ENVIROMENTA FACTORS AND CHRISTIANIZATION OF AFRICA/NIGERIA: APPRAISING THE CHURCHES IMPACT IN ADDRESSING CLIMATIC CONDITIONS IN NIGERIA

Abstract

Environmental factors in Nigeria significantly impacted the missionary enterprise through diseases, climate, and the land itself, which created both immense challenges and unique opportunities for missionaries. The harsh tropical climate and diseases like malaria and yellow fever were major obstacles, causing high mortality rates and making evangelism difficult. Conversely, the physical environment including its natural resources and the cultural beliefs surrounding the land influenced settlement patterns and missionary strategies. The study discovered how missionaries adapted by introducing new farming techniques and building methods, and in some areas, the perception of land as undesirable due to cultural beliefs led to land being allocated to missions, which then attracted local settlement. The study, however, recommends the adoption of the missionaries’ strategy in navigating the present day challenges that borders on environment. This will arouse further consciousness for environmental protection and ecological preservation. As a qualitative research, the researchers adopted the primary and secondary sources of data collection and culture area approach for data analysis. The researchers has sought to arouse the interest of the church to develop and implement viable policies as instruments of addressing the challenges of environmental degradation which has always resulted to resentment, desolation and an atmosphere of deploration.