The advent of the United Republic of Cameroon following the referendum of 20th May, 1972 saw many English speaking civil servants from the former West Cameroon (today North West and South West Provinces) transferred to work in various government services in Yaounde. English speaking students also had started enrolling in the Yaounde University in the late 1960’s. Among these were Baptist Christians who were immediately faced with the problem of finding an existing Baptist church to worship in. many of them stayed at home on Sundays while others attended church service in the Presbyterian Church Djoungolo, the Native Baptist Church in Briqueterie, and the» Union des Eglises Baptistes du Cameroun(UEBC)” near the Radio House. These Baptists were faced with the language problem since worship service in these churches was conducted either in French, Douala over in Lingala.
Prominent among these early Baptists in Yaounde was Mrs Lydia E. Lantum who had been living and working in Yaounde since December 1971. Though appreciative of the ecumenical fusion between English-speaking Christians of the Presbyterian, Baptist, Methodist and other denominations who worshiped at the Chapel of the Protestant Faculty of Theology in Djoungolo, was one day struck by the last line of the Baptist Church Covenant. After reading through the whole covenant which had replaced her meditation passage for the day, she was thrown back to the following lines:
“Since we have receive the Lord Jesus as our Saviour and have been baptised, we now before God and this Church agree…to be ready to serve in another church of the same faith when leaving this one”
She found herself wanting before this promise. Her deep concern for the Baptist Faith pushed her on 1th December 1972 to write a letter captioned “is yaounde fast becoming a hide out for Baptist chistians?”She sent this letter to the North American Baptist General Missionary Society Inc. whose General Secretary, Rev Richard Schilke, made copies to the Cameroon Baptist Mission (USA), the Evangelism Secretary of the CBM (USA) and Executive Secretary of the Cameroon Baptist Convention in Bamenda. Mrs Lydia E. Lantum’s letter had thus ignited the fire that set the NABGMS, the CBM (USA) and the Cameroon Baptist Convention ablaze for a Baptist church project in Yaounde. Rev Richard Schilke’s response of 29th December 1972(NABGMS), that of Rev Fred C. Folkerts (CBM Field Secretary) of 20th January 1973 and that of Rev Oryn Meinerts, (Evangelism Secretary) of 2nd January 1973.all bear eloquent testimony to this great initiative.
On May the 8th, 1973, during an Evangelism Evening held at the premises of the “Union des Eglises Baptises du Cameroun, (UEBC)” near the Radio House in Yaounde, a CBC delegation led by its Executive Secretary the Rev Samuel Ngum, and which included Rev F. Holzimmer (Evangelism Secretary) and Rev. Paul Bapi in charge of the Mayo Darle Field, sat with Baptist Christians living in Yaounde and elected a CBC Organising Committee headed by Mr Johnston N Gabuin for the new church project. This Committee had as major assignment, to lay the ground work for the planting of a CBC church in Yaounde the capital City. Its first move was the organisation of Sunday morning prayer meetings starting at 10 a.m. because it had no permanent meeting place, the Baptist prayer group met in members’ homes with each member who could do so, taking a turn to host it on Sunday. The first group meeting was held on September 23rd, 1973.
Meanwhile the population of English speaking Cameroonians in Yaounde kept increasing with the enrolment of more English speaking students in the Yaounde University and the transfer of more civil servants from former West Cameroon to Yaounde.
No immediate solution to the problem of a permanent meeting place was however found. In 1974, an idea came to the leaders of the group to write the Principal of the Government Bilingual Practising Grammar School close to the Higher Teacher Training School, ENS Yaounde, asking for permission to use the school premises as a temporal meeting place for Sunday worship. The Principal granted the Christians the use of one classroom for Sunday worship services. The classroom soon became too small to contain the increasing Christian population.
It became necessary to look for and build a more accommodating place of worship. The search for a land began and was intensified, the church leaders leaving no stone unturned. In 1980, their efforts were blessed with the acquisition of a piece of land in Etoug-Ebe neighbourhood with the help of a one time Baptist teacher Chief Okang today of blessed memory. The Yaounde Christians (64 in number at the time), through their Sunday offerings had so far treasured up the sum of five million (5,000,000) francs CFA for the land purchase, but this was not enough to pay for the 4,796 m2 of land at 2,800 CFA per square metre. The sum of eight million had to be found to make up the amount of 13,426,000 F. CFA for the land. Mr Samuel M. Ndiwane was delegated to meet CBC authorities for intervention. The Christians went on their knees each time they met, and prayed for a solution. His mission was successful. God heard their prayers and through the CBC, provided the needed balance. The land on which the church stands today was thus purchased. This was a living example of FAITH project.
