By Citizen Agba Jalingo
- I am an adherent of the Indigenous Faiths of Africa and just like you and every citizen, the laws of our land sufficiently guarantees my right to choose and propagate any religion of my choice.
- Most African religions have absolutely no qualms relating with, co-habiting or even co-practicing any other religion. It is arguable, whether we aren’t the ones with the least history of violence and the highest level of tolerance.
- African religions respect every other faith and can scarcely be mentioned in any religious strife.
- You don’t even need to ask me what that faith is specifically. It’s strictly my business with my God. I am not evangelizing you. I don’t want to. Let my lifestyle be the yardstick you use and measure me. Not my religion. How do I treat other life forms around me?
- If you expect me to respect your religion, your beliefs and your deities, kindly reciprocate the same thing to me so that it will make it easy for both of us, since respect is reciprocal.
- You insist that I should not blasphem or take the name of your own God in vain and I accept. Kindly refrain from perpetrating same to mine.
- When you gather in your worship places, whether you stand, bow, sit, knee or lie down to pray, and many of your songs, your prayer points, your supplications, petitions and your teachings revolve around demonizing and painting our own traditional beliefs in scare-dom, remember from now on that you are blaspheming what we hold sacred in our traditions and taking the names of our ancestors in vain.
- Realize henceforth that, to be able to achieve peace in this world, the expansionist agenda of the majority and dominant faiths in the world must be controlled and respect must be given to minority beliefs within the purview of best practices. It is the absence of this, that is the primary cause of conflict in our world.
- I realize that we are never going to agree. Never mind. No religious book says that two souls shall be judged together; not even spouses who become one at marriage. So don’t worry about me. Leave me for my God. Just respect what I believe and we can get on.
- Lastly, don’t call our traditional deities idols again. It is an insult. It is derogatory. It is disrespectful. It is sinful. It is blasphemous. It can lead to what can happen if I called whatever you worship the same thing.
I hope I made my point without offending you. If I did not, still don’t be angry with me please. Just take the NON out of the NONsense and make SENSE of the rest.
