IT IS WRITTEN :
19Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. 20Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. 21Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good. (Romans 12:19-21)
43Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. 44But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; 45That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. 46For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? (Matthew 5:43-46)
14Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not. 17Recompense to no man evil for evil….. Romans 12
Nigeria Christians 'to defend churches from Boko Haram'
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-16350635
28 December 2011 Last updated at 23:57 GMT
Nigerian Christians will have "no other option" but to defend themselves if attacks by Islamist militants continue, church leaders have said.
The Christian Association of Nigeria said the Boko Haram group had declared war with its recent violence.
More than 40 people were killed in attacks on churches in northern and central areas on Christmas Day.
Since then, some 90,000 people have fled their homes amid clashes between Boko Haram and police in Damaturu.
Earlier on Wednesday, six children and an adult were injured when a homemade bomb was thrown into an Islamic school in the southern Delta state.
A police spokesman said the bomb had been thrown from a moving car - it was not clear who was behind the attack, which has raised fears of retaliatory vigilante strikes.
BBC Africa correspondent Karen Allen says Africa's most populous nation and biggest oil producer faces the spectre of sectarian violence between the largely Muslim north and mostly Christian south.
Muslim leaders have, however, moved to downplay the prospect of communal clashes.
'Declaration of war'
"The consensus is that the Christian community nationwide will be left with no other option than to respond appropriately if there are any further attacks on our members, churches and property," said the leader of the Christian Association of Nigeria, an umbrella group of the country's churches.
Boko Haram: Timeline of terror
• 2002: Founded
• 2009: Hundreds killed when Maiduguri police stations stormed
• 2009: Boko Haram leader Mohammed Yusuf captured by army, handed to police, later found dead
• Sep 2010: Freed hundreds of prisoners from Maiduguri jail
• Dec 2010: Bombed Jos, killing 80; blamed for New Year's Eve attack on Abuja barracks
• 2010-2011: Dozens killed in Maiduguri shootings
• Nov 2011: Co-ordinated bomb and gun attacks in Yobe and Borno states
• Dec 2011: Series of bomb attacks on Christmas Day kills dozens
•
Ayo Oritsejafor was speaking at the St Theresa Church outside the capital, Abuja, where 35 people died in the Christmas Day bombings, the AFP news agency reports.
He said the attacks were "considered as a declaration of war on Christians and Nigeria as an entity," and that while he did not want to encourage acts of revenge, "Christians should protect themselves... in any way they can".
Mr Oritsejafor said the lack of response by Muslim leaders was an "abdication of their responsibilities", and that the Christian community was also "fast losing confidence in government's ability to protect our rights".
Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, who is a Christian, has held urgent meetings with Muslim and Christian leaders in an attempt to restore calm.
On Tuesday, Nigeria's main Muslim cleric, the Sultan of Sokoto, denounced the Christmas Day attacks and called for calm.
"I want to assure all Nigerians that there is no conflict between Muslims and Christians, between Islam and Christianity," said Muhammad Sa'ad Abubakar.
Boko Haram, which denies reports it has links to al-Qaeda, has said it carried out the Christmas Day attacks.
Last week, its militants were involved in heavy gun battles with government troops in the north-eastern city of Damaturu.
A state emergency management official said the clashes had displaced 90,000 people and that the entire district of Pompomari had been emptied as residents fled.
Boko Haram, which means "Western education is forbidden", wants the imposition of strict Sharia law in Nigeria.
The group carried out an August 2011 suicide attack on the UN headquarters in Abuja, in which more than 20 people were killed.
It was also responsible for a string of bomb blasts in the central city of Jos on Christmas Eve 2010.
Who are Nigeria's Boko Haram Islamists?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-13809501
By Farouk Chothia BBC African Service
29 December 2011 Last updated at 09:51 GMT
Nigeria's militant Islamist group Boko Haram - which has caused havoc in Africa's most populous country through a wave of bombings - is fighting to overthrow the government and create an Islamic state.
Its followers are said to be influenced by the Koranic phrase which says: "Anyone who is not governed by what Allah has revealed is among the transgressors".
Boko Haram promotes a version of Islam which makes it "haram", or forbidden, for Muslims to take part in any political or social activity associated with Western society.
This includes voting in elections, wearing shirts and trousers or receiving a secular education.
Boko Haram regards the Nigerian state as being run by non-believers, even when the country had a Muslim president.
Boko Haram leader Mohammed Yusuf was killed after his arrest
The group's official name is Jama'atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda'awati wal-Jihad, which in Arabic means "People Committed to the Propagation of the Prophet's Teachings and Jihad".
But residents in the north-eastern city of Maiduguri, where the group had its headquarters, dubbed it Boko Haram.
Loosely translated from the local Hausa language, this means "Western education is forbidden".
Boko originally means fake but came to signify Western education, while haram means forbidden.
Since the Sokoto caliphate, which ruled parts of what is now northern Nigeria, Niger and southern Cameroon, fell under British control in 1903, there has been resistance among the area's Muslims to Western education.
Many Muslim families still refuse to send their children to government-run "Western schools", a problem compounded by the ruling elite which does not see education as a priority.
Audacious
Against this background, the charismatic Muslim cleric, Mohammed Yusuf, formed Boko Haram in Maiduguri in 2002. He set up a religious complex, which included a mosque and an Islamic school.
Many poor Muslim families from across Nigeria, as well as neighbouring countries, enrolled their children at the school.
But Boko Haram was not only interested in education. Its political goal was to create an Islamic state, and the school became a recruiting ground for jihadis to fight the state.
In 2009, Boko Haram carried out a spate of attacks on police stations and other government buildings in Maiduguri.
This led to shoot-outs on Maiduguri's streets. Hundreds of Boko Haram supporters were killed and thousands of residents fled the city.
Nigeria's security forces eventually seized the group's headquarters, capturing its fighters and killing Mr Yusuf.
His body was shown on state television and the security forces declared Boko Haram finished.
But its fighters have regrouped under a new leader and in 2010, they attacked a prison in Maiduguri, freeing hundreds of the group's supporters.
Boko Haram's trademark has been the use of gunmen on motorbikes, killing police, politicians and anyone who criticises it, including clerics from other Muslim traditions and a Christian preacher.
The group has also staged several more audacious attacks in different parts of northern Nigeria, showing that it is establishing a presence across the region and fuelling tension between Muslims and Christians.
These reportedly include the 2011 Christmas Day bombings on the outskirts of Abuja and in the north-eastern city of Damaturu, a 2010 New Year's Eve attack on a military barracks in Abuja, several explosions around the time of President Goodluck Jonathan's inauguration in May 2011, followed by the bombing of the police headquarters and the UN headquarters in Abuja.
The attacks have raised global concern, with a US Congressional report - released in November 2011 - warning that Boko Haram was an "emerging threat" to the US and its interests.
The report said Boko Haram may be forging ties with al-Qaeda-linked groups in Africa, but the group denies this.
Analysts say northern Nigeria has a history of spawning groups similar to Boko Haram.
The threat will disappear only if the Nigerian government manages to reduce the region's chronic poverty and builds an education system which gains the support of local Muslims, the analysts say.
