Showing posts with label News. Show all posts
Showing posts with label News. Show all posts

Sunday, 3 May 2015

Catholic Bishop Of Sokoto,Mathew Hassan Kukah Says The Expectation Of Change In Buhari's Government Will Only Bring Pains And Dissapontement To Nigerians

Mattew Hassan Kukah,the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Mattew Hassan Kukah said that Nigerians might be disappointed with the incoming Muhammadu Buhari led administration adding that the All Progressives Congress, APC, has no track record despite being called ‘’progressives’’.

Kukah who said this at the weekend, while delivering a convocation lecture at the Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki, insisted that Nigerians were eagerly looking for a transformer which may not come in the mode of the Buhari’s Government.

Saturday, 1 March 2014

Science of Gay Marriage

A University of Lagos post graduate student, Chibuihem Amalaha, from Imo State has used science to prove that gay marriage is improper among other breakthroughs.

His persistence during our conversations on the phone that I should give him an opportunity to explain some of his scientific breakthroughs made me to agree to meet him at his residence at No.38 Godwin Way, Ireakari Estate, Isolo, Lagos. With a disarming smile on his face, he introduced himself as Chibuihem Stanley Amalaha, a student of University of Lagos studying Chemical Engineering at the School of Post Graduate Studies. He talked about his researches and scientific breakthroughs with the confidence of an achiever. First, he let the reporter into his background.

"I was the first to publish report about the 2006 total solar eclipse in the newspaper in Nigeria when I was writing for the defunct New Age newspaper. I also reported the true situation about the 2010 acid rain in Nigeria. I carried out analysis and found out that there was nothing like cancer of the skin attributed to the acid rain and by 2011, I emerged the best science reporter in Nigeria where I won Nigeria Media Merit Award in the energy category as a science editor with Compass newspapers."

He continued: "Ever since then I have been doing a lot of researches in the country. There are many discoveries and inventions I have made in science and technology. I have also been able to prove that the mathematical symbol pi which people thought of as 22 over 7 is not actually 22 over , but rather a transcendental number while 22 over 7 is a rational number. I also proved that watching television in the dark impacts negatively on one's eyes and by God's grace, I was the first person to use scientific instruments to prove it in the whole world. The Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) featured me on this in one of their programmes on January 12, 2013, where I demonstrated to millions of their viewers that watching television in the dark damages the eyes. Usually when it's around 10pm, many families in Nigeria will switch off their surrounding lights to use the light from television or the light from computer alone thinking that they will see images brighter. But from experiments I found that it's not true and experts both at the University of Lagos and elsewhere have found my work to be true. The reason for this is because there is a lot of difference in illuminants (brightness) between the television screen and the dark background in the room known as the periphery," Amalaha said.

The Wrong Act of Gay Marriage

Then, he zeroed in on his research about gay marriage. He said: "In recent time I found that gay marriage,which is homosexuality and lesbianism, is eating deep into the fabric of our human nature all over the world and this was why nations of Sodom and Gomora were destroyed by God because they were into gay practice. That is, a man marrying another man and a woman marrying another woman.

"A recent publication on May 3, 2013 shows that France is the 14th country in the world that have legalised gay. I asked myself why should a man be marrying a man and a woman marrying a woman, does it mean that there is no more female for a man to marry or there is no more male for a woman to marry? And recently, Britain told Nigeria to legalise gay marriage of forfeit international aid. I thank God for our lawmakers who refused to sign the bill legalising gay marriage. And so God gave me the wisdom to use science as a scientist to prove gay marriage wrong.

"In the area of physics, I used physics with experiments, I used chemistry with experiments, I used biology with experiments and I used mathematics to prove gay marriage wrong.

