Mennonite Church Nigeria
Overview
The Mennonite Church of Nigeria is one of several churches with Anabaptist traditions in Nigeria, most of which are located in the southeastern region of the country. MCN is the largest denomination associated with Mennonite World Conference in Nigeria, including over 19,000 members and over 50 congregations.
History
Origins
Self-identified Mennonite churches emerged in Nigeria around 1958. Influenced by a The Mennonite Hour radio show broadcasts from Mennonite Mission Network, leaders of African Independent Churches contacted North American missionaries to request their help while these churches began to take on the Mennonite name. The first long-term missionaries were sent through Mennonite Mission Network in 1959. Edwin and Irene Weaver began working with this new conference. The Weavers sought to promote in indigenization of the church. When they first arrived, the churches were not so much Mennonite as a mixed bag of Christian and native “pagan” practices. They also discovered that part of the reason they were wanted was to provide monetary value to these churches. Eventually the Scottish Presbyterian mission offered to affiliate the Weavers with them so they could stay and further mission workers could come.
Rather than implementing western Mennonite practices in these churches, the Weavers worked with the AICs, trying to strengthen and unify structures already in place. This somewhat frustrated and alienated the Nigerian Mennonite churches who had wanted guidance about how to live into their new name. Western Christian missionaries were forced out of the country in 1970 by the Biafra War before any resolution came between Mennonite missions and the MCN.
Growth
Conferences
The Mennonite Church of Nigeria is primarily located in the Akwa Ibom State in southeastern Nigeria. Other Anabaptist groups in Nigeria include the Church of the Brethren and the Church of God in Christ, Mennonite.
| Mennonite Church Nigeria | |
|---|---|
|
Country |
|
|
Members |
19,000 |
|
Congregations |
54 |
|
Presiding Officer |
President Victor UmoAbasi |
