We will use the Gospel of Christ to subdue activities of witchcraft –Rev. Fr. Thomas Adamu

From:Femi Oyelola in Kaduna

Following the prolonged destructive altitude of native doctors and herbalists via the use of witchcraft, the Catholic

Archdiocese of Kaduna yesterday resolved to continue with the use of the Gospel of Christ to subdue activities of witchcraft, stressing that the Federal Government should adopt the position of the Anambra State Government in arresting all native doctors and decisively tackle demonic herbalists.

Speaking at the 2025 General Assembly of Kaduna Catholic Archdiocese on the Gospel Response to witchcraft, the lead speaker Rev. Fr. Thomas Adamu, a priest of the Catholic Diocese of  Kafanchan and a Psychotherapist said that “the Gospel acknowledged that witchcraft exists, it is there and it poses a a lot of challenges to the church.

“One of the elements of witchcraft is the use of magic, which can be used positively, does not destroy anybody, and is used for protection and others. But the negative magic is used to harm other people.

“ The gospel says the aspect of the good magic that it frowns at is where supernatural powers used are not from the Almighty God. If, for example, the herbalist goes and plugs a particular leave and combines two, three, or four roots and gives you to drink, if he does just that, there are no issues with it.

“If the magician plugs mango leaves and guava leaves and gives one to drink for malaria, the church has no issues with that.  But where the sorcerer uses other evil powers in connection with this herb, that is where the Church has a problem. It’s deceptive and exploitative thereby adding to the people’s suffering.”

“We believe that the reason Anambra State Governor Professor Charles Soludo arrested the herbalists in Anambra state is because of the harm they put on people in the cause of the practice of their medicine.

“ Some of them create more problems than they are trying to solve. Some of them extract people’s eyes  and body parts for the supernatural powers to support their medications.” Fr. Adamu pointed.”

On her part, Rev. Sr. Juliana Ekwuanya advocated for education and learnedness, which helped in creating awareness that tackles witchcraft and blasphemy. Once we have sound minds through learning, these beliefs will disappear, so this hard time, the people need firmness in the Gospel and Education to triumph over witchcraft.

Also speaking, Monica P.Z Ango, the National  President of the Confraternity of Christian Mothers, said the gospel response to this witchcraft is to acknowledge God as the author and finisher of all things.