The Physics of Gay Marriage

"To start with, physics is one of the most fundamentals of all the sciences and I used two bar magnets in my research. A bar magnet is a horizontal magnet that has the North Pole and the South Pole and when you bring two bar magnets and you bring the North Pole together you find that the two North Poles will not attract. They will repel, that is, they will push away themselves showing that a man should not attract a man. If you bring two South Poles together you find that the two South Poles will not attract indicating that same sex marriage should not hold. A female should not attract a female as South Pole of a magnet does not attract the South Pole of a magnet. But, when you bring a North Pole of a magnet and a South Pole of a magnet they will attract because they are not the same, indicating that a man will attract a woman because of the way nature has made a female. Even in physics when you study what is called electrostatics, you found that when you rub particles together they don't attract each other but when you rub particle in another medium they will attract each other. For example, if you use your biro and rub it on your hair, after rubbing, try to bring small pieces of paper they will attract because one is charged while the other one is not charged. But if both of them are charged they don't attract, which means that man cannot attract another man because they are the same, and a woman should not attract a woman because they are the same. That is how I used physics to prove gay marriage wrong.

The Chemistry of Gay Marriage "In chemistry, I used chemical reactions and we have different types of chemical reactions. We have double decomposition reaction, decomposition reaction, neutralisation reaction and reduction oxidation reaction. But in chemistry I used a simple one known as neutralisation reaction which is a reaction where an acid reacts with a base to give you salt and water. For example, when you bring surphuric acid and you reacts it with sodium hydroxide which is a base you are going to have salt and water. That tells you that the acid is a different body, the base is a different body and they will react. But if you bring an acid and you pour it on top of an acid chemistry there will be no reaction. If you bring water and pour it on top it shows that there will be no reaction. If you bring a base either sodium hydroxide and you pour it on top of a sodium hydroxide you find out that there will be reaction showing that a man on top of a man will have no reaction. A woman on top of a woman will have no reaction, that is what chemistry is showing. Even in chemistry when you also use a process called electrolysis, which is if you use electrolysis of acidilated water, that is water you drop some droplets of acid on it, you found that the negative ions will be attracted to the positive ones while the positive ions will be attracted to the negative ones. So the negative ones are not attracted to their peers, they are all attracted to the positive electrode and the positive ones are not attracted to the positive electrode. Instead, the negative ion is attracted to positive electrodes and why is it that the negative is attracted to the positive? It is because they are not the same. Likewise a man cannot be attracted to a man as negative ion is not attracted to the negative electrode instead negative ion is attracted to the positive electrode. That is what electrolysis is showing us that gay marriage is wrong in the area of chemistry.

The Biology of Gay Marriage "In biology, I used simple experiments and I came down to a lay man. We have seen that the female of a fowl is called hen and the male of a fowl is called a cock. We have never seen where a cock is having sex with a cock and we have never seen where a hen is having sex with another. Even among lions when you go to the zoo you find out that lion does not mate with a lion instead a lion will mate with a lioness showing that a lion being a male will mate with lioness being a female. Now if animals that are of even lower creature understand so much, how come human being made in the higher image of God that is even of higher creature will be thinking of a man having sex with another and woman having sex with another woman? That shows that it's a misnomer and when you come to real biological standard, when you see a lady you love there is what is called the follicle stimulating hormone. The follicle stimulating hormone in a man triggers what is called spermatogenesis through your brain which is called hypothalamus. It will send message to your brain when you see a lady you love and through the hypothalamus you will go after the lady. And it will trigger your spermatogenesis and the lady's host follicles stimulating hormone will be triggered by the hypothalamus and it will stimulate her ovarian follicle. So in the man is the spermatogenesis, in female it's the ovarian follicle. You find out that the sperm alone does not produce a child and the ovary alone in the female does not produce a child. They need each other for reproduction to occur and the follicle stimulating hormone in the man and that of the female promote different things. The sperm in the man alone doesn't produce a child and ovary in the female alone does not produce a child, they need each other for reproduction to occur. So that shows how biology proves that gay marriage is wrong.

