The National Christian Centre (previously known as the National Ecumenical Centre and sometimes known as the National Church of Nigeria) is a

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...

place of worship in Nigeria's capital, Abuja. It is located in

Abuja Abuja () is the capital and eighth most populous city of Nigeria. Situated at the centre of the country within the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), it is a planned city built mainly in the 1980s based on a master plan by International Plan ...

, the capital city. The centre is an inter-denominational

church building A church, church building or church house is a building used for Christian worship services and other Christian religious activities. The earliest identified Christian church is a house church founded between 233 and 256. From the 11th thro ...

History

The church was designed in a

Postmodern Postmodernism is an intellectual stance or Rhetorical modes, mode of discourseNuyen, A.T., 1992. The Role of Rhetorical Devices in Postmodernist Discourse. Philosophy & Rhetoric, pp.183–194. characterized by philosophical skepticism, skepticis ...

version of the

Neo-gothic style Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

by Nigerian architectural firm, Darchiwork Group; located in

Lagos Lagos (Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national capital of Nigeria until December 1991 fo ...

. It was built by Italian construction fir
Gitto Costruzioni Generali Nigeria Ltd
The project was started around 1989, then lay dormant for several years until 2004, when the

Christian Association of Nigeria The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) is an umbrella organisation containing numerous Christian denominations in Nigeria. History The Christian Association of Nigeria was founded in 1976, and originally only contained the Catholic Church a ...

organized a committee to ensure its speedy completion. The dedication, on 2 October 2005, coincided with the celebration of Nigeria’s 45th anniversary as an independent nation. The dedication service was presided over by the Most Reverend

Peter Akinola Peter Jasper Akinola (born 27 January 1944, in Abeokuta) is the former Anglican Primate of the Church of Nigeria. He is also the former bishop of Abuja and Archbishop of Province III, which covered the northern and central parts of the country ...

, the

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of t ...

Primate Primates are a diverse order of mammals. They are divided into the strepsirrhines, which include the lemurs, galagos, and lorisids, and the haplorhines, which include the tarsiers and the simians ( monkeys and apes, the latter includin ...

of Nigeria.

Layout and access

The church is built in a neo-gothic style and has several pivoted arches with a wide nave leading to the altar. The altar, placed at the centre of the church completes a full rotation every ten minutes. A

pipe organ The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air (called ''wind'') through the organ pipes selected from a keyboard. Because each pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ''ranks' ...

is fitted to the right wing of the church, close to which sits the choir. Stained glass windows which employ a simple but attractive mix of yellow, green and red colours can be seen all around the church. When not being used for Christian ceremonies, it is open to the public. Guided tours are available for anyone interested in having a look. In some cases, members of the public are only allowed to tour the church when accompanied by a guide.

References

{{Abuja Churches in Abuja Landmarks in Nigeria Anglican church buildings in Nigeria Abuja architecture Postmodern architecture Churches completed in 2005 2005 establishments in Nigeria 21st-century Anglican church buildings 21st-century churches in Nigeria

History

Layout and access

See also

References