Christian persecution has been an ongoing problem throughout the northern region of Nigeria. The conflict has been fueled by Muslim-based terrorist groups such as the Boko Haram and Fulani herdsman. According to christianpost.com, more christians have lost their lives in northern Nigeria than the rest of the world combined. Reports pour in every week of new attacks on christians, whether it be bombing of churches or killing sprees and the Nigerian government has failed to make any decisive action towards the whole ideal (Stark). Foreign organizations however such as USCIRF and USAID are making efforts to bring the situation to recognition world-wide.
The Boko Haram, primary perpetrator of the Christians, have been in existence since 2002 but as of around 2009 they took a more aggressive approach towards persecuting Christians. Their focus is to create a separate Islamic state in which they can implement Sharia law. They originated in the North where most Muslims in Nigeria reside, while Christians predominantly live in the South. After President Goodluck Jonathan won the presidential election in 2010, Muslims feared they’d fall off in terms of political power and attacks increased. Schools and children have been attacked for their association with western customs like education, freedom, and anything that benefits Christian . As a matter of fact, Boko Haram means “Western education is a sin”(Koopman). Late in 2010 they bombed churches on Christmas killing at least 32 people. Bombings and killing sprees continued through 2011-2013. In August of 2013, Abubakar Shekau was reported killed by the Nigerian military. Very soon after this, Nigeria’s defense minister also reported that the Boko Haram’s second-in-command, Momudu Bama, kil...
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...oko Haram conquers Nigeria. Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa and letting it get overrun may be putting the whole continent at risk. We must put in an effort to help them to their feet so in the future they can make positive contributions to life and the world in general (Koopman).
Works Cited
Gryboski, Michael. “Expert: More Christians Killed Last Year in Northern Nigeria Than Rest of World Combined” christianpost.com 15 Nov. 2013. Web. 28 Jan. 2014.
Koopman, Joop. “If Nigeria Falls to Islamic Extremists, All of Africa Will Be at Risk.” Huffingtonpost.com 2 Jan. 2014. Web. 10 Feb.2014
Ross, Will. “Did Nigerian military splits help Boko Haram?” BBCNews.com 31 Jan. 2014. Web. 3 Feb. 2014
Stark, William. “Boko Haram’s Anti-Christian Violence Continues in Northern Nigeria” Salem Web Network. religiontoday.com 13 Sep. 2013. Web. 10 Feb. 2014
This is a gripping novel about the problem of European colonialism in Africa. The story relates the cultural collision that occurs when Christian English missionaries arrive among the Ibos of Nigeria, bringing along their European ways of life and religion.
Nigeria has a complex history and though it is independent the effects of British colonization are still present.1#2 Nigeria’s dissension is inextricably linked to the merging of Northern and Southern Nigeria in 1914.2#3 Early missionaries used Western education as a tool for evangelism causing a northerrn pulation dominated by islam to be suspicious and reject Western influences.3 In the south western ideals were more widely accepted as a result of their acceptance to Christianity and evangelism. Due to their easy acceptance of westernization the British built schools, roads and infrastructure in the South, none of which appeared in the North.
...at shocked me through all these articles is how there weren’t a single positive story about Nigeria. I had to get to the third page before I found something that was “kind of positive” about Nigeria. These definitely illustrate what the speaker was saying about single stories. Also 8 out of 10 stories where related to Boko haram. Therefore it won’t be a surprise for me to hear that people believe that Boko haram is the daily cup of tea. I didn’t really found anything that was directly related to the chapter because most of the stories were about BOKO haram crisis. The only thing that I found related to the chapter was how the Biafra war that has opposed the three major’s ethnics groups: Yoruba, Igbo and Hausas is still reflecting on the actual Nigerian crisis. In the north were these crisis are occurring, only certain ethnic groups or religious groups are attacked.
