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NIGERIA: Church enjoying growth in Islamic state
By John Newton
Sunday School in Nigeria
A bishop in north-west Nigeria has hailed Aid to the Church in Need’s help at a crucial moment in the country’s struggle against extremism.
In response to challenges facing Christians in the region, Aid to the Church in Need has announced that it will be giving nearly £120,000 (€135,000) over three years to help provide aid such as literacy classes, well digging, basic health care and education for tribes in the region.
A bishop in the area, who wished to remain anonymous, said: “Without your aid these missions could not survive.”
Aid to the Church in Need’s help has supported the missions of Karenbana, Shafashi, Bobi, Nsanji Nkoso and Galadima in the north-west of the country.
According to the bishop, local people are increasingly turning their back on tribal religions and looking towards more global faiths.
He said: “Our indigenous people are at a crossroads. In the next 10 years or so they will either embrace Christianity or Islam.
“Thank God a lot of people are turning to the Catholic Church as the gateway to God, and the gateway for progress in literacy, health, water, etcetera because we cater for both body and soul.”
The bishop said: “I wish to express our deep gratitude to Aid to the Church in Need, who are making it possible for the seeds of the Gospel to be planted… please thank your generous donors. May you all share in the fruits of our missionary labours.”
The Church is leading the way with social programmes, including literacy courses, which take place during the January-April dry season, in order not to interrupt the farming cycle.
Bishop Carroll said: “As most of our indigenous people are still semi-nomadic and almost 80 percent illiterate, we place great importance on literary courses.”
Those who successfully complete three years’ study can go on to the courses at the Masuga Language Centre where they learn to lead prayer services, and teach Bible stories and the basics of the faith.
One of the materials they use is Aid to the Church in Need’s Child’s Bible, God Speaks to His Children, which is published in the native Hausa language. A New Testament and Psalms is being prepared in Kamberi, another local language.
A Church-organised well-digging team provided its services to any communities who request it – not just the Catholic ones – teaching them the importance of looking after their well to avoid contamination of the water, said the bishop.
“By improving the quality of water we also improve the quality of health, as most of the common illnesses are water related,” he explained.
Health education is key to the mission’s work, and a Sister, who is a fully qualified nurse, goes around the villages educating mothers about the causes of common diseases.
The bishop stressed the importance of mothers in informing the whole community. He said: “An African proverb says: ‘Educate a mother and you educate a whole family.’”
Inoculation against common killer diseases in Africa is also carried out in the mission, and Aids awareness and prevention classes run alongside literacy classes during the dry season.
The bishop expressed his hope that some of these missions wouldl be split into parishes in the next five to ten years. He said that the Shafashi mission, which serves 118 Catholic communities, could already be divided in to two parishes, but due to a shortage of priests this would have to wait.
While there were plenty of priests in eastern and southern Nigeria, where the Church has had a presence at least for the last century, 80 percent of the communities in the north-west are less than a decade old, explained the bishop.
He said: “Indigenous vocations are the fruit on the tree. Here we are only planting trees at present. Fruit will come in God’s time. Vocations are now starting to come in older parishes.”