Pioneer Nasarawa State CAN Chairman buried amidst tears, eulogies
Pioneer Nasarawa State CAN Chairman buried amidst tears, eulogies
The remains of late Rev. Andarawus Auta, the pioneer Chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) Nasarawa State chapter, were laid to rest on Sunday in Lafia, amidst tears and eulogies from family, friends and well wishers.
The Voice Media Trust (VMT NEWS) reports that the deceased, who served as the Nasarawa State CAN Chairman from 1996 to 1998, died on April 11, at the age of 97 after a protracted illness in a Jos hospital.
Speaking at the funeral service at the First Baptist Church Lafia, Rev. Israel Akanji, President of Nigeria Baptist Convention, described the deceased as a hero to the church.
He said that the deceased was instrumental coming of the Baptist Church to Nasarawa State and had established over 60 branches with many associations, among others.
According to Akanji, the church record showed that there is no Reverend or Pastor of the denomination in Northern Nigeria that had contributed and established the number of churches like the deceased.
He, however, said that God would like in the days of old, raise someone to replace the deceased to continue to win souls for Him.
He encouraged the children of the deceased and the younger generation in the church to take solace in God and emulate the legacies the deceased left behind.
Also speaking, Most Rev. Daniel Okoh, President of CAN, said the Christian community was grateful to God for the deceased for a life well spent.
Okoh represented by Dr Rev. Caleb Ahima, Vice President, expressed his condolences to the immediate family of the deceased and the entire Christian community in the state for the loss.
“As the first CAN Chairman, he was a great blessing to the state, the entire Christian community in the state and the country,” Okoh said.
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Gov. Abdullahi Sule, represented by his deputy Dr Emmanuel Akabe, said the late Auta was one of those who laid the foundation of peaceful coexistence and religious tolerance in the state.
The governor said that the state and the Christian community had in deed lost a revered patriot, who had worked hard to unite the state and win souls for Christ.
He noted that the state was rather celebrating the life and time of the clergyman given the positive legacies he had left behind.
“The deceased had lived a life of service to God and humanity and had continued to play a significant role to ensure that no religious crisis is experienced in the state,” Sule added.
In his remarka, Rt. Rev. Godwin Robinson, Bishop, Anglican Diocese of Lafia, said that the pioneer CAN Chairman had lived beyond every barrier.
He said that the deceased related with everybody irrespective of tribal, religious or denominational differences.
Robinson urged everyone to emulate virtues exhibited by the deceased in order to make the world a better place for all to live in peace.
