The Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Bishop Mathew Hassan Kukah, yesterday commissioned the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) Guest House in Sokoto State.
Kukah who advised Christians in the state to note that despite owning the place, it is to serve all irrespective of religion, adding; “All that matters is that there should be an acceptable guideline, protocols and operational modules that conform with sanity in place.”
This was corroborated by Sokoto State CAN chairman, Very Rev Father Nuhu Iliya, who said the guest house does not belong to any individual, but to all Christians.
Admitting that the body of Christ in Nigeria was facing very trying times, Bishop Kukah advised Christians to remain steadfast in their faith irrespective of whatever persecution, adding, “No amount of persecution will push Christianity backward, rather forward.”
While saying religion seemed to have gradually become the citizenship rather than the nationality in Nigeria, Bishop Kukah said the misuse of religion had made it a subject of interest in the polity.
To Nigerian Christians, Bishop Kukah said; “It is inefficiency that makes things matter, inefficiency is another word for corruption. Nigeria is one funny country that you can do whatever you like and nothing happens. You hear people stealing billions and it ends like that.”
Consoling Christians in Nigeria over chains of attacks on their worship places, Bishop Kukah urged them to read what Christians went through in the Roman Empire, noting, “God will use our powerlessness to institutionalise his power.”