While they still met at the schoolroom, the group was known as the Cameroon Baptist Convention Church Youth Centre Yaounde. It later became the Etoug-Ebe Baptist Church when worship started on the newly acquired piece of land in June 1981.
It all started when a gospel team from North America, accompanied by Rev. Ray Hoffman, Evangelism Secretary, planed to hold a crusade in Yaounde. This could not be done in the classroom which had so far served as place of worship. The Christians set to clearing down the thick bush and saying their first prayers on the new plot that day.
A large circular tent was hired from the national Centre from evangelism in Djoungolo for the crusade. The event was a great success. The Christians had enjoyed worshipping God in the tent, and no longer entertained the idea of going bag to the schoolroom. After the crusade, they asked to keep the tent for some more time, and it became a temporal place of worship.
It was during one the worship services in the tent that the late Dr Solomon Nfor Gwei made as strong appeal for Christians to give sacrificially so that a more accommodating place of worship could be built. Christians are know to have testified later that this appeal touched them to give even their taxi money and had to trek home to their houses. Theses appeals continued every Sunday until enough money was raised to construct a small chapel that could contain the than population of worshipers. As more Baptists in Yaounde discovered the new church, and with the latter’s evangelistic outreach, the membership of the church grew rapidly. The chapel soon became too small. A decision was taken to increase the size oh the chapel. Another extension was carried out soon afterwards but this solved the problem just for a short time, as the number of worshippers continued to increase. This went to under the dynamic leadership of Mr (now Dr) Peter T. Mabu who was later replaced by Dr (now Prof.) Johnson G. Jato as Church Chairman.
All this while the church had no Pastor. Brother Gregory Akenji was named Church Teacher, and played the ole of co-ordinating Sunday worship services. He preached and also scheduled Christians who were inspired to take turns on the pulpit every Sunday to preach God’s Word. In 1982, the first pastor, Elias Bongmba was called. He was proven a man of God. The Church soon had him ordained. In 1986 he left for further studies in the USA without spending even a night in the parsonage for the construction of which he had worked so hard. He was replaced as pastor by Martin Gemlack who was later ordained in the same church. When Rev. Martin left in 1989, the church extended a call to the young Pastor Donald Ndichafah, a promising young pastor who was just finalising his theological training in the Nigerian Baptist Theological Seminary Ogbomosho. He was ordained like his predecessors, and served till 1993 when he decided to go for further training. Though his dynamic leadership, the church grew from strength to strength with new churches and preaching stations springing up in the Yaounde Area and beyond. It was also during this period that the Yaounde Area was granted Field status by the CBC, precisely in 1991.
During this time the Christians were already making plans for a bigger house of worship befitting the national capital. Mr Jacob T. Taku had replaced Dr Johnson Jato as Church Chairman. The Church Board worked hard on the plans for the future Church building. These plans materialised in 1995 under the leadership of Dr Emmanuel Chiabi who had replaced Mr Jacob Taku as Church Chairman. The ground breaking for the construction for the construction of the new chapel was effected and construction work began immediately. The building committee under the leadership of the late Dr Solomon Nfor Gwei worked very hard, encouraging the Christians every Sunday to give sacrificially towards the construction of God’s house. Church wings took turns in organising and animating fund raising events for the purpose. The leadership of the deacons’ Board had again changed hands with Mr John Chu Enoh becoming the Appointed Deacon (the new appellation of Church Chairman). Pastor Isaac Mbeng had replaced Rev. Donald Ndichafah in September 1994 when the latter went back to school. Like the pastors before him, he had not been ordained before he came. The EBC organised his ordination along with that of Pastor George Mbongko who had been called in as second pastor with special assignment for the French service.
