MANAGING CONFLICTS IN THE AFRICAN CONTEXT: THE ROLE OF RELIGIOUS LEADERS
By CHIDI DENIS ISIZOH
By CHIDI DENIS ISIZOH
INTRODUCTION
It is significant that the focus of this Congress is on West Africa, and the reflection today is on how religious leaders could contribute to prevent or to resolve ethnic, cultural and religious conflicts. I am grateful to the organisers for inviting me.
Three major religions - African Traditional Religion, Islam and Christianity – operate in the region. Followers of these religions occasionally have conflicts because some of them propose, sometimes with great insistence, that aspects of their religion be accepted by all in a given area. This is true of African Traditional Religion, Islam and Christianity.
I have chosen to address this distinguished assembly not on the causes or the nature of these conflicts. Instead, I would like to speak on the role religious leaders could play to prevent conflicts before they start or to resolve them if they have begun. My context is Africa, precisely West Africa.
The changing world of the religious leaders
The African society in which some of us here were formed is different from the world in which we live today. Some of us who were fortunate to grow up in villages lived in, more or less, homogenous society. Religious leaders were respected. They were not contradicted when they spoke. Their decisions on many issues were not challenged. They spoke with authority. They had the last word. In today’s world, it seems that all that is changed.
Challenges of today
The availability of radio and television sets today means that information circulates very fast. An event in any part of world reaches every person in minutes, if not seconds. Moreover, thanks to faster means of transportation, people are on the move. As they travel, they take with them those values that help to define them as a people of a particular geographical area: culture, customs and traditions, religion, language, etc. The result is that there is hardly any part of our world that is not touched by some aspects of other people’s ways of life. Today’s Religious leaders must take into account the changes in the composition of societies.
More and more people in Africa can read and write. Among followers of different religions there are many university graduates, some of whom have also profound knowledge of the sacred books of their religions and can present the contents better than some of the specially prepared religious leaders. Such would be the situation where professors of Christian and Islamic theology sit in the church or in the mosque to listen to the preaching of pastors and imams, who are assigned to lead their religious communities, including these learned members. The result is that there are occasions when these religious leaders are challenged. The version of their teaching is occasionally contested.
We live in a democratic world. Opinion polls influence decisions taken by leaders. This does not happen only in the political arena. Occasionally, the interpretation of some religious truths is put to vote. Among followers of some religions, a number of doctrines have been reinterpreted because the opinion poll suggested a revision of a long-standing accepted position. New challenges have appeared: the need to understand better the role of persons sometimes described as marginalised in the society, new sicknesses, more social evils, different understanding of human person, etc.
It is difficult to say which is correct: either some politicians have infiltrated the ranks of religious leaders, or some religious leaders have politicised their functions. The result is that in some countries of Africa, there is excessive government interference and political manipulation, such that the spiritual and impartial roles of religious leaders are compromised.
As human beings make advances in science and technology, there is a growing tendency to ignore “speculative” subjects. According to Karen Speicher, “The theory of our modern age that knowledge can only be acquired through scientific methods rather than through metaphysics and theology has led to a change in authority wherein the expressions of theologians and philosophers are counted as just another ‘opinion’ among many.” She continues, “In truth, the expressions of religious leaders are often seen as less valuable than other opinions because they do not adhere to the method of acquiring ‘facts’ in a detached ‘objective’ way. They are seen as ‘judgements’ about society and therefore deemed ‘subjective’.”[1]
Influence of Religious leaders in Africa
Religious leaders today face tougher challenges than their predecessors. And yet they are called upon from time to time to lead their coreligionists. The demand of this call is even stronger in Africa than elsewhere. In the life of most Africans, religion plays a central role. A look at the inscription on lorries and buses all over Africa reveals a lot about Africans’ religious devotion and their religiosity. Religious leaders, after all, are still being listened to, and their words and actions have tremendous impact on the followers. Indeed, their function as religious leaders has expanded in our time. They are not to speak on only religious matters. They must address political, social and cultural issues.
