Why Christians, Muslims persecute us – General Overseer, Babalawo church The spiritual head of traditional worshippers, that is, herbalists church (Ijo Orunmila), Oloye Adeboye Oyesanya has accused Christians and Muslims as well as the Nigerian government of persecuting his members. The 78-year-old general overseer contended that there’s nothing evil about his church that will warrant the level of persecution it hass been facing since its inception. In this interview with TUNDE THOMAS, he spoke further about the similarities between his congregation and a regular church even as he traced the origin of his fellowship to the Catholic church from where he said the founders of Ijo Orunmila broke away. Excerpts: How old are you sir, and when did you become a member of Ijo Orunmila? I’m 78 years. I became a member in 1958. I rose through the ranks before becoming the overall head of the congregation. How did you become a member, were you invited or how? I was sleeping one night, and I saw an elderly man in my dream, he was preaching, he was dressed like a cleric, but at the same time he was also putting on some objects of Ifa worship. The old man implored me that I should stop going to church and join a congregation that worships in the way he was praying and meditating. He insisted more than seven times that this is the only acceptable way to worship God. I later confided in one of my friends about the dream. As we were discussing, I suddenly remembered that there was a congregation called Ijo Orunmila where traditionalists worship in Christian ways. I then asked my friend to follow me to the place one Sunday to join members of the congregation in worship. On getting there after the service, they asked new members to stand up for recognition. I stood up, my friend also stood up, and they wrote down our names. That day, when I slept, I saw the old man in my dream again and he told me that I have gone to the right place to worship. He later urged me to tell other people about the place, saying that Ijo Orunmila’s way of worship is the one sanctioned by Orunmila, the supreme being. Since then I have been worshipping with Ijo Orunmila, but my friend later stopped going there with me. I was a tailor when I joined the congregation but being a member didn’t stop me from continuing my work. It was later when I became an official in the congregation and started rising up the ladder that I abandoned secular work to take up the job of a priest in the congregation. Coming to worship with you, one may think he is in a church because everything taking place has close semblance with church service. You have choristers with choirmaster, and not only that, sermon is preached during worship, and offerings are also collected with thanksgiving dance, but you are traditionalists, with many of your top leaders being babalawos, why is this so? Initially when the congregation started, we wholeheartedly embraced Christianity with Ifa during worship. The founding fathers, the late Pa Adeyemi Adesilu and Adebayo Osiga both hailed from Ijebu-Ode in Ogun State. They incorporated elements of Christianity into the congregation when they started, and for a long time, this remained so, and this explained the reason we worship on Sundays for a long time but later when majority of the worshippers insisted that we should stop incorporating elements of Christianity into our worship, that we should be 100 per cent traditionalists, this is one of the reasons we changed our day of worship to Saturday. It is generally believed among traditional worshippers that Saturday is the day that God rested after creation and that Saturdays should be set aside as our worship days just like you have members of the 7th Day Adventist Church, and members of the Sabbatarian Ministry worshipping on Saturdays. The two founding fathers of Ijo Orunmila were staunch members of the Catholic Church before they left the church to establish Ijo Orunmila in 1939. Both of them were well versed in the Bible. How was it at the beginning with Ijo Orunmila? At the beginning, the congregation had a large following, and new members were coming in a large number, but later the congregation faced persecution from both Muslims and Christians. As a result, some members who could not withstand the persecution left. This was at the initial stage or beginning of the congregation, but since that initial crisis, Ijo Orunmila has been growing in leaps and bounds. We have several branches in Nigeria and abroad. Ifa is a key element of our worship, and this is why you see us during sermon time giving some Ifa verses to members just like the memory verses in the Bible to act as their spiritual guide. Although we started in 1939, Ijo Orunmila was formally registered in 1953. Are you now saying that you have jettisoned anything that has to do with the Bible during your services? Yes. We are now 100 per cent traditionalists. We call upon the name of Orunmila, the supreme being, and we use Ifa to divinate problems confronting members and new worshippers. Don’t be deceived when you are here, and you see a choirmaster leading the choristers or when we hold our thanksgiving service and you see people dancing and rejoicing as they are about to give offerings. When you are far away from us, you think Ijo Orunmila is into evil practice. But I will just admonish any doubting Thomas to come and worship with us, just like the scripture says taste it, and you will see that the Lord is good. Since you have all these similarities with the church, won’t you confuse a first time visitor or somebody worshipping with you for the first time? There is no confusion at all. Ijo Orunmila is for perfection, and that is why we still have a blend of Christian way of worship with the traditional mode of worship. While we regard Christians as our brothers and fellow brethren but without any apology, I make bold to say we are traditionalists – Ifa and Orunmila are key elements in our worship unlike Christianity where you have Jesus Christ and the Bible as the two major key components. You said Ijo Orunmila has been expanding, to what extent is that expansion? We have branches all over Nigeria, in Benin, Edo State, Osun, Oyo, Ogun and Kwara states. In Republic of Benin alone, we have 18 branches of Ijo Orunmila. We also have a strong presence in the United States, United Kingdom, and not only that, wherever we have special events or programmes, you see a lot of our members coming all the way from these foreign countries to join us. Even African-Americans in diaspora are always coming here not only to worship, but also for counselling and also to carry out spiritual works. What are the taboos or dos and don’ts of Ijo Orunmila? There is nothing unusual about us. We run an open-door policy. Whether what we are doing is open for all to see, we worship during day time, and when it is time to welcome those that are worshipping with us for the first time, or to counsel them, we do it openly. However, members of our choir most of the time adorn white attire during worship session because white signifies purity, and holiness, and when we are worshipping Orunmila through songs or by reading Ifa verses, we believe that by wearing white apparel that Orunmila will not only be happy with us, but also give accelerated hearing to our supplications. What kind of persecution did you say Ijo Orunmila suffered? That is normal in any religion especially when you are not a Christian or a Muslim. But for us, no matter the criticism, we will continue to forge ahead: we have taken the gospel of Ijo Orunmila to many parts of the globe, and we are grateful that our coast is being expanded on a daily basis. When people join us or worship with us, they have testimonies to share with others. But some people still say or believe that what we call traditional worship is heathenism or paganism? That is due to the doctrine preached by the colonial masters who wanted to foist their own way of worship on our people. It is unfortunate that many of us have allowed themselves to be brainwashed. We should be proudly African. We traditionalists worship in the ways of our forefathers, but it is unfortunate that some people discriminate against us, including government. Why should public holidays be given to Christians and Muslims to celebrate Christian and Islamic festivals including the birthdays of Prophet Muhammed, and Jesus Christ? We traditionalists want to be treated in a fair manner, and this is why we are demanding that August 20 of every year should be declared a public holiday for traditionalists for us to mark Isese Day, a day that will be devoted to offer sacrifices and appeasement to deities in various communities spread across the country. We are grateful to Governor Rauf Aregbesola of Osun State who so far has been the only governor to declare August 20 as a public holiday for traditionalists.
Posted on: Sat, 09 Aug 2014 04:43:30 +0000
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