The appearance of an apparition in the sky over the Gowon Estate area of Lagos State last week has caused a major stir in the state and far beyond, especially as the picture of the object captured by a vigilant bystander has gone viral.
The apparition, which, from the picture, looks like a man on horseback was said to have been sighted by school children of a popular Christian school in the Gowon Estate area who raised the alarm that attracted a crowd to behold the sight.
Eyewitnesses said that as the excited children were shouting and gazing at the object, it descended lower towards them and started waving at them before it vanished.
Many, including the Principal of the school, who ran out to see what the noise was all about could not see the sight because it was there one minute and gone before most of the people could come to witness it.
The only concrete evidence that it appeared is the picture that was taken by the alert and brave bystander.
Many have started giving the incident different interpretations but the most prevalent is that it is a sign of the imminence of the end times.
Many who have bought this interpretation, especially in and around the Estate are said to have started confessing their sins and surrendering their lives to Jesus Christ.
There has been a scramble by many to copy the image that was captured unto their telephones, tablets and other devices and the event has been a major subject of discussion in churches, schools, markets and other public places.
Apparitions have, before now, appeared in different parts of the world and even in Nigeria, especially apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary which has attracted fervent Catholics in places like New Jersey, United States of America, where it was said to have appeared on a tree trunk; in Egypt where the image appeared in different forms over the domes of the Coptic Orthodox Church named after Her at Zeitoun, Cairo, Egypt and at a church in Ubiaja city in Edo state where the image was said to have appeared on the wall of the church.
In some of the cases, millions of faithful have rushed to behold the images with some pitching their tents there while the experience lasted.
What is clear is that people should not wait for such apparitions before they begin to make their ways right with God, a cleric who commented on the sighting of the apparition in Gowon Estate said, stressing that the Bible has warned that Jesus Christ would come suddenly.