It is always an over-simplification of facts to treat any conflict in Africa from only one point of view. Almost all conflicts have multiple causes: political, ethnic, cultural, social, economic, etc. For Africans all these are not isolated aspects of life. Religion is a way of living. It is the thread that knits all activities together. Religious leaders, therefore, play or must play vital role in preventing and resolving conflicts in Africa.
ROLE OF RELIGIOUS LEADERS IN PREVENTING CONFLICTS
Formation of the Moral Conscience of the Followers
Religion teaches human beings about their origin, the meaning of the present life and the future. It teaches what is good and what is bad; and how people can relate with God and with their fellow human beings. It shapes and defines values and attitudes which in turn “determine our behaviour towards others, whether we regard them as there for us to be used and exploited, or there to be valued and respected; to be part of us or to be ignored, shunned or even rejected from our vision of life.”[2]
Religious leaders proclaim moral truth and help their coreligionists to apply it on a daily basis to real life situations including their personal life and life in community with others.[3] Their words go beyond mere information to their coreligionists. They penetrate the depths of human beings and give meaning to human existence. While many people are not prepared to die for mathematical theorems, there is a long list of religious martyrs lined up along the pathways of history.
Involvement in Educational Programmes
“All human beings of whatever race, condition or age, in virtue of their dignity as persons, have an inalienable right to education. This education should be suitable to particular destiny of the individuals, adapted to their ability, sex and national cultural traditions, and should be conducive to fraternal relations with other nations in order to promote true unity and peace in the world. True education is directed towards the formation of the human person in view of his (her) final end and the good of that society to which he (she) belongs and in the duties of which he (she) will, as an adult have a share.”[4]
In some countries in West Africa, schools have been taken over by governments. The tendency in many of these schools is to eliminate the teaching of religion to children. Where religion is taught, it is sometimes done by somebody who has no faith commitment.
No education is complete without putting into consideration the proper place of religion in the overall formation of a human person. Religious leaders have the duty to insist that religion be taught to children. They are to supervise programmes for religious education in schools. But care must be taken not to use schools as fertile ground for sowing seeds of hatred against people of other religious traditions or ethnic background or political orientation. The three dominant religions in West Africa teach love of neighbour, peace in the society, integral development for all. It is the abuse of religion that causes conflicts in the society.
Creating Community of Love
The definition of the African person is not in terms used by the French RénéDéscartes “cogito, ergo sum” (“jepense, doncjesuis” – I think, therefore I am). An African would rather say: “cognatus sum, ergo sum” (I am related – to a community – therefore I am). The definition of the African person is, therefore, in relation to the community. It is not just any type of community. It is community of love that cares for its members. An African elder was once approached and told that if he did not convert from African Traditional Religion (ATR), he would go to hell. He asked if conversion from ATR was an absolute condition for going to heaven. The answer given him was an emphatic yes. He retorted: “It means that all my ancestors never made it to heaven. Why then go alone to this heaven? I prefer to stay with my ancestors. I choose to go to hell where I will meet the rest.”
There are indeed people who change membership from one religion to another just to find a community where individuals count, where members know one another, where there is solidarity at difficult moments of life, where there is communal celebration of joyful occasions.
Religious leaders should help to create an environment in which all members share joys together and accept mutual vulnerability, safe place for people living with different kinds of inhibitions be it sickness, weaknesses that make them socially unacceptable in the society. In the words of Singaporean Minister for Community Development, “Religious leaders can help emphasize the critical need for social responsibility….”[5]
Preaching Peace and Harmony in the Society
Religious leaders have unique privilege of having a committed large audience in many African countries. Each encounter with followers of their religion is a great opportunity to promote peace and harmony in the society. The preaching by the leaders must be such that it would inspire and encourage love of neighbour, and collaboration among people of different ethnic and religious backgrounds.
