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138 years ago, on 20 November 1885, the Holy Ghost Fathers missionaries arrived in Southern Nigeria.
Their first port of arrival was Akassa in the Bayelsa state.
They were 4 missionaries in all: Fr. Joseph Lutz (32 years old), Fr. John Horne (27), Br. Hermas Huck (20), and Jean-Gotto (28). They were all French.
Do you know that their original destination was not Onitsha? Their original destination was Lokoja in the present Kogi State, from where they intended to evangelise the neighbouring areas.
As they were on their way to Lokoja, at Akassa port, they were “refused entry into the Niger by the officials of the English company.”
The company in question was the National African Company, formed in 1879 through the amalgamation of three British companies trading in the Lower Niger.
The fact was that the officials, who were English, refused them passage because they doubted their mission.
That the missionaries were French made matters worse. They could be spies for the French government masquerading as missionaries, the English officials thought.
Having been denied passage in Akassa, the missionaries made their way to the next port, Brass, in the present Bayelsa state.
At Brass, they met an English Protestant trader called Townsend who showed them hospitality.
Townsend took them to his house and apologised to them for the incident at Akassa.
He took them on his personal boat to Atani, Onitsha, and other areas to see around and to find an alternative place to settle down.
The missionaries chose to settle down in Onitsha and consequently dropped entirely the initial plan of establishing their mission in Lokoja.
On the 5th of December 1885, they were brought to the obi of Onitsha, Obi Anazonwu, who offered them a piece of land to settle. This is the exact place where the Holy Trinity cathedral stands today.
That the missionaries decided to settle down in Onitsha is the reason Onitsha became today one of the most populous Catholic cities in Africa.
It is the reason Ndigbo are predominantly Catholics.
If the missionaries had succeeded in reaching Lokoja as they had planned, Lord Luggard would not have later stopped them from evangelising Northern Nigeria. In fact, there could have been more Christians in the northern than in the southern part of Nigeria.
Do you now see why it is unwise to discriminate against anyone based on religious or belief differences? That other person who believes differently could be you.
There is enough space for all to thrive. Live and let live.
History everywhere is full of mistakes and tears. We can correct our mistakes and wipe our tears without causing more.
