At the end of this topic, you should be able to:
• explain the method used by the Holy Ghost Fathers to
spread Christianity in various villages in Eastern parts of
Nigeria. Enumerate their achievements in the areas.
3.0 MAIN CONTENT
3.1 The Purchasing of Slaves and Their Conversion into
Christians by the Holy Ghost Father
The method of evangelization that was embarked upon by the
Holy Ghost Roman Catholic Missionary Society in Africa was the
buying of slaves whom they settled in villages and converted into Christianity Around Nineteenth Century. This method was used to
gather the scattered slaves who were displaced by the French and
the European slave traders. The Europeans assembled the African
freed slaves and gave them liberty in their various settlement areas.
However, they used the slaves cheaply in the labour market. The
missionaries also used the slaves cheaply to get themselves
established in Africa. Around 1877, the Holy Ghost Fathers started
uying African slaves at Bagamoyo. They used the opportunity to
evangelize the African slaves whose souls were neglected in
evangelism work. In 1892, the Superior of the Holy b Ghost
Fathers wrote from Paris to the Cardinal Prefect of the College
of Propaganda in Rome to inform him of how they bought children,
trained them , converted them into Christianity and settled them
in Christian villages. He wrote:
…in all our missions our Fathers bring up young
children, both boys and girls, at great expense and a good
number of these, especially of the girls, are children
bought out of slavery. We have to look after them for
several years until we can establish them and make
Christian house-holds and then Christian villages.
In 1896, 880 children were bought in the slave markets in
Congo and 830 at Oubangui between 1894 and 1899
respectively by the Holy Ghost Fathers. In March 31, 1897,
Father Hacquard, a missionary in Timbuktu reported to the General
Assembly of the Anti-Slavery society in Paris that they had
adopted slaves whom they settled in Christian villages. By this
method, the inhabitants of the Christian villages were converted
into Christianity by the Holy Ghost Fathers. However, the Holy
Ghost Fathers had the problem of financing in the Christian
village evangelism method. But on 5b May,1888, a partial th
solution was reached through the letter which Pope Leo Xiii wrote
to the Anti-Slavery Society in Paris to establish and finance thirty
Christian villages for evangelism among Africans who settled in
the French territories. The Archbishop of Algiers Cardinal
Lavigevie, pleaded for the abolition of slavery in Brazil. He made a
request for abolition of internal slavery in Africa. The Cardinal put
forward the following plans to other Bishops to stop the internal
slavery in Africa. Armed monks should be formed to fight the
Negroes in order to end up the trafficking in slaves in Africa by
using force of arms. The Pope suggested to the Missionaries to buy
the African slaves and settle them in a place called ‘Christian
village’. The suggestion of the Pope was taken by the
Missionaries in Nigeria. In the Eastern part of the country, the
Holy Ghost Fathers bought Nigerian slaves and settled them into Christian villages. In other to aid the Missionaries in the Eastern
part of Nigeria to evangelize the people, the Pope introduced
collection of money on 6b January annually in every Catholic th
Church for the Holy Ghost fathers for planting of Christianity in
Nigeria. About fifty people were sent to evangelize the area. Among
these people, there were twenty freed slaves in the mission work. In
1890, about fifty- five slaves were bought and in 1891, the missionaries
ought about seventeen slaves. The slaves that were bought settled in
Christian villages. In 1906, the Holy Ghost Fathers had established three
Christian villages in the Niger Delta area of Nigeria. Agouleri mission
stations had Saint Joseph as its headquarters for evangelism in the area.
The mission also had about 500 Christians who were in charge of the
spread of the gospel at Onitsha Wharf. Around 1902 The Vatican
suggested that all Catholic Churches should contribute money for the
spread of the gospel in Nigeria. All Catholic Churches throughout the
world, contributed money for the work of evangelism in Africa,
especially, Nigeria. The French Anti—Slavery Society accepted the
suggestion of the Vatican and promised to make funds available
to the Missionaries in Africa, especially, those who were in the
Eastern part of Nigeria. 5o,ooo Francs was sent to the
Missionaries in the Eastern parts of Nigeria for the evangelism
work by the named organization. However, in 1911, in Eastern
Nigeria, the Superior of the Roman Catholic Mission, Shanahan,
had a dispute with the Cardinal of the Propaganda colleagues in
Rome over the misused of the money donated by the
organization for the purpose of evangelism in the area. This was
ecause he was accused of embezzling the money that was meant
for evangelism in the Eastern parts of Nigeria by the Church.
