Why very Intelligent & Logical Black People Find it Difficult to Embrace Christianity

By Anayo M. Nwosu

Ezeanị Nnewi was very patient as the missionary priest, his new friend, was telling him about his God and his son called Jesus Christ.

Having seen how the whiteman's God intimidated Nnewi deities into silence against the expectation of the entire people and chief priests of Nnewi that their gods would fight off the encroaching foreign God, Ezeanị,the chief priest of Anị, had asked his second son to join the religion of the whiteman to learn their trade and the source of their powers.


Upon realising that Ezeanị was the father of Mụogilim, a new convert, Rev Fr Thomas developed fondness for him. He believed that the hen could be caught by playing with her chicks.

So, Fr. Thomas would drop by Ezeanị's house to check on his friend, Muogịlịm and to exchange pleasantries with the Ezeanị who saw the whiteman's visits as an honour.

In one occasion, Fr. Thomas had requested if Ezeanị would mind his asking him questions on Nnewi traditional religion and the Anị deity as he desired to understand the ways of life of his host and their religion, a request the Ezeanị granted.

Even though Ezeanị, who was the chief priest of the Earth or Anị deity, could decode that the catholic priest was planning to proselytize him or try to make him abandon the religion of his ancestors to Christianity, he did not bother as the whiteman didn't come with rope to drag him into the new religion.

On one of those days, Ezeanị asked Fr. Thomas to tell him about his God. That was the moment Fr. Thomas was waiting for. It was an opportunity to envangelize the key chief priest in Nnewi.


Fr. Thomas narrated how God created man and the fall of man in the Garden of Eden. He revealed to a patiently listening Ezeanị how it took thousands of years for God to send his only begotten son to the world to save mankind through a death on the cross. He talked about heaven and hell as well as the qualifications to make either of them. He ended by announcing that there would be a day when the world would come to an end.

Ezeanị thanked the Irish priest for a delivery that started before sunset and ended when the chicken had all gone to roost. He however asked if his visitor could come back next day, about the same time, to take his questions. After all, the whiteman too sought for clarifications when he, Ezeanị was telling him about Anị deity and about Nnewi traditional religion.

Fr. Thomas and his interpreter, who also served as his catechist, were punctual next day.

Ezeanị was already seated in his ozoobi or his visitors' reception hut located at the centre of his compound but facing the entrance path into his compound.

"Fada Thomas", Ezeanị started after exchange of pleasantries, "I have some questions for you".

Ezeanị continued, "You said that your God had a son, what is the name of your God's wife who gave birth to the son in heaven before the son was sent to the world?

"What made Lucifer raise an army to fight God? Do you think that other archangels wouldn't emulate Lucifer and his loyalists. Has God disabled the capabilities or abilities of any archangel to challenge him?

"Why did your God not kill Satan and his entire army during the heavenly war to safeguard his creatures namely Adam and Eve to avoid being tempted by Satan?

"If you claim that your God was very merciful and his mercies know no bounds, why didn't he forgive Adam and Eve since it was a common fruit they ate?

"Why would it take nnụkwụrụ nnụ or thousands of years to send a saviour to atone for the sins of Adam and his descendants?" and Ezeanị wasn't still done.

“If you teach that I should forgive my enemies whether they ask forgiveness or not, why has your God not forgiven Lucifer and his coup members? Why did Jesus forgive or convert him when they went together as friends into the wilderness? Why did Jesus agree to be tempted? What was the role of Satan in heaven after the fight? Was he appointed the tempter of God’s creatures or God’s son?

"Does your God report to a higher God for him to subject his only son to be killed to atone for human sins? Why was it necessary? Which law was God trying to obey or fulfill that required him to sacrifice his son to achieve his atonement objectives?


"You said that even the son of God that was killed was a God too, then who was he pleasing by allowing himself to be killed by ordinary human beings?

"Does an innocent person suffer the same punishment as the convicted murderers? From your narration, a Jewish tribe killed their brother, naturally, their own alụ or ọchụ (i.e murderous act or abomination) should be on their heads and heads of their descendants. You even said that the Jews echoed it when Pilate put the question to them. Therefore, why would you attempt to rope in Nnewi people in the repercussions for the abominable murder of the  son of your God?

"Fada Thomas, do you have apple trees or fruits in your place?" Ezeanị asked an already dazed Fr. Thomas who answered in affirmative.

And Ezeanị continued, "Since you have lived in our town for about two years now, have you seen any apple tree?", and Fr. Thomas said, "No". And Ezeanị continued, " that proves that neither Adam and Eve nor their children lived in Nnewi. We don't have apple trees here. We only have udara and not apple. You can also see that our complexions,hair, languages and diet are different; therefore, we are not obviously from the same descendants as you and Adam, his wife and the Jews.

"I feel bad that your christian religion which makes our people take responsibility for sins of our ancestors didn't commit could make our people erroneously accept the guilt of the offences of Jewish tribe, which would be very unfair.

"Our own forebearers had committed enough atrocities too which I propitiate (i.e offer sacrifice) on a daily basis to assuage the anger of our own deity and to save our land from calamities and infirmities," Ezeanị ended to the relief of Fr. Thomas.

Even though there was enough time to respond to some of the questions Ezeanị had raised, Fr. Thomas told Ezeanị that the discussion would continue some other time with no date in particular.

Reverend Father Thomas had no doubt that Lucifer himself had possessed Ezeanị Nnewi, the chief priest of mother earth deity otherwise, "how could he speak with so much eloquence and articulation?" he wondered.

"Was he trying to test the faith of God or his calling?" Fr Thomas thought.

How could he tell Ezeanị that most of his questions were regarded as mysteries of creation or black holes in Christianity?

The reverend father decided to concentrate on looking for the ninety-nine lost sheep instead of wasting his missionary time on one lost Ezeanị Nnewi of a sheep.

The frustrations of Fr. Thomas and other Missionaries would have been reduced if they had used swords or terror in spreading their message.

An Ezeanị would be executed publicly, have his shrine despoiled and everybody in his household would willingly or unwillingly embrace the new religion of terror Missionaries.