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| (Prophet Ayo Babalola) |
Family Background:
Joseph Ayodele Babalola was born of Yoruba parents, David
Rotimi and Madam Marta Talabi on April 25, 1904 who belonged to the Anglican
Church. The family lived at Odo-Owa in Ilofa, a small town about ninety
kilometres from Ilorin in Kwara State, Nigeria. His father was the Baba Ijo "churchfather"
of the C.M.S. Church at Odo-Owa. Pastor Medayese wrote in his book "Itan
Igbedide Woli Ayo Babalola" that mysterious circumstances surrounded the
birth of Babalola. On that day, it was believed that a strange and mighty
object exploded and shook the clouds. On January 18, 1914, young Babalola was
taken by his brother M. O. Rotimi, a Sunday school teacher in the C.M.S. Church
at Ilofa, who later took him to Osogbo. Babalola started school at Ilofa and
got as far as standard five at All Saints' School, Osogbo. However, he quit
school when he decided to learn a trade and became a motor mechanic apprentice.
Again, he did not continue long in this vocation before joining the Public
Works Department (PWD). He was among the road workers who constructed the road
from Igbara-Oke to Ilesa, working as a steamroller driver.
Ministerial Call:
Babalola's was a specific and personal call. Babalola's
strange experience started on the night of September 25th, 1928 when he
suddenly became restless and could not sleep. This went on for a week and he
had no inkling of the causes of such a strange experience. The climax came one
day when he was, as usual, working on the Ilesa-Igbara-Oke road. Suddenly the
steam roller’s engine stopped to his utter amazement. There was no visible
mechanical problem, and Joseph became confused and perplexed. He was in this
state of confusion when a great voice "like the sound of many waters"
called him three times. The voice was loud and clear and it told him that he
would die if he refused to heed the divine call to go into the world and
preach. Babalola did not want to listen to this voice and he responded like
many of the Biblical prophets, who, when they were called out by Yahweh as
prophets, did not normally yield to the first call. So, Babalola gave in only
after he had received the assurance of divine guidance. To answer the call, he
had to resign his appointment with the Public Works Department. Mr. Fergusson,
the head of his unit, tried to dissuade him from resigning but the young man
was bent on going on the Lord's mission. The same voice came to Joseph a second
time asking him to fast for seven days. The experience led him to a personal
retreat in the home of Joseph Fapounda a Christian leader in Christ Missionary
Society in Ipetu- Ijesa in Ogun State Nigeria. In a vision he had, Jesus
appeared to him in a white robe along with a very tall man who revealed that it
was this Jesus who asked me to speak with you. The man in a dazzling robe spoke
at length about the mission he was to embark upon. The man also told him of the
persecutions he would face and at the same time assured him of God's protection
and victory. A hand prayer bell was given to Babalola as a symbol. He was told
that the sound of the bell would always drive away evil spirits. He was also
given a bottle of "life-giving water" to heal all manners of
sickness. Consequently, wherever and whenever he prayed into water for
therapeutic purposes, effective healing was procured for those who drank the
water. Thus, Babalola became a prophet and a man with extraordinary powers.
Enabled by the power of the Holy Spirit he could spend several weeks in prayer.
It was remarked by Elder Abraham Owoyemi of Odo-Owa that the prophet regularly
saw angels who delivered divine messages to him. An angel appeared in one of
his prayers and forbade him to wear caps. After a successful first crusade at
Yaba, he later joined Faith Tabernacle in Lagos, which was affiliated to an
American Divine Healing Church.
Acts of Prophet Babalola:
During one of his prayer sessions an angel appeared to him
and gave him a big yam which he ordered him to eat. The angel told him that the
yam was the tuber with which God fed the whole world. He further revealed that God
had granted unto him the power to deliver those who were possessed of evil
spirits in the world. He was directed to go first to Odo-Owa and start
preaching. He was to arrive in the town on a market day, cover his body with
palm fronds and disfigure himself with charcoal paints. In October 1928, he
entered the town in the manner described and was taken for a mad man. Babalola
immediately started preaching and prophesying. He told the inhabitants of
Odo-Owa about an impending danger if they did not repent. He was arrested and
taken to the district officer at Ilorin for allegedly disturbing the peace. The
district officer later released him when the allegations could not be proven.
