March 2, 2006 - After an arduous weekend in which rioting and death threats forced them to evacuate, Christian Reformed Church missionaries in northern Nigeria report that order is being restored.
"Four people have been arrested for the church burning and threats," Dave and Jan Dykgraaf said an e-mail to staff and friends at Christian Reformed World Missions (CRWM).
"Two local chiefs and the military commander in Kontagora [a town in northwest Nigeria] have encouraged us to return and assured us that things will be fine."
The Dykgraafs from Grand Rapids, Mich., along with Larry and Rose Van Zee of Pella, Iowa, Christian Reformed World Relief (CRWRC) staff member Jeremiah Yongo, and 12 families of Nigerian Christians braved a seven-and-a-half-hour drive through the mostly Muslim regions of northern Nigeria on Sunday to a temporary safe haven in the central Nigerian city of Abuja.
Earlier in the weekend a church had been burned and leaflets were posted on houses and shops warning Christians to leave the area or be killed.
"We are grateful to report that throughout this week tensions have reduced in the affected areas," CRWM Nigeria field leader Albert Strydhorst reported. He said that discussions are taking place about how and when the missionaries will return to their stations.
"Pray for wisdom in these discussions," he said. "Give thanks that the unrest has not spread to places like Jos and Abuja where there are many CRWRC and CRWM missionaries."
The quick restoration of order is seen as a tribute to nearly 20 years of good relations between local Muslim chieftains and Christians in the area.
While the riots had a strong religious tone, it is not so clear-cut. Part of the context in Nigeria is a closely matched population of Christians and Muslims that share a history of conflict and fierce competition for political power. Most of the residents in the north of the country are Muslim, while most Christians live in the south.
Aggravating things was a recent rumor that Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, a Christian, intends to amend the constitution before the 2007 elections to allow himself a third term. Further fuel came from a deadly exchange in which northerners killed Christians from the south and southerners retaliated by burning mosques and killing Muslims.
Christian Reformed World Missions has been in Nigeria since 1920, helping Nigerians to develop a national church that today includes several denominations with a total membership of well over 300,000.
CRWM and CRWRC also have a strong partnership with Partners Worldwide. Through this partnership, Nigerian business people have established Partners for Christian Empowerment Network (PCEN) with branches in Jos, Takum, Makurdi, Mkar, and Kaduna where members receive training, mentoring, and loans to help grow businesses and create jobs.
This partnership is also making a huge contribution in water and community development in Eastern Kambari Area (EKA).
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Henry Hess
Director of Communications
The Christian Reformed Church
To learn more about the Christian Reformed Church visit www.crcna.org <http://www.crcna.org/pages/index.cfm