Challenges and Effects of Christian Religious Fanaticism in Public Secondary Schools
CHAPTER ONE
Objective of the Study
The major purpose of this study is to examine the challenges of Christian religious fanaticism and the way out.
Other specific purposes of this study are to examine:
- The causes of religious fanaticism in public secondary schools.
- The relationship between religious intolerance and conflict
- The effect of intolerance on education.
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
Conceptual Clarification
Religion
Religion as a concept has no generally accepted definition. It has been defined in many ways by different people depending on their orientation and perception. According to Agha (2012), “religion is the conscious or unconscious belief in spiritual being and elements (forces of nature) with powers” (p. 21). For Hick (1994), religion is human recognition of super human controlling power and especially of a personal God or gods entitled to obedience and worship. Also, religion according to Bouquet (1941) is a fixed relationship between the human self and some non-human entity, the sacred, the supernatural, the self-existent, the absolute or simply God. Durkheim (1915)‟s definition is one of the most popular definitions of religion. He defined religion as a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things, that is to say, things set apart and forbidden, beliefs and practices which unite into one single moral community and all those who adhere to them. All these definitions point to the issue of beliefs. Religion can therefore be defined as a system of beliefs and practices relative to a supernatural being which unite the adherents into one moral community.
Religious fanaticism
Omomia (2015) described a fanatic as an over-enthusiastic person. According to Asghar (1997) fanaticism can be defined as over-enthusiasm and zealousness which may cross all bounds of reason and may tend to become wild and dangerous. Fanaticism therefore can be referred to as over enthusiasm. Those who are over-enthusiastic about their religious beliefs and practices to the detriment of others are therefore religious fanatics. Hence, Balogun (1988) cited by Oduwole and Fadeyi (2013) defined religious fanaticism as a violent and unreasoning religious enthusiasm. Onimhawo and Ottuh (2007) stated that to become a religious fanatic is to be wild and excessive about matters that relate to one‟s belief. According to Iwe (1987) religious fanaticism is an “irrational attitude to religion which leads the religionist to practice religion beyond the bounds of reason and, therefore, without moderation” (p. 44). Religious fanaticism is the manipulation of religion and religious beliefs by religious adherents to satisfy their selfish interest. It is a negative attitude to religion which often involves the use of violence. Iwe (2000) asserted that “it is obvious that religious fanaticism is essentially a negative and vicious attitude to religion, characterized by exaggeration, excesses and violence” (p. 11). Religious fanaticism is therefore an irrational practice of religion in which adherents make use of violence to promote their religious faith and teachings.
Security
The term security has been variously described by scholars. Akin (2008) cited by Ozoigbo (2019) described security as any laid down procedures toward the protection of persons and property against hostile persons. It is a situation where by a conducive atmosphere is created within which people in the state can go about their normal daily activities without threat to either their lives or property. According to Adeleke (2013) “security is a situation in which citizens are free from any threats to their life and means of livelihood, safe from bodily harm, diseases, unemployment, and human rights violations wherever they may find themselves within a sovereign nation” (p. 8). Palme (1992) argued that there is a connection between security and survival. For him, security is a basic condition for the survival of human beings. Thus, security is synonymous to freedom from danger, fear and doubt among others. Otto and Ukpere (2012) noted that security relates to the presence of peace, safety, happiness and the protection of human and physical resources or the absence of crisis. Security can therefore be described as freedom from threat or violence which could lead to the loss of lives and property.
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Research Design
The study used descriptive research design. A descriptive study involves collecting data that test the validity of the hypotheses regarding the present status of the subjects of the study. In this study, the design was used to determine the effects of Religious fanaticism which was the independent variable on Secondary schools which was the dependent variable in this study in Agege L.G.A.
Population and Sampling Design
Population
The target population for a survey is the entire set of units for which the survey data are to be used to make inferences (Cooper and Schindler, 2001). Thus, the target population defines those units for which the findings of the survey are meant to generalize. Establishing study objectives is the first step in designing a survey. Defining the target population should be the second step. Target populations must be specifically defined, as the definition determines whether sampled cases are eligible or ineligible for the survey. The geographic and temporal characteristics of the target population need to be delineated, as well (Cox, 2008). Cox and West (1986) describe a population as a well- defined group of people or objects that share common characteristics.
A population in a research study is a group about which some information is sought. Most researchers cannot include all members of the population in their studies and must resort to limiting the number of subjects to only a sample from the population. The target population in this case was Secondary school teachers in Agege, Lagos State. The target population in this study was 205 in number.
CHAPTER FOUR
DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS OF RESULTS
From the table above, majority of the respondents indicated that Religious intolerance did not affect Education much, while 30% indicated that it affects educational performance to some extent, 22.7% indicated that Religious intolerance affects Education greatly.
This shows that the educational system in Agege hasn’t been greatly affected by religious intolerance.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY, RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSION
Summary of the Research
The main focus of this study has been to research into the religious fanaticism between the Presbyterian school in Agege. The conflict has created anger, hatred and victimisation in the town. Thus, the conflict was complex and polarised in nature and it has affected the development of the town. The study has revealed issues such as doctrinal and liturgical and constitutional were the major national causes whereas leadership and non-observance of ban on drumming and noise-making were stated as the local causes.