However, it was said that a few days later, there was an outbreak of smallpox
in the town. The man whose prophecies and messages were once rejected was
quickly sought for. He went around praying for the victims and they were all
healed. Pa David Rotimi, Babalola's father, had been instrumental in the
establishment of a C.M.S. Church in Odo-Owa. Babalola organized regular prayer
meetings in this church which many people attended because of the miracles God
performed through him. Among the regulars was Isaiah Oluyemi who later saw the
wrath of Bishop Smith of Ilorin diocese. Information had reached the bishop
that almost all members of the C.M.S. Church in Ilofa were seeing visions,
speaking in tongues and praying vigorously. Babalola and the visionaries were
allegedly ordered by Bishop Smith to leave the church. But Babalola did not leave
the town until June 1930.On an invitation from Daniel Ajibola, Babalola went to
Lagos. Elder Daniel Ajibola at that time was working in Ibadan where he was a
member of the Faith Tabernacle Congregation. He introduced Prophet Babalola to
Pastor D. O. Odubanjo, one of the leaders of the Faith Tabernacle in Lagos.
Senior Pastor Esinsinade who was then the president of the Faith Tabernacle was
invited to see Babalola. After listening to the details of his call and his
ministry, the Faith Tabernacle leaders warmly received the young prophet into
their midst. Babalola had not yet been baptized by immersion and Senior Pastor
Esinsinade emphasized that he needed to go through that rite. Pastor Esinsinade
then baptized him in the lagoon at the back of the Faith Tabernacle Church
building at 51, Maloney Bridge Street, Lagos. Babalola returned to Odo-Owa a
few days after that and Elder (later Pastor) J. A. Medayese paid him a visit.
The news of the conversion of the new prophet reached Pastor K. P. Titus at
Araromi in Yaba, present Kwara State. Pastor Titus was a teacher and preacher
at the Sudan Interior Mission which was then thriving at Yaba. He invited
Prophet Babalola for a revival service. Joseph Ayodele Babalola while in Yaba,
performed mighty works of healing. Many Muslims and Christians from other
denominations and some traditional religionists were converted to the new faith
during the revival. The fact that Babalola did not use the opportunity to
establish a separate Christian organization despite his marvellous evangelical success
must be puzzling to historians, but his intention was not to start a new
church. He declared to his followers that he had registered his membership with
the Faith Tabernacle, the society which had him baptized in Lagos. He thus
persuaded them to become members of the Faith Tabernacle. To facilitate this,
he went to Lagos to confer with the leaders, especially as he was not yet well
acquainted with the doctrines, tenets, and administration of the church. In
1931, Faith Tabernacle of Nigeria affiliated with the British Apostolic Church
to protect itself from colonial persecution. Then following a schism in the
Apostolic Church about 1940, Babalola went with a new independent church,
Christ Apostolic Church (CAC), where he continued his healing and revivalist
activities until his death. The CAC regards Babalola as an apostle and his
revival ministry as the beginning of the church. A CAC retreat centre was built
where Babalola was first called in 1928.
Revival at Oke-Oye:
There was a controversy among the leaders of the Faith
Tabernacle in Nigeria over some doctrines. In the midst of it were, in
particular, the Ilesa and Oyan branches of the tabernacle. The Oyan branch was
under the supervision of Pastor J. A. Babatope, a notable Anglican teacher,
before his conversion and later, one of the outstanding leaders of the Faith
Tabernacle in Nigeria. Issues like the use of western and traditional drugs
versus divine healing, polygamy and whether polygamous husbands should be
allowed to partake of the Lord's Super were among those doctrines that needed
to be agreed on. These issues had caused dissension at the IIesa Tabernacle and
in order to avoid a split, a delegation of peacemakers made up of all leading
Faith Tabernacle pastors, was sent to Ilesa. It was headed by Pastor J. B.
