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by Emmanuel A. S. Egbunu (Author), G. O. M. Tasie (Foreword by)
The rivers Niger and Benue come together at the heart of Nigeria on a map. Besides being a confluence of two great rivers, it also became the location of landmarks in Nigeria's history, notably the amalgamation of the northern and southern protectorates. As it was also a confluence of various cultural clusters, the Niger-Benue confluence communities went through three phases of Western encounters: commercial, missionary, and colonial. These have combined to shape the sociopolitical profile of northern Nigeria in various ways. In particular, it is the cradle of Christianity in northern Nigeria. Yet social historians have often assessed all three foreign influences indiscriminately and overlooked the unique and fundamental impact of the missionary encounter in providing the treasured values that midwifed social stability in such a pluralistic and sometimes volatile environment. This study undertakes a separation of the strands and sheds light on the laudable initiatives and legacies of the missionaries to ensure more clear-minded interpretations.
Author Biography
Emmanuel Egbunu is the Anglican bishop of Lokoja, which is the area of focus for this research. He is keenly interested in the history of Christian missions, especially in exploring the issues of contextualization of the Christian faith. He has done a previous study (unpublished) on the history of Calvary Ministries (CAPRO)--an Indigenous initiative in international missions. He has also contributed chapters to books on these areas of interest. He is the author of Birth Pangs, a collection of poems, and Signposts on Heaven's Highway: Spiritual Formation for the Christian Disciple (available on Amazon).
