Baba Aladura Olorunfemi Ejide is the Founder/General Overseer of Ogo Sioni (Aladura) Ministry Int’l and a staunch defender/promoter of the Aladura church. Popular for his vocal advocacy for spiritual reform in the C&S Christian denomination, he shares with WorldStage in this interview some of the changes he craves for the sect to be relevant in today’s Christian circle.
You were once reported to have called for some reforms in the Aladura church, what are the reforms?
The first has to do with the word of God. Every Aladura church today must be world-based. They must study, know, understand and practice the word of God, which is the Bible. Presently, most Aladura churches still believe more in spiritual practice than the word of God. Many Aladura clerics cannot even preach the word of God for few minutes but they can lead their congregation in clapping and singing from Genesis to Revelation. But when it comes to the word of God most Aladura churches are failure. When God called me into ministry I requested for him wisdom, knowledge, and understanding that will enable me take the Aladura church from her primitive religious practices to the demands of modern Christianity. God answered me and he drew people of like minds to me to assist me achieve the kind of reforms and changes I want in the Aladura. With this we have been able to establish Ogo Sioni on the word of God. Someone like us is now coming up to encourage other Aladura churches to embrace the scriptures by teaching and practicing the word of God more importantly than the primitive religious practices common in Aladura churches. Sometimes people find it difficult to believe that we at Ogo Sioni are Aladura. Indeed, Ogo Sioni is still an Aladura church, but an Aladura church with a difference. In this modern age you still see some Aladura dressing like masquerades with garments of different colours. That’s one reason why I’m imploring our people to change, and let the whole world know that Aladura churches can also study and preach the word of God.
How do you mean that lack of the word of God is affecting the Aladura church?
Sometimes we feel that our Pentecostal brethren particularly, are cheating us, and superior to us. But in actual facts, we are not being cheated by anyone. It is our ignorance that is drawing us backward because we lack the word of God; an area the Pentecostal and orthodox churches are doing very well far ahead and above us.
How do you intend to achieve these reforms in the Aladura church, particularly starting with your church?
We have already started the reforms in Ogo Sioni. We are setting the pace as pathfinders to the reforms in the Aladura church such that today many people outside the Aladura church are being attracted to our programmes. In fact we are experiencing a massive membership drives particularly from prominent Pentecostal churches like the Redeemed Christian Church of God, the Mountain of Fire and Miracles etcetera, to Ogo Sioni Aladura Ministry Int’l. Though we still retain the positive practices of Aladura we ensure that more than anything else our members are grounded in the word of God. I tell our members, yes you will get solution to your problems but first you have to know God through His word, the scripture. By ensuring that the people are first grounded in the word of God it helps me to easily find solution to their problems and lead them to the way of God.
Since human beings naturally abhor changes don’t you expect some resistance to the kind of reforms you desire in the Aladura?
Even when Jesus Christ came to reform the entire world some people resisted his reforms. So, naturally we expect some challenges and criticism of our reforms. The truth however is that the Aladura cannot afford to be fooling themselves any longer. It is our foolishness that allows non-Aladura churches to be talking rubbish about us. When other churches are busy doing revival and serious evangelism, we are busy clapping hands. Now, somebody is simply saying let us stop that nonsense and be forward looking.
Some people consider the Aladura as an indigenous church, how do you feel about it?
There is nothing wrong with the Aladura as an indigenous church. It’s started by the Yoruba. Christianity goes with culture. I’m an African, and I should know how to worship God in an African way.
Are you inferring that since Christianity goes with culture there is nothing wrong with ritualism and identification with herbal orientation, an African culture, as a way of practicing Christianity?
No, no! Let me clarify this. When I say Christianity goes with culture, it does not infer that we should indulge in ritualism or herbal practices as African Christians. What I simply mean is that our Christianity practice as Africans should have an African outlook in the way and manner we dress and relate with people, not necessarily to be practicing ritualism or herbals. Even at that I don’t think anything is wrong as Africans to take Agbo (herbs) when we are sick to cure our illness, even with our confession as Christians. Except we want to deceive ourselves many people across different churches today have subscribed to taking Agbo to cure their illnesses. That is part of our beliefs in Aladura, and nothing is wrong with that.
How will you assess the efforts of Ayo Ni O (Aladura) Movement in bringing some reforms into the Aladura church?
The kind of reforms of the Ayo Ni O Movement brought has created a sort of class system that makes them feel superior to other Aladura churches. Their kind of reform is not what we desire in the Aladura. We at Ogo Sioni (Aladura) Ministry Int’l have embarked on some other reforms that will make everyone equal. Ayo Ni O is made up of basically the elite who are enlightened and educated, which is all right. But it is wrong for them to now look down on other Adura churches as inferior to them. At Ogo Sioni we are building a classless system where everyone is equal irrespective of their level of education, enlightenment or wealth. Our kind of reforms cuts across board without segregation or superiority complex.
What can you say about the Aladura unification movement?
Unification is the effort of all the elite in all the Aladura churches that brings them under one umbrella as a single entity. Despite the efforts, some sects of the Aladura are still seeing themselves as superior to others. And this has continued to impede the objectives of the unification, which is affecting the Aladura churches psychologically, in that other denominations particularly the Pentecostals are now taking our sons and daughters away from the Aladura into their folds. There is also a lot of politicking in the Aladura unification movement. For instance, if you don’t belong to some certain groups within the Aladura you are nobody.
Aladura church is presently planning to establish own university, do you see the proposed university a prospect for bringing reforms into Aladura church?
Ayo Ni O Movement is championing the proposed Moses Orimolade University, which is okay. The university can assist by designing parts of her curricula towards reforms in the Aladura church. Ogo Sioni in the very near future will also establish her own university. My motivation is determination, wisdom, knowledge and readiness to learn from other people. Determination leads to success. On the way you may encounter lots of challenges. That does not mean you won’t get there. A failure is a man who does not admit trials on the way to success. When we started our telecast some years back, some people said that would not attract people to Ogo Sioni because it is an Aladura church. But today, the church through her telecast programmes has attracted more membership from different denomination backgrounds into our fold. The church was in the region of 200 members before we started the telecast. Today, the church has over 800 members, which has led us to restructure the church building and doubled its former size to contain the increasing members of the church.
You have some intellectuals around you, of what importance are they to the growth of the ministry?
If it is the will of God that I have some intellectuals to assist me in the ministry he will make available all necessary provisions that will enable the ministry to succeed. He will draw unto you the people that will work with you. He will so much disturb them until they surrender themselves to work with you. In addition, we have around us ministers, senators, commissioners and the rich. They see the zeal, the audacity and the authority of God in us. That is why we are different from many Aladura churches.