The Great Chapel with houses the Etoug-Ebe Baptist Church today is the fruit of the Faith of the Baptist Christians in Yaounde, Friends of the Church and the Cameroon Baptist Convention which, through its operation 1000, got Baptist Christians all over the country to be involved in the Yaounde project.
Achievements in Thirty Years:
1-) Membership Growth:
The church began with a little over 50 members in 1973. Today it counts close to 1500 worshipers, more than 700 of whom are registered members. Since its creation, hundreds of converts have been baptised.
In spite of the unstable nature of its members who are predominantly Government workers and students subjected to frequent transfers out of Yaounde, the Church has continued to grow numerically. Most important is the spiritual growth of its members. The rate of Christian commitment is greatly increasing. Through moving sermons followed by frequent altar calls, many have been touched and moved to give their lives to Christ. The Church is armed with a well-trained team of spiritual counsellors who are alert to their task of helping new converts to grow in their new found life. Hundreds of converts have been baptised into the membership of the Church.
View of newly baptized |
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View of participants during sunday service |
2-) Evangelistic Outreach: Church Planting
Initially established to provide Sunday worship facilities to the English speaking Baptist students, workers and their families living in Yaounde, the Etoug-Ebe Baptist Church soon discovered a vast mission’s territory not only within the city of Yaounde, but in the rest of French speaking Cameroon. Beginning with Yaounde (its Jerusalem) with the planting of its first off school, Faith Baptist Church Anguissa, which had started as a prayer group in the Ekounou of Pastor Samuel Tabufor. EBC under the pastoral leadership of the Rev. Donald Ndichafah embarked on an aggressive evangelistic outreach in the Mbam area leading to the reviving of the Ntui Baptist church, and the planting of new churches and preaching stations in Bafia, Bape, Goura, Nyamsong, Bilangkombe, Obala, Makenene. Pastor Samuel Tabufor played a leading role in evangelism in the Mbam area during this period. The Ebolowa Baptist Church in the South Province, the Bertoua Baptist Church in the Eastern Province and the Tonga Baptist Church in the Western Province are all babies of the Etoug-Ebe Baptist Church.
In 1989, the Church which has long desired to extend its outreach to the French speaking population, was blessed by a decision of the Baptist General Conference of North America to send the Rev Mike Gaston on a special assignment to help with church planting. Through his dynamic outreach strategy many of the French-speaking neighbours of the Church received Christ and joined the Church. It became necessary to institute a worship service in French for this new group of Christians who could not follow services in English. The first French service was held in October 1989. Rev. Mike Gaston’s team of service in Cameroon soon ended and it became necessary to have another pastor to shepherd this young group. Meanwhile, the Deacons’ Board had assigned Brother Jim Wanyu (then a deacon) to co-ordinate the French service. He was assisted by Brother Patrick Mbako. Being English speakers though bilingual, they had to groom young converts like Gabriel Takoudjou, Sofa Jacques, Magloire Koube and Joseph Mbonge to replace them. The French language ministry is a great success. Thanks need to go to the family of Dr Pierre Emmanuel Njock for remaining a strong pillar of this service.
The Bethel Baptist Church Etoudi is another fast growing offshoot of EBC. The recent organisation of an evangelical crusade in the Mendong neighbourhood by EBC, led to the creation of the Maranatha Baptist Church Mendong.
In assessing the evangelistic achievements of the CBC in Yaounde, the Covenant Baptist Church in Tsinga, founded through the initiative of the Rev. Donald Ndichafah, former Pastor of EBC, cannot be left out.
The Etoug-Ebe Baptist Church also initiated and saw through the reconciliation between the CBC and the Ndu and Nso Fields following a dispute which had kept the two Fields out of the Convention for 15 years, (1973 to 1988).
3-) Health and Education
In 1985, the CBC saw the need to cater not only for the spiritual, but also for the physical health of the Yaounde population by opening the Etoug-Ebe Health Centre. Sister Trudy Shatz was the pioneer Chief of post. She was later replaced by Sister Betty Mantay who in turn passed the command baton to Mrs Lydia Ngah.
The year 2001 saw the creation by the Church, of a Primary and Nursery School which has already sent out its first school leavers. The school caters not only for the academic, but also for the moral and spiritual up-bringing of the children.
One of the school batch |
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Ebc dispensary |
