THE CURSE OF RELIGION
To the peripheral onlooker, the title of this article is quite misleading. For they think, how can religion be a curse ? Nigerians hold their religion tightly to their chest. They practice it with such vigour and fervour ,you’ll think God lives in their backyard. A man buys a car, he ties it to God. He embezzles money, he points to God as the source. Our corrupt rulers hold thanksgiving services in church, after successfully rigging elections, insulting God as the source of their ‘win’.
For the average Nigerian, missing Church services or not going to the Mosque is a taboo in itself. Religion is man’s major link to God. It is the gift of God to us. How has this gift become our curse ? Religion largely responsible for where Nigeria is today. The average Nigerian, instead of demanding for good governance, that is rightly his, says he leaves everything to God. The other day, when Japheth Omojuwa was tweeting about his Ipad saga, with an airline, someone told him the usual; “Leave everything to God” .
The average Nigerian man or woman, expects a miracle in every situation. He wants a job, he leaves everythi ng to God. He wants money he leaves everything to God. He wants to rise in life, he leaves every thing to God. God has become an integral part of the average Nigerian’s daily vocabulary. For how long will we continue to leave everything to God ? God will not do for you, what you can do for yourself. Roll up your sleeves and get to work. This same curse of religion is responsible for our stale ways of thinking. We have been unable to come up with novel, innovative solutions to problems. That rigid, within-the-box thinking, some of us have conferred on ourselves because of religion, is the cause of our problems.
Religion is the same reason we have become complacent as a nation. For how long Nigeria ? When will we stop praying about the situation of our nation and start doing something ? Leaving everything to God, is the same reason why we have compromised standards of excellence that hold true all over the world and are functioning as a mediocre nation. Even in sports, our days of glory are history. We cut corners, hoping for a miracle each time. Why do we expect miracles ? Even God will not break protocol, for a man who is unprepared. God will never perform miracles for those who are not ready to obey laws. He laid the foundations of the universe based on laws. The law of gravity, does not ‘hang’ just because someone asked for a miracle .The standards of God stand sure, He will not compromise them for any man.
Nigeria is one of the most religious countries on earth, with a church on every street. What has made us become such hypocrites ? Despite our religion, we still have such greed, inter tribal wars, corruption ,intolerance and massive bigotry. Has our religion done a lot for us? Where did we go wrong ? Let us trace the problem back to the roots. Why is there so much evil and corruption and bloodshed in our land ,when we have so much religion ?
Do check yourself today .Is your religion a sham ? Do you stay true to your maker, even when no one is watching ? Do you obey His laws, when it seems no one will know ? Do you say one thing in public, while you do another in private ? Are you a bigot ? Do you truly practice every tenet of your religion ? Do your have a solid relationship with your creator ? If you honestly answer all these questions and seek positive change, Nigeria may just be on her way to greatness, starting with you.
Peace.
Culled from Omojuwa Blog