The Warri people of southern Nigeria had a Christian missionary encounter in the 16th century but there is scarcely any local mention of it. When the Anglican and Catholic missionaries arrived the Nigerian shores in the 19th century, the Christianity introduced in Warri in the 16th century was already extinct. This is quite uncommon when compared to other pioneer missionary encounters in Nigeria. Some have ascribed this extinction to the methodology of the missionaries. This article argues that the lack of empathy and sacrificial commitment of some of the missionaries played a significant role in stiffening the consolidation and continuity of 16th-century evangelization in Warri.
Okechukwu Hilary Ocho (Sun,) studied this question.