Evangelism and Missions

Have Western churches and governments abandoned millions of Christians in this ‘fractured country’?


Reuters – Women and children rescued from Islamist militant group Boko Haram in the Sambisa forest by the Nigerian military arrive at an internally displaced people’s camp in Yola,

If this huge country breaks apart due to political and religious conflicts, the global impact “will be unbelievable.”

The warning was made by former U.S. Rep. Frank Wolf, and he’s talking about Nigeria, where millions of Christians and other displaced people are suffering due to the action of radical groups, The Christian Post reports.

Wolf said Christians in Nigeria are feeling abandoned by Western governments and churches that have done little to stop the worsening humanitarian tragedy in that country, which is the largest in Africa.

The former U.S. lawmaker noted that much of the world is focused on the Islamic State (ISIS) terror group and the Syrian refugee crisis, that concerns around 23-25 million people.

Yet Nigeria is a nation of 180 million, and it is facing a situation similar to that in Syria. If Nigeria breaks apart, with radical groups seizing parts of its territory—just like what happened in Syria—”the impact for the rest of the world will be unbelievable,” Wolf warned.

Wolf told The Christian Post in a phone interview that he was part of a delegation that visited Nigeria in February, and he witnessed firsthand the suffering being endured by Christians and other internally displaced people.

“People of faith, Christians, feel very much forgotten. Nigeria is fractured and is breaking down in so many ways, and it seems that the world has forgotten about it,” he said.

“They feel abandoned by the West, and by the Church in the West. You are not hearing many in the West advocating (for them),” Wolf said.

He said the West appears to be misinformed on the current situation in Nigeria. Some Western media sources report on the atrocities being committed by the radical Islamist group Boko Haram since 2009.

What has not been given much attention is the alarming rise in attacks carried out by Fulani herdsmen against Christian farmers in land disputes, leading to hundreds of deaths in the past year, Wolf said.

He said Nigeria’s biggest concern is terrorism, and the threat comes not just from the Boko Haram but more so from the Fulani radicals.

“Everywhere we went, the issue of Boko Haram came up. But secondly, the issue of the Fulani militants came up even more,” he said.

Wolf, who was elected to Congress in 1981 and served Virginia’s 10th District for 17 terms, said President Barack Obama has not paid much attention to the Nigerian issue. He said America should not wait for a new president before taking action to help the millions of suffering Christians and other displaced people in Nigeria.

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