ANGLICAN CHURCH IN NIGERIA: YESTERDAY, TODAY AND TOMORROW The Revd. Prof. Benjamin O. Ehigie All Souls’ Church, Bodija Ibadan An Anniversary Lecture presented on the Occasion of the 20th Anniversary Ceremony of Ibadan North Diocese of the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion). Prof. EHIGIE 1 Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever (Hebrews 13:8). ANGLICAN CHURCH IN NIGERIA: YESTERDAY, TODAY AND TOMORROW Prof. EHIGIE 2 Introduction The Anglican Church in Nigeria was founded in 1842 by Henry Townsend in Badagry. Renamed The Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) in 1979. In full communion with all Anglican Churches, Dioceses and Provinces that hold and maintain the Historic Faith, Doctrine, Sacrament and Discipline of the one Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church as the Lord has commanded in His holy word and as the same are received as taught in the Book of Common Prayer and the ordinal of 1662 and in the Thirty-Nine Prof. EHIGIE 3 Article of Religion. The Church Universal The Catholic Church began as soon as Christ’s apostles began to preach after his death. Catholic comes from the Greek word for universal. It was the first form of Christianity that kept apostolic leadership unbroken since the time of St. Peter. In the 4th century AD, Catholicism was made the official religion of the Roman Empire. Anglican and Roman Catholic diverged to become two separate forms of Christianity; though from the same Christian roots founded by Jesus Christ (Mat 16:18) Anglican refers to the Church of England and its related branches throughout the world. Anglican priests can get married, unlike Catholic priests. Prof. EHIGIE 4 How Anglican split from the Roman Catholic The word ‘Anglican’ was first used in the mid-19th century to describe the Church of England in its independence from the Roman Catholic Church (Chapman, 2006). Henry VIII started the process of creating the Church of England after his split with the Pope in the 1530s. This followed Henry’s desire to have a male heir after his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, had borne him only a daughter. He wanted his marriage annulled in order to remarry but could not secure a sanctioned divorce from the Catholic Church and therefore broke off to form his own sect. During the time of Elizabeth I, the Church was formalized and given an independent ecclesiastical status and the name Anglicana Ecclesia (Anglican Church).. Prof. EHIGIE 5 Anglican and Protestantism Protestants are the denominations that broke off from the Roman Catholic Church. Anglicans in a way are Protestants. Most Protestant denominations really needed to protest or even rebel against the Catholic church in order to separate themselves The Anglican Church is better seen as a middle way between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism. The word ‘Anglicanism’ is used to distinguish Anglican from ‘Protestantism’ (Newman, 1838 reported in Chapman, 2006) Anglicanism is a Protestant Reformation and a form of Christianity that includes features of both Protestantism and Roman Catholicism (Encyclopedia Britannica , 2018) Anglican Communion describes ‘particular or national churches’ throughout the world, having their origins to the Church of England, and all in communion with the Archbishop of Canterbury. The word ‘Communion’ began to develop as organization from the first Lambeth Conference of 1867. There are 38 churches in the Communion Prof. EHIGIE 6 Anglican and Pentecostalism Pentecostal is derived from Pentecost; the Christian festival celebrating the descent of the Holy Spirit on the disciples of Jesus. Pentecostalism is a renewal movement within Protestant Christianity that places special emphasis on a direct personal experience of God through baptism with the Holy Spirit Pentecostal churches stress the importance of conversions that amount to a Baptism in the Spirit; giving the believer the strength to live a truly Christian life. A major focus of Pentecostal churches is Holy Spirit baptism as evidenced by speaking in tongues. Is the Anglican Church a Pentecostal Church? Prof. EHIGIE 7 Peculiarities of the Anglican Church It is one of the Christian denominations in Nigeria (Udodiong in Pulse Nigeria, 2017) , differentiated by the following : 1. it is not a one-man business, unlike some others that look up to one person for spiritual guidance. 2. It has a structure; headed by the Primate of All Nigeria, presently Archbishop Nicholas Dikeriehi Orogodo Okoh 3. This is followed by the other Archbishops of the 14 ecclesiastical provinces, and Bishops of the Dioceses. 4. Every Parish has councils, called Parish Church Council (PCC); with the authority over all matters of general interest and the well-being of the Church. 5. The General Synod meeting, where members contribute to making decisions for the whole church. 6. This leadership structure allows for participative decision making. 