ROLE OF RELIGIOUS LEADERS IN RESOLVING CONFLICTS
Acting as Impartial Arbiters in Truth and Justice
The first step towards resolving any conflict is to bring the parties involved to dialogue with one another. Only an impartial arbiter can go to both camps in dispute to initiate exchange of communication. What is the cause of the dispute? What can be done to redress the perceived injury? How can reconciliation be achieved from the perspective of the aggrieved parties?
The next step is to determine the modalities for reconciliation. How can the parties reconcile with one another without humiliating any side? Who takes the first step? Is there any guarantee that there will be reciprocity in accepting to go down the lane of reconciliation?
There are indeed many examples in West Africa of the religious leaders intervening to reconcile parties in conflict. One needs only to look at the various initiatives undertaken by various national interreligious councils. During the war in Sierra Leone, the Interreligious Council of the country mediated between the government and the rebels. The same was witnessed in Liberia. The following bodies of religious leaders are known to be active in conflict resolution in West Africa: Inter-Religious Council of Guinea, Inter-Religious Council of Liberia, Inter-Religious Council of Sierra Leone, Inter-Religious Council of Ghana, The Forum of Religions in Côte d’Ivoire, Regional Inter-Religious Women’s Consultation, The World Conference of Religions for Peace, etc.
Acting on Behalf of the Marginalised, becoming Voice of the Voiceless
There is so much injustice in our world today. Pope John Paul II, during his meeting with Muslim Leaders of Nigeria on 22 March 1998, said: “It is a disquieting reflection on the state of human rights today that in some parts of the world people are still persecuted and imprisoned for reasons of conscience and for their religious beliefs. As innocent victims, they are sad proof that force — and not democratic principles — has prevailed, that the intention is not to serve the truth and the common good but to defend particular interests at any cost.” There are different groups of peoples marginalised for various reasons.
Religious leaders become the voice of the voiceless. They draw attention to the anomalies in the society. They call all followers to solidarity with the weak, the sick, the poor, the oppressed, etc. in the society. The Catholic Bishops of Zambia gave this testimony of the role of religious leaders: “Our duties as moral leaders oblige us to do more than express sympathy and compassion. We feel compelled to speak out on behalf of the poor in particular for the cause of justice. We are mindful of the words of our Lord who warned us that we will be judged in accordance with our behaviour towards the needy…. It is not the role of the Church to make decisions concerning the type of political system to be adopted by any nation. However, the Church insists that it has right to pass moral judgement, even on matters touching the political order, whenever basic personal rights make such judgements necessary”[6]
The Catholic Bishops of Nigeria expressed similar views: “By the mandate and duty we have received from God to proclaim the truth at all times, we cannot be silent. For the love of our beloved nation to which we are no less patriotic than anyone else, we must speak out loud and clear on national issues which affects us all.”
Praying for the People and Teaching them to Pray
Religious leaders teach their coreligionists how to pray. Praying together has a binding effect for the believers. It is an acknowledgement of oneness before the creator. It is a sign of common dependence, common desire for the good of the society. It is also the beginning of healing process in which causes of conflicts are identified, apologies rendered, and commitment to work for a better future pledged.
Let me conclude with such prayer composed by Catholic Bishops of Nigeria and said by all Catholics in Nigeria. With adaptation, I notice that it is said also in some countries of Africa:
Father in heaven,
You always provide for all your creatures so that all may live as you have willed.
You have blessed our country Nigeria with rich human and natural resources
to be used to your honour and glory and for the well-being of every Nigerian.
We are deeply sorry for the wrong use of these your gifts and blessings
through acts of injustice, bribery and corruption,
as a result of which many of our people are hungry, sick, ignorant and defenceless.
Father, You alone can heal us and our nation of this sickness.
We beg you, touch our lives and the lives of our leaders and people
so that we may all realise the evil of bribery and corruption and work hard to eliminate it.
Raise up for us God-fearing people and leaders
who care for us and who will lead us in the path of peace, prosperity and progress.
We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
_______________________________
[1] Cf. www.valleyofthestars.net.
[2] Wilfrid Napier, “Role of the Church in a country of Religious pluralism,” p.71.
[3]Ibid.