Extremism manifests itself dangerously in the Islam religion (Palmer, Monte, and Princess Palmer, 37). The Muslim religion has some laws and believes that no one should question their design, origin or application. Good people should punish immoral people in Islam religion without showing mercy to them. In Islam, human beings have no right to offer forgiveness to others that can easily lead to and create peace to oneself in the society. The unforgiving nature makes human rights groups in many ways try to change and support governments that try to overthrow Muslim extremist governments. Such an approach creates a war never ending between the Muslim governments and other governments that fight the extremist ideals. In East Africa, Somalia presents a case example by observing how the Government is not able to control the ever fighting and dreadful Al-Shabaab. The “Al-Shabaab” is an Arab name for Muslim youth who over the years try to use enforce extremist rulers in governing the country and hence controlling the resources. Muslim fighters and rebels arm themselves with arsenals they use to fight groups that oppose them by killing and torturing them. The al-Shabaab launches attacks that kill people and openly claim responsibility for the losses and the deaths they cause. They also punish members who commit sin using the retrogressive laws of the Quran on the people they label sinners. Other extremist
In conclusion, it is clear that the coming of Christianity to Africa was not greeted with open arms. While it granted Africans the chance to acquire new teachings, it also insinuated itself within politics, family, and traditions, utterly destroying them from the inside out. Having been detailed within novels by Achebe, Oyono, and Thiong’o, it is easy to see how these “pacifying” roles eventually led to a total conquest for all of Africa.
Religious accusations which serve as catalysts for conflict help to develop an accurate portrayal of imperialism and Ibo culture. In Things Fall Apart, the missionaries assertively state “Your gods are not alive and cannot do you any harm” (Achebe 146). This quotation shows the imperialists accusing the gods the Ibo people believe in and worship of being false gods that are idols. These gods cannot harm them and do not pose any threats. Also, in Achebe’s interview, “An African Voice,” he says “You have leaders who see nothing wrong in inciting religious conflict. It’s all simply to retain power” (Achebe, pars. 9-10). Achebe says that it’s all about staying in control and sustaining (political) power. He additionally implies that there are leaders who see nothing (morally) wrong ...
Shawn Mark. The Kingdom of God in Africa:: A Short History of Africa Christianity,(Grand Rapids: Baker
...taken up his religion also say that our customs bad.” Christianity is destroying and guiding two different societies. It guides the people that don’t believe in Christianity to convert because converts who once had the same beliefs as them are saying that theirs customs are bad. This causes Ibo people to convert to Christianity.Which guides the Christian society into better directions because they are gaining more converts. At the same time this destroys the Igbo religion because they are losing their members to the Christian society.
Oghre, Ben. “Nigeria’s Population Is A Silent Killer .” Nigerians of America. N.p., 30 Sept. 2007. Web. 5 Feb. 2012. .
Boko Haram has recently been in international news including South Africa. The most recent of attacks was on a church where Attackers armed with heavy ammunition and explosives killed twenty-two people in a northeast Nigerian city. They set off many bombs and fired shots into the masses during the attack on the church in Waga Chakawa in Adamawa, before burning residents houses and taking hostages during a four-hour bloody siege. Boko Haram wants to impose sharia law, and wants to split Nigeria equally between Christians and Muslims, Boko Haram has killed thousands of people over the past four-and-a-half years, and is considered one of the biggest security risk in the largest oil producer in Africa and second largest economy in Africa after South Africa.
The main focus in this novel is on one man, Okonkwo, the protagonist who symbolises the many Nigerians, or Africans who were struggling against the white missionaries, who brought their religion and policies and imposed them on Okonkwo’s and the other surrounding tribes. Achebe also shows how great the effect is when something as seemingly un-invasive, such as a church, is set up in a Nigerian or African Culture. Among other issues, A...
To colonize the land of Nigerian tribal people or any other lands in the world, the British wisely used religion as a tool of invasion. Though the process of spreading Christianity took longer time than war and killing, the attack on belief and spirituality made the native people completely submit to the new government which generated and supported the religion that those people followed. In fact, the British missionaries succeeded in convincing the Igbo people of the new religion despite the Igbo’s conservativeness and extreme superstition.
In the end, what holds African countries such as Nigeria together is their shared pride. Modern, western influences can bring positive changes to society, but new cultures cannot completely eradicate the foundational cultures to which a society is founded on.
The ultimate result was troops and as many as 3 million civilians died. While the outside world considered Nigeria to be a united and monolithic entity, even the British colonial administration was wary of the reality of Nigerian politics; the nation was not so much a “country” as it was more than three hundred different groups coalesced into one. 45 These tribes were divided between three main spheres of influence: the Yoruba, the Igbo, and the Hausa. Historically, their interests were often opposed, and their cultures did not come into regular contact with one another until the British occupation.
There is no doubt that European colonialism has left a grave impact on Africa. Many of Africa’s current and recent issues can trace their roots back to the poor decisions made during the European colonial era. Some good has resulted however, like modern medicine, education, and infrastructure. Africa’s history and culture have also been transformed. It will take many years for the scars left by colonization to fade, but some things may never truly disappear. The fate of the continent may be unclear, but its past provides us with information on why the present is the way it is.