The Mathematics of Gay Marriage

In mathematics which is another core area of science, I used what is called the principle of commutativity and idepotency. Commutativity in mathematics is simply the arrangement of numbers or arrangement of letters in which the way you arrange them don't matter. For example, if you say A + B in mathematics you are going to have B + A. For example, if I say two plus three it will give five. If I start from three, I say three plus two it also give you five showing that two plus three and three plus two are commutative because they gave the same results. That shows that A + B will give you B + A, you see that there is a change. In A + B, A started the journey while in B + A, B started the journey. If we use A as a man and use B as a woman we are going to have B + A that is woman and man showing that there is a reaction. A + B reacted, they interchanged and gave us B + A showing that commutativity obeys that a man should not marry a man and a woman should not marry a woman. If you use idempotency, it's a reaction in mathematics where A + A = A. Actually in abstract algebra, A + A =2A but we are less concerned with the numerical value two. We are more less concerned with the symbols A, you find out that A + A will give you A showing that the whole thing goes unchanged. It didn't change unlike commutativity A + B give B + A there is a change. A started the journey in commutativity and A + B gave us B + A and B started the journey after the equality sign. But in the case of idempotency A + A will give you A showing that it goes unreacted. You started with A and you meet A ,the final result is A. Showing that a man meeting a man A + A will produce a man there is no reaction, it goes unreacted and in chemical engineering you have to send the material back to the reactor for the action to be carried out again showing that it goes unreacted. That is how mathematics has shown that gay marriage is wrong because commutativity proves that gay marriage is wrong. Idempotency also proves that gay marriage is wrong. So these are the principles I have used to prove gay marriage wrong in physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics and by the grace of God I am the only one that has proved this in the whole world.

"If you go on the Internet to check whether there is anybody who has used physics to prove gay marriage wrong, you find out there is none. You go to Google or youtube check whether there is anybody that has used chemistry to find same sex marriage wrong, you find out there is none and the same applies to biology and mathematics. "In general, same sex marriage is evil. It should be stopped by those practicing it. Now they are saying that they will go and adopt a child, the question is that if everybody shows interest in same sex marriage where would the child they are adopting come from?"

His Commendations

And now his works have earned him the respect in the world of science. He said: "At the University of Lagos where I currently study as a student you will find my publication on the notice board there. When you go to the Senate Building of the university you will see the same notice there and even recently my lecturer at the Department of Chemical Engineering, Profesor D.S.Aribuike pointedly told me that I will win Nobel prize one day, because he found that my works are real and nobody has done it in any part of the world. You know Nobel Prize is the highest award anyone could ever win and no African has won Nobel Prize in science. So I am aspiring to win Nobel Prize for Africa. Other universities have seen my work and sent me commendations. I have a professor friend who has seen the work I did and he sent me congratulatory message because of the originality of the work."

Not only that, Dr. Henry Boyo, Department of Physics at UNILAG approved of him. He said: "I have known him (Stanley) for the past five years. He is a very sound guy. He is genuine in terms of his scientific discoveries. He has appeared on NTA and SilverBird televisions where he demonstrated his knowledge of science. When you talk to him, you will know that he understands what he is talking about. He is convincing. "He conceptualised the idea of using sciences and mathematics to prove gay marriage wrong and we have worked it here. Some people make claims to religion but he went a step further to use science and mathematics to prove gay marriage wrong. He used my laboratory here (UNILAG) to carry out his researches. He is the originator of the idea, he deserves commendation and we support the idea. You can quote me anywhere, the guy's concept is germane and it has been scientifically proven to be true."

His Next Step "I want to be able to publish it in international journals. The finance has been a problem in this area because I found out that you you have to pay in dollars for international journals to publish you. You know finance is a factor and I don't have money to start paying in US dollars and I need sponsors so that I can pay for the journals to be published."

