By Izunna Okafor, Awka
An Anambra-based Anglican priest, Rev. Ekene Udeozor, has made a thought-provoking revelation about how he wins souls for Christ in his missionary journey as a servant of God.
Rev. Udeozor, who serves in a church in Achalla, Awka North Local Government Area of Anambra State, made the revelation while interacting with some heathens from the community.
The priest, in a video that has gone viral on social media, was captured with a bottle of beer and plates of food with meat in his front while the interaction was going on amidst joviality, in a place that looks like a beer parlour. Although, the video did not capture him drinking or sipping from the beer.
Speaking on camera while eating his meat, Rev. Udeozor, who was in his priestly wear, recounted his missionary journey in Achalla and how he has been able to harvest some souls through his approach and pattern of relation with people.
According to him, whenever he wants to preach to people or win souls in a place, he first associates and relates well with them, exchanges good pleasantries with them, joins them to wine and dine if he meets them in a setting where they are doing so.
He said by doing so, he would win the acceptance of the people which would then pave the way for the acceptance of his message and the gospel he brings to them; before he would begin to preach.
According to his, this has been his soul winning strategy everywhere he goes to preach, and has been working well for him in converting unbelievers to believers, changing people’s wrong perception about Christianity and church, while also attracting men to God, especially the heathens and others who never believed in or wanted to have anything to do with Christianity.
Rev. Udeozor also shared his views on certain cultural festivities, particularly commenting on the “Olili Ada” festival recently celebrated by the Achalla community and his impression about it and some other such cultural festivals in Igbo land.
The remarks by the priest have, however, triggered off a chain of reactions and counter-reactions on social media, with many netizens condemning his association with heathens and calling for his dismissal as a priest; while some others commend his approach and laud him as a hero of the Christian faith and the kind of priest needed in every society these days.
Some netizens also condemned the priest for sitting in such a public place, eating, drinking and discussing with heathens; even though the video never captured him drinking throughout the discussion. This also triggered calls to pull down the video from the social media space.
The was corroborated by another video shared by the original creator of the first video and owner of Achalla TV Chinedu Nwankwo, in which he confirmed he had been inundated with phone calls from people ordering him to pull down the video from social media.
Nwankwo, who proudly identified himself as a heathen in Achalla community, also used the follow-up video to set the record straight on the controversies trending his earlier video with Reverend Udeozor, adding that the video was recorded with the full consent of the priest.
He further clarified that the incident happened at his friend’s house when he visited him, and not at a beer parlour, as was being speculated.
Recounting why he quit Christianity and converted to idolatry, Nwankwo revealed that the priest eventually preached the Gospel to him and his friend after the video, which was the primary reason he came there that day, revealing that he was deeply touched and moved by the undiluted preaching and sincere remarks by the priest.
While noting how difficult it is to win or convert a single soul to Christianity in the Achalla community, the Achalla TV owner said Rev. Udeozor had won so much love from the people of the community which also reflects in the membership capacity of his church, assuring that he would also attend his church and programs anytime he invites him, despite not being a Christian.
Nwankwo, in the video, also condemned the trending calls for the sack of the priest, challenging any church leader supporting such a call to come to Achalla and win a single soul, to see how difficult it is.
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