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Magaji, Ezekial Dutse (1945–2015)

MANOAH D. YOHANNA

Manoah D. Yohanna

Ezekial Dutse Magaji was an evangelist, pastor and church administrator in for nearly 50 years. Early Life and Education Pastor Ezekiel Dutse Magaji was born on October 10, 1945, at Fadama Shano, Bassa, , Nigeria, to the family of Habila and Keziah Magaji, two of the early converts to Christianity in the area. In addition to spiritual conviction, Magaji was motivated to be a preacher by the attractive preaching abilities of Adventist primary school teachers who came to his village each Sabbath, such as Mr. Chima, Teacher Henry, and Teacher Ola (their full names are not known). An Adventist nurse, Sister Mergot, also took special interest in him and encouraged him. On the Friday he graduated from the Adventist primary school in Jengre, he took his exam results to Mergot, who seeing that he took third position, instantly employed him. Two days later, on Sunday, January 1, 1962, he began his career in the Adventist Church as a hospital ward aid. Due to his burning zeal for evangelism, he was also made hospital chaplain. In April, he became an evangelist/school teacher until September 1962, when he enrolled at the Adventist College of West Africa (ACWA, now Babcock University) in western Nigeria to study for the certificate course in theology. He also earned a diploma in Christian religion from ACWA in 1975, a BA in theology in 1982, and a Master of Arts degree in pastoral ministry in 1992-1995.1 Ministry In 1964, ill health forced Magaji back home. While recuperating, he worked in the Adventist hospital in Jengre as the chaplain throughout 1965. He returned to ACWA in 1966 and graduated with a certificate in theology in 1968. From 1968 to 1972, he served as the district pastor for the , Zaria, Kano, and Sokoto districts. He was elected director of lay activities, Sabbath School, and the Voice of Prophecy Correspondence School for the North Nigeria Mission in 1972. He worked at the headquarters until 1973, when he returned to ACWA and graduated with a diploma in Christian religion in 1975.2 Magaji became district leader of the Maiduguri and Kano districts, Nigeria, in 1976. He also served as director of lay activities, Sabbath School, and the Voice of Prophecy Bible school from 1976 to 1978. From 1978 to 1982, he took a sabbatical during which he studied at the Adventist Seminary of West Africa. Following his graduation, he became district leader for the Kaduna, Zaria Kano, and Sokoto districts in Nigeria from 1982 to 1983. In 1983, Magji became youth director of the North Nigeria Mission while also serving as district leader of the Jos District. Magaji’s zeal for evangelism and education deterred him from marriage until lack of marriage became a stumbling block to his ordination. On January 6, 1980, while still a student he married Rahila Talatu Samson. He was ordained to the gospel ministry in March 1983. Their marriage was blessed with five children: Mailafiya, Zilla, Shugaba, Ibrahimn, and Tambaya. 3 Since its planting in 1931, the North Nigeria Mission (NNM) of had been presided over by foreign missionaries. Because of an economic depression, the Nigerian military government in 1984 ordered all foreign missionaries engaged in purely gospel work to leave the country. Magaji suddenly found himself catapulted to the presidency of the Northern Nigeria Mission with little or no experience in December 1984. According to the Henry Venn model of missionary enterprise, the ultimate goal of a missionary should be to establish a self-governing, self-supporting, and self-propagating church entity (the 3S) and then leave.4 When Sven Jensen, the departing president, handed the mission over to Magaji, the North Nigeria Mission was neither self-governing nor self-supporting. The challenges that confronted Magaji as new president were enormous. Soon after Jensen left, Magaji discovered to his dismay that each foreign missionary was linked to donors, and the loss of a missionary meant the loss of the financial gifts he or she could raise for the mission. Such “trust funds” began to steadily diminish. This was compounded by the depressed national economy, which led to many workers losing their jobs and translated to poor church revenues. The General Conference added to the blow by reducing appropriations. The attitude of church members was also quite discouraging. A beggar mentality had developed in them because of aid coming from overseas. The missionaries had made them feel that they were too poor to contribute anything to solve the needs of their church. Even to raise a church building, the solution was always “Let us write to our brothers overseas.”5 The per capita contribution of Adventist members in northern Nigeria in 1984 was ?22.236 per member per annum.7 By 1986, the treasurer reported that the North Nigeria Mission (NNM) was on the brink of bankruptcy.8 There was also the problem of a meager workforce and membership. The total number of the gospel workers, including the president, accountants, and janitors, was only twenty-eight of which only three had a degree. The total number of baptized members was 6,005.9 Magaji took on these challenges with zeal, courage, and determination. His three-pronged approach was active promotion of giving (stewardship), vigorous evangelism, and diligent recruitment and training of pastors. By 1988, the NNM had risen from the brink of bankruptcy to 105 percent self-support. In eight years, total revenue rose from ?133, 466.44 in 1984 to ?1,213,051.91 in 1992.10 Magaji also actively recruited ministers. With his encouragement, S. H. Bindas, Emmanuel Jugbo, Micah Nasamu, Ibrahim Maigadi, Y. U. Harry, A. N. Anenga, Dave Onuwah, Mazuba Alkali I. W. Anana, and others received training and accepted pastoral calls. He worked with Amos Zachariah, mission treasurer to increase the salary of pastors in order to attract more people to join the ministerial work. Due to Magaji’s evangelism goals, within the eight years from 1985 to 1992, the mission doubled the number of baptized members. It had taken the missionaries fifty-three years (1931-1984) to win 6,005 members. Under Magaji’s leadership, the number rose from 6,005 in 1984 to 13,069 in 1992. For this accomplishment, he received the General Conference award for one of the fastest growing missions in the world at the end of the Harvest 90 worldwide evangelism program.11 Other landmark accomplishments of the church under his leadership included fencing the mission headquarters compound to protect the land from encroachment, purchasing a bus for mission use, building a modern office building for the headquarters, and constructing a church building so Sabbath services would not have to be held in the office. In December 1992 as a result of growing church membership and self-reliance, the NNM was divided into the North- East and North-West Nigeria Missions. The North-East Nigeria Mission was elevated to conference status in 2003.12 Advances were also made in education. The Hyde Memorial Secondary School in Jengre opened on September 26, 1994. An Adventist college was established at Numan with the goal of training future gospel workers as well as providing Christian education. The college was the fruition of a project attempted in the 1960s when the Northern European Division had posted a principal (Mr. Karlman) and classrooms had been raised using earth blocks. The classrooms could not be roofed and eventually collapsed. Other attempts to restart it failed and the project died until Magaji’s administration. In addition, twelve hectares of land intended for a future seminary at Mistali near Jos Plateau State were purchased.13 Ministry across his conferences was enhanced by the construction of landmark church edifices. Examples include the Jengre Mission, Nyanya , and Bukuru Expressway churches. The Abuja church developed from a single branch Sabbath School to over five self-supporting churches. An Adventist women’s ministry multipurpose center was also built at Jengre. With assistance from Dr. Linsay Thomas, Jr. of the United States, the Lay Pioneer evangelistic program was introduced. Each lay pioneer was given a bicycle as their means of transportation to ministry sites.14 Other roles held by Magaji included director of stewardship and family life for the Nigerian Union from 1995 to 2000. He was also appointed a member of the Prayer Team of Plateau State by Governor to pray for peace and progress in Plateau State.15 In all, Magaji served the Lord for forty-nine years, from 1962 to 2008. Seventeen of those years were in the capacity of president of the Adventist Church in the Northern Nigeria and North East Nigeria conferences (December 1984- 1995 and 2003-2008). He retired formally on October 10, 2010, as the pastor of the Nasarawa Gwong church in Jos District, Plateau State. Magaji died on January 31, 2015. He was buried in the family cemetery at Kadamo, Jengre.16

