Scholarly Works
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Item Religion and the Nigerian state(VEDA Publications, 2019) Mepaiyeda, S. M.One interesting character observed about religion in Nigeria is that it has played both the anabolic and catabolic roles in the society. It has been used as a catalyst for building up as well as instrument for demolishing peaceful coexistence of the citizens of the country. Historical evidences attest to the fact that religious resurgence most especially in the northern part of the country led to violent riots that claimed the lives of more than 100,000 Christians and Muslims within a space of 34 years (1977 and 2011). From examination carried out on the perennial incidence of religio-political crises in Nigeria, factors responsible include the missionary spirit of the Christian faith which the Muslims could not tolerate; persistent attempts to nationalize sectional interest; the surreptitious use of religion by the government to achieve economic or political advantages and the reluctance to accept a change in certain areas. Having considered the effects of religious crises on the psyche of the citizens, the paper recommends that Nigerians must come to terms with the religious plurality of the country and the imperatives of secularity. Harmonious coexistence demands sacrifice from various religious groups within the state while attitudinal re-engineering is recommended at all levels of religious and political leadership. The expectation of humans to live in a world that is peaceful has been a mirage because of their failure to recognise the nexus between justice and peace. It is no doubt that the concept of peace has taken central position in global conferences- political, economic or religious, yet, it seems people have only been paying lip-service to its realisation. Also, they fail to adequately address gender inequality, dehumanizing attitude of some stronger nations towards the weaker ones, and more significantly, the trending issue of the destruction of non-human creatures by humans. These factors among many others have orchestrated the tension that is being experienced in the cosmic order. This paper therefore advocates for mutual respect among humans irrespective of gender or race and responsible earth stewardship, especially by all Africans, so as to achieve peace in the society. Special emphasis has been placed on eco-justice considering its far-reaching significance to the restoration of peace. Sociological approach was adopted in gathering data that cut across many disciplines.Item An examination of the ethical implications of violence in Abrahamic religions for Nigerian commonwealth(Nigerian Association for the Study of Religions (NASR), 2018-07) Mepaiyeda, S. M.Religion is a terrain that guarantees communion between the object of worship and adherents. This implies that religious beliefs and activities or practices of a particular religion should not be forced on adherents of other religions. But the contrary is the case in many climes, especially in Nigeria, where people flout the principles of religious pluralism. Often times, such disregard for tolerance of adherents of other religions in a diverse society, breeds violence that leads to monumental loss of lives and property thereby impinging negatively on Nigerian Commonwealth. Therefore, this research is highly interested, firstly, in the examination of the veracity of the claim by adherents of Christianity and Islam that their religions epitomise peace and secondly examine the factors that trigger religious violence vis-a-vis the ethical implications of such religious induced violence on the societal psyche. This becomes imperative in order to critically address its effects with a view to reducing inter and intra religious conflicts that have engulfed Nigeria in particular and some nations of the world in general. In view of the fact that this research falls within the ambit of contextual study, phenomenological method will be employed to carry out the primary investigation; while literary works of scholars shall be consulted in order to elucidate information on the subject matter.Item Assessing the hypotheses against women leadership in African christianity(Canadian Academy of Oriental and Occidental Culture, 2013-08) Mepaiyeda, S. M.Despite the undisputable roles of women as homemakers and nation-builders, many hypotheses had been advanced in support of male chauvinism mostly prevalent in African society. Such discrimination is attributable to two sources; culture and religion. The prejudices, inequalities and injustices suffered by women seem to be deep-rooted. What is even more unfortunate and scandalous is that religion has been and is still being misused to reinforce the oppression and subordination of women. Equally disconcerting is the fact that among the womenfolk themselves there are quite a number who have accepted these conditions as normal and therefore have had no inclination to demand and work for a change. Such women have resigned themselves to an inferior status and sincerely believed that such is their divinely ordered fate. This paper, therefore, is aimed at evaluating the theological, cultural and philosophical hypotheses that serve as roadblocks against women leadership in order to disprove their logical veracity; and to establish that leadership in the church should transcend the factor of gender but be based on God’s prerogative and infinite grace.