly to protect the lives and property of the citizens, saying it was the role of the government to ensure its people were safe and the rule of law was followed.
“We are in trouble as a country as no one feels safe,” said Archbishop Ugorji. “We cannot continue like this as a country, and I urge the authority to arrest and prosecute offenders of these crimes for ensuring there’s justice for all. Our people are suffering. Many have lost their lives, and others have nothing to eat or sustain themselves as our economy is terrible.”
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Evangelist Faith Adenike urged Christians worldwide to pray for Christians in Nigeria, saying they were facing challenges to ensure the Gospel reaches many people. Adenike, who evangelises in south-west and central Nigeria, said she had stopped preaching the gospel in some parts of the country for fear of her life.
She said Christians in northern and southwest Nigeria were living in fear and sleeping outside their houses to avoid being attacked by terrorists who usually raid villages at night looking for Christians or their sympathizers.
“We, as church leaders, are scared to preach the gospel in these areas since the terrorists have introduced Sharia law,” said evangelist Adenike. “The government has failed to protect Christians, and we keep hiding even at night for fear of being attacked or kidnapped. We are helpless as Christians, and we have left our lives in God’s hands.”
Meanwhile, residents feel their faith in Christ will stumble if they stop attending church services and having prayer gatherings.
“We need to pray to keep our faith alive,” said Ejuwa. “We urge the government to protect our freedom of worship as they always do to our Muslim brothers.”
