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Bajowa Deplores Rigid and Inflexible Dogma of Anglican Communion
General Olu Bajowa (Rtd) has condemned in strong terms some principles which are held by the church. The Jagunmolu of Ikale land was particular about the Anglican diocese of the coastal area of Okitipupa. In an exclusive chat with our reporter, General Bajowa expressed his utmost shock and disappointment at the way and manner the Anglican Communion tactically denied his mother-in-law the right of Christian burial based on the circumstances of her death, wondering if it was a crime for her to have died that way.
General Bajowa maintained that rather than holding unto some inflexible dogma, one would have expected sympathy from a church that preaches piety and strong biblical values. He said what surprised him most in the entire drama is the fact that late Olori Modupe Omolere Ayelomi was not just an ordinary member of the communion, but one who paid her tithe, who was steadfast in the church and who was a financial adherent of the Anglican communion.
He said he was also miffed by the fact that he, himself is also an adherent of the Anglican communion and expected a better treatment than the tactical denial the Anglican church had given one of their own.
‘’The rigid and inflexible dogma of Anglican communion to deny a Christian burial to a devout and financial adherent of the church, who was dastardly murdered by evil men, is not only unsympathetic and an anti Christian posture, but a sad commentary that will NEVER be forgotten’’, General Bajowa maintained.
‘‘The Bible doesn’t give instructions on how a body should be handled or buried after death, not even that of a gruesome killing still under criminal investigation! Is the church not expected to treat the body of the dead with respect and charity in faith and hope of the resurrection?’’
Bajowa noted with disappointment that the Anglican Church did not only shy away from burying a strong member of one of their churches, but failed to even send a representative to the funeral. He said if mere men had done this, one could have overlooked it, but such conduct from people working in God’s vineyard is uncalled for. ‘’Mere men can play pranks and indulge in subterfuge, but for men of God, nothing but the exemplary virtue of God should be expected in their action and reaction to issues.’’
‘There is need for change even in the house of God,’ General Bajowa thundered. He said the decision of the cleric of the Anglican Communion to deny late Olori Modupe Ayelomi a burial in the Anglican Church must be condemned by all Christian leaders of the Coastal diocese because it reeks of bad taste and abandonment of their own member in time of need. He said it is ironical that while Mama Modupe Ayelomi was abandoned by her own church, The Methodist Church took it upon itself to give the deceased a befitting burial. General Bajowa asked the priests of the Anglican Communion to search their soul and think through their decision if it was the best in that circumstances.
In the same vein, General Bajowa thanked all the dignitaries who had come from far and near to celebrate the final burial of Late Olori Modupe Omolere Ayelomi. The General particularly appreciated the presence of all the Methodist clerics and Bishop Steven Ogedengbe, the presiding Bishop of Wisdom Chapel.
Further investigation by our correspondent into the reason the authorities of the coastal Diocese of the Anglican Communion, Okitipupa denied late Olori Modupe Ayelomi the benefit of a befitting Christian burial in her home church revealed that there is a system of belief in the diocese as espoused by the diocesan lord bishop which gives a time limit of forty days for the burial of any deceased Anglican Communicant from the day of his or her death. According to a reliable source who spoke with our reporter, the coastal diocese clerics don’t attend any burial of their own members whose funeral exceeds the forty days time lag.
However, in the case of late Olori Modupe Ayelomi, several representation and appeal were made to the Diocesan but to no avail. Reliable family source revealed that the Lumure of Ayeka, HRM Bode Ayelomi suffered double bereavement with the loss of his cousin who was to be buried on the 29th of January, and the death of his wife, Olori Modupe Ayelomi, which sad event occurred on the 25th of December, 2014. As a concerned family member, it will not be appropriate to bury both the cousin and the wife of the Kabiesi within the same day as the pains will be too much to bear for the octogenarian King, said our impeccable source.
We gathered that the burial of late Olori Modupe Ayelomi which was fixed for the 6th of February exceeded the Anglican diocese of the coast’s forty days burial limit by just two days yet the diocesan bishop will not have anything to do with the burial.
