War inside church - Thugs descend on Vicar

The first Sunday of the year is often looked forward to by most Christians in the country. In the south-western part of the country, the New Year is often referred to as Odun Nla (literally meaning the big festival). On the first Sunday, most worshippers are decked in their best attires because it is a day of thanksgiving. However, it was not the case with St. Paul’s Anglican Church, Sodubi, Abeokuta, of the Egba Diocese of the Anglican communion.

Instead of celebrating and enjoying the presence of God, it was a day the devil entered the church as people suspected to be hired thugs came in and stopped the officiating minister from conducting the service.

The congregation was flabbergasted as confusion reigned inside the church.

The crux of the matter, Saturday Tribune learnt, was the allegation of incessant offensive preaching by a certain 'Venerable' everytime he mounted the pulpit, which did not go down well with some members of the congregation.

It was gathered that the “offensive” preaching of the man of God had angered some members so much that they felt the only opportunity open to them to show their displeasure was to disrupt the first service of the year by preventing the vicar from officiating.

The man behind the mob action, a title holder of the church, alongside his supporters, had hired the services of six hefty men who barricaded the entrance of the church, preventing the vicar and other members of the clergy from gaining entry into the worship place.

The questions on the lips of many people was: has partisan politics become part of the house of God? Are people ready to listen to the true words of God again?

Saturday Tribune learnt that the vicar, having sensed danger, left the church premises with some members of the church believed to be his loyalists and retired to the vicarage while the “main man” in the unholy act was reported to have ordered a layreader, to conduct the service.

The service, according to a member of the church, who spoke on condition of anonymity, was attended by a few members with apprehension on their faces.

The member accused elders of the church of turning the temple of God into a political arena where their “power” and “might” are put to test.

He said that different political intrigues had been brought to the fore by the church leaders which had, in turn, affected the growth of the church.

When contacted, the man in the centre of the row accused the vicar of raining curses when on the pulpit.

Another member of the church who also did not want her name in print, however, had a different view of the crisis. She told Saturday Tribune that the vicar always preached on morals and spiritual development without refering to any member directly.

She said: “Even if a sermon seems pointed at you, what a responsible person should do is to make amends.”

The vicar, when contacted, refused to comment on the incident but told reporters that the matter had been reported to the new Diocesan of Egba, Rt. Revd. Emmanuel Oludaisi Adekunle.

When the vicar was approached, he was fuming with anger as he bombarded reporters with rhetorical questions, such as “How did you get to know what’s happening here? Who told you and who told you to come? This is a church affair and not press affair! I don’t want to comment further.”

Bishop Adekunle, when contacted on phone, described the action as unfortunate, contending that the church would not bow to the wishes of the devil.

He said: “The incident was unfortunate and called for proper handling to right the wrongs.

“I was just called this morning that the minister in charge had been denied entry into the church and to avoid chaos, I asked the priest to stay off that service.

“The cleric also denied that hoodlums brought guns to the church service. I’ve not been informed that anybody brought guns into the church or came with cudgels. But I learnt that people barricaded the gate and did not allow people to enter. Not that they brought guns.”

Bishop Adekunle promised to look into the matter critically as soon as he returned from the Bishops' New Year Retreat, holding in Delta State, with a view to resolving the crisis.