Common Responsibility of Religions

Despite the diversity of our tenets and traditions, religions have an invaluable contribution toward building peace, argues Emmanuel Ojeifo

Peace strikes a chord in the hearts of the followers of the religions of the world. In the Christian tradition, there is the custom of exchanging a sign of peace. Muslims interpret the name of their religion, Islam, as referring to peace, sal m. Jews greet each other by saying, shalom, which means peace. These three Abrahamic religions – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – are religions of peace, justice and equality. Understanding the roots of peace in each of the three religions can help to bring about a greater religious understanding throughout communities by eliminating the ignorance that fuels a climate of mutual suspicion, intolerance and hate.

As a result of their common religious heritage, these three religions are disposed to peace and strive to adhere to a common core of ethical standards. This common heritage also shapes outlook of life and encourages peaceful coexistence. However, peace is not just a job to be done. Neither can it be achieved by human efforts or religions alone. Peace is primarily a gift from above. To receive the gift of peace we must pray for it, be rightly disposed to it and work for it. More than a finished product, peace is a process always in motion. And because peace-making never ends, peace-building in human communities remains a constant challenge.

In today’s world, religious leaders and people have come to realise that to be religious is to be essentially inter-religious. The dialogue between religions and cultures can greatly assist in building peace while dismantling structures of prejudice and hate. This ethic of peace can only be grounded on the firm foundation of an ethic of solidarity, a sense of belonging, of mutual love and respect and the upholding of fundamental human rights. In order to make the world a better place, religions have a crucial responsibility to seek reconciliation and join hands to build bridges of friendship and fellowship over troubled waters. He who desires peace must learn to live in love. This applies to individuals, societies and nations. Despite the diversity of our tenets and traditions, cultures and customs, religions have an invaluable and indispensable contribution to make towards building peace.

In Nigeria, we live in a nation that is almost equally divided between Muslims and Christians. This has made Nigeria the greatest Islamo-Christian country in the world, with 80 million Muslims living side by side with 80 million Christians. This is not something to be taken for granted. Both religions have an important role to play to promote peace and maintain harmony. There must be a conscious effort to build inter-faith goodwill that will positively impact on the Nigerian population. The basic message of peace, love and solidarity, which is common to both religions, can help to build a just and equitable society where people are free to realise their full potential irrespective of where they live, work and worship.

In the build-up to the 2015 general elections, religious leaders have an uphill task to continually sustain this general climate of good relations between Muslims and Christians, and not allow politicians to manipulate religion as a tool for servicing their partisan self-interests. Between Christians and Muslims in Nigeria, we have a lot of common spiritual grounds and shared values on which we can work together to promote a climate of mutual respect and trust. We must never allow those with bad intentions to exploit these common grounds for their selfish reasons. Religious leaders must talk to politicians within their faith traditions and admonish them to play politics in a decent and respectable manner, devoid of rancour, bitterness, prejudice and hate.

Having witnessed too often how religions have been misused as an excuse for violence, religious leaders must work hard to close ranks, forge alliances and cooperate together in the bid to promote peace and religious harmony. When properly mobilised and equipped, religious communities can effectively use their spiritual, moral and social assets to prevent violence. When diverse religions come together, their efforts can be transformed into a powerful instrument of peace. In a society where religion is often seen as a cause of disorder and conflict, we need to do all we can to prevent religion in its true colour as worship of God from being transformed into an instrument of hate. This attitude is greatly helped by a recognition that all human beings belong to one family, that we have one creator and a single origin, that human nature is the same in all people and that we all aspire towards the same goals in life.

Such recognition can help to recoup a robust sense of personal responsibility in religious leaders, which then serves as a powerful restraint against pitting one religious or faith tradition against the other. History is replete with examples of the dangerous collusion between religion and religion on the one hand, and religion and politics on the other. Religious leaders must never turn a blind eye to the actions of politicians within their folds who use their wealth and material generosity to drain religion of its ideals, by using religion as an instrument for promoting their political agenda. They must also be attentive to the activities of religious leaders within their folds whose preaching and teaching and writings promote intolerance, fanaticism and hatred for other religious believers.

While a few people are enough to cause tension, confusion and destruction, the cooperation of all is needed in order to promote lasting development, justice and peace. There are problems and challenges that do not respect religious frontiers: corruption in public life, wrong attitude to work or to the good of the country, discrimination on the basis of ethnic background or sex. These are challenges that affect all people – Muslims and Christians – but they are best faced when all believers, drawing from the highest ideals of their respective religions, work together to find adequate solutions to them.

Religious leaders must, therefore, look within and consider what they can do to promote justice, equality, reconciliation and peace. Men and women of faith are a strong influence on group and individual conduct. As teachers and guides, religious leaders can be powerful agents of social change. They can inspire people to new levels of commitment and public service. They can help bridge the chasm of ignorance, fear and misunderstanding. They can set an example of inter-faith dialogue and cooperation that politicians will learn from in making politics an engine of service for the promotion of the common good of all.

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Between Christians and Muslims in Nigeria, we have a lot of common spiritual grounds and shared values on which we can work together to promote a climate of mutual respect and trust. We must never allow those with bad intentions to exploit these common grounds for their selfish reasons. Religious leaders must talk to politicians within their faith traditions and admonish them to play politics in a decent and respectable manner, devoid of rancour, bitterness, prejudice and hate