The death of late Olori Modupe Ayelomi bothered on culpable homicide which requires thorough investigation by the authorities of Nigeria Police and had it not been for the timely intervention of General Olu Bajowa, the corpse would not have been released to the family for burial. Thus, it was expected that the bishop and his clerics would extend a hand of fellowship, show Christian love and avowed sympathy for the family rather than playing up the unsympathetic card of an inflexible dogma which has neither basis nor foundation in the Holy Bible.
It will be recalled that Gen. Olu Bajowa the Jagunmolu of Ikale land and his wife Princess (Barr) Oluyemi Bajowa, the Iye – Lumure 1 of Ikale land are both Anglican Communicants and dependable stakeholders of the Anglican church. In fact, General Bajowa is Aare of Igbotako Anglican Archdeaconry and a financial member who has contributed in no small measure to the growth of his archdeaconry and the entire diocese of the coast. The General is surprised that the church of God can chose to be mean to their own members in their trying time.
While condemning the whole dogma of forty days time limit for the burial of communicants, General Bajowa stressed that clerics who establish dogma for the church of God which cannot be hinged on any known bible principle or doctrine deserve to seek God’s face for forgiveness for leading their congregation based on their own whims and caprices as against bible injunction.
Late Olori Modupe Ayelomi was an Anglican communicant till her death but was buried by the Methodist Church clerics and laity who serve the same God as the Anglican Priests.
According to an elderly Anglican communicant from Ikale who prefers not to be named, he stressed that the fear is rife in the diocese that if the bishop and his priests can do this to General Bajowa who is a reliable stakeholder in the Anglican communion, then only God knows what will happen to them in case compelling circumstances warrant an extension of their burial beyond the forty days time lag. our source said it will be unfair for the Church to collect and tithe offering from a member in his life time and deny such a member a befitting Christian burial at death because of the ‘forty days burial dogma’. he advised that Christian doctrine should not be made to inconvenience Christians lest a mass exodus of communicants to other churches is not encouraged by a stiff, needless and unsympathetic dogma.
General Olu Bajowa Buries Mother-in-law in Grand Style
When beggars die there are no comet sign, but heaven itself announces the passing of great icons. So it was with the final burial rites of Olori Modupe Omolere (Nee Ojatuwase), the Alidan Apehi Woye of Osooro Kingdom, whose burial programme and reception party would remain a talk of the town for a very long time. The funeral programme which began with a wake keep on Thursday, the 5th of February at her home along Erinje road, attracted dignitaries and people of means and substance to Okitipupa.
In fact, the ceremonial procession from the State’s General Hospital, Okitipupa where the deceased was embalmed down to her house along Erinje road was grand and filled with pomp. The golden casket was stylishly balanced on the shoulders of the pallbearers all the way to the deceased house as the pallbearers engaged in a coordinated dance steps that appealed to musical aesthetics. The long convoy behind the pallbearers, the huge crowd that danced as the procession extended into Okitipupa town from the state’s specialist hospital and the fleet of cars all spoke volume of the way late Olori Omolere was appreciated and celebrated by her people. For a very good number of minutes, the ancient town of Okitipupa stood still as the remains of Olori Modupe Omolere was being taken to her house for the Christian wake keep.
The service of songs which was coordinated by the priests of Methodist Church Nigeria Ode-Ayeka also had in attendance Bishop Steven Ogendengbe, presiding Bishop of Wisdom Chapel.
At the Christian wake, prayers were offered for the repose of the soul of the deceased, her family, the land and Nigeria as the cycles of election beckon.
The funeral and outing service in honour of late Olori Modupe Omolere Ayelomi commenced at 11:00 hrs on Friday 6th of February at Methodist Church Ode-Ayeka. As expected, the auditorium of the church was filled to capacity with dignitaries from all walks of life. The processional hymn “Hark, hark my soul angelic songs” was interspersed with bible verses. Bible verses for the funeral programme were taken from Psalm 130, which was read ‘responsively’ between the priest and the church and Revelation 7:9-17 was also recited.