7. The Church adopts three orders in ministry; Bishop, Priest and Deacon. Prof. EHIGIE 8 The Spread of Anglican Church In the 19th century, precisely in - In the United States the denomination is called Episcopal; in most of the rest of the 1857, the evangelistic world it is called Anglican. movement of some Anglican - There are 38 churches in the Anglican evangelicals in London known Communion, including the as Church Missionary Society Episcopal Church in the United States, the Scottish Episcopal Church, the Church in spread Wales, and the Church of Ireland The spread around the world It has historically been was through the worldwide spread of British largest in former culture associated with English colonies, the British Empire colonization especially in Africa, and then by English-speaking missionary work. including Nigeria. Prof. EHIGIE 9 ANGLICAN CHURCH IN NIGERIA: Yesterday Prof. EHIGIE 10 History of Christianity/Anglican Church in Africa Tradition holds that the first Gentile church was founded in It was from Antioch that Antioch, where the disciples of St. Paul started his Jesus Christ were first called Christians (Acts 11:19-26). missionary journeys. In Africa, Christianity first arrived in History has it that Christianity North Africa, in the 1st/early 2nd was brought from Jerusalem century AD and the Christian communities in North Africa were to Alexandria on the Egyptian among the earliest in the world. coast by Mark, one of the four (The BBC News Service, 2018) evangelists in 60 AD. The Anglican Church of Southern Africa, known until 2006 as the Church of the Province of Southern Africa is the oldest in Africa. British Anglicans met for worship in Cape Town after 1806 (The Anglican Consultative Forum, 2018) Prof. EHIGIE 11 History of Anglican Church in West Africa The Church of the Province of West Africa was Missionary work established in 1951 by the bishops of five West began in Ghana in African dioceses (Accra, Lagos, Niger, Sierra Leone and the Diocese of Gambia/Guinea) 1752. with the consent of the Archbishop of Canterbury. In 1977 the Diocese of Liberia joined. In February 1979, the The now Church of the Province of West new Church of Nigeria was Africa covers 17 dioceses in 8 countries inaugurated as a separate of West Africa (Cameroon, Cape province (Lagos and Niger Verde, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Sen egal and Sierra Leone). Dioceses) Ghana is the country with most dioceses, now numbering 11 and 6 in the other seven nations. (Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, retrieved 11/12/2018) Prof. EHIGIE 12 Christianity in Nigeria Catholicism arrived in the Christianity came to territory that would come to be Sub-Saharan Africa in known as Nigeria with the 15th century, with Portuguese explorers, Augustinian and Capuchin, in the arrival of the the 15th century, but their Portuguese and the missionary efforts were largely interest of Europeans unsuccessful and Catholicism virtually disappeared by in colonizing Africa. the 17th century. Prof. EHIGIE 13 Anglican Presence in Nigeria It was not until the 19th century that the Christian religion was firmly established in Nigeria. The rebirth of Christianity in Nigeria was made possible with the arrival of Christian freed slaves in Nigeria. It started first among the Yoruba slaves who had embraced the Christian faith while in Sierra Leone, and returned home between 1839 and 1845. The pastors of the Church Missionary Society from Badagry and later from Sierra Leone, visited these Christian communities in Abeokuta and other towns. Among the first missionaries was the Rev. Henry Townsend who went from Sierra Leone to Badagry in 1842 in his company was the Rev Ajayi Crowther and Charles Andrew Golmer. Following this, the first mission of the Church of England was established in Nigeria in 1842. Prof. EHIGIE 14 Slaves serving punishment Prof. EHIGIE 15 Revd. Henry Townsend Prof. EHIGIE 16 The Yoruba Mission in Nigeria The activities of the pioneer missionaries specifically paved the way for the creation of the Yoruba Mission as they sowed the seed of Anglicanism properly. Success followed the efforts as C.M.S. churches were firmly established in several important towns, such as Abeokuta (1846), Lagos (1851), Ibadan (1853), and Oyo (1856). Samuel Ajayi Crowther was consecrated Bishop in London on St. Peter's Day (June 29th) 1864. He founded the All-African Mission in 1847, and headed it successfully until his death in 1891. Prof. EHIGIE 17 The Southern Mission in Nigeria The Church Missionary Society (CMS) The CMS was most successful in established an evangelistic ministry, Nigeria because it granted converts particularly in the south, and south- the autonomy to lead their eastern Nigeria basically Bonny and Brass, . communities. As such, African clergy Bishop Ajayi Crowther, assisted members were active by the Igbo recaptive the Rev. J. participants in the early C. Taylor, are prominent in this growth of the church. wise. By 1857 the CMS mission The CMS also encouraged was fully engaged and the legitimate commerce, Diocese on the Niger was condemning slavery in favor of established in 1864 agriculture.