Encounter with government officials

"I have been to the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology in Abuja and there is a lot of protocol around the minister. I must confess that seeing a minister is one of the problems we are having in this country. I could recall that University of Lagos carried out a research in Zamfara State some years ago when lead poisoning was killing people there. Could you believe a professor in UNILAG once said that they wrote to Minister of Science and Technology to give them permission to go and carry out research in Zamfara State, that was many years ago and till now they could not get reply from that minister. So these are some of the problems sometimes to reach some of these top people. You publish materials and you don't know whether they read them or not. I had gone to the National Mathematical Centre Abuja, where I submitted a material to Professor Sam Ali who was Director General of the agency and till now I couldn't get any reply. But Professor Oye Ibidapo Oye former Vice-Chancellor, University of Lagos is the immediate past president of Nigeria Academy of Science one of the highest scientific bodies in the country whom I took a copy of my work to and he accepted the work. He never found any error in it. I have reached other echelons in the science and technology world like Professor V.O. Ife Olunyolo a well-known engineer in Nigeria. He brought the first system engineering known in Sub-Sahara Africa at the University of Lagos. I have given him a copy of my work and he didn't find it wrong. I have never seen anybody who condemned my work."

"Nigerian sector does not encourage scientific research so much but what God has given me I am using it effectively to touch Nigerian nation. All the scientific researches I have been doing have not yielded any encouragement to do more.

Speaking about his ambition, Amalaha after taking a deep breath said "My ambition is to go beyond the sky. I want to reach the level God has destined me to reach. I want to be the first African to win Nobel Prize in science because as I am talking to you now African has ever won Nobel Prize in science.

BY CHARLES AJUNWA

My Economic Fortune Hasn't Increased Because of Cardinalship - Onaiyekan

The Catholic Archbishop of Abuja Cardinal John Onayekan said his elevation to cardinalship position has not, in anyway, made him a moneybag as the job is a divine call and not a money-making one.

Cardinal Onaiyekan spoke in Abuja yesterday at the second international Islamic arts/calligraphy exhibition organised by a Muslim group, Abuja Muslim Forum.

Some Nigerian clerics are not only cruising in private jets but also owning fleet of cars. But the Catholic Archbishop of Abuja said since he became the cardinal a few years ago, he had not witnessed any corresponding increase in his economic fortune because the post is purely a divine one.

According to him, "many people believe that as a cardinal I must be rich but I always tell them that I have not had any increment in economic fortune since becoming Cardinal".

He said: "Generally, when you are in the world and you are promoted, your salary increases. Well, in the church, it is not like that. My salary has not increased. My economic resources have remained the same. But my prestige has grown, ofcourse, and I now have more responsibility, more work."
BY ZAKARIYYA ADARAMOLA

Pope Francis To Go On Facebook

pope_francis_1_048The Vatican is about to unveil a Facebook page for Pope Francis, as part of its strategy to expand the Catholic Church’s presence on social media, according to reports yesterday.

The pope already has nine different-language profiles on Twitter, attracting more than 12 million followers.
His predecessor, Benedict XVI, opened the accounts in December 2012.

“Francis will soon have his very own profile on the world’s favourite social network. “ The Vatican is just working on some final technical aspects before the Pope’s Facebook page is made visible to the public,” specialised website Vatican Insider said.

The Vatican was not immediately available for comment. The report added that IT experts are working to prevent offensive or inappropriate messages appearing on the pope’s Facebook page before it is opened to the public.

In January, Francis said that the internet can help spread God’s message, noting that it offers immense possibilities for encounter and solidarity.
Posted by: niyi  

Monday, 23 December 2013

Catholics, CAN blast Kumuyi for calling Christmas celebration idolatory

PastorWFKumuyiFounder of Deeper Life Bible Church, Pastor WF Kumuyi is currently at the receiving end of harsh criticisms by angry Nigerians for calling Christmas celebration idolatory.

The ‘holiness’ preacher in his sermon on Saturday at the just concluded 2013 National December Retreat of the church said, “We are only gathering together because it is the holiday period and love the lord more, and rededicate ourselves more.

“When you find anybody coming in, or any leader, trying to introduce the idolatry of mystery Babylon, that they call Christmas and you want to bring all the Christmas carol saying that is the day that Jesus was born, and you don’t find that in the Acts of the Apostles or in the early church, then you don’t find that in the church either. If you don’t know that before, now you know”, he stated.
However, reacting to Kumuyi’s statement, the Director of Social Communications, Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos, Monsignor Gabriel Osu, said, “I don’t know what he means by saying the practice of celebrating Christmas is wrong.

