22 Facts About Peter Akinola

Peter Akinola is the former bishop of Abuja and Archbishop of Province III, which covered the northern and central parts of the country.

Peter Akinola was a leading name of conservatives throughout the Anglican Communion, including the Convocation of Anglicans in North America.

Peter Akinola was born in 1944 to a Yoruba family in Abeokuta in southwestern Nigeria.

Peter Akinola's father died when he was four years old and due to financial pressures Akinola had to leave school early.

Peter Akinola learned carpentry and at twenty he had a successful furniture business and as patent-medicine seller.

Peter Akinola left his business, to study for the priesthood.

Peter Akinola studied at a Nigerian Anglican Seminary and was ordained a deacon in 1978 and a priest in 1979 in the Anglican Church of Nigeria.

Peter Akinola holds it one of his greatest successes to have created out of nothing a vibrant Anglican community there.

Peter Akinola was consecrated a bishop on 16 November 1989 and enthroned as the first Bishop of Abuja ten days later, at the inauguration of the new Diocese of Abuja on 26 November 1989.

Peter Akinola was given the National Award of Commander of the Order of the Niger in December 2003.

In 2006 Peter Akinola appeared on TIME magazine's list of the world's 100 most influential people in the category Leaders and Revolutionaries.

Peter Akinola was at one time president of the Christian Association of Nigeria, an ecumenical body bringing together 52 million Protestant, Catholic, and African independent Christians.

Peter Akinola was voted out of his position as national president of the Christian Association of Nigeria in June 2007, and replaced by the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Nigeria, who polled 72 votes to Peter Akinola's 33 votes.

In November 2009, Peter Akinola signed an ecumenical statement known as the Manhattan Declaration calling on evangelicals, Catholics and Orthodox not to comply with rules and laws permitting abortion, same-sex marriage and other matters that go against their religious consciences.

On 21 November 2015, Peter lost his Mother Janet Amoke Akinola.

In September 2005, Peter Akinola spoke out against the Anglican Episcopal Church of Brazil's deposition of an evangelical bishop and excommunication of over 30 priests.

On 12 November 2005, Peter Akinola signed a Covenant of Concordat with the Presiding Bishops of the Reformed Episcopal Church and the Anglican Province of America.

Peter Akinola refused to take Holy Communion in company with the Presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, both at the Primates Meeting at Dromantine in 2005 and Dar es Salaam in 2007 and, on the latter occasion, he issued a press release to publicise and explain his refusal and that of others associated with him.

Peter Akinola was among the Global South leaders who opposed the consecration of Gene Robinson, the first openly gay bishop in the Anglican Communion.

Since the Anglican Communion has historically been defined as those churches in communion with the See of Canterbury, whose archbishop is head of the Church of England and thus primus inter pares in the Anglican Communion, this led to speculation that Peter Akinola was positioning himself as a possible international leader of a more conservative church than the present Anglican Communion, which would no longer recognise the authority or primacy of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Peter Akinola reportedly ignored requests from both the presiding bishop and the Archbishop of Canterbury not to do this.

However, the timing of the requests and their intent, relative to Peter Akinola's departure from Nigeria, is a contention.