Can our prayers be heard?

So it was in days of old that King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon caught three young men and threw them into the heart of blazing fire and dared the God of Israel whom the young men worshipped, by saying, “Is it true O’ Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods, nor worship […]

So it was in days of old that King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon caught three young men and threw them into the heart of blazing fire and dared the God of Israel whom the young men worshipped, by saying, “Is it true O’ Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods, nor worship the golden image which I have set up? Is it true that when you hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of music you do not fall down and worship the image which I have made? But if you do not worship them, you shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; and who is that God of yours who shall deliver you out of my hands? (Daniel 3: 14-15). The story goes that the young men refused to worship the gods that king Nebuchadnezzar created and the children were promptly thrown into the burning fire. But when the king came to look at how the children were burning in the fire, he discovered a fourth person in the midst of the fire with them who he described as resembling “a son of God”, an Angel. The children were never burnt at all. It was then that the king declared that there is no god like the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and the only one to be worshiped in all the land.
Since the Boko Haram menace started, Nigerians have being asking God for a solution, seeking his face and asking for intervention. Many people have asked if God is still there and if he still hears and answer the prayers of those who call on him in faith. Yes He does and He will answer us at the time when it will give Him the greatest glory. Meanwhile, the faith of His children is being put to the test as they are threatened daily by bomb blasts, slitting of throats, beheading, amputation, kidnapping and turning the victims into suicide bombers, and sex slaves, forceful profession of strange doctrines, strapping with explosive devices and made to explode them in crowded environments, villages sacked by rampaging army of death, houses and farm lands set ablaze, etc. These are happening not only in Nigeria but in many countries of the world. On the 11th September every year since 2001, the world has continued to remember the bombing of the World Trade Centre in New York, USA. Every year, we continue to commemorate various stages of the World War I & II. We are consoled by the fact that the world was able to overcome the tragedies of these past events. Osama Bin Laden was taken out by the American Seals in the early hours of May 1st, 2011, and Adolf Hitler who declared war against the rest of the world died on April 30th 1945. It is the hope and prayer of Nigerians that this cup of Boko Haram shall pass us by. That soon, a day will be set in history when God will show that He is God in the case of Boko Haram. It was in his wisdom that David the great king of Israel and great psalmist sang thousands of years ago; “Some trust in their war-chariots, and others in their horses, but we trust in the power of the Lord our God. Such people will stumble and fall, but we will rise and stand firm” (Psalm 20: 7-8).     
It is heartwarming to see that government and all those who had the responsibility of ending this madness are now rising to the occasion. We hear of confrontation and defeat of the Boko Haram in some towns as they try to make their advance into more communities in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa. The fact remains that the “blame game” delayed what was necessary to be done. When politics beclouds national interest, it becomes catastrophic. Both the government in power and the opposition took to the social and news media when national interest and pride was at stake. Those in the opposition parties in Nigeria took interest in blaming the government in power for Boko Haram and other violence in the North Eastern flank of Nigeria. They were waiting in the wings to see how this bad situation will bring out the weakness of government in order to use it as a campaign point in the next general election. At a time like this when our house is on fire, anyone who tries to use the situation to his or advantage is the enemy of the people and not a patriot. The attitude brought out the worst in the opposition. The government in power also went back to the records and found a saving clause in what has become the cliché, “if we do not win this election, we shall make the country ungovernable”. To tell the truth, many of us who do not belong to any of these contending blocks, who are just comfortable with whoever governs the nation well, feel so disappointed and we have continued to ask, “are these the Messiah we seek or  shall we look for another?” Time was wasted in the case of the Chibok girls’ adoption and they have remained in captivity since then. The initial attitude of denial was our undoing in the case of Chibok girls’ adoption.
Boko Haram menace started as a Borno and Bauchi State affair. Now Adamawa and Cameroon have become effectively incorporated. Taraba state is being threatened. Benue, Kogi, and Nasarawa and Plateau states are no longer at ease.  Kano is a hit and run target, and Lagos was tested.  Abuja is a major target as the city is now under siege. Time was wasted in the handling of the entire Boko Haram issue such that they have gradually graduated into the international standard that has qualified it to be listed in the “World Terrorist Stock Market”. The ingenuity of our security and military services has not effectively served the purpose. Yes, after every attack, the masterminds are said to be arrested like the cases of Kabiru Sokoto and Sadiq Aminu Ogwuche but the fact remains that terrible damages may have been done. If only the security agencies can pre-empt and stop the carnage before it happens. Despite all these, I still believe that God has a plan and that this too shall pass away like the others before it.
Like Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, Boko Haram, ISIS, Al Shabab, Al Qaeda and other terrorist groups who claim to be working for the interest of the Islamic religion are throwing people into fire, cutting off heads, bombing and shooting people with the saying that they killing people in order to convert them. I do not know if they mean that they convert the dead or coarse the living out of fear, seeing how they had decapitated the dead. The groups of moderate Muslims have continued to argue that these blood thirsty creatures are not working for the interest of Islamic religion and Allah. They argue that Islam is a religion of peace and that the Koran forbids killing of innocent and defenseless human beings. They argue that the Koran teaches that there is no compulsion in religion. But who is listening to them? These groups claim to be hearing from God and that they are the ones truly doing the will of Allah. But has the one who spoke to Mohammed changed his message? I do not think so. What is happening is that people who are bent on destroying the human race and making life unbearable for others are using the name of religion to do this.
The deceptive part of it is that most of the foot soldiers that carry out the killing and bombings are those who are secondary messengers. It takes real powers to get at the brain behind the dastardly acts. When Jesus wanted to liberate the world from the power of sin and death, he offered himself to be killed.
He did not hide behind a thick security barricade, wearing a hood or mask to escape. When the soldiers came out with clubs and guns to arrest him on that Holy Thursday Night, he asked them, who are you looking for? And they answered, Jesus of Nazareth. He then asked that if he was the one they wanted, the soldiers should let his followers to go unharmed.
Rev. Fr. Ojaje Idoko
Director of Pastoral Affairs in the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria

