Nigerian Baptist Convention is a

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul c ...

Christian denomination A Christian denomination is a distinct Religion, religious body within Christianity that comprises all Church (congregation), church congregations of the same kind, identifiable by traits such as a name, particular history, organization, leadersh ...

, affiliated with the

Baptist World Alliance The Baptist World Alliance (BWA) is the largest international Baptist organization with an estimated 51 million people in 2022 with 246 member bodies in 128 countries and territories. A voluntary association of Baptist churches, the BWA account ...

, in

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

. The office headquarters is in

Ibadan Ibadan (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Oyo State, in Nigeria. It is the third-largest city by population in Nigeria after Lagos and Kano, with a total population of 3,649,000 as of 2021, and over 6 million people within its ...

. Rev. Dr. Israel Adélaní Àkànjí MFA is the president.

History

The Nigerian Baptist Convention has its origins in an American mission of the

International Mission Board The International Mission Board (or IMB, formerly the Foreign Mission Board) is a Christian missionary society affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC). The headquarters is in Richmond, Virginia, United States. History Thousands ...

in 1849 with the appointment of Rev. Thomas Jefferson Bowen as the first missionary to the country. He arrived in

Badagry Badagry (traditionally Gbagli) also spelled Badagri, is a coastal town and Local Government Area (LGA) in Lagos State, Nigeria. It is quite close to the city of Lagos, and located on the north bank of Porto Novo Creek, an inland waterway that con ...

area of the current Lagos State on the 5th of August, 1850. The Nigerian Baptist Convention was officially formed in 1914. It has started other Baptist conventions in

West Africa West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali ...

notably in

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and Tog ...

(now the

Ghana Baptist Convention The Ghana Baptist Convention is a Baptist Christian denomination in Ghana. It is affiliated with the Baptist World Alliance. The headquarters is in Accra. History The Ghana Baptist Convention has its origins in a Baptist mission of Nigerian Ba ...

), and in

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierr ...

, now the (

Baptist Convention of Sierra Leone The Baptist Convention of Sierra Leone is a Baptist Christian denomination in Sierra Leone. It is affiliated with the Baptist World Alliance The Baptist World Alliance (BWA) is the largest international Baptist organization with an estimated ...

). According to a denomination census released in 2020, it claimed 13,654 churches and 8,000,637 members.

Medical Institutions

The Nigerian Baptist Convention also operates several hospitals and medical training institutions across the country. The Baptist Medical Centre in

Ogbomoso Ogbomosho (also Ògbómọ̀ṣọ́) is a city in Oyo State, south-western Nigeria. It was founded in the mid 17th century. The population was approximately 454,690 in the 2006 census. It is the second largest city in Oyo State and also among ...

, now called Bowen University Teaching Hospital, remains one of the leading hospitals and has been in use as a university

teaching hospital A teaching hospital is a hospital or medical centre that provides medical education and training to future and current health professionals. Teaching hospitals are almost always affiliated with one or more universities and are often co-located ...

by the Bowen University in Iwo, since December 2009. The Nigerian Baptist Convention operates other top flight Baptist medical centres (with Schools of Nursing and Midwifery) located in Eku and Saki; and several other minor Baptist hospitals across Nigeria. Others includes Oliveth Baptist Hospital, Oliveth heights, Oyo, Oyo State.

Schools

The Convention has 15 affiliated primary and secondary schools, gathered in the Directorate of Baptist Mission Schools. It has

Bowen University Bowen University is a private Baptist Christian Nigerian university located at Iwo in Osun State, Nigeria, and is housed in the old 1,300-acre (6 km²) campus of the Baptist College, a teacher-training institution on a hill just outside ...

, named in honor of Rev.

Thomas Jefferson Bowen Thomas Jefferson Bowen (1814–1875) was an American expatriate Baptist missionary who spent considerable time of his missionary activities in Ijaye, Ogbomosho and a few other towns within the present Oyo State. His work established the foundation ...

, the first American Baptist missionary from the Southern Baptist Convention. Bowen University is located at

Iwo Iwo or IWO may refer to: People * Iwo Byczewski (born 1948), Polish diplomat * Iwo Dölling (1923–2019), Swedish diplomat * Iwo Gall (1890–1959), Polish theater director, stage designer, and pedagogue * Iwo Kaczmarski (born 2004), Polish fo ...

Osun State Osun State (; yo, Ìpínlẹ̀ Ọ̀ṣun), occasionally known as the State of Osun by the state government, is a state in southwestern Nigeria; bounded to the east by Ekiti and Ondo states, to the north by Kwara State, to the south by Og ...

, and is housed in the old 1,300 acre (5 km²) campus of the Baptist College, a teacher-training institution on a beautiful hill just outside the city. Bowen University opened in 2002 as a residential institution with 500 students with a current enrollment of about 3,000 students, and a target capacity of at least 5,500 students. The idea of a Nigerian Baptist university was conceived in 1938, and endorsed in 1957 by the Nigerian Baptist Convention. Bowen University is “conceived as a centre of learning and research of distinction, combining academic excellence with love of humanity, borne out of a God-fearing attitude, in accordance with the Baptist

tradition A tradition is a belief or behavior (folk custom) passed down within a group or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common examples include holidays or ...

ethical Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that "involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior".''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' The field of ethics, along with aesthetics, concerns ma ...

behavior,

social responsibility Social responsibility is an ethical framework in which an individual is obligated to work and cooperate with other individuals and organizations for the benefit of the community that will inherit the world that individual leaves behind. Social ...

and democratic ethos”.

Theological Institutions

The Nigerian Baptist Convention operates ten

theological Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the s ...

training centers for pastors, the largest being the

Nigerian Baptist Theological Seminary Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jour ...

founded in 1898 in

, which grants undergraduate, masters’ and doctoral degrees. The theological institutions are: * The Nigerian Baptist Theological Seminary, Ogbomoso * Baptist Theological Seminary, Kaduna *Baptist Theological Seminary, Eku *Baptist College of Theology, Lagos *Baptist College of Theology, Oyo *Baptist College of Theology, Owerri *Baptist College of Theology, Benin City *Baptist College of Theology, Igede-Ekiti *Baptist College of Theology, Jos *Baptist Pastors' School, Gombe

References

External links