SOURCES Anderson, G. F and T. F. Stansky, eds. Mission Trends. No. 3, Third World Theologies. New York: Paulist Press, 1976. Life History of Pastor Magaji in his funeral program. In the author’s private collection. Nigerian Union Mission Report, 1985. West-Central African Division Archives, Lot, Abidjan, Ivory Coast. Olukaikpe, M. N. Treasurer’s Report, North Nigeria Mission Biennial Session, 1986. Yohanna, M. D. “The Economic Future of the Nigerian Church: Case Studies in Self-reliance in the SDA Church in Northern Nigeria Under Complete Moratorium.” M.A. thesis: University of Jos, 1992.

NOTES 1. Life History of Pastor Magaji in his funeral program, in the author’s private collection.? 2. Ibid.? 3. Ibid.? 4. G. F. Anderson and T. F. Stansky, eds., Mission Trends, No. 3, Third World Theologies (New York: Paulist Press, 1976), 160-162.? 5. E. D. Magaji, interview by author, Bukuru, Plateau State, Nigeria, July 2011.? 6. Naira (?) is the Nigerian currency. Each Naria is divided into 100 kobo.? 7. E. D. Magaji, interview by author, Bukuru, Plateau State, Nigeria, July 2011.? 8. M. D. Yohanna, “The Economic Future of the Nigerian Church: Case Studies in Self-reliance in the SDA Church in Northern Nigeria Under Complete Moratorium” (M.A. thesis: University of Jos, 1992).? 9. M. N. Olukaikpe, Treasurer’s Report, North Nigeria Mission Biennial Session, 1986, 22.? 10. Nigerian Union Mission Report, 1985.? 11. E. D. Magaji, interview by author, Bukuru, Plateau State, Nigeria, July 2011.? 12. Responses to questionnaires answered by elders, deacons, and officers of various churches, July 2011.? 13. Ibid.? 14. Ibid.? 15. Ibid.? 16. Life History of Pastor Magaji in his funeral program.?

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