Nigeria: Pastors wife and child killed in sectarian violence

Pastor James Musa Rike’s wife, Dune James Rike, died after being shot and slashed by a machete during an attack on the village of Kurum in Bauchi state.

Their 13-year-old daughter, Sum James Rike, was also fatally wounded in the attack by Muslim extremists last Wednesday.

Pastor Rike and the couple’s son and adopted daughter survived the attack.

According to Compass Direct News, Pastor Rike told his wife as she lay dying: “Hold on to your faith in Jesus, and we shall meet and never part again.”

He also prayed for Sum as she died. According to the CDN report, before she passed away, Sum told her father that the militants had said they would kill her and told her ‘see how your Jesus will save you’.

Sum said she told the militants that Jesus had already saved her and that by killing her they would only be making it possible for her to be with him.

Bauchi police said that 12 of the 16 killed in total in last week’s attack were children. More than 20 houses in the village were set on fire and valuables were stolen by the attackers.

According to CDN, Pastor Rike said the attack had only strengthened his faith.

He said: “Whatever is the situation, I will never forsake Christ. All human beings are created by God, and our attackers must know that they need to abandon anything that will lead them to destroy creations of God.”

Tensions have been high after President Goodluck Jonathan, a Christian, was re-elected last month, defeating his Muslim opponent, Muhammadu Buhari.

Bauchi State lies in the predominantly Muslim north of Nigeria and, along with other northern regions, has been plagued by sectarian violence in recent years.

Hundreds of people have reportedly been killed in sectarian clashes since Jonathan’s re-election, with Bauchi one of the worst affected states.

The latest attack has prompted calls for government intervention from Christians in the region.

The general secretary of the Christian Association of Nigeria in Bauchi State, the Rev Turbe Ngodem, told International Christian Concern: “It is not right for anyone to kill another person. Life is precious and a gift from God.

“Since 1999 in Bauchi State, several Christians have been killed but no one has been brought before justice. The government has to intervene. The government has to be fair to all its citizens.”