“The Fulani are obsessed with their cows. They love their cows more than human beings,” said Gabriel, a local security agent protecting Christian pastors and missionaries.
The Fulani Muslims are responsible for much of the killing andkidnapping of Christiansin Nigeria’s Middle Belt region. This region lies along the divide between theChristian southand the Muslim north, and the Fulani are primarily herders.
Often, attacks are triggered whenFulani herdersdrive their cattle into Christian farms, where they eat or destroy crops. When Christians object, they are met with violence, with entire villages destroyed and unarmed Christians raped, murdered, or kidnapped.
Gabriel explained that the Fulani, who are actually a minority, are well organized and able to call large numbers of well-armed fighters together from great distances. They sometimes use social media, but most of their communication is done through runners.
“They send guys on motorcycles who give verbal messages to coordinate attacks and movements,” added Anthony, with Palace Alliance, a U.S. NGO coming to the aid of Nigerian Christians.
As Christians cannot own weapons and do not have their own militia for protection, some in the community have tried to end the violence one soul at a time by reaching out to the Fulani and sharing the love of Christ.
For the Fulani, however, converting to Christianity comes with a tremendous cost. They are ostracized from their community, can no longer herd cattle, and face severe persecution. In the worst cases, they become targets for assassination.
In a walled community just outside Jos, a city on the frontline, sitsHarvest Training Center, a project overseen by a local Christian organization, City Ministries of EMS/ECWA. The center provides discipleship training to Muslim converts to Christianity, preparing them to return to their communities and share their faith in the hope of reducing the violence.
training, students live in the center, where they receive meals and lodging and live in a safe environment, protected from Islamist reprisals.
In one of the classrooms, a kindly teacher, Garba Zambu, was teaching a lesson from the Acts of the Apostles as he prepared the students to eventually leave the center and spread the Word.
Source: The Gateway Pundit
