JOY! The Centennial Anniversary of the Alliance of Guinea

Photo by Ewien van Bergeijk

JOY! This is the single word that can describe the Centennial Celebration of the Alliance Church of Guinea. The week-long celebration took place in three cities full of joy and gratitude for God’s love and faithfulness toward the Guinean people.

The first celebration took place in Baro on January 19, exactly 100 years after the first mission station was established in that small village. Rev. Celestin Koffi preached in this gathering, which was held in an open field with hundreds in attendance. This is the village where the first Alliance missionaries found the “man of peace,” after searching and visiting many villages in the region. The grandson of this “man of peace” also participated in the celebration. The highlight in Baro was the testimony of many older women who graduated from the school established by the mission in 1946 to provide education specifically designed for young girls. In 2017, BBC listed Guinea as one of the ten toughest places for girls to go to school (10 toughest places for girls to go to school).

On January 20th, the second celebration took place in the nearby city of Kankan. More than a thousand were gathered in the Youth Center to hear Dr. Mabiala Kenzo bring the message and to sing and dance in joy and worship.

Finally, the great closing ceremony of the Centennial Anniversary was held on January 23rd in the capital city of Conakry. Dr. Jura Yanagihara preached in this last ceremony in which the highlight occurred after the official celebration was over. Hundreds of joyful brothers and sisters sang and danced for hours, expressing their joy and gratitude to the Lord.

Dr. John Stumbo, the president of the C&MA of the United States, and the presidents of the Alliance Churches of West and Central Africa were present for this week-long celebration. Dr. Stumbo recounted the vision that A.B. Simpson had in 1882 to reach out the region along the Niger River. Simpson’s dream came to fruition in the year he passed away. From that small beginning, many missionaries have followed, and an autonomous national church was established in 1962 (John Stumbo Video Blog about the Alliance in Guinea).

“L’Eglise Protestante Evangélique de Guinée (C&MA)” has now more than thirty-five thousand baptized members serving in more than six hundred churches. The national church also runs two theological schools and has started its cross-cultural missionary effort.

American, Canadian and Dutch Alliance missionaries continue to labor in this country where only 0.69% of the population is evangelical and 87% of the population belong to the 30 less reached people groups.

Author: Jura Yanagihara

Edited by: Dick Lawyer