The World Council of Churches (WCC) has called on Christians and Muslims in Nigeria to unite together in tackling the crises confronting the nation.
The Secretary-General of WCC, Rev (Dr) Olav F. Tveit, gave the charge, on Sunday, when he led the delegation of the world Christian body to worship at the Aso Villa Chapel, Abuja.
Olav, who said the team was in Nigeria, together with Christian and Muslim leaders in the country, to launch a Centre for Inter-faith, Peace and Harmony in Kaduna, said it is high time Muslims and Christians come together to confront the plethora of violence facing the nation.
“We need to listen to the same stories; we need to cry together; we need to really understand the violence, being in the shoes of others. This centre is meant to be a place to share the stories to listen, Christians and Muslims together of the real pain, and to also develop new idea of how to live together; to show that it is possible,” he said.
The clergyman, therefore, called on Nigerian Christians and Muslims to show love to one another, saying “Muslims and Christians all believe in one God, that there is one father above all of us that has created all of us and who is caring for all of us.”
“This, we should show in our faith whether we are Muslims or Christians in the way we deal with one another, that we should all share the love of God in our daily life.
“We are here to live together in peace and harmony. And therefore, let us show that our faith, whether we are Muslims or Christians, really motivate us for this life together,” Olav added.
Earlier in his sermon titled: “Keeping Our Faith in the God’s Factor,” the Chaplain of Aso Villa Chapel, Pastor Seyi Malomo, urged everyone to keep one’s faith in God irrespective of what ones may be facing.
“Let’s keep our faith in God irrespective of what we face. Our faith must be in God’s factor,” he charged.
The President of the Christian Council of Nigeria (CCN) and Primate, African Church, Rev Emmanuel Udofia, said the sermon by the chaplain, was timely because it came at the time Nigeria is facing a lot of challenges and that it takes people of faith to withstand and overcome challenges.
“When we believe in the ability of God, he will turn things around in Nigeria to the glory of his name,” he remarked.
