CSW: Insecurity Making Church Service Impossible in Many Northern Communities - THISDAYLIVE

The Chief Executive Officer of Christian Solidarity Worldwide -Nigeria (CSW-N), Rev. Yunusa Nmadu, has said that insecurity has made church service impossible in many northern communities.

He decried the persistent attacks, mass abductions, and killings, which, according to him, are targeted at Christian communities.

Nmadu said the attacks had displaced thousands of people from their ancestral homes and made it increasingly difficult for Christians in some communities to worship freely.

He spoke on Sunday at ECWA Goodnews Church, Kaduna, during activities marking the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (IDOP), with the theme: ‘Light in the Darkest Places’.

He said CSW is a human rights organisation advocating freedom of religion and beliefs, adding that for the past 17 years, the organisation has stood with people whose religious freedom was being threatened.

“Our conviction is that everyone should be free to believe. Everyone should be free to worship, hold their faith, change it, or hold none, and to live it out without fear,” he said.

He said the organisation speaks for victims and survivors, documents violations, trains and supports human rights defenders, and engages governments and institutions to protect vulnerable people and pursue justice.

Nmadu said: “Behind every report and every statistic is a person, a widow, a child, a pastor, a family who had lost a home or a loved one.

“They are not numbers to us. They are our brothers and sisters, and when one part of the body suffers, we all suffer with it. “

He said numerous attacks had occurred in Kaduna State, citing the incidents in Kachia, Kajuru, Kauru, and Kagarko Local Government Areas of Kaduna State, which led to the killings, abductions, and displacement of many people.

He also recalled the case of Leah Sharibu, who has remained in captivity with the Boko Haram terrorists since February 2018 for refusing to denounce her Christian faith.

Nmadu urged Christians to continue praying for those in captivity and for their release.

“Today, we stand in solidarity and prayer for all who are in dark places, for God to keep them strong and shine his light in their very darkest moments,” he said.

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