“Is he saying that Christ wasn’t born? That he didn’t come to die for us? Does he not celebrate his own birthday? Do Kumuyi’s pastors not celebrate him? It is not everything I react to; some people just seek attention. If Kumuyi is a Christian, then he must believe in Christ.
“The celebration of Christmas didn’t just start today; it is too public an event for anyone to say that they don’t know what it is about.

“If Kumuyi is condemning the commercialisation of Christmas, I can understand that. Christ came to redeem us from our lost state; this was actualised through his coming, his birth; that is why we celebrate Christmas. It is the fulfilment of God’s promise.

“I saw him on the television a few days ago. He was in Akwa Ibom State and was the chief preacher during their Christmas celebration event. Kumuyi is just saying what he feels; he is not making any doctrinal statement”.

In his own reaction, spokesperson for the Christian Association of Nigeria, Oshodi chapter, Lagos State, Pastor Barnabas Otoibhi, said that Christmas was worth celebrating.

According to Otoibhi, the origin of Christmas was not as important as its essence.
He said, “The origin of Christmas, as we know it, could be traced to Roman Emperor, Constantine. Christmas was a day for celebrating the Sun God. However, because Constantine was a Christian, the day was changed to commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ.

“The tradition has continued to date and the aim of Christmas is to celebrate Jesus, since there is nothing bad in honouring Jesus. Also, the worship of the Sun God was done in Rome and not everywhere in the world, so it is not part of our history.

“We mark Christmas with the singing of songs as a day, which has now been consecrated”.

Tuesday, 12 November 2013

CAN, Corporate Affairs Commission Disown Niger Delta Bishops and Christians Forum

For politicking and claiming to wade into the political crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its splinter group,

The President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, has said that his association was not part of the group of clergymen who claim that they are mediating and initiating dialogues between the warring leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party and the G7 governors.

The clergy men under the name of the Niger Delta Bishops and Christian Forum and the South South Christian Forum have so far met the former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar and the Adamawa State Governor, Murtala Nyako on the guise that they would negotiate peace between the PDP, aggrieved seven governors and President Goodluck Jonathan.

Details to follow...

BY CHUKS OKOCHA

Monday, 4 November 2013

'Blood Politics' in Uke Church

Catholic Church Releases Statement About Stampede That Killed Over 30

The catholic church has released a statement regarding the stampede that happened a few days ago in Anambra State. Read below:

In the early hours of Saturday, November 02, 2013, there was a stampede moments after prayers at the Holy Ghost Adoration Centre, Uke, in Idemili South LGA of Anambra State.
The stampede, which occurred while people were going home, resulted in the loss of some lives.
Some are still injured and receiving treatments in some hospitals.

Vigil was usually held at the centre on every first Friday of the month. The crowd at the centre was unprecedented on this first Friday of November 2013 probably because it was the Solemnity of All Saints and a holy day of obligation for Catholic faithful.
Save for the unprecedented crowd, the vigil started and ended normally.

The stampede was reportedly caused by a false alarm raised by somebody in the crowd along one of the narrow roads out of the town. The crowd was so much that people wanting to leave all at the same time made it very difficult for people to find enough space to move.
This happened in just one of the roads out of the town.

The outpouring of concerns and supports with regard to the incident has been tremendous. The Archbishop of Onitsha, Most Rev. valerian Okeke, is still deeply saddened by this ugly incident.
He has visited the dead in the morgue and the injured in the hospitals. His heart goes out to the families and friends of those who lost their lives in the incident.
He promises his closeness to them and all the faithful of the Holy Ghost Adoration Centre, Uke, and especially the Spiritual Director of the Centre, Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Obimma, who is hard hit by the ugly incident.

Full investigations have been launched into the matter and more efforts are being made to protect the lives of all worshippers at the centre.

The Archdiocese of Onitsha remains very grateful to the many volunteers who swung into action immediately saving as many lives as possible. We also thank the management and staff of the various hospitals where the injured were sent immediately for treatment. They have been wonderful.

