Journal of African Studies and Sustainable Development

The church, nowadays, is passing through an untold schism. There is no doubt that proliferation of churches contributed to the unspeakable sectionalism and competition which have brought about lack of common understanding among Christians let alone adherents of other faith. The Lord Jesus Christ, towards the tail end of His ministry here on earth, made His mind known to the world by the reason of His prayer for the church in John 17: 21-23. He prayed that those who are members of the household should live together in harmony “That they all may be one” This also will motivate the whole world to believe that He was sent by God. However, this paper adopted a historical and phenomenological approach to explain ecumenism from biblical perspective and its effects on evangelistic missionary outreach in Nigeria. The paper discovered that ecumenism has made positive impacts various ways in Nigeria such as creating atmosphere of understanding, soul winning, expansion of Christ kingdom, societal development, peace and unity. The missionary outreach of ecumenism cuts across political, economic, educational and religious sectors in constructive global influences. This paper therefore recommends that ecumenism should be encouraged in Nigeria not only for positive missionary outreach but for sake of unity, security, economic development and political stability.

Open Full Text (PDF)