[4]Gravissimumeducationis, 1
[5]www.sars.gov.sg
[6] 23 July, 1990.
It is significant that the focus of this Congress is on West Africa, and the reflection today is on how religious leaders could contribute to prevent or to resolve ethnic, cultural and religious conflicts. I am grateful to the organisers for inviting me.
Three major religions - African Traditional Religion, Islam and Christianity – operate in the region. Followers of these religions occasionally have conflicts because some of them propose, sometimes with great insistence, that aspects of their religion be accepted by all in a given area. This is true of African Traditional Religion, Islam and Christianity.
I have chosen to address this distinguished assembly not on the causes or the nature of these conflicts. Instead, I would like to speak on the role religious leaders could play to prevent conflicts before they start or to resolve them if they have begun. My context is Africa, precisely West Africa.
The changing world of the religious leaders
The African society in which some of us here were formed is different from the world in which we live today. Some of us who were fortunate to grow up in villages lived in, more or less, homogenous society. Religious leaders were respected. They were not contradicted when they spoke. Their decisions on many issues were not challenged. They spoke with authority. They had the last word. In today’s world, it seems that all that is changed.
Challenges of today
The availability of radio and television sets today means that information circulates very fast. An event in any part of world reaches every person in minutes, if not seconds. Moreover, thanks to faster means of transportation, people are on the move. As they travel, they take with them those values that help to define them as a people of a particular geographical area: culture, customs and traditions, religion, language, etc. The result is that there is hardly any part of our world that is not touched by some aspects of other people’s ways of life. Today’s Religious leaders must take into account the changes in the composition of societies.
More and more people in Africa can read and write. Among followers of different religions there are many university graduates, some of whom have also profound knowledge of the sacred books of their religions and can present the contents better than some of the specially prepared religious leaders. Such would be the situation where professors of Christian and Islamic theology sit in the church or in the mosque to listen to the preaching of pastors and imams, who are assigned to lead their religious communities, including these learned members. The result is that there are occasions when these religious leaders are challenged. The version of their teaching is occasionally contested.
We live in a democratic world. Opinion polls influence decisions taken by leaders. This does not happen only in the political arena. Occasionally, the interpretation of some religious truths is put to vote. Among followers of some religions, a number of doctrines have been reinterpreted because the opinion poll suggested a revision of a long-standing accepted position. New challenges have appeared: the need to understand better the role of persons sometimes described as marginalised in the society, new sicknesses, more social evils, different understanding of human person, etc.
It is difficult to say which is correct: either some politicians have infiltrated the ranks of religious leaders, or some religious leaders have politicised their functions. The result is that in some countries of Africa, there is excessive government interference and political manipulation, such that the spiritual and impartial roles of religious leaders are compromised.
As human beings make advances in science and technology, there is a growing tendency to ignore “speculative” subjects. According to Karen Speicher, “The theory of our modern age that knowledge can only be acquired through scientific methods rather than through metaphysics and theology has led to a change in authority wherein the expressions of theologians and philosophers are counted as just another ‘opinion’ among many.” She continues, “In truth, the expressions of religious leaders are often seen as less valuable than other opinions because they do not adhere to the method of acquiring ‘facts’ in a detached ‘objective’ way. They are seen as ‘judgements’ about society and therefore deemed ‘subjective’.”[1]
Influence of Religious leaders in Africa
Religious leaders today face tougher challenges than their predecessors. And yet they are called upon from time to time to lead their coreligionists. The demand of this call is even stronger in Africa than elsewhere. In the life of most Africans, religion plays a central role. A look at the inscription on lorries and buses all over Africa reveals a lot about Africans’ religious devotion and their religiosity. Religious leaders, after all, are still being listened to, and their words and actions have tremendous impact on the followers. Indeed, their function as religious leaders has expanded in our time. They are not to speak on only religious matters. They must address political, social and cultural issues.
