Going to Church at St Michael's

George P. Landow, Professor of English and Art History, Brown University

After we have finished eating, we all went to church at St Michael's.

There are many churches in Aba, for example, Salvation Army, Christ Army which people normally call Chris-amin, Assembly of God Mission where people beat drums and dance, then there is Catholic and many other small ones like The Holy Spiritual Joyful Church of Mount Sion which is at our backyard. The pastor of this church is a trader in second-hand clothes. I like that church; they sing like Nigerians. It is not like St Michael's where they translate English songs into Igbo. And the Pastor does not pretend that God sent him from heaven to come and look after the members of the Church. Anyway, since my father, mother and everybody in our family goes to Anglican, I also go there even though I do not like it. There is one other reason why I go to St Michael's. There are always very many fine babies there.

On that day, they were dressed in very fine cloths, from kente cloth to short, tight skirts. I won't tell you a lie. I like women very much and when I saw them looking fine inside the church, I forgot about the prayer and the sermon very many times, but I had to pray for forgiveness again and again. [67]


Postcolonial Web Africa OV Nigeria OV Saro Wiwa OV