St. Martin's Anglican Church
Ogu, Okrika

The craving for a new Archdeaconry from the parent Okrika Archdeaconry culminated in an application on 19th February, 2000 to the Okrika Archdeaconry Board. The Diocesan Board, meeting at St. Mary's Church, Kalio-Ama on 16th March, 2000, appointed a four-member inspection committee — Ven. S. I. Oyer, Sir Uche Okiria, Sir Emmanuel Georgewill and Mrs. Ndieba Charles. Their favourable report led to the Board's approval for the Okrika South Archdeaconry to become operative with effect from 1st January, 2001.

On Saturday, 27th January, 2001, the Okrika South Archdeaconry was inaugurated at St. Martin's Anglican Church, Ogu, with Ven. D. Young-Harry as Pioneer Archdeacon.

A legendary slave, named Long-John Obonna, enjoys the fortuitous honour of founding the Christian civilization in Ogu between 1880 and 1881. Obonna was the bondservant of a Bonny chief who — resenting his slave's entanglement in the new religion — sold him to his friend from Ogu, Chief Ogu Kune, who returned with the fanatic to Ogu.

No sooner had Obonna settled in his new environment than he began propagating the faith with such effrontery as to arouse the envious malice of idol worshippers. He was moved from the Igio quarters to the Atemie quarters, where Chief Omo Atemie made available the house sheltering his mother's tomb for the gathering of converts. Through pious conduct and bold oratory, Obonna made disciples of many powerful citizens. The church grew remarkably, especially after the 1899 smallpox epidemic — when Christians prayed openly and the plague was miraculously terminated while idol sacrifices yielded no relief.

The community allocated to the Christians the dreaded "Opueje Kalanoju" — twin infants' burial ground — hoping they would be consumed by its spirits. The victors disappointed their detractors by undertaking forest clearance and land reclamation, erecting a large thatch-roof mud-wall temple. In 1904, Rev. J. P. Max Cole, Vicar of Okrika District, consecrated the church by the name of St. Martin's.

As the church grew, a prefabricated structure was ordered from England and reassembled at Ogu. By 1936 it too had outlived its utility; funds donated by visiting Bishop Gelsthorpe were reserved to build a new temple at Tende-Ama. On 9th March, 1946, Bishop E. T. Dimieari dedicated a T-shaped concrete brick building at Tende-Ama "to serve as school on week days and as church on Sundays." The present majestic edifice was dedicated on 12th November, 1966 by Rev. C. J. Patterson.

St. Martin's attained Parish status in 1960 and District status in 1963. It is rightly referred to as the "Big Church" or "Mother Church" of Ogu — producer of the founders of the other churches in the community.