In today’s Nigeria, where honesty and truth have become scarce commodities and endangered species, we cannot hope to build a society marked by justice and equity when religious leaders compromise the truth for the sake of filthy lucre from corrupt politicians. We celebrate stupendous wealth and confer all manner of awards and titles on those who have made it, without asking the source of their wealth. We who are religious leaders must be ready and willing to always stand up for the truth, and not engage in criminal bargaining in the name of God. We must insist on speaking the truth, even to the cost of our own lives. Nigeria is what it is today because many Christian leaders have chosen “to compromise with Baal” like Bishop Kukah said in his book Witness to Justice.
When he was being awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1986, Elie Wiesel, a Jewish holocaust survivor of Hungarian descent, drew from the store of historic wisdom to pass a very important message to humankind, about standing up for justice and rights in the face of oppression. He said: “I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes, we must interfere. When human lives are endangered, when human dignity is in jeopardy, national borders and sensitivities become irrelevant. Wherever men and women are persecuted because of their race, religion, or political view, that place must – at that moment – become the centre of the universe.”
At the height of the ravages of military rule in Nigeria, there arose a powerful social prophet, a Catholic priest of fiery spirit, Rev. Fr. George Ehusani, who creatively used his prophetic imagination to help us make sense of our national predicaments. In his trenchant book, A Prophetic Church, Father Ehusani delivered a robust critique of the silent acquiescence and sometimes willing collaboration of the religious establishment in the corruption and moral decay in our land. In one of his poetic trilogies, Petals of Truth, he explored the theme of prophetic outrage against the ills of society. One of the poems titled, ‘Protestation’ speaks powerfully: “Let it be noted/For posterity/ That when the demons of night/ Walked the streets of our land/ In broad day light/ I did not acquiesce/ I did not sit on the fence / I did not recede/ Into guilty silence/ I did not surrender/ To apathy and despondency/ I did not renounce my calling/ No, not for one moment/ I vehemently opposed/ The death wish/ That ruled our motherland/ I consistently rejected/ The dance of death/ That was in vogue/ I solidly resisted/ The attraction/ Of the sordid pleasure/ Offered by the gladiators/ With all the resources at my disposal/ I cried out from the pulpit/ I groaned from the classroom/ I lamented in newspaper articles/ I agonized in friendly letters/ And I protested in casual conversations/ I did not keep silent.”
More than ever today, we must rethink the entire foundation of Christian faith in Nigeria. Certain versions of today’s Christianity vehemently abhor the cross. We hear of Christians today who say suffering is not their portion. At the very root of religion is sacrifice. But today, we now have a grand deception spreading like wildfire all over Nigeria, called the prosperity gospel. It teaches that only what is pleasant comes from God and is worth seeking. It teaches that every fancy must be satisfied at all costs and by any means possible. It teaches that you don’t have to stress yourself to enjoy life; that you can create wealth for yourself by circumventing hard work, honesty and integrity. But let us face it. After more than three decades of prosperity preaching, what have we reaped as a people? Our country has been the worse for it. We have harvested all kinds of rogues and brigands.
We must resist the greatest lie of the century: the lie of wealth without work, the lie of “I don get alert, na God win,” when the song does not tell us what you did to get alert. This is the mentality behind the craze for ill-gotten wealth, which has turned our country into a republic of mediocre, thieves, armed robbers and kidnappers, a distorted space where excellence and hard work have no positive correlation with success. The prosperity gospel is Christianity built on sinking sand, and it runs the risk of disillusioning millions of souls. We must ask ourselves today: Why do people become Christians? If someone becomes a Christian just to become rich and flaunt his wealth, he could have done better as a capitalist. If Christians of today think that Jesus only came on earth to teach us how to make money, flaunt our wealth and live big, then like St Paul says, we are the most unfortunate of people.
We who are Christian leaders today have a duty to teach right doctrine to our followers. We must also promote the values of hard work, delayed gratification, honesty, humility and sacrifice. Organising big crusades and holding prayer rallies will not save Nigeria. If prayer was the solution to the problems of Nigeria, by now we should have surmounted all our problems. The prayers offered to God on behalf of our nation by all manner of spiritual leaders and religious congregations across the length and breadth of this country should have been enough to dispel the darkness of vice. The fact that these problems persist, points to the fact that Nigeria needs more than prayers. The trouble with us Nigerians is that we often tend to abdicate our responsibilities under the illusion that God will do something. Prayer has become for most Nigerians a substitute for hard work and dedication to duty. Instead of applying ourselves with commitment, dedication and patriotism to our responsibilities, Nigerians are famous for saying, “God will do it,” even when we know that God has given us the intelligence and common sense to solve our problems. We cannot pray and fold our arms and believe that God will do everything for us. God will save us only if we are ready to be saved.
The challenges of today reinforce the need for Christian leaders and followers in Nigeria to formulate a concrete programme of action for national redemption. There is desolation all over the land. Christians cannot watch helplessly, while all sorts of atrocities continue to ravage our nation. A recent study shows that Nigeria is in the league of the top ten most dangerous trouble spots in Africa. In speaking out and standing up for justice and peace in our society, we cannot afford today to ignore the role of literature as a powerful tool for social action. The Protestant Reformation spearheaded by Martin Luther succeeded because it enjoyed the benefits of the discovery of the printing press. This facilitated the mass multiplication of the printed word for millions of people. We who are Christian leaders must deliberately and systematically engage the world of the media. We must learn to write and disseminate Christian teaching on social justice issues for the mass education of our people. Only an educated populace can stand up for its rights. We should also learn how to use the social media for constructive social engagement.
In the midst of the darkness around us, we must be that flicker of light that dispels darkness. The star shines the brightest when the night is darkest. We Christians of today must summon fresh energies to become salt to the earth and light to the world, in keeping with the injunction of our Lord Jesus Christ. As Christians, we must never forget that the greatest honour we can show to God is taking care of and showing love to suffering and marginalized people everywhere, recognizing his image in them. There is so much we can do to change things in the society. Let us never underestimate our capacities for positive change. Each one of us is called to be a force of good in the community in which we live. Don’t say, “There is nothing I can do.” Don’t say, “I am just one person in a crowd, no one will notice me.” Your good deeds will be noticed.
Father Ojeifo is a priest of the Catholic Archdiocese of Abuja.
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