Members of the Cherubim and Seraphim Unification Church of Nigeria, recently converged at the prestigious Golden Tulip, Hotel Festac Town, Lagos, to celebrate the Annual General Conference of the church hosted by the Faith Mission C &S Church, Satellite Town, Lagos. The mission was to chart a new course for the church was captured here by Jide Okeowo.
The 2019 Annual General Conference of the Cherubim & Seraphim Unification Church of Nigeria was themed ‘Pull down the Barrier.’
The stage was perfectly set for a glorious event. The event promised so much and it did not disappoint as it will go down the annals of the history of AGCs in the church as one of the best well put together.
From an edifying venue to a well-planned sitting arrangement, ample parking space to a stand-by ambulance to cater to any medical emergency that may arise, every detail was well thought out and prepared for.
The event was also well attended as eminent personalities from various segments of the country turned out in their drove to attend the event. Notable amongst the attendees are Vice President Yemi Osinbajo who was represented by Chaplain of Aso Rock Chapel, Pastor Seyi Malomo, Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State, who was also ably represented by his Special Adviser of Religious Matters, Rev. Dr. Verralls Kolawole, His Most Eminence Baba Alakoso Solomon Adegboyega Alao – Supreme Head C&S Unification Church of Nigeria, Rev. Mother Esther Abimbola Ajayi – Founder of Love of Christ Salvation C&S Church, London, Supt. Apostle Emmanuel Owomoyela – Chairman National Executive Council, Special Apostle Tunde Ogunkunle; Secretary General of C&S, Lagos state Chapter Chairman, Dr. J.O Adagba amongst so many others.
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Traditional rulers were also not left out as the Ayangburen of Ikorodu – Oba Kabiru Shotobi and his wife were part of the event, Alagbara of Agbara town- Oba Lukman Jayeola Agunbiade also marked their attendance. Elder Joseph Otubu, Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN National Vice Chairman also attended the event.
In her welcome address, Her Eminence, Dr. Mariam Adeleye Akinjogunla, Founder and President of the Faith Mission C&S Church, being the host church, expressed gratitude to God for the event which in her word is the rallying point of all Seraphs in the country.
“With utmost gratitude to God and on behalf of the Elders-in-Council and all our parishes, I want to whole-heartedly welcome you all to the 2019 Annual General Conference which has become a foremost rallying point for all Seraphs,” she said.
Reminiscing on how far and tumultuous the journey had been, she said she is glad that the days of the humble beginning has since elapsed.
“I recall with nostalgia when in January 2003 at the City Hall, Lagos we applied to for membership of this great assemblage of Christian faithful, it was like who are these people, sixteen years after, we have the privilege of hosting the AGC and we are grateful to the hierarchy of the church for believing in us’ she enthused.
On her part, Dr. Oluwaseye Yomi-Sholoye, Deputy Primate and General Superintendent of the Faith Mission C & S church in theme paper and lecture titled ‘Pull down the Barrier, expressed her gratitude for the opportunity to host the Annual General Conference, AGC and used the occasion to call on all to make the unity of the church sacrosanct.
According to her, “As you all know, there are many who think that we are such a divided church that unity is not possible, but our youth organisations who are currently being economically empowered have all come up and said that yes, unity is possible.
“So, I congratulate you all. There is unity to reform, unity for progress and unity for pulling down all barriers” she said.
Dr. Yomi-Sholoye also called on every member of the church to stand up and take the church as a heritage.
Continuing, “This is a clarion call for us that we take the Cherubim and Seraphim church as our heritage, we should take it as having nowhere else to go and if that is the case, we all have to strive hard to rebuild rebrand and restore the glory of our great church,” she added.
During the course of the event, several issues that affect the growth of the church was discussed and one of such burning issues was the take-off of the Moses Orimolade University, Omu Aran, Kwara State. Speaking on the project, Prof. Adebayo Sanni, who is the Chairman of Planning and Implementation Committee of the university project, the take-off of the project remains one of the most pressing issue paramount to him, an according to him, the project has dragged on for so long due to lack of funds.
The hall erupted in jubilation when Rev. Mother Esther Abimbola Ajayi, the Founder of Love of Christ Salvation C&S Church, London, announced that the project would be completed in 2019 with her support and other well-meaning members of the church.
Speaking on his joy over the turn of event, Prof. Sanni told this reporter that his joy knew no bounds at the news he just received.
In the words of Prof. Sanni, “I am speechless at the moment. I still cannot believe my ears, this project has become a source of concern to me and so many of those we started out with has left me behind and it seems as if I am the only one left.
“I am so happy that the dreams that I have for this project are finally coming to fulfillment, the university will take off in 2019 by God’s grace”, he enthused.
In her speech, Rev. Mother Esther Abimbola Ajayi said the conference afforded every member of the church to take stock, appraise themselves and be reawakened to their roles and contributions towards fostering unity and upholding the objectives of the great church of God.
According to her, “This event is another occasion for us to take a chance at stocktaking, internal appraisal, and the reawakening of our roles and contributions to fostering unity and upholding the objectives of this great church of God.
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“Our image is a very important weapon of evangelism, many people can be misled or persuaded based on our image,” she said.
Mother Ajayi also enjoined everyone to support and those in the drive to take the church to the next level.
The event was also an avenue for the presentation of prizes and awards to winners of the Solomon Alao Bible Quiz competition.
The third runner-up was Ogo Oluwa C &S Church, Iwaya, the award was presented by Dr. Oluwaseye Yomi-Sholoye.
They were closely followed in third place by The Eternal Sacred Order of the C & S Church, Egbe, and the trophy was presented by Rev Mother Esther Ajayiwho also gave every member of the team a cash prize of N25, 000 each. Second place went to King of kings C &S Church while the competition winner was Gospel C&S Church, Orile-Iganmu to the excitement of everyone present.
Other deserving members of the church were also recognised for their long service and meritorious contribution to the growth of the church over the years.
The conference rose with a resolve to further play key and pivotal role in Christendom in Nigeria while it also took time off to discuss the state of the Nigerian nation where it enjoined President Muhammadu Buhari and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to live up to their promises to ensure a free and fair electioneering process during the upcoming general elections while commending the president’s fight against corruption, but urged that the war against graft should be broad-based and not selective.
On Sunday, 3rd February, 2019, the activities of the 2019 AGC was rounded off with a Thanksgiving Service at the headquarters of the host church, the Faith Mission C&S Church, at Satellite Town, Lagos where most of the heads of the constituent churches gathered with the Supreme head to thank God for a successful conference.
In all, Faith Mission Cherubim and Seraphim Church, Satellite Town, Lagos deserves all the props that come its way for the well put together event and the gauntlet has been thrown down for the next host not only to meet, but to surpass the standard set by the Faith Mission C&S Church and how that would pan out remains to be seen.
