Published 4th May, 2022

By Daniel Ojukwu

The Kaduna State chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has slammed Ade Abraham, pastor of Christ High Commission Ministry, Kaduna State, for collecting N310,000 from church members with a promise ‘to fly them to heaven’.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, John Hayab, CAN Chairman in the state, described Abraham as a faceless character who was capable of ridiculing the Christian religion.

Hayab also said before now, he had neither heard of Abraham nor his church in any of the 23 local government areas of the state. He observed that the pastor’s offer of a ticket to heaven “is cheaper than the ransom Kaduna bandits ask their victims”.

FIJ earlier exclusively eported how Abraham led an unknown number of congregants from its base in Kaduna to a camp in Omuo-Ekiti in Ekiti State.

The pastor would ask each member to pay him N310,000 before they would be allowed into the camp where “the gate of heaven will open for all of them to fly to heaven”.

In Hayab’s statement, he warned congregants to be vigilant and to always study the scriptures before accepting any teaching.

“The attention of the CAN Kaduna State Chapter has been drawn to the news in circulation in some sections of the media about one Pastor described as Ade Abraham, offering to take his members to heaven if they pay a fee of N310,000,” the statement reads.

“Even though Pastor Ade’s offer of a ticket to heaven is cheaper than the ransom Kaduna bandits ask their victims, sadly, CAN has not found anyone who knows the location of the said church or established a church in Kaduna town with that name or in any local government area in the state.

“A faceless character like Ade Abraham can easily give the faith of the community a bad name, especially that CAN [sic] cannot trace his whereabouts or find any useful information about his being in Kaduna state.

“Is it possible that Ade Abraham before becoming spiritual had lived in Kaduna or did he come to Kaduna for a visit? How can we have such a pastor and nobody knows him only for us to read about his drama in the media whereas the journalists in Kaduna do not have this information?

“CAN Kaduna State appeals to whosoever knows pastor Ade Abraham or the location of a church in Kaduna linked to the alleged person to furnish our association with the information so that we could work with security agencies to prevent what could further compound the security challenges faced in the state.”

Hayab said while CAN will not interfere in the teachings of pastors and priests, it will not also hesitate to ‘expose fake preachers’ when necessary.

He also called on relevant security operatives to properly investigate the activities of Abraham.

“CAN will not decide what sermon her priests should preach but CAN will not hesitate to expose fake preachers when she finds one, especially when the sermon contradicts the teachings contained in the Holy Scriptures,” Hayab said.

“CAN, therefore, calls for a proper investigation of Pastor Ade Abraham’s identity, and the location of his ministry to put the record straight to avoid creating panic and misleading the public.

“If Pastor Ade Abraham’s camp is in Ekiti and the sacred place where God is coming to rapture those who have paid their rapture fees, why is Kaduna in the story or does he have another strip that the rapture will happen in Kaduna?

“CAN wish to advise the Christian faith not to rush into accepting every kind of teaching without first studying the Scriptures to understand if what the preacher says is true like the Berean believers who studied the Scriptures, day and night, to confirm what the Apostle Paul was saying was true.”

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