Talking about religion is usually a very sensitive topic, as many people guard their respective religions jealously. It Is not often you see people born into a particular religion convert to another religion.
Nonetheless, it happens as some people change their religion for various reasons.
In some cases, the new converts face persecution and sometimes ostracism by their families or society especially when one converts in a society where they predominantly practice a particular religion.
In this article, I will be talking about Nigerian celebrities who converted from one religion to another.
1. Bolanle Ninalowo
Bolanle Ninalowo is a Nigerian actor and film producer who stars in both English and Yoruba movies.
The hunky actor was born into a staunch Muslim family but converted to Christianity some years ago.
According to him, he converted when he was going through dark times; troubled and frustrated. He said that period, his parents and family members who were all Muslims could not help him.
In a bid to find solace, he started reading the Bible and began to understand better how life works. He claimed the Bible saved him. He said though he has not been to the church, he renews his covenant with God in his room. He concluded by saying he reads the Bible a lot and it has become his life manual.
2. Adunni Ade
Adunni Ade is a Nigerian actress and model who stars in both English and Yoruba movies. The biracial actress who is born to a Nigerian father and a German mother came to the limelight after starring in a Yoruba movie “You and I” in 2013.
The actress who is from a polygamous home revealed in a post on Instagram that her father was a Muslim but her mother, stepmother, and stepsisters are Christians while her stepbrothers are Muslims.
According to her, her father gave her the liberty to choose any religion of her choice. She said she has been a Christian and has been to church many times and has worshipped in different churches. However, she has never left Islam.
She said at first, she was afraid about what her folks will say if she returned to Islam after many years. However, she summoned courage and went back to Islam, and since then she claimed she has felt fulfilled and happier and has received more blessings.
The beautiful actress who has two lovely sons from her former relationship said her eldest son practices Islam as well.
3. Lizzy Anjorin
Elizabeth Aishat Anjorin better known as Lizzy Anjorin is a Nigerian actress, producer, and entrepreneur who stars in mainly Yoruba movies.
According to her, the name Elizabeth was given to her by her father who was a Christian, and the name Aishat was given to her by her mother who was a Muslim, so she grew up with both religions. She said while she was growing up, she went to church because of her father as she didn’t have a choice at that time but she has always had an interest in Islam.
Immediately after her father’s death, she switched over to Islam which was her mum’s religion, and adopted the Islamic dressing. She said though she has been practicing both religions before she has now chosen to focus on Islam.
4. Fathia Balogun
Fathia Balogun is a Nigerian actress, producer, director and filmmaker who stars in mainly Yoruba movies and occasionally in English movies.
The popular actress whose maiden name is Fathia Williams hails from Urhobo, Delta State, and was born into a Christian home. She was married to actor Saheed Balogun but unfortunately, the marriage crashed a few years ago. The union was blessed with two children.
According to report, she converted to Islam shortly before she married Saheeed. She said her children are practicing Muslim. In 2015, she visited Mecca for the holy pilgrimage and has been bestowed with the title Alhaja.
5. Biola Ige
Biola Ige is a Nigerian actress and entrepreneur who has starred in a couple of movies.
The beautiful actress who was controversial at the earlier stage of her acting career because of the daring roles she played in her movies converted from Christianity to Hinduism which is rare in this part of the world. She has not been active in the movie industry for a while now as she used to be. This is not unconnected with her health issue she had some years back.
In 2010, when her career was rising very fast, she fell ill in late 2010 but she still worked till 2011 until it got to a time she couldn’t work again. She said she did a series of tests and she was diagnosed with a thyroid-related problem. She lost weight and her complexion changed. She said it was a hormonal problem as she had excess iodine in her thyroid gland, making the gland overwork itself.
In 2012, she traveled to India for treatment and eventually regained her health. In an interview some years ago, she said she traveled to India for treatment as well as to worship as she worships as a Hindu. She said she was already practicing Hinduism before she traveled to India and she doesn’t see anything wrong in following any religion of your choice and that it is a free world, and she chose Hinduism where she claimed she found peace.
6. Adewale Ayuba
Adewale Ayuba is a renowned Nigerian musician, songwriter, performer, dancer, actor, and writer.
The Fuji icon who released his first album at the age of 17 has made an indelible mark in the history of Nigerian music as he has been quite successful in his career and has released several albums.
His genre of music which is Fuji has its roots in Islam as virtually every Fuji musician is a Muslim. So it is no surprise he was born into a Muslim family and was a devoted Muslim with many Islamic titles to his name.
In 2014, the news spread like wildfire that he has converted to Christianity to the shock of his friends and fans. According to him, he became a born-again Christian in 2010 but had difficulty and fears in declaring his faith in public. He thought he would be hated and neglected by most of his fans who were Muslims and he didn’t know how his family will feel.
However, his conviction was the Bible. He said initially a lot of Islamic clerics came to pray for him and after they had left, he would go to the room to read the Bible. It got to a point his children who were practicing Christianity were laughing at him and asking him to choose one religion but it was difficult as his music and background were tied to Islam.
He finally summoned courage and told the Islamic clerics his decision to become a Christian and told them all his children, as well as his wife from Anambra state are all Christians. He said the happiest day of his life was when he became born again and that he is now a proud Christian.
7. Lola Alao
Lola Alao is a Nigerian actress and producer who stars in mainly Yoruba movies.
According to her, she was born into a Muslim family as her father and grandfather were Muslims.
However, her mother was a Christian. At some point in her life, she chose to follow her mother’s religion but later decided to focus on Islam.
Her decision to go back to Islam created a sort of uproar by the public which the actress was not happy about. But now it seems the public has accepted her faith. She is now often seen dressed as a Muslim.
Olalekan Ajimoti – Blogger, Content Writer, and Digital Marketer helping brands and retailers build 8-figure e-commerce since 2016.
As a corporate trainer, brand communications expert, and brand consultant, I help people start, stay and grow in business leveraging digital skills and traditional expertise.
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