We remain grateful to you all for your closeness and sympathies at this difficult moment. May the dead through the mercy of God rest in peace, Amen.

Wednesday, 23 October 2013

Pope Summons ‘Bling Bishop’ Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst Over Lavish Lifestyle


Bling BishopHe just dropped a cool €2.9 million on renovating his palace and his lavish lifestyle is the subject of a legal investigation.

But now the Bishop of Limburg Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst, dubbed the “bling bishop”, has been summoned to Pope Francis’ office for a severe talking to, reports German news site The Local.

The German Bishop hit the headlines recently following accusations he flew business class on a trip to India and squandered money on luxuries.

The 53-year-old bishop is under pressure to resign after using church funds to build himself new private quarters in the brand new bishop’s palace, which also includes a museum, conference halls and a chapel.

His fancy new digs are reported to have cost almost €3 million and included a 63-square-metre dining room and a €15,000 bathtub.
The Vatican wouldn’t comment on the outcome of the bishop’s meeting with Pope Francis, only that it lasted for 20 minutes.

Speculation is mounting that the Bishop will be forced to resign, as his big spending is a bad look for the “poor church for the poor” Pope Francis wants to create.

Before his meeting with Bishop Tebartz-van Elst, Pope Francis gave a sermon in which he castigated greed, reports The Guardian .

“Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions,” he said in the chapel of Santa Marta.

A decision on the bishop’s future is not expected to be made until a full report on the scandal is provided to the Vatican.
Posted by: Niyi 

Monday, 30 September 2013

Confirmed: April 27 for Canonizations of Popes John XXIII and John Paul II

Blessed Popes John XXIII and John Paul II will be canonized on April 27th 2014, Divine Mercy Sunday, the Vatican confirmed this morning.
The news was announced in the following statement:
"CONSISTORY TO VOTE ON THE CAUSES OF CANONIZATION OF BLESSEDS JOHN XXIII AND JOHN PAUL II
This morning, at 10 o'clock in the Consistory Hall of the Vatican Apostolic Palace, during the celebration of mid-morning prayer, the Holy Father Francis held the Ordinary Public Consistory for the Canonization of Blesseds:
- John XXIII, Pope
- John Paul II, Pope.
During the Consistory, the Pope decreed that the Blesseds John XXIII and John Paul II will be enrolled among the saints April 27, 2014, the Second Sunday of Easter, of the Divine Mercy."
The news was widely expected. The Register was among the first to report the high probability of Divine Mercy Sunday as the chosen date when Pope Francis revealed it in a conversation earlier this month. Although cardinals and bishops vote on the canonization, the date is the Pope's alone to make in accordance with his calendar and schedule.
Vatican and Rome authorities will now set to work, preparing for what is expected to be an enormous number of pilgrims from all over the world.
by Edward Pentin 

Monday, 16 September 2013

LCCN - From Sudan Church to Lutheran Nigeria

Of the several subjects which we study within the realm of Humanities, social sciences, Natural sciences and physical sciences, history is unarguably the only subject which anybody who is wise, careful and intelligent must strive and do something not to offend it. It is the only discipline that punishes people and or an organization, elevates them, condemn them or sentence them to perpetual image damage. In the light of the foregoing, events that led to the establishment of the Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria one hundred years ago makes an interesting reading.

The Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria (LCCN) will on Sunday September 22, 2013 officially kick start her Centenary celebration in Abuja, with variety of activities lined up culminating into marking the centenary proper on October 5th this year, rounding up at Demsa National Convention Ground. Organized by the Abuja Diocese of the Church, the event is scheduled for the National Ecumenical centre, Central Business District at midday. The journey of the church history is attributed to its founder Dr Niels Bronnum and his wife Margaret C. Young, and Ms Dogner Rose and a host of other missionaries to mention a few.

