TESTING THE IMAM-PASTOR HYPOTHESIS FOR ENDING RELIGIOUS CONFLICTS IN NIGERIA.

By Lucky Okoedion

The religious world was struck with mixed feelings when in the run up to the Edo 2020 governorship elections, a pastor and candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) – Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu was seen receiving Islamic prayers and being “turbaned” in an Islamic setting by an Islamic traditional ruler. 

This got tongues wagging as the said pastor – Osagie Ize-Iyamu is a pastor in a christian denomination that is arguably conservative, with doctrines of sanctification, purity and/or holiness. Besides the proclivity of his church denomination, Nigeria of today is filled with religious groups who consider their faith as not only good but as the only true faith. They consider their “God” as the only true God. This is also the case in most parts of the world today. The modern world has not fared better than the ancient world where great massacres and war crimes were committed in the name of “fighting for the true religion and the true God”.

But as many Christians condemned Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu for purportedly allowing his “desperation to win the elections” to cause him to submit himself to worship with so-called “pagans”, a hypothesis crystallizes in our mind. We posit that perhaps it is possible to end religious conflicts in Nigeria by encouraging the evolution of what we could call “hybrid religious practitioners”. Or maybe everyone should be encouraged to go hybrid in their religious orientation – one part Muslim, one part Christian, another part Juju worshiper. Today Christian, tomorrow Muslim, and the day after a juju worshiper. The same way politicians jump from one political party to another in Nigeria. From politics without principles to religion without conviction. A hypothesis nevertheless. From politics without principles to religion without conviction. A hypothesis nevertheless. A PDP member in January, an APC member in April. We wonder that perhaps such cross-breeding of religious faith would be able to end religious conflicts in Nigeria.

However, if the experience of Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu is anything to go by, as a test of this hypothesis, then the results are not far-fetched. The whole process oozes of hypocrisy, inordinate ambition, and reckless ideological prostitution. The context of an electioneering campaign is not the right time to begin to experiment with a religious innovation. This is without denying the fact that it is a noble dream to be able to get us humans to coexist in peace, tolerance and mutual respect in spite of our religious differences. We do not need to eradicate our diversity before we can experience unity and solidarity as fellow members of the human race.

Lucky Okoedion is a believer of a new Nigeria where true democracy and effective governance is practiced. He writes from Benin City. And can be reached on +2347038820118 .