To start with, the national ones were doctrinal and liturgical related. These seem to be hindrances to the unity of the churches, since church members challenged the doctrines and liturgies. This is because they thought a few members were trying to impose those doctrines and liturgies on the whole church. Examples are the introduction of charismatic mode of worship or liturgical practices such as praises and worship, testimonies, healing and deliverance; practices such as praying loud concurrent with public worship, speaking in tongue, use of drums, rhythmic clapping of hands, dancing and the introduction of Melagbe (I live) theology. These were hitherto not part of Evangelical Presbyterian Church‘s theology, doctrine and liturgy. Constitutional matters were also one of the national factors which caused the conflict. Dzobo was believed to introduce constitution to allow him stand as a moderator for the third time which infringed on the church‘s constitution. A section of people in
Recommendations
No community can develop and meet the needs of the people if there is no peace in the area. Therefore, it is high time the factions in the religious fanaticism buried their grievances in order to help in the development of the town. From the analysis of the data collected and the conclusions drawn from the research, the study proposes the following recommendations.
The study recommends promotion of faith-based peace-building by all the peace guarantors so that religious peace would be sustained in the country. The peace guarantors which include the government, civil society groups, traditional and religious institutions, local council of churches, private sector and business community, and the media need to work towards reducing religious fanaticisms. There is need for our brothers and sisters in Agege to know that the conflict is affecting the rights of people to worship their God freely.
In the research area, chiefs and elders are considered by the community as legitimate agents to strengthen peaceful co-existence among the community, whenever there is a conflict. However, the study suggested that they can only provide sustainable solutions to the conflict by co-ordinating and harmonising the indigenous conflict resolution and reconciliation mechanisms. So, first and foremost chiefs and elders should look into the possibility of helping the new church (Global Evangelical Church) either financially or materially and build a new chapel and a new pastor‘s residence. This will make the congregation of both churches to have peace and unity as their focus.
The question about who should be blamed for the conflict is highly irrelevant in trying to find solution to the conflict. This is because a situation where chiefs and elders were not only seen as unreliable ambassadors for peace but partial may not guarantee any cordial relationship. So, the influence and authority of the chiefs and elders should be brought to bear on their conflict prevention. The best way to resolve this religious fanaticism may be traditional. Therefore, traditional conflict resolution mechanism suggested in this study is consulting Amegakpui. That is traditional leaders should intensify the olden days‘ way of resolving conflict by way of ―Going to consult Amegakpui (an abstract personality considered to be knowledgeable) a situation in which in the process of settling dispute among the Anlo where elders meet and encourage free and fair debate between disputing parties, give them ample time to air their views. Ultimately, the decision is taken depending on data obtained from the plaintiff, the defendant and the witness, and on other evidence. Thereafter, before they pronounce a final verdict. If elders make good use of this concept of ―going to consult Amegakpui‖ there may not be anything like blaming anybody for siding with one faction. The main reason for choosing this conflict resolution mechanism as one of the alternatives for the resolution is that, the approaches usually use are investigative, narrative, reflective and restorative. It helps the disputing parties to do away with hostility and a desire for revenge, reduces polarisations and ultimately restores peace. It creates an environment conducive to justice through narrations. The narrations help the disputing parties to know the root causes of the conflict. Consulting Amegakpui is free from bribing and lobbying. In view of that, suspicions and dissatisfactions are uncommon.
Conclusion
It has been noted in this study that there was religious fanaticism between Presbyterian school. The result of the conflict in Agege has significantly changed the cordial relationship among the citizenry. This has also shifted people‘s attention from developing the town. This has presented both challenges and opportunities for the people to understand the meaning of this phenomenon. The causes of the conflict are mentioned and elaborated in this study. These include, for example, doctrinal or liturgical, constitutional, leadership, declaration by Amewode, and non-observance of ban on drumming and noise- making. It has been argued that chiefs and their elders tried many ways of resolving the conflict but all these ways failed, because there was allegation that the chiefs and elders were bias in the processes.
In view of this, one of the disputing parties did not appreciate the efforts made by the chiefs and elders. Given this weakness, the process was bound to fail. To help get appropriate strategies to deal with this phenomenon has motivated this study. The study has sought to provide various mechanisms to resolve the conflict, as well as the challenges it posed to the people. To ensure that this resolution is successful and peace is restored; the study has suggested some recommendations for the resolution, among them are: The need for religious organisations to have flexible constitutions to enable the churches to easily elect their leaders without any confrontation, the need for religious tolerance among Christians, and the essence of Christians appreciating some of the traditional practices, so that they (Christians) can live peacefully with other religious groups. This is because disregarding or making derogatory remarks about their cultural practices may not promote harmonious living in society. Finally, the study suggests the introduction of topics that are related to religious fanaticisms into the school curriculum so that students will learn more about it. For it will help the students to be aware of how religious fanaticisms affect society. So that it can be prevented in future.
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