3.2 The Spread of Roman Catholic Mision at Nkisi
In September 1885, four French Missionaries were sent to open a
Mission station in the Eastern part of Nigeria. They opened a
mission station at Nkissi near Onitsha Wharf which was opposite
the bank of River Niger, near the slave market in the area. In 1886,
Samuel Ajayi Crowther who was an Anglican priest donated a
piece of land to the Roman Catholic Mission to establish a
Mission station at the Niger Delta Pastorate area. The area which
Ajayi Crowther gave to the Holy Ghost Fathers to plant
Christianity was formally used for buying slaves in the Eastern
part of Nigeria. At Onitsha Wharf, a slave was bought for 90
Francs on 12b June 1886 . Furthermore, on 6 August 1886, a three-year- th
old boy was sold for 12 sacks of salt. In 1891, the missionaries bought
seventeen slaves. The slaves were established in Christian villages. In
1906, the Holy Ghost Fathers had established three Christian villages in
the Niger Delta area of Nigeria. Agouleri Mission Station had Saint
Joseph as its headquarters for evangelism in the area. The Mission also
had five hundred Christians who were in charge of the spread of the
gospel at Onitsha wharf in Nigeria around 1902.
3.3 The Evil Practices of the Onitsha Indigenes in the Early
Periods
The Onitsha wharf Missionaries witnessed the practices of human
sacrifice and slavery at Onitsha. It was said that the slaves departed
Nupe kingdom for Onitsha. And the Asaba people bought them. For
instance, two slaves were sacrificed during the enthronement of obi
Moreover, Obi titleholders were very many at Asaba. Each titleholder
used to sacrifice slaves for their enthronement or burial. Besides, the
Asaba people used to buy slaves from Nupe traders at Onitsha. The
tasks for the missionaries at Onitsha and Asaba areas were to stamp out
these evil practices among the indigene of the named towns. For these
reasons, the missionaries started to purchase some of the slaves that
were bought by the Obis in area. In 1887, the slaves that were bought by
the Holy Ghost Fathers or Missionaries were used as labourers to build a
hospital at Onitsha wharf for treating the sick among the slaves that
settled in the area. However, they were accused of using the slaves for
labour but the Missionaries claimed that slaves were used to build the
hospital for charitable purpose.
The Practice of Christianity in Agouleri Village
In 1891, the Onitsha missionaries converted a Chief named Igigo
Agouleri. At the village, the Holy Ghost Fathers celebrated Mass each
morning at 4.45 am followed by communal prayer and meditation of the
Christians whom they bought and settled there. After the morning Mass,
the Christian ex -slaves were engaged in work on the coffee plantation
that was owned by the Missionaries. In addition to these, during
afternoon everyday, the Christian ex-slaves learnt catechism in the
church. The Christian ex – slaves used every evening to work around
the mission buildings. In 1891, about seventy Ossamori who were
adherents of the Anglican faith joined the Roman Catholic Church. In
1893, the Missionaries established a primary school at Onitsha wharf
about five hundred people were admitted into the school to receive
Western education .This served as the beginning of the Roman Catholic
education in the Eastern part of Nigeria. Some of the ex – slaves, who
were trained in the school, were engaged as teachers, interpreters and
clerks in government service.
The Problem of Christian Village Evangelism in Onitsha
Area
The Royal Niger Company was the lord of the Niger Delta area in the
early 1890s. For these reasons, the company controlled all activities in
the area. For example , the company imposed payment of 25 percent tax
on all goods for the Missionaries that were sailed by the sea to Onitsha
area .In addition to this, they were also taxed the sum of three pounds
for the transportation of a ton of goods brought through the sea to
Onitsha . Besides, whatever goods the Catholic Missionaries paid for at
the Royal Niger company, would be delayed before delivery. The
imposition of taxation on the goods of Catholic Mission by the Royal
Niger Company led the Holy Ghost Society authorities into debt. In
Nigeria, from 1885 to 1890 the Royal Niger Company saw the French
Holy Ghost Society as French aides and abettors of French interests on
the Nigeria soil. For example, Gold accused the Superior of the Holy
Ghost Mission of engaging in slavery and had him prosecuted and fined.
