2011 – YEAR OF THE CHURCH?

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Defining moments come for individuals, nations and groups. For Dr Goodluck Jonathan, those moments are here and this columnist has done its utmost to point it out in order that he might not waste it – to little avail, to date, at least.

In one of my exertions in this respect, I had to press into action, a devotional piece written by Bob Cass, based on Joshua 24:15 and titled, Defining Moments. It reads: “…First, in our life, defining moments show us who we really are. Our defining moments usually come …during times of making… a hard choice. Sometimes, defining moments occur when we don't see them for what they are. It's only afterwards…that we understand their importance. Either way, they define who we are. Secondly, defining moments show others who we are. Most days we can wear a mask, but during defining moments we can't…Whatever is truly inside us is revealed to everyone. As a leader, defining moments tell the people who you really are, what you stand for, and why you're leading. Handled well, a defining moment can bond leaders and followers for life. Handled poorly, it can end your ability to lead. Thirdly, defining moments determine who we will become. You'll never be the same person after a defining moment. That's because defining moments are not normal... Defining moments…give us an opportunity to turn, change direction, and seek a new destination. They present options and opportunities. In these moments, we must choose. And the choice we make will define us!”

Those moments are here for the Nigerian Church on several fronts. The first is the impending general elections and the opportunity for socio-economic and political changes that they present. The second, closely related to the first, is the protection of lives and properties of adherents of the faith particularly in the north of Nigeria.

What makes 2011 and the first few years of this Jubilee decade so defining for the Church are not the above mentioned events; it is ironically, the challenges the church has faced and scaled, and the activities and the successes achieved in 2010. A couple of flashbacks should refresh all our memories and assist an understanding of this historic moment.

Readers of this column may remember that the process of electing a new executive for the umbrella body of the church, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), was so contentious that I had to do a two-part serial titled, “CAN AND CHURCH UNITY: “…DO WE LOOK FOR ANOTHER?”

I remember lamenting in the first part in these words: “While I was busy celebrating the many and varied strides of giant proportions being taking globally to achieve the heart of Christ for His Church – THAT THEY MAY BE ONE – the body that could be described as an instrument of church unity in Nigeria was threatening to come unstuck.

“While, I was talking excitedly about how thousands of church leaders gathered for Edinburgh 2010 in the Scottish capital to find unity through missions;  and how 1300 churches across the earth were participating in global pulpit swap, hearing the same message and raising funds to plant new congregations in China and Cambodia etc through the One Prayer initiative of an US-based church, and gleefully announcing the merger of the Reformed Churches into one big happy family, the Christian Association of Nigeria was pulling in the opposite direction.

“While I was thanking God for using Bro Cyprian Agbazue and the ministry of International Foundation for Church Unity to jolt me back from underplaying the church unity mandate of the about-to-return KINGDOMPeople, the magazine for all who name the name of the Lord in truth and scolding myself for nearly missing it, CAN was in the news not for uniting Christ’s Church, but for threatening to tear it apart. How ironic, how so, so tragically so…

“For those who might not have heard it; yes, leadership, or, if you like, the struggle for office or power was at the centre of the crisis. In other words, flawed elections, which has been the torment of our nation and, for which politicians and umpires have been vilified, has clawed its way into the church’s highest body. In the event, reports of intrigues, external interference, use of operatives of the State Security Service, and umpire partisanship have been making the rounds. Deliberate attempt to exclude one of the aspirants has been alleged. To drive home the unenviable similarity between what’s happening on the political scene and in the church, a newspaper two-part series on the exercise that has been on since March, was headlined “Like PDP, Like CAN? as Succession War Tears Christian Body Apart.”  CONTINUES BELOW

I’ll spare you the ugly details, since, thanks be to God, it’s all in the past now. But it got so bad that Rev Dr Moses Iloh, a respected Church elder statesman actually asked that the association be disbanded. In a newspaper article at the height of the crisis headlined, “Quo Vadis CAN”, the one-time Director of Welfare of the association concluded in these words: “Not too long ago, I posited that the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), as presently composed and functioning, should be terminated and dismantled. It is a purposeless organisation, and one that relishes in “Phariseeism.” Denominations should meet, dialogue, and eventually agree to form a disciplined, humble, purposeful and forward-looking organisation to be known as ‘The Church in Nigeria.’”

Eventually however, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor took office on Tuesday July 6, 2010 as President of Christian Association of Nigeria, the first Pentecostal to hold the office. It was a happy ending to a four-month process, which featured, for the very first time, a very public display of all that was despicable about elections into public office in our nation. Oritsejafor’s main opponent, Archbishop John Onaiyekan promptly accepted defeat and congratulated the new helmsman while his other opponent, Most Rev Daniel Okoh has since joined the new team as Vice President (CONTINUES).