Seminarian in Nigeria Narrowly Escapes Shooting by Islamist Fulani Attackers

He says that it is a miracle that he, and the other two occupants of the car survived the ordeal, and adds, “I was very scared. The killings here are too much. I have lost many relations to the Fulani herdsmen but that was the closest I came so close to death at the hands of their hands. I kept praying that God would protect us.”

The Seminarian who just completed his eight-month pastoral experience at Sacred Heart Udei Parish finds inspiration to continue with the journey to become a Priest from his daily encounters with people who he says have lost everything to the Islamist Fulanis.

“As much as the killings go on, I believe that God has His own way of saving His people and that Christianity will always rise beyond everything that threatens it. I also believe that in God's appointed time, all these killers will experience conversion and they will stop all this cruelty. This is what keeps me going,” he says.

The Seminarian at St Thomas Aquinas Major Seminary in Makurdi recounts his constant message to the people of God he visited in the villages served by Sacred Heart Udei Parish. “My message, as I looked at them beaten and without hope, was simple. Do not lose hope, I told them. Do not stop praying. I saw that all of them were tired of running.”

He said that most of those living in the villages that are under siege had already abandoned their villages and are living in a state of despair. 

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“They don't go to church anymore. They see no reason to. But I kept reminding them that the situation they are in now will pass,” Seminarian David told ACI Africa on August 23.

Agnes Aineah is a Kenyan journalist with a background in digital and newspaper reporting. She holds a Master of Arts in Digital Journalism from the Aga Khan University, Graduate School of Media and Communications and a Bachelor's Degree in Linguistics, Media and Communications from Kenya's Moi University. Agnes currently serves as a journalist for ACI Africa.