Less than two months after being designated a Country of Particular Concern by the U.S. State Department over its religious record, Nigeria has again became the focus of another U.S. agency — the Commission on International Religious Freedom. A virtual…
Three years later, Leah Sharibu is still held captive, reportedly for refusing to renounce her faith
In the last three years since a group of Boko Haram terrorists stormed and kidnapped 109 students from Government Girls’ Science and Technical College in Dapchi, Yobe State, in northeast Nigeria, much has changed except one thing: Only one of…
Religious leaders urge restraint in attacks on Uganda’s presidential candidates
While for many people the New Year celebration ends after the first day of the new year, in Uganda, supporters of presidential aspirants hope to extend their celebration beyond the first of January. This is because, on Jan. 14, eligible…
In Nigeria, the politics of religion and the search for peace are never-ending
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, has in recent weeks attracted global attention for a series of mind-boggling, alarming crimes: At least 76 farmers were beheaded by the terrorist group Boko Haram in a farm in Zabarmari, Borno State, in late…
Blasphemy laws put Nigeria in the spotlight again — with a musician and a 13-year-old sentenced
Editor’s note: Last week, the United States House of Representatives passed a bipartisan resolution condemning global apostasy, heresy and blasphemy laws. The story that follows illustrates how this concern applies to Nigeria, which has a secular government. It is probably…
Often, faith and work collide for African immigrants in the U.S.
In November 2016, when he set out on a trip to the United States from his country of Nigeria, Ferdinand Okeke took with him a Bible. It represented more than an item for him; it was an article of faith….
Boko Haram is still plaguing Nigeria claiming to do God’s work
It’s a circus many are already long familiar with. Most times when the Nigerian Army comes out with a strong statement on Boko Haram, the terrorist group in northern Nigeria, or its leader, Abubakar Shekau, something usually happens to repudiate…
A president’s legacy: Trump in the eyes of Africans
On the eve of the Nov. 3 presidential election, a Nigerian of Yoruba extraction in Houston named Ayodele was asked who he would vote for. “I’m for Biden,” Ayodele replied, but he immediately went on to say, in a tone…