When Peter took up the sword and cut off Malchus’ ears, he rebuked him that he who kills by the sword, shall die by the sword.  But look at the current set of people who claim to be working for Allah. Osama bin Laden masterminded the bombing of the World Trade Centre, sent some suicide bombers to highjack passenger planes and ramped them into the two buildings. He was hiding somewhere secured and he continued to run from death for almost ten years. Since Boko Haram started, many uninformed people have been used as suicide bombers, killing themselves and others. Shekau and his commanders are hiding in locations, away from death, surrounded by protective armored tanks and hiding in bunkers. Immediately Kabiru Sokoto masterminded the bombing of St. Theresa’s Catholic Church in Madalla in Minna Diocese on the Christmas day of 2011, he kept running away from death. The same thing happened with Sadiq Ogwuche who ran away to the Sudan after the suicide bombing of the motor park in Nyanya, a suburb of Abuja. He was reported to have said that he enjoys killing people in the name of Allah and he knows how to disguise himself in order not to be caught. Are these the kind of religious leaders that the world needs? Leaders who encourage their follows to die but run away from death themselves? Is this the kind of religion they are inviting the world to practice, the religion or the god that enjoys human blood and slaughtering of human beings without a reason? There is another power behind this madness.
This is why we are taking the case to God Almighty. He will answer us. The governments of the world, the United Nation Security Council and security apparatus of the countries that are facing this insurgency are doing what is humanly required while we storm Heaven with prayers for a solution. If God heard the cry of the Jews against the draconian policies of the Pharaohs of Egypt, if he delivered Daniel from the den of lion, if he delivered Paul and Silas from prison just through the power of their praise, he will surely deliver Nigeria and the world from these butchers.
 Rev. Fr. Ojaje Idoko
Director of Pastoral Affairs in the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria