Nigeria: Churches Forced to Close for Being Too Noisy
- Updated Jul 07, 2016
Churches and other gathering places in Nigeria are being forced to shut down due to excessive noise.
Christianity is growing in Nigeria, and there are many Christians in the city of Lagos which has a population of nearly 18 million people.
According to ChristianToday.com, most of the churches that are being targeted for being too noisy are not large, well-established churches but those that meet in makeshift buildings without sound-proof walls.
Churches aren’t the only facilities being forced to shut down or cut back on noise due to noise restrictions. Mosques, hotels, and restaurants have also been targeted.
Bola Shabi, general manager of Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency, said that 70 churches, 20 mosques, and about 11 hotels, club houses and beer parlors have been forced to close as part of the effort to make the city of Lagos noise-free by 2020.
"We've been so strict now that we are not going to even allow make-shift churches in the state any longer,” said Shabi. “What I mean by make-shift, using tents and uncompleted building, we are not going to allow that any further in the state."
Nigeria has a Christian population of 85 million, and more than 18 million of these are Anglican Christians, which gives the Nigerian Anglican Church significant influence around the world.
Publication date: Jule 7, 2016