The couple arrived Nigeria and started their trip up the Niger River by boat on 18/2/1913. While at the British Missionary station in Rumasha, near Lokoja in Nasarawa Province Dr Bronnum's wife Margaret, incidentally died of malaria, shortly after giving birth to their first son, Holger in June 1913. Margaret was buried at Rumasha, amidst profound regret of what she was not able to accomplish. Her infant son was taken back to Europe by one of the missionaries on the same trip Mrs Dogmar Rose to late Margaret's family in Scotland before rejoining her colleagues in Nigeria, to enable Dr Bronnum continue with his missionary journey to Numan alone on October 5th, 1913 after obtaining the necessary approval from the British Resident in Yola. There he acquired a piece of land on which he started his mission work. As his work progressed, he built evangelist stations where unpaid Nigerian evangelists settled to farm and teach Christianity to the villages, under his supervision.

Their mission which blossomed over the years was eventually extended by ordaining the first set of five indigenous Pastors namely: Habila Aleyedeilo, Ezra Gajere, Rev. Shall Holma, Theodore Pwanahomo and Ahnuhu Jebbe after undergoing an intensive theological training in 1948. Seven years later in 1955, after undergoing quite a number of sensitization and mobilization of more adherents of the faith by these men of God, the name of the church was changed from Sudan United Mission to Lutheran Church of Christ in Sudan. Barely a year after, the Church become independent of the Danes and was renamed Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria.

Thereafter, in the 1950s, this original pattern of Church organization had expanded into a large number of mission stations and evangelist villages. Before the Second World War, the mission had opened mission stations in Numan, Lamurde, Guyuk, Shelleng, Dumne, and Pella. Others are Dilli and Njoboliyo. After the war, new stations were opened in Gurum and Dashen and in the multi-ethnic town of Jimeta, the present seat of power in Adamawa state. No fewer than 60 worked at the aforementioned stations as Pastors, teachers, Doctors, Nurses, Artisans and administrators.

The grace of God that directed and led footsteps of the founding fathers of LCCN to Adamawa in 1913 has to a large extent endeared not a few adherents of the faith. For example, from the onset of the Church, only a handful of worshippers worshiped in it, but as the days roll by, the number has leaped to over 2.7million members across the eight Dioceses of the Church.

The beginning of independence of the Church began with the election of Rev. Akila Todi as its first indigenous President in 1960.He was made Bishop in 1973 when the Church adopted a modified Episcopal polity. This gave birth to the first group of indigenous people baptized in January 1916. That year, St John's was the first congregation built in Numan, where devotions till date are still being conducted at the LCCN Headquarters.

The series of negotiations between officials of the Danish Sudan United Mission (DSUM) and other branches of the (SUM) brought about a federation of other Nigerian Churches with the SUM called (Tarayar Ekkilesiyoyin Kristi a Sudan) abbreviated to TEKAS, the Community of the Churches of Christ in Sudan. While the Churches that formed TEKAS remained independent regional bodies, each maintaining its autonomy, the federation however, remained tied together by a common council with consultative functions.

This unification process brought about a series of organizational changes in the LCCN and indeed in its relations with the missionaries and other Christians in Nigeria. As the church underwent growth and expansion, the need to distribute management and other oversight duties equally arose. First was the idea of the formation of dioceses, initiated in 1996 under the leadership of Archbishop David Windibiziri (rtd) viz: Todi Diocese with Rt. Rev. Nemuel A. Babba as its Bishop. Gongola Diocese (Rt. Rev. Asriel Myatafadi), Yola Diocese (Rt. Rev. William Lautai). Others are Shall-Holma Diocese (Rt. Rev. Phanuel Agontara), while Rt. Rev. Briska Boyi headed Bonotem Diocese.

The highest authority of the LCCN lies in the Church Executive Council (Babban Majalisar Ekklesiya) BME which meets bi-annually. Led by the church's incumbent Archbishop Rt. Rev. Nemuel Babba, LCCN has witnessed a number of dramatic transformations. The forum (BME) is made up of elected representatives from all districts of the local churches. At this forum, major decisions on how to administer human and material resources of the entire members of the LCCN are taken.
BY EDWARD WABUNDANI
Edward Wabundani is a Communicant of the LCCN
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