THE EVIL CULT

KNOW THE GOD YOU SERVE

Sound of faltering footsteps echoed behind Evangelist Solomon creating an eerie sound

in the lonely night as he walked along the potholes infested Ikorodu road. The non-stop

sound made him shivered inwardly. The sound had been following him for the better part

of thirty minutes. Looking back will not do any good. He had done that several times. He

quickened his steps. He had been trekking for the past thirty minutes without coming into

contact with a soul on the street. Where is everybody? Can the town be celebrating

another Oro festival? The only time the town looked like this is very late in the night.

Why did they not announce it on the radio?

Ikorodu town is notorious for one fetish festival or the other. Hardly a month passes

without the town celebrating a festival that will disrupt commercial activities in the town.

Ikorodu was not celebrating another Oro this time but a more sinister festival that

requires everybody to stay at home from nine o’clock onwards. Evangelist Solomon was

unaware of this.

When an important chief in the town is dead, the Ogboni confraternity performs the Arula

ritual before his burial. The Ogboni is the most powerful confraternity in the whole of

Yoruba land. Whoever sees the procession of the Ogboni during this ritual dies instantly.

This is not a myth but a fact known to all Ikorodu dwellers.

“Why am I the only one on the road at this hour of the night?” The thought that

something may be happening of which he might not be aware made Evangelist Solomon
shook all over. To banish the fear already taking hold of him, he started to sing, “The

blood of Jesus set me free,” He held his bible tightly to his chest. The feel of the holy

book on his body gave him a feeling of security.

“He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most high shall abide under the shadow of the

Almighty. I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will

I trust. Surely, he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome

pestilence. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his

truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor

for the arrow that flieth by day…” The words of the Psalm calmed Evangelist Solomon

nerve. If God be with us, who can be against us? He smiled at the assurance the word of

God gave him.

Evangelist Solomon suddenly collided with a man carrying what initially looked like a

calabash on his head. The force of their collision sends Evangelist Solomon reeling on the

ground. “I am sorry,” he started to say and stopped when he beheld a procession of about

twenty men clad in white cloth drabbled over their shoulders behind the man. The pot

which the man in front carried lay broken on the street.

No one said anything. The ritual pot bearer lay sprawling on the ground unable to get up.

The procession behind him stood facing Evangelist Solomon as if a force held them to

the spot.

Evangelist Solomon picked himself up. He was not hurt. The man he collided with was

groaning in pain. He took hold of the man’s right hand and drew him to his feet. He

shook dust away from his body.

“I am sorry; I did not realize somebody was coming towards me.” He apologized to the

man who fell down.

The man shrank away from him with a look of horror on his face. He did not say

anything but was looking at Evangelist Solomon as if he was something from the pit of

hell. He fled the scene without a word. He ran without looking back while his

companions still stood rooted to the same spot.

Why did the man look at him with that look on his face? Evangelist Solomon could not

understand. Why was the man looking at him like that? He heard a voice telling him to

leave the place immediately. He turned around and left without looking back if the

Ogboni confraternity were still standing rooted to the same spot.

Evangelist Solomon prayed and thanked God that he was able to survive the encounter

with the dreaded Ogboni cult that night. Everyone knows the implication of an encounter

with the Ogboni during night ritual. He would not tell his Pastor. The man would be

scared and worry unnecessarily for his life. The blood of the lamb covers him so no evil

can befall him.

Evangelist Solomon was still sleeping off the effect of the previous night vigil when he

heard a knock on his door. Who could that be at this early in the morning? He was not

expecting anybody. He got up from his bed.

A man he has not seen before stood at the door of his sitting room. So he did remember to

close the door yesterday. It must be because of the tiredness he felt after the night

excitement.
“Good morning sir, I am not sure we have met before. What can I do for you that make

you to visit me this early in the morning?” Evangelist Solomon said rubbing sleep away

from his eyes.

“Good morning Evangelist Solomon, so you did not recognize me again? Tell me, did

you deliberately collided with me to disrupt our ritual or was it a mistake?”

Evangelist Solomon felt cold all over. Not only did he have an encounter with the

dreaded Ogboni, he was now talking to one of them in his own house. He rubbed his eyes

again to confirm he was awake.

“Was it” the man repeated.

“Was it what” Evangelist Solomon asked confused.

“Did you deliberately collide with me yesterday or was it a mistake?”

“I did not deliberately collide with you. I was singing a song that so much moved me that

I was not looking at where I was going”

The man sighed. He looked troubled. “Were you afraid of us?”

“I was not afraid. I was terrified! Who will not be afraid of the dreaded Ogboni? I thought

I was a dead man”

“We were more afraid of you than you may ever be of us. A huge lion stood behind you

with fire on his head. He looked ferocious enough to tear all of us to pieces. He looked at

us with so much hatred in his eyes. We were afraid you will order him to tear us to

pieces”

“Lion?” Evangelist Solomon asked, his face a mask of doubt. Did the man said lion? He

actually said so. He did not see any lion.

“You mean you did know a lion is protecting you?” the man asked his face could not hide

his surprise. “Then you did not know the God you serve. I could not sleep throughout the

night. Nothing like what happened with you ever happened before. No one sees us and

live. You should have died instantly. No only did you see us, you broke our ritual pot. I

have decided to serve your God. Our own god is powerless. All of us saw the lion guiding

you. That was why we all froze and I later ran.”

Evangelist Solomon was stunned. He could not say anything. The Ogboni man turned

and left leaving the door opened. So it is true that those that God protects can come to no

harm. He raised his hands up in praise to the Almighty God. He would serve God now

more than he has been doing before and he would know Him as he has never known him

before.

When we serve the living God, he protects and guides us. It is inconsequential that we

realize this fact or not. The important thing is that His banner is always over us. “Those

who know their God shall do exploit…” If you serve God diligently and devote your time

to him, He will protect you even if you don’t realize it. To be able to do exploit in his

name, you should know that He is able to do all things and believe that there is nothing

impossible for him to do.

Though Evangelist Solomon devoted his service to the Almighty, he fails to realize the

enormity of the power God placed in his hands. He should have known that one thousand

Ogboni cannot do him any him any harm. God created man in His own image. This

implies that we are above all other created beings which include the gods and the
demons. They cannot do us any harm as they do not possess as much power as if we

have.