Welcome to episode 63 of Giants of the Faith, the podcast where we explore some of the great figures in Christian history. I'm your host, Robert Daniels, and today we're going to talk about Jove Ejovi Aganbi, a Nigerian pastor, evangelist and educator who played a key role in the growth of Christianity in his country. As is sometimes the case with this podcast I have to warn you that I will struggle with some pronunciations here. I did reach out to an Urhobo group on Facebook for help with pronunciations but as of recording time I have not heard back from them. So if I mangle words badly, forgive me.
Jove Ejovi Aganbi was born in 1894 in Eku, Nigeria, into the family of chief Agadama Aganbi and Mrs. Ahurhu Aganbi of Abraka, in the present Delta State of Nigeria. Chief Agadama Aganbi was one of the paramount chiefs of his day, and he had five wives. Jove was the first son of his father's second wife, and he grew up in a polygamous and pagan household. He was exposed to various traditional beliefs and practices, such as ancestor worship, divination and witchcraft.
However, Jove had a thirst for knowledge and education, which led him to attend a school run by the Sudan Interior Mission (SIM), a Christian missionary organization that had established a base in Eku in 1908. There he learned to read and write in English and Urhobo, his native language. He also heard the gospel message for the first time and became interested in Christianity.
The Sudan Interior Mission was established by three men - Walter Gowans and Roland Bingham, both Canadians, and Thomas Kent, from the US. The men had a vision to evangelize 60 million people in sub-Saharan Africa. The missions boards they spoke to about this vision rejected them - claiming that sub-Saharan Africa was unreachable and their vision a fantasy. When they could not get existing missions organizations to buy in to their vision they set out on their own in 1893. Jus a year later, in 1894, Gowans and Kent were dead from Malaria and Bingham was forced to return to Canada. Bingham eventually came back to Africa but a second bout of Malaria forced him to return home again. Another team was sent and SIM was successfully established, and continues today serving in 70 countries all around the world. You might not know this but sub-Saharan Africa is already home to more Christians than any other defined region and, by 2060, is projected to account for 40% of the world's Christians. I'd say that their vision proved to be much more than a fantasy.
In 1911, at the age of 17, Jove felt the call of Christ on his life and he was baptized by Rev. George Campion, an SIM missionary. He took the name Jove, which means "God is love" in Urhobo. He also adopted the surname Aganbi, which means "the one who does not forget his people" in Urhobo.
Jove's conversion was met with opposition and persecution from his family and community, who saw it as a betrayal of their ancestral traditions. He was disowned by his father and expelled from his home. He faced threats and attacks from his relatives and neighbors, who tried to force him to renounce his faith. He also suffered from poverty and hunger, as he had no means of livelihood.
But Jove remained steadfast in his commitment to Christ and joined the SIM as a worker. He became an evangelist, traveling to various villages and towns to preach the gospel and plant churches. He also became an educator, teaching literacy and Bible classes to children and adults. He helped translate parts of the Bible into Urhobo and wrote several hymns and songs in his language and translated others from English.
Jove's ministry was fruitful and effective, as he won many souls for Christ and established many churches in Nigeria. He also trained and mentored many young Christians who became leaders in their own communities. He was known for his humility, generosity, compassion and zeal for God's work.
In 1927, Jove married Ruth Oghenevwede Okoroji, a Christian woman from Ughelli. They had six biological children and adopted twenty more from different backgrounds. They raised them as their own and gave them education and spiritual guidance.
In 1932, Jove was ordained as a pastor by the SIM and became the first indigenous pastor of Eku Baptist Church. He served there for over forty years until his retirement in 1974. He also held various leadership positions in the Nigerian Baptist Convention (NBC), such as vice president, treasurer and chairman of the evangelism committee. Jove traveled all over Urhobo land by foot and by bicycle converting people to Christ. As he visitied locations where he thought a church should be planted he would establish them and appoint elders and overseers to continue the ministry there.
The Casin family, missionaries from the Southern Baptist Convention in the United States, heard about the work that Jove was doing. They funneled additional SBC missionaries to Eku to work with Aganbi and he oversaw the construction of a missions house to accommodate them. He also helped establish a Baptist school in Eku and then a Baptist hospital - both desperately needed institutions.
Jove died on June 6, 1984 at the age of 90. He was buried in Eku with full honors by the NBC and the SIM. His legacy lives on through his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren who are serving God in various capacities. His life story has inspired many Christians in Nigeria and beyond to follow his example of faithfulness, courage and love.
That's all for today's episode of Giants of the Faith. I hope you enjoyed learning about Jove Ejovi Aganbi, a giant of the faith in Nigeria. Thank you for listening and, until next time, God bless.
RESOURCES
Dictionary of African Christian Biography: https://dacb.org/stories/nigeria/aganbi-jove/
Dictionary of African Christian Biography: https://dacb.org/stories/nigeria/ejovi-oboberhie/
Walking in Love Ministries of MKP, Inc..: https://walkinginloveministries.org/8-early-eku-history/
SIM International: https://www.sim.org/
Pew Research: https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2017/04/19/sub-saharan-africa-will-be-home-to-growing-shares-of-the-worlds-christians-and-muslims/