He also claimed that the mission site that was given to them by Ajayi
Crowther to established a Mission station belong to the Royal Niger
Company. And that the Royal Niger Company was owned by the British
Government. Therefore, the landed properties which were occupied by
the French Holy Ghost Fathers belonged to the British government. So,
their occupying of mission stations in Onitsha and Asaba was illegal.
Marshall therefore, replaced the French Missionaries with the English
Missionaries in the Niger area. He summoned Cardinal Ledochowzki,
Prefect of the Congregation of Propaganda in Rome, and Cardinal
Vaughan to remove the French Holy Ghost fathers from the Niger
-Delta areas in Nigeria. Furthermore, Marshall also wrote to the
Superior General of the Catholic Society in Paris, Father Emonet that
there was rivalry between the French and the English missionaries in the
land. Therefore , he would like the French missionaries to leave the area
for the English missionaries, since they belonged to the British
government that owned the disputed land .This also made the new
Cardinal get involved in the disputed land by looking for a West
African Bishopric to which a British – born person could be appointed .
All these problems with the Royal Niger Company, over taxation, the
uying of slaves and the French presence in the Eastern part of Nigeria
made the operation of the Christian Village expensive and unprofitable
in Nigeria. In addition to this, it was felt by the missionaries that it was
etter for Africans to evangelize themselves rather than using White
Missionaries. This view compounded the problems of Catholic Mission
in Nigeria in the early 1895 to 1890s. The attitude of the Holy Ghost
Fathers showed their bias towards the Africans that they had little or no
faith in the Africans evangelized in Nigeria. For they focused on the
Christian village evangelization methods in the eastern part of Nigeria
that was led by the white men only. The Holy Ghost Fathers also introduced other methods of evangelism in Nigeria. For instance,
Lejeune, Superior of Onitsha Wharf Mission from 1900 to 1905,
demanded for funds from the Cardinal Golti, Prefect of
Propaganda of Christianity in Rome, to tackle the problem of
slavery in Nigeria. As a result of this, the Missionaries converted
sixty-five people in Agoudleri in Nigeria. In 1901, Golti sent Lejeune
20,000 Lira to be used for the conversion of African slaves to
Christianity. Despite these methods that were used by the
Missionaries to fight slavery in Africa, it was not totally
eradicated. For this reason, Lejeune embarked on a research for
an alternative method of evangelization which would be more
effective in the spread of the Gospel in the Eastern Nigeria. The
method was the introduction of Christianity to the Chiefs and
Leaders of the Agouleri village. Through this, many people were
converted to Christianity in the area.
4.0 CONCLUSION
It is expected that from the study of this unit, you should have
learnt the following points:
The purchasing of slaves and their conversion to Christianity by
the Missionaries. The spread of Roman Catholic Mission in the
East of the Rivers Niger and Benue in Nigeria The practice of
the Onitsha indigenes in the early periods of Christianity.
5.0 SUMMARY
Having gone through this unit, you would have understood the
following point: The Missionaries embarked on the buying of
slaves in Onitsha area, settled them in villages and converted
them into Christianity.
The Pope introduced collection of money in the Catholic Church
to aid the Missionaries in the spreading of the Gospel in the
Onitsha area.
The Royal Niger Company was the lord of the Niger Delta
area in early 1890s. Goldie accused the leader of the Missionaries
of engaging in slavery, had him prosecuted and fined. Lejeune
replaced Goldie in 1901 in Niger area. He searched for an
alternative method of evangelising the people of Niger Delta area.
TUTOR-MARKED ASSIGNMENT
Discuss the following:
1. Goldie
2. Marshall
3. Obi title holders at Asaba land in 1885.
7.0 REFERENCES/FURTHER READINGS
KALU, O. U. (1980).The History of Christianity in West Africa Essay
Lectures, London: Longmans Groups Ltd.
Ade Ajayi, J.F. (1977). Christian Missions in Nigeria 1841-1891: The
Making of New Elite, London: Longmans Groups Ltd.
