Toward A Model for an Igbo Christian Spirituality
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Date
2001-02
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Tangaza University College
Abstract
As many scholars have noted, there has been an increasing interest in spirituality since
Vatican Id Council. This has been evidenced by the number of people who enroll in spirituality
courses each year, many writings on spirituality, number of workshops on spirituality designed
to foster the lived experience of the spiritual life. People wonder why there is this increasing
interest in spirituality. This should not be surprising because the church since Vatican II has
focused on the importance of inculturation of the gospel values in the different cultures. Perhaps,
the most effective way of doing this is through an understanding of local spiritualities. Spirituality
being a lived experience, the progressive, conscious striving toward personal integration through
self- transcendence within and toward the horizon of ultimate concern,' could be a good
perspective from which to assess and appreciate the cultural context of the gospel values.
Spirituality deals with day to day striving towards one's life goal. When we come to
Africa, we may ask ourselves, what is that that an African strives for and how is he or she living
out this life project? According to John Mbiti, Africans are notoriously religious. Religion
penetrates all the aspects of life so fully that it is not easy to isolate it.2 This means that the
principle which controls an African's day to day striving lies in his or her religion. Similarly, the
principle which governs the life of an Igbo person in Nigeria, is his or her religion. This implies
that in all their life activities, religious beliefs is a guiding force. But when we examine the
attitudes of the Igbo Christians today, we are forced to ask, how far has Christian values
penetrated their life and their daily activities? Thus one wonders, is Christianity making any impact
among the Igbos who are committed to religion and whose religious values guides all their activities?
According to an English saying, "there is no smoke without fire." When I look at many
Igbo Christians, I wonder what actually is the force behind what I can call a "double lifestyle" and
their inconsistent adherence to the gospel message. Contemporary Igbo Christians manifest
elements of "double religious consciousness" and are not completely faithful to the gospel
message. "Double lifestyle or religious consciousness," is the situation where, one is a Christian
and at the same time an adherent of traditional religion. One may attend Christian worship in the
morning, and in the evening go to the traditional priest's shrine or participate fully in the
traditional worship practices.
My experience of this "double lifestyle" and unfaithfulness to the gospel message during
my 1999 long vacation (May to August 1999) which I spent in some Igbo Christian communities
raised many questions in me. First, what is the force that makes Igbo people to live as both
Christians and believers in traditional religion simultaneously? Second, how rooted is Christianity
among the Igbos, and how meaningful is Christianity to them? Lastly, how far has Christianity
been incarnated in the Igbo culture? This essay, therefore, aims at examining the root cause or the
force behind this "double religious consciousness," and will attempt to show how Christianity can
solve this problem. This search for the cause of the "double religious consciousness"is examined
from the perspective of spirituