Remarkable faith of kidnapped Christian leader
Islamist terror group Boko Haram have kidnapped a state chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria and released a video – which is a remarkable testimony to his faith. And in a subsequent raid, they kidnapped a second pastor and 40 others.
Boko Haram abducted the Rev Lawan Andimi during a raid on Michika on January 3. According to reports, he was kidnapped by men in military uniform who drove into the town in convoy, ransacked it, and bundled him into a Toyota Hilux.
‘In God’s hands’
The Rev Andimi is chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in Adamawa State. In the video, he appears unflustered, and declares he is not discouraged because he is ‘in the hands of God’.
Calling on the state governor to press for his release, he tells his family, ‘God is still alive… Don’t cry, don’t worry, thank God for everything.’
On January 6, CAN reported that Boko Haram had kidnapped a second pastor, the Rev Joshua Samaila. They seized him along with 40 others during an early morning raid on Kasaya village in Kaduna.
Beheadings
Attacks by the Islamist terror group Boko Haram are ongoing. Over Christmas, they released a video showing the beheadings of 10 Christians and the shooting of a Muslim.
On Boxing Day, they attacked a bridal party on the way to a wedding, killing the bride and others.
Release international partner, the Most Rev Benjamin Kwashi, the Anglican Archbishop of Jos, says ‘Nigeria has become the largest killing ground for Christians in the world today.’
The Christian Association of Nigeria has urged the governments of Nigeria, the US and the UK to take steps to safeguard the lives of Nigerian Christians.
Sources: GuardianNigeria, CSW.
ENDS
Release partner Archbishop Benjamin Kwashi tells his remarkable faith story in his new book, Neither Bomb Nor Bullet. This book, which explains the current crisis in Nigeria, is available here