Christmas: Clerics, council bosses preach love, peace, unity

The clerics and council bosses who made this known in their separate Christmas messages extolled the virtues of Jesus Christ, advocating a harmonious relationship between residents regardless of their religion, ethnic or tribal differences.
In his message, the Chairman of Gwagwalada Area Council, Alhaji Abubakar Jibrin Giri, while congratulating Christians, cautioned the youth in the area not to use the Christmas period to engage themselves in any social vices.
Similarly, the Chairman of Kwali Area Council, Mr. Ibrahim Daniel, said the Christmas connotes love, “for God so, love the world, the desire of that love was in the heart of God and such coming should serve as a symbol of love for the people of Kwali Area Council because where there is no love, then there wouldn’t be any development.”
The Chairman, Abaji Area Council in the FCT, Alhaji Yahaya Garba Gawu, also called on Christians across the nation to pray for the peaceful coexistence of Nigerians.
He urged residents of the council to use the Christmas celebrations period for sober reflections.
Meanwhile, in his homily, the Parish priest of the St. Mary’s Catholic Church, Karu, Reverend Father Paul Ofoha, implored residents to imbibe the spirit of sharing in their deeds.
“Each Christian should try to reach out to both Christians and none Christians in order to exchange that divine life of Jesus Christ, which is peace, love, and justice. Once we live in that harmony with one another, this country would be a peaceful country,” he said.
Likewise, the minister in charge of First Baptist Church, Gwagwalada, Abuja Reverend Julius Abiola Ayotunde, also advised Christians to use the  occasion of Christmas in praying for the continued corporate existence of the country.
The clergy identified sacrifice as one of the significance of Christmas, admonishing the nation’s leaders to always imbibe the spirit of sacrifice for the good of the county.
He also stressed the need for unity of purpose among politicians to realize the dream of the nation’s founding fathers.