WHEN FAITH
BECOMES CULTURE
Cornelius Afebu
Omonokhua
On
June 24, 2015, I received this mail from Ibrahim (mmokwa20@yahoo.com): “Salamu
Alaikum, I was just going through your article on today’s Guardian
Newspaper titled: ‘May this Ramadan lead
to Peace’ and it reminded me of our chat. Sir, having studied most of your
articles, I am convinced that there are more truth than you have shared as a
result of deep research in religion. As a learned Catholic and not just any
other Christian, how does the Bible answer the following questions: (1) what is
the meaning of Mary mother of God? (2) What does the Bible teaches about how
inheritance is shared? (3) We also hear
Christians calling Jesus (a man) God, how can a man who is limited and finite
be God who is limitless and infinite at the same time? (4) Is the bible
inspired by God or men’s mere thinking of past events? (5) What does the Bible
teaches about how burial rites and naming ceremony are to be conducted? (6) What sincerely do you believe about Islam?
Having
listened to conversations and debates on these topics on electronic media and
having read the publications of some other Muslims on the questions raised by
Ibrahim, I advise him and others who have similar questions to read four of my books:
(1) “Human Life, Here and Here after,
Eschatology and Anthropology in the Judeo-Christian and Etsako Religions; (2)
Dreams of my Parents; (3) Dialogue in Context, A Nigerian Experience and (4) The
joy of service, Dialogue of Action”. While we need to state again some
principles of dialogue that is aimed at peaceful coexistence in the world; it
is necessary to ask: “Why do people ask theological questions about the
religions of others?” I think some people ask questions with a sincere desire
to understand. This motivated me to study the theology of Islam. Another reason
why some people ask theological questions could be to ridicule the religion of
the other. This contradicts the principle of Inter-religious dialogue where partners
of dialogue are encouraged to focus more on the common concerns that promote
peace on earth and union with God in heaven. In dialogue, efforts should be
directed at founding common grounds that unite humanity. Religious extremism totally
contradicts the vision and mission of dialogue.
Whenever,
the question of the identity of Jesus Christ is raised by a Muslim, what comes
to mind is the supreme respect that Muslims give to Prophet Muhammad (SAW).
Some people could even mistake that respect for worship. On Saturday, June 27, 2015,
Premium Times, Abuja reported that an Upper Sharia Court, Rijiyar Lemo, in
Kano, has sentenced nine persons to death for blasphemy against the Prophet of
Islam. In Christianity, the word “blasphemy” applies to a Divine and Sacred Being.
The report added that news of the judgment sparked jubilation by a section of
Kano residents. In Inter-religious dialogue questions regarding the person of
the Prophet of Islam are carefully avoided by Christians not just to avoid the
wrath of Muslims, but out of respect for the faith and culture of Islam. Religious
freedom demands that adherents of each religion should hold firm to their
beliefs and leave others with what they believe even if the mystery is
difficult to understand.
In
Christian jurisprudence, there is no provision for a death sentence on a person
who insults the person of Jesus Christ but Christians are not happy when the
Christian doctrines are vilified and ridiculed. The worst that can happen to a
heretic in Christianity is excommunication and not death sentence in the modern
era. The inquisition that existed in the dark ages of the Church has long been
abolished at the dawn of enlightenment. Jesus did not instruct his followers to
hurt or kill anybody because of him. This makes him peace personified. He is
revered and worshipped by Christians as prophesied by Isaiah: “For to us a
child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his
shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting
Father, and Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). Jesus gives the peace that the world cannot give (John
14:27). This kind of peace is only possible with God with whom all things are
possible (Matthew 19:26). Christians profess faith in the divinity of Jesus
Christ on the authority of the Bible that is revealed by God. The Gospels, Acts
of the Apostles and the Pauline Epistles affirm Jesus as the Messiah (Christ)
and equated him with God Himself. At the baptism of Jesus, God said, "This
is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased” (Mathew 3:17). At the
transfiguration, God added, “"This is my beloved Son in whom I am well
pleased, listen to him” (Matthew 17:5).
Paul
calls Jesus our "great God and Saviour" (Titus 2:13) who existed in
the "form of God" prior to His incarnation (Philippians 2:5-8). Through
Jesus all things were created (John 1:3; Colossians 1:16-17). The divinity of
Christ is attested to in Revelation 1:7; 2:8; 1 Corinthians 10:4 and 1 Peter
5:4. The question of the divinity of Jesus was part of his trial before the
High Priest: “Again the high priest asked him, "Are you the Christ, the
Son of God?" And Jesus said, "I am, and you will see the Son of Man
seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven” (Mark
14:61-62). This fulfilled the prophesy of Daniel: “I saw in the night visions, and
behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came
to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given
dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should
serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away,
and his kingdom, one that shall not be destroyed" (Daniel 7:13-14). The
phrase "Son of Man" is used of Jesus outside of the Gospels (Acts
7:56; Revelation 1:13; 14:14).
The
actions of Jesus revealed his divinity. He healed the paralytic (Mark 2). He had authority and ability to forgive sins
(Mark 2:3-12). Jesus raised the dead to life (John 11). For the Jews, such capacity
was reserved for God alone. Jesus was worshipped in the Gospels (Matthew 2:11;
28:9, 17; Luke 24:52; John 9:38; 20:28). Jesus taught that the Son of Man will
ultimately judge humanity (Matthew 25:31-46) and taught that our eternal
destinies depend on our response to Him (Mark 8:34-38). His resurrection
vindicates his claim to divinity (Matthew 12:38-40). This remains very powerful
evidence to various people, groups and in various circumstances (1 Corinthians
15:3-7; Matthew 28:9; Luke 24:36-43; John 20:26-30, 21:1-14; Acts 1:3-6). The witnesses
to the faith in the resurrection and divinity were willing to die as several of
them did! Clement of Rome and the Jewish historian Josephus gave account of
many people who died as martyrs for the faith in the divinity of Jesus Christ
in the first-century. The resurrection is a historical fact and evidence for
the divinity of Jesus.
It
is not expected that everybody who is not a Christian should believe in the
divinity of Jesus Christ because, “no one can say, "Jesus is Lord,"
except by the Holy Spirit” (1 Corinthians 12:3). Faith in Jesus Christ is the
Christian culture. The Pope, Saint John Paul II says: “A faith which does not
become culture is a faith which has not been fully received, not thoroughly
thought through and not fully lived out” (L’Osservatore
Romano, 28 June 1982, pages. 1-8). Aylward Shorter refers to culture as the
“Software of the mind” that programmes the thinking and acting of individuals
and shapes their understanding, feelings and behaviour. It also bestows on them
a shared identity (Aylward Shorter,
Celibacy and African Culture, Nairobi, Paulines, 1998 pag.9). Jesus told the Jews: “Even though you do not
believe me, believe the works that I do, that you may know and understand that
the Father is in me, and I am in the Father" (John 10:38). What the world
needs today is not mere theoretical arguments in defence of religion but the
quality of the action of peace of the religion. It is only the religion that
has the truth that can give peace to the world. By their fruits you will know
them (Matthew 7:16). The culture of peace is a yardstick to measure the truth
in any religion. “Blessed are the peace makers, they shall be called children
of God” (Matthew 5:9)
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