Our work in this area of Nigeria had apparently reached a leveling off period in evangelism. For some time we had been impressed that we should begin some meetings in the nearby town of Ahoada. This is a small town with an area population of about 450,000 within a thirty-mile radius. Various government departments are there and others who had not heard of our work. We felt that to introduce the subject of religion at the outset in such a small town might defeat our purpose, especially since all the people knew us at the hospital for our medical work rather than our religious activities. Dr. and Mrs. Hartman, my wife and I, and E. E. Onumsegbu decided to begin a health evangelistic series, and entitled it "The Abundant Life." We sent out invitations to the various officials and leaders of the community, inviting them to our open-air services to be held nightly the first week. These were limited to health emphasis only. But the meetings for the succeeding weeks were of spiritual emphasis.
Vegetarian Diet New to Africans
Because of the many dietary problems here, we introduced the subject with food. Mrs. Hartman is a dietitian, and she adequately demonstrated balancing the diet using local foods and methods. As the people came to the service she passed out indicators on which each tenth one had a mark. This mark entitled the holder to taste the soup prepared in the meeting. The routine diet of the area consists of a starch and a soup. A vegetarian diet has seldom been heard of in Africa, therefore her discussions were entirely new, even to our members. We found that this stimulated interest.
The attendance was excellent and seemed to hold up throughout the series. Among those attending were the inspector of police, who did not miss a night during the ten weeks; the division officer (similar to our mayor); the headmaster of the government school; the inspector of schools; the managers of the development corporations of East Nigeria; and a priest from the Catholic seminary.
My wife, a registered nurse, discussed infant care and feeding in view of the widespread misunderstanding in this area. Two of our hospital nurses are petite women who required Caesarian operations to deliver their babies. It was an opportunity to show how healthy and robust were these babies as we used them in demonstrations.
Transition From Health to Religion
Dr. Hartman discussed the germ theory, malaria, and worms. We used the screen, with sprinklings of plays and pantomime to make the theme graphic. Hospital employees assisted in the demonstrations.
After the first week we were a little uneasy as we wondered how the people would receive the transition from discussions of health to that of religion, especially as the speaker was a doctor! Fortunately, we were fairly familiar to most of our listeners, having treated them for their ills at one time or another. And before the first week had ended, questions were being asked on religious subjects.
We had an abundance of visual aids for the health discussions, therefore we felt we must have some aid for our religious presentations; so we made some slides from filmstrips and they seemed to fill the need. God was indeed directing our efforts.
Much in general religious history, such as the background of Protestantism and the growth and development of the Christian church, are little known in mission lands• In certain areas the work of the Catholic Church in its various parareligious activities is staggering in amount. Large-scale public evangelism is relatively new. Therefore we were in for a surprise.
Prayer and Fasting Necessary
Prior to our Sabbath discussion many questions on the true Sabbath arose because all knew we were Seventh-day Adventists. The most excitement, however, centered on our discussions of the origin of Sunday worship. In the town the Seventh-day Adventist mission faces the Catholic mission and we are separated by only a narrow paved road. Our meetings were held on the lawn of the mission. "Father Did Not! Son Would Not! Apostles Could Not! Who Did It?" was announced as the subject. The waiting audience seemed eager to hear the answer. As the slides began to unfold and the discovery so simply stated appeared on the screen as a direct quotation, some seemed overwhelmed, and spoke aloud, "It's a lie!" About twenty rose and left the meeting in haste. They crossed the road and queried the reverend father on what they had heard. He told them it was true, but that the church had reasons for the change. The people seemed hostile as they left that night, but we continued our fasting and prayer for them. At the next meeting, all were in their places again awaiting another discovery. The attendance has been from 800 to 1,000!
Our meetings in the open air are now ended, and we are holding a weekly Bible study class in the school building. About seventy are regularly attending these classes and we hope to reap a good harvest.
Interest in the hospital has increased, and many have asked why the SDA mission did not come sooner.
Dr. S. A. Nagel, union medical secretary for West Africa, showed several films during our meetings and made strong appeals concerning the effects of smoking. His talks helped to hold an interest in our meetings.
Several people said they were convinced of the truth, and would like to join the church, but there was no Seventh-day Adventist church in their town. They were afraid that if they preached or expressed their belief in the truths we had taught them, they would be stoned by their townspeople. They have no background of religious freeedom and history.
Many do not see clearly the reasons for the existing Protestant denominations. Therefore it would seem that the progress of the ecumenical movement is hastened here where Christianity is one of several religious beliefs, though nominally it is leading. However, in our transition from health evangelism to religion we attacked the issues on common ground using such subjects as, "What Color Is the Black Man's God?" These seemed to attract interest.
Public evangelism still remains a challenge in West Africa, but it is enhanced by associating with the right arm of the gospel message.
