Anglicanism and Architecture in Oyo Town (Published)
Oyo Empire was a powerful Yoruba polity in what is today southwestern Nigeria. Internal conflicts led to collapse of the kingdom in the 1830s. The nineteenth century was marked as a period of unrest in the region. Christian missionaries played an important role in the Colonial history of Nigeria and particularly in the signing of the treaty to end wars in the Yoruba States. However, spread of Christianity was sustained through education that led to widespread missionary Schools and Churches. Although Anglicanism had reached Oyo by 1853 that saw to the construction of church and school, the CMS training institute started in Abeokuta same year. The training institute was later relocated to Lagos between 1868-1896. A notable event was when the CMS institution was transplanted from Lagos to Oyo in 1889. By 1942, the proprietorship of the college was transferred to the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion). During this period, missionary structures were put up on the college site known as ‘Oke-Ebo’. This paper utilizing a mixed method approach will study the Anglican culture and how it is reflected in their architecture. The study focuses on the significance of the Anglican culture and heritage from structures in Oke-Ebo during the 19th century and how it influenced the furtherance of Christianity in Oyo through the construction of Church structures that have stood the test of time. Finally, the paper highlights the need for the preservation of these monumental structures as part of Oyo’s architectural heritage.
Keywords: Anglicanism, Architecture, C.M.S, Oyo Empire
THE PLACE OF THE ANGLICAN CHURCH IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF PENTECOSTALISM IN IGBOLAND (Review Completed - Accepted)
The Anglican mission came into Igboland in the last half of the nineteenth century being the first Christian mission to come into Igboland, precisely in 1857, with Onitsha as the first spot of missionary propagation. From Onitsha the mission spread to other parts of Igboland. The process of the spread was no doubt, marked with the demonstration of the power of the Holy Spirit; hence the early CMS missionaries saw the task of evangelizing Igboland as something that could not have been possible without the victory of the Holy Spirit over the demonic forces that occupied Igboland by then. The objective of this paper is to historically investigate the claim that the presence of the Anglican Church in Igboland marked the origin of Pentecostalism among the Igbo. The method employed in this investigation was both analytical and descriptive. It was discovered that the Anglican mission introduced Pentecostalism into Igboland through their charismatic activities long before the churches that claim exclusive Pentecostalism came, about a century later. The only difference is that the original Anglican Pentecostalism was imbued in their Evangelical tradition as opposed to the modern Pentecostalism which is characterized by seemingly excessive emotional and ecstatic tendencies without much biblical anchorage
Keywords: Anglicanism, Evangelicalism, Missionaries, Pentecostalism, Traditions
