The Nigerian Church is experiencing a beginning of the year marked by the rise in attacks against its clergy. Since January 1, seven priests and two religious sisters have been kidnapped in Nigeria. This sometimes takes a tragic turn. Father Sylvester Okechukwu was killed by his captors on Ash Wednesday, and Nigerian Catholics again mourned in early March the murder of a young seminarian, 21 years old.
The kidnappings, which have become endemic in the country for about 30 years, are experiencing a spectacular acceleration when it comes to the Catholic clergy. In 2024, eleven priests had been captured. This increase has provoked the anger of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN).
“Enough of this senseless brutality! Enough of this barbarism!” declared its president, Bishop Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji, in mid-March. The situation is causing concern even in the United States, where a congressional commission is pressing President Donald Trump to declare Nigeria a “country of particular concern” in matters of religious freedom, a decision that could lead to targeted sanctions.
Religious and economic motives
How can this resurgence be explained? In a country sinking into economic difficulties, “it’s a mix of religious motivations and a desire to make money,” estimated Father Andrew Dewan, correspondent of Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) and priest of the Diocese of Pankshin, neighboring that of the murdered priest Father Sylvester Okechukwu. “His captors didn’t even demand a ransom. Their goal is to put the Christian faith under pressure by striking its leaders. They’re waging a psychological war,” he stated.
In most cases of kidnapping, the motivations are economic. “The popular feeling is that the Catholic Church is rich,” reported Father Dewan. Catholics make up about one-third of Nigerian Christians. Within the population, Islam is slightly in the majority (55%).
Priests, easy targets
The Catholic Church refuses to pay for the release of its members. This does not prevent the recent increase in kidnappings and sometimes places its leaders in a delicate position. “As a bishop, you find yourself under pressure from priests, parents, laypeople who want you to pay the bandits,” said Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah of Sokoto (Northwest, at the border with Niger), founder of an NGO for the promotion of human rights. “But in the end, it’s like paying for your own crucifixion.” The faithful and families collect millions of naira, the local currency, to meet the captors’ demands.
This maintains a well-oiled system. “Because of their missionary work, priests working in remote areas are predictable,” explained Vitus Ukoji, head of the Nigeria Watch project, which records criminal acts in the country. “People know where they celebrate Mass, which route they take to go administer the sacraments, which makes them easy targets.”
For this doctor in philosophy and security, the rise in crime against priests at the beginning of this year is not linked to exclusive religious persecution but corresponds to a continuous increase in violence throughout the country.
Terrorism
In the West, the violence committed against Nigerian clergy is often seen as a consequence of inter-communal tensions and Islamism, notably with the presence of armed factions like Boko Haram or Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).
But, warned Bishop Kukah, “when we set Christians against Muslims, we only exacerbate animosities and vengeance.” All the more so because the violence against priests has now gone beyond the north of the country, where the terrorists operate.
The inability of the state to put an end to this violence fuels a sense of complicity from the authorities. At the end of February, the discovery of a camp where more than 200 Christians were locked up and tortured in an area that nevertheless includes several military bases sparked the ire of religious leaders.
But the Catholic Church wants to continue its mission, insisted Bishop Kukah:
“I encourage my priests and our people to stand firm (…). Even after being kidnapped, they have not abandoned their flock, and, in that sense, I am proud of them, of their resilience and solid faith.”
