Singing of forgiveness in the face of terror

When the Women’s Fellowship Choir of the EYN (Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria) — the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria — presents the first of four local concerts this evening  at Elizabethtown Church of the Brethren, its members will sing of love and  forgiveness.

It’s a remarkable message given the suffering they, their friends and their families have endured.

They are the survivors of religious genocide at the hands of  Boko Haram —   Islamic fundamentalists who have killed more than 20,000 people in Central Africa and kidnapped  young girls and women.

The choir and other members of  EYN have come to this country to thank Church of the Brethren congregations for their spiritual and financial support and to spread the word of what has transpired in Nigeria at the church’s annual conference in Tampa, Florida, later this month.

      

Fleeing terrorists

As the Rev. Monroe Good, 91, rode the bus across Illinois to the Church of the Brethren headquarters in Elgin last week, he was surrounded by 60  friends, some of whom he had just met.

Good, a Lancaster County resident,  spent 20 years as a missionary in Nigeria. So it was no exaggeration when he said “I have more friends in Nigeria than I have in the states.”

And, he added,  “loads of memories.”

Those memories are of Muslims and Christians living and working side by side. That peaceful coexistence,  however,  was shattered last October when Boko Haram terrorists swept through northeastern Nigeria, killing indiscriminantly.

Leaders in the EYN church and at Kulp Bible College, named for Chester County native     Stover Kulp who helped establish the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria in 1923, fled their headquarters in  Mubi in northeastern Nigeria for Jos in the central part of the country.

EYN family members had only three hours to flee the terrorists. Thousands of civilians died in the attacks, but all EYN officials and family members escaped unharmed, said  Carl Hill, who, along with his wife, Roxanne, direct the Nigeria Crisis Response for the Church of the Brethren in Elgin. Both visited Nigeria in November 2014, to assess needs and help map the church’s response.

The Church of the Brethren in this country set aside $1.5 million in emergency funds to help EYN members and other refugees get resettled. They have since raised an additional $1 million-plus with a goal of $1.5 million.

The funds, which are earmarked for the Nigeria Crisis Fund, are being used to  stabilize church leadership in Jos, create care centers  and provide food, clothing and medical assistance to the more than 1 million displaced people from northeastern Nigeria and neighboring  countries.

Hill added that the church is partnering with the Mennonite Central Committee in Nigeria to  train EYN members to deal with the horrors experienced by the survivors.

Many are “suffering  some level of trauma,” Hill said. “It’s a big effort.”

It has been 14 months since Boko Haram (which means “Western Education is forbidden”) kidnapped 270 schoolgirls in Chibok, Nigeria. The BBC reported earlier this week that 219 are still missing and that some may have been forced to terrorize other civilians.

It has been less than four months since Boko Haram swore allegiance to the Islamic State, or ISIS, which is considered by many governments to be the “most dangerous and malicious terrorist group on earth.”

Last November, Musa Mambula, the national spiritual adviser for EYN, told a gathering at Elizabethtown Church of the Brethren that Boko Haram has targeted EYN members.

“I want Americans to understand what we are passing through,” he said. "Those fighting us are terrorists who do not want to see Christianity on the face of the Earth.”

All of which makes the concert tour   by the Women’s Fellowship Choir and the speeches by members of the Nigerian BEST group (Brethren, Evangelism, Support,Trust) even more remarkable.

“They don’t dwell on (the killing),” Good said. “They talk of faith and forgiveness and love.”

And, he added, “They sing about the power of God over the power of evil.”

Suzanne Schaudel, a member of  Lancaster Church of the Brethren, said many of the EYN members will be staying with host families during their four-day visit to Lancaster County. They arrived Friday and will be here through Tuesday. Churches have raised $5,000 to cover costs for the visit.

From July 11-15, EYN members will take part in the Church of the Brethren’s annual conference where, Schaudel predicted, “they will be a major presence.”