Esinsinade of Ijebu-Ode, president of the General Headquarters of the movement
and D. O. Odubanjo of the Lagos Missionary Headquarters. The Ilesa meeting was
scheduled for the 9th and l0th of July, 1930. The Apostolic Council of
Jerusalem in A.D. 48 and other important church councils are precedents in
seeking ecclesiastical direction on matters affecting the life and peace of the
church.
His Missionary Journeys:
After the great revival of Oke-Oye, the prophet was directed
by the Holy Spirit to go out on further missionary journeys, but even before
this, people from other parts of the country had been spreading the glad
tidings of Oke-Oye, Ilesa's great revival, to other parts of the country.
Accompanied by some followers, Joseph Babalola went to Offa, in present Kwara
State. Characteristically, people turned out to hear his preaching and see
miracles. The Muslims in Offa became jealous and for that reason incited the
members of the community against him. To avoid bloodshed he was compelled to
leave. He next stopped in Usi in Edition land for his evangelical mission and
he performed many works of healing. From Usi he and his men moved to
Efon-Alaaye, also in Edition land, where they received a warm reception from
the Oba Alaaye of Efon. An entire building was provided for their comfort.
Babalola requested an open space for prayer from the Oba who willingly and
cheerfully gave him the privilege to choose a site. Consequently, the prophet
and his men chose a large area at the outskirts of town. Traditionally the
place was a forbidden forest because of the evil spirits that were believed to
inhabit it. The Oba tried to dissuade Babalola and his men from entering the
forbidden forest, but Babalola insisted on establishing his prayer ground
there. The missionaries entered the bush, cleared it and consecrated it as a
prayer ground. When no harm came upon them, the inhabitants of Efon were
inspired to accept the new faith in large numbers. Babalola's evangelistic
success in Efon-Alaaye was a remarkable one. Archdeacon H. Dalimore from
Ado-Ekiti and some white pastors from Ogbomoso Baptist Seminary were believed
to have come to see for themselves the "wonder-working prophet" at Efon.
Both Dalimore and the Baptist pastors reportedly asked some men from St.
Andrew's College, Oyo and Baptist Seminary, Ogbomoso to assist in the work. The
success of the revival was accelerated by the conversion of both the Oba of
Efon and the Oba of Aramoko. They were both baptized with the names, Solomon
Aladejare Agunsoye and Hezekiah Adeoye respectively. After this event, news of
the revival at Efon spread to other parts of Ekiti land. The missionaries also
visited other towns in the present Ondo State. Among them were Owo, Ikare and
Oka. Babalola retreated to his home town in Odo-Owa to fortify himself
spiritually. While he was at Odo-Owa, a warrant for his arrest was issued from
Ilorin. He was arrested for preaching against witches, a practice which had
caused some trouble in Otuo in present Bendel State. He was sentenced to jail
for six months in Benin City in March 1932. After serving the jail term, he
went back to Efon Alaaye. One Mr. Cyprian E. Ufon came from Creek Town in
Calabar to entreat Babalola to "come over to Macedonia and help."
Ufon had heard about Babalola and his works and wanted him to preach in Creek
Town. After seeking God's direction, the prophet followed Ufon to Creek Town.
His campaign there was very successful. From Creek Town, Babalola visited Duke
town and a plantation where a national church existed at the time. Certain
members of this church received the gift of the Holy Spirit as Babalola was
preaching to them and were baptized. When the prophet returned from the Calabar
area, he settled down for a while. In 1935 he married Dorcas. The following
year Babalola, accompanied by Evangelist Timothy Bababusuyi, went to the Gold
Coast. On arrival at Accra, he was recognized by some people who had seen him
at the Great Revival in Ilesa. After a successful campaign in the Gold Coast he
returned to Nigeria. Babalola was genuinely dissatisfied with the increasing
materialistic and sinful existence of his time because of the western
civilization influence on society grew. Joseph Ayo Babalola slept in the Lord
in 1959.
Culled from Facebook.
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