Historian Felix Ekechi highlights the nature of the African independent church movement by examining the Nigerian Zion Methodist Mission, a breakaway movement from the Church Missionary Society (CMS) formed in the 1940s. He is concerned with the fact that very little in Nigerian church history has been written about this particular church and its seemingly important role in the African independent church movement, which he describes as having underwent an "extremely difficult and painful search for self identity."
Origins of a Breakaway Movement
Begun when a former CMS school teacher, Moses Iwuanyanwu Diala Opara was passed over to receive training at the CMS-run Awka Teacher Training College in Igboland, it was originally affiliated the African Methodist Episcopalian Zion Church, but broke ties over disagreements between Opara and church authorities over the role of education as a tool of evangelism.
Establishment of Mission Schools
Initially the subject of ridicule by the town residents, as well as hostility by the local Protestant and Catholic missions, the church soon became a symbol of modernization and progress, owing in part to the establishment of mission schools at a critical time when education was needed; as well as centers that carried on various social services. Thus, the movement was embraced because of it was seen as a valuable asset to the community, and the work of Opara "assumed added significance in the eyes of the local people in view of the fact that it was the Zion Mission which did what the CMS allegedly failed to do for the town. Hence, Opara was hailed as the great hero and liberator."
Denominational Conflict and Other Obstacles
However, denominational conflict persisted, adding to the obstacles faced by the Zion mission church. The schools in particular faced numerous obstacles due to a profound lack of resources, which in turn, lead to poor conditions within the school; conditions which then prevented them from receiving governmental aid.
Much of the narrative concerning the Zion Methodist church was about not just the difficulties it endured, but also the nature of its leadership under Opara, as well as the relationship it eventually formed with the Evangelical Methodist Church (EMC) in the U.S. This relationship was viewed as a necessary catalyst for the church's growth and development, but was also wrought with problems; eventually the ties were severed in the 1960s.
Much of this work is taken from interviews conducted with those involved with the Zion Methodist Church, including offspring of Opara; it was also taken from correspondence between Opara and government officials as well the EMC in the United States. Throughout, Opara's leadership is also detailed; he is painted as tireless, if not often power hungry, and after the severance of ties with the EMC, his life seems to go into decline, despite having been the architect of a seemingly successful church movement.
Source:
Felix K. Ekechi, "The Ordeal of an African Independent Church: The Nigerian Zion Methodist Mission, 1942-1970." The International Journal of African Historical Studies, 1987
