Boko Haram
Last week, three states in Nigeria have declared a state of emergency after Reverend Faye Pama Musa was murdered by a Muslim militant group called the Boko Haram. Just this week, a strict curfew was implemented in affected states. Boko Haram has been known for causing 250 deaths this past month and over 10,000 since the start of the group in 2001. The Congregation and People of Tradition for Proselytism and Jihad, as Boko Haram is officially known, is a jihadist militant organization based in the northeast area of Nigeria and northern Cameroon. The group is known for attacking Christians and bombing churches in its attempt to establish Sharia Law in Nigeria.
The death of Rev. Musa, Secretary of the Christian Association of Nigeria, an influential Christian leader, is a sign of the Boko Haram’s change in targets. In the past, they have been known to target Christian churches, but are now showing a change in targeting individual Christian leaders. Please keep the Christian leaders in Nigeria, their families, and congregations in your prayers in the midst of the violence. Please especially be praying for The Tide’s partners in Nigeria as they are frequently traveling throughout the country speaking to listeners and crowds in a public environment. This weekend, May 25-26, 2013, the Tide’s partners in Nigeria will be doing evangelism in states neighboring those that are now in a declared state of emergency. Please keep them in your prayers as they speak of the love of Christ, a radical message, in this violent and volatile nation where thick tension and a history of retribution exist between Christians and Muslims.
Definition of Terms:
Jihadism (Jihadist Movement): a movement describing the renewed focus on armed aggression in Islamic Fundamentalists
Jihad: the religious duty of Muslims as described in the Quran to struggle against those who do not believe in the Islamic god, Allah
Sharia Law: the moral code and religious law of Islam as described in the Quran and by the example of the life of the prophet Muhammad as described in the Sunnah
Quran (also Qur’an or Koran): the central religious text of Islam which Muslims believe to be the verbatim word of God as revealed to the Prophet Muhammad by the angel Gabriel