I have never placed any actual value on religion, I believe religion is man’s “formula” for worshiping God, and I believe that God allows man to worship him in the ways that fit his customs and traditions best hence the difference in modes of worship in different parts of the world.
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The unfortunate truth is that in this part of the world religion has done more harm than good, before I even tackle the bigger problems like civil unrest thanks to religious zealots I’ll start with the way we treat each other.
Most Christians have been brainwashed by their religious leaders who claim that Muslims have an “Islamization agenda” for the country and have therefore treated them like every single one of them was a terrorist. Granted some terrorists have claimed to be of the religion but we must remember that we have Christian Armed robbers, kidnappers, thieves, and even prostitutes. Religion does not determine a man’s character and we are all going to hell in someone else’s religion.
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Your religion is actually a product of what you were taught as a child and the beliefs you were brought up with. I have always used this hypothetical situation to prove this point, a child born to devout Muslim parents in northern Nigeria will end up growing up to be a Muslim, spending time with his parents will strengthen his beliefs and his faith, if you told that child that God sent his son to come and die on a wooden cross for him and accepting him is the only way he is going to be safe from eternal damnation, it is quite understandable that he would think you’re speaking gibberish. The same logic applies to someone who was born to Buddhist parents in Asia, I find it hard that God in his infinite mercy and wisdom will condemn entire continents to death just because the Christian mode of worship differs from what they have been taught as children and have grown up believing.
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I believe a man’s relationship with God and other people is more important than how he chooses to worship and the community of believers he chooses to associate with.
The typical Nigerian Christian is so judgmental and close-minded that they are more concerned with appearing to be holy and devout than how they treat the people around them, which cannot be what God intended. I have dwelt on Muslims and Christians in this post because those are the two major religions practiced in Nigeria, if we learn to treat each other as human beings first and put aside our religious beliefs then we will begin to move forward as a country. Religion and your relationship with God are personal, don’t force your beliefs down people’s throats.
Finally, I believe almost every religion in the world is intertwined and co-related, for example, Ishmael the son of Abraham in the Bible is considered the father of Islam, and the stories regarding him in the Torah (Judaism), Bible, and Quran all correlate.
Even the older traditional religions are correlated, for example, Amadioha the IBO god of thunder is similar to Sango the Yoruba god of thunder and Zeus the Greek god of thunder, and Jupiter the Roman god of thunder, my point is…what if these people all witnessed the same phenomenon and just translated it to a form that suits their beliefs and traditions? Think about it.