It is always an over-simplification of facts to treat any conflict in Africa from only one point of view. Almost all conflicts have multiple causes: political, ethnic, cultural, social, economic, etc. For Africans all these are not isolated aspects of life. Religion is a way of living. It is the thread that knits all activities together. Religious leaders, therefore, play or must play vital role in preventing and resolving conflicts in Africa.
ROLE OF RELIGIOUS LEADERS IN PREVENTING CONFLICTS
Formation of the Moral Conscience of the Followers
Religion teaches human beings about their origin, the meaning of the present life and the future. It teaches what is good and what is bad; and how people can relate with God and with their fellow human beings. It shapes and defines values and attitudes which in turn “determine our behaviour towards others, whether we regard them as there for us to be used and exploited, or there to be valued and respected; to be part of us or to be ignored, shunned or even rejected from our vision of life.”[2]
Religious leaders proclaim moral truth and help their coreligionists to apply it on a daily basis to real life situations including their personal life and life in community with others.[3] Their words go beyond mere information to their coreligionists. They penetrate the depths of human beings and give meaning to human existence. While many people are not prepared to die for mathematical theorems, there is a long list of religious martyrs lined up along the pathways of history.
Involvement in Educational Programmes
“All human beings of whatever race, condition or age, in virtue of their dignity as persons, have an inalienable right to education. This education should be suitable to particular destiny of the individuals, adapted to their ability, sex and national cultural traditions, and should be conducive to fraternal relations with other nations in order to promote true unity and peace in the world. True education is directed towards the formation of the human person in view of his (her) final end and the good of that society to which he (she) belongs and in the duties of which he (she) will, as an adult have a share.”[4]
In some countries in West Africa, schools have been taken over by governments. The tendency in many of these schools is to eliminate the teaching of religion to children. Where religion is taught, it is sometimes done by somebody who has no faith commitment.
No education is complete without putting into consideration the proper place of religion in the overall formation of a human person. Religious leaders have the duty to insist that religion be taught to children. They are to supervise programmes for religious education in schools. But care must be taken not to use schools as fertile ground for sowing seeds of hatred against people of other religious traditions or ethnic background or political orientation. The three dominant religions in West Africa teach love of neighbour, peace in the society, integral development for all. It is the abuse of religion that causes conflicts in the society.
Creating Community of Love
The definition of the African person is not in terms used by the French RénéDéscartes “cogito, ergo sum” (“jepense, doncjesuis” – I think, therefore I am). An African would rather say: “cognatus sum, ergo sum” (I am related – to a community – therefore I am). The definition of the African person is, therefore, in relation to the community. It is not just any type of community. It is community of love that cares for its members. An African elder was once approached and told that if he did not convert from African Traditional Religion (ATR), he would go to hell. He asked if conversion from ATR was an absolute condition for going to heaven. The answer given him was an emphatic yes. He retorted: “It means that all my ancestors never made it to heaven. Why then go alone to this heaven? I prefer to stay with my ancestors. I choose to go to hell where I will meet the rest.”
There are indeed people who change membership from one religion to another just to find a community where individuals count, where members know one another, where there is solidarity at difficult moments of life, where there is communal celebration of joyful occasions.
Religious leaders should help to create an environment in which all members share joys together and accept mutual vulnerability, safe place for people living with different kinds of inhibitions be it sickness, weaknesses that make them socially unacceptable in the society. In the words of Singaporean Minister for Community Development, “Religious leaders can help emphasize the critical need for social responsibility….”[5]
Preaching Peace and Harmony in the Society
Religious leaders have unique privilege of having a committed large audience in many African countries. Each encounter with followers of their religion is a great opportunity to promote peace and harmony in the society. The preaching by the leaders must be such that it would inspire and encourage love of neighbour, and collaboration among people of different ethnic and religious backgrounds.
ROLE OF RELIGIOUS LEADERS IN RESOLVING CONFLICTS
Acting as Impartial Arbiters in Truth and Justice
The first step towards resolving any conflict is to bring the parties involved to dialogue with one another. Only an impartial arbiter can go to both camps in dispute to initiate exchange of communication. What is the cause of the dispute? What can be done to redress the perceived injury? How can reconciliation be achieved from the perspective of the aggrieved parties?
The next step is to determine the modalities for reconciliation. How can the parties reconcile with one another without humiliating any side? Who takes the first step? Is there any guarantee that there will be reciprocity in accepting to go down the lane of reconciliation?
There are indeed many examples in West Africa of the religious leaders intervening to reconcile parties in conflict. One needs only to look at the various initiatives undertaken by various national interreligious councils. During the war in Sierra Leone, the Interreligious Council of the country mediated between the government and the rebels. The same was witnessed in Liberia. The following bodies of religious leaders are known to be active in conflict resolution in West Africa: Inter-Religious Council of Guinea, Inter-Religious Council of Liberia, Inter-Religious Council of Sierra Leone, Inter-Religious Council of Ghana, The Forum of Religions in Côte d’Ivoire, Regional Inter-Religious Women’s Consultation, The World Conference of Religions for Peace, etc.
Acting on Behalf of the Marginalised, becoming Voice of the Voiceless
There is so much injustice in our world today. Pope John Paul II, during his meeting with Muslim Leaders of Nigeria on 22 March 1998, said: “It is a disquieting reflection on the state of human rights today that in some parts of the world people are still persecuted and imprisoned for reasons of conscience and for their religious beliefs. As innocent victims, they are sad proof that force — and not democratic principles — has prevailed, that the intention is not to serve the truth and the common good but to defend particular interests at any cost.” There are different groups of peoples marginalised for various reasons.
Religious leaders become the voice of the voiceless. They draw attention to the anomalies in the society. They call all followers to solidarity with the weak, the sick, the poor, the oppressed, etc. in the society. The Catholic Bishops of Zambia gave this testimony of the role of religious leaders: “Our duties as moral leaders oblige us to do more than express sympathy and compassion. We feel compelled to speak out on behalf of the poor in particular for the cause of justice. We are mindful of the words of our Lord who warned us that we will be judged in accordance with our behaviour towards the needy…. It is not the role of the Church to make decisions concerning the type of political system to be adopted by any nation. However, the Church insists that it has right to pass moral judgement, even on matters touching the political order, whenever basic personal rights make such judgements necessary”[6]
The Catholic Bishops of Nigeria expressed similar views: “By the mandate and duty we have received from God to proclaim the truth at all times, we cannot be silent. For the love of our beloved nation to which we are no less patriotic than anyone else, we must speak out loud and clear on national issues which affects us all.”
Praying for the People and Teaching them to Pray
Religious leaders teach their coreligionists how to pray. Praying together has a binding effect for the believers. It is an acknowledgement of oneness before the creator. It is a sign of common dependence, common desire for the good of the society. It is also the beginning of healing process in which causes of conflicts are identified, apologies rendered, and commitment to work for a better future pledged.
Let me conclude with such prayer composed by Catholic Bishops of Nigeria and said by all Catholics in Nigeria. With adaptation, I notice that it is said also in some countries of Africa:
Father in heaven,
You always provide for all your creatures so that all may live as you have willed.
You have blessed our country Nigeria with rich human and natural resources
to be used to your honour and glory and for the well-being of every Nigerian.
We are deeply sorry for the wrong use of these your gifts and blessings
through acts of injustice, bribery and corruption,
as a result of which many of our people are hungry, sick, ignorant and defenceless.
Father, You alone can heal us and our nation of this sickness.
We beg you, touch our lives and the lives of our leaders and people
so that we may all realise the evil of bribery and corruption and work hard to eliminate it.
Raise up for us God-fearing people and leaders
who care for us and who will lead us in the path of peace, prosperity and progress.
We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
_______________________________
[1] Cf. www.valleyofthestars.net.
[2] Wilfrid Napier, “Role of the Church in a country of Religious pluralism,” p.71.
[3]Ibid.
[4]Gravissimumeducationis, 1
[5]www.sars.gov.sg
[6] 23 July, 1990.