We are still our brothers’ keeper

Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let us go out in the field.” When they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel, and killed him.

Then the Lord asked Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” He answered, I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper? (Genesis 4:8-9).

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And the Lord said unto Cain, where is Abel thy brother? Perhaps this was said to him the next time he came to offer, he not being with him: this question is put, not as being ignorant where he was, but in order to bring Cain to a conviction and confession of his sin, to touch his conscience with it, and fill it with remorse for it; and, for the aggravation of it, observes the relation of Abel to him, his brother: and he said, I know not; which was a downright lie; for he must know where he had left him or laid him: this shows him to be under the influence of Satan, who was a liar, and the father of lies, as well as a murderer from the beginning; and that he was so blinded by him, as to forget whom he was speaking to; that he was the omniscient God, and knew the wickedness he had done, and the falsehood he now delivered, and was capable of confronting him with both, and of inflicting just punishment on him. Am I my brother’s keeper? which was very saucily and impudently spoken: it is not only put by way of interrogation, but of admiration, as Jarchi observes, as wondering at it, that God should put such a question to him, since he knew he had not the charge of his brother, and his brother was at age to take care of himself; and if not, it rather belonged to God and his providence to take care of him, and not to him: so hardened was he in his iniquity, he had stretched out his hand against his brother, and now he stretched it out against God, and ran upon him, even on the thick bosses of his buckler.

In many ways, it is not right to call it the story of Cain and Abel because it is really just the story of Cain. Abel never speaks, and we never enter into his perspective in a way that allows us to relate to him. Cain, on the other hand, is not only the character who speaks and acts in the story, but he is the character who is eminently relatable. It may sound strange to say that a murderer is relatable. However, this story is so transcendent and timeless that John Steinbeck wrote his classic book East of Eden as a lengthy exploration of themes derived from this story in Genesis 4. Cain is relatable because he is like us. Like us, he faces a problem. Like us, he struggles through his options. Like us, he makes choices that lead him to judgment. In this reflection, I want to explore what we can learn as we reflect on the story of Cain.

First of all, what problem did Cain face? Genesis 4 tells us that Cain and his brother Abel each brought offerings to God. Abel’s offering was looked up with favor, while Cain’s offering was not. We are not told exactly why his offering wasn’t accepted. In fact, we are not even told how he knew that it wasn’t accepted. Seemingly, God somehow made it clear that Abel’s offering was acceptable and Cain’s was not. Some theorize that Cain’s offering was not accepted because he simply offered ordinary crops whereas Abel offered some of the firstborn of his flocks. This certainly seems like a plausible explanation. Perhaps Cain decided to bring his leftovers and God was disinterested. Or perhaps the offering was not accepted because of the overall nature of Cain’s life and behavior. After all, God later on tells Cain in verse 7, “If you do what is right, will you not be accepted?” This seems to indicate that Cain’s acceptability (and the acceptability of his sacrifice) depended on Cain doing what was right.

But Cain’s key problem was not that his sacrifice was not accepted. His main problem was that, according to verse 5, he was “very angry, and his face was downcast.” He is dejected. Why? Because he just received criticism. He just had it communicated to him that what he did was not acceptable. Now, God didn’t slay him or punish him. God simply communicated to him that he was lacking. This is unpleasant news for anyone, and Cain was discouraged by it. This is where Cain instantly becomes relatable to us. We all have received unpleasant news about ourselves. A man’s wife tells him of the difficulties that she has in living with him. An employee’s boss critiques her recent proposal. A student’s teacher gives a poor grade on a paper. Or perhaps a friend communicates to us ways that we need to grow. This is unpleasant—and often unwelcome—news. Cain responds this unpleasant news the way that many of us do. He becomes angry and downcast.

For the past two months now, tensions have been high in Nigeria. Different groups are demanding for ‘justice’, secession, some groups are been given quit notices to the other.  In Kafur Local Government area of Katsina State, Some four persons where asked to leave a land they have lived in for more than 35 years. Their parents came into Katsina in the early 80s. One from Benue, one from Delta, another from Edo and the other person from Ebonyi State. The quit notice was served to them by Kafur Local Government Authorities. They ran to the Emir of Katsina, and he confirmed to them, the need to leave his land. We are still our brothers’ keeper. Some preachers are branded with bad names, some tribes are designated as terrorists and the lists can go on. We are still our brothers’ keeper. We must never lose sight of this.

Some weeks back we see the Yorubas asking the Fulanis in the South West to vacate their land, a feud that has caused so much outrange across the country, like Cain. Some are angry at the truth told to them about their actions or inactions, and perhaps some little bit of introspection will have been needed to remember that we owe one another some love and respect, irrespective of where we come from. For centuries our people have actually existed side by side with one another, and the vast majority of the time. We lived in peace.

In Funtual Local Government area of Katsina State, some Yorubas have almost forgotten the fact that they are Yorubas, their ancestors came to Funtua for cotton business in the early 18th century and for hundreds of years they have become indigenes of Katsina State, many of them have certificates of indigene-ship. These communities have been brothers and sisters in every respect. In Ijeo-Meso of Oyo State, they Fulanis have lived there for equally hundreds of years. They have become so integrated with the community through marriage and other social and business activities, the Fulanis across the country are known for rearing and selling of cows. But in Ijeo-Meso of Oyo state they do all of that including the sale of alcohol. A business many northern leaders and politician consider un-Islamic. Let not the hatred of Cain blind our love for our country Nigeria. Let us always remember that we are our brothers’ keeper.

Fr Stephen Ojapah is a priest of the Missionary Society of St Paul. He is equally the director for Interreligious Dialogue and Ecumenism for the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto, a member of IDFP. He is also a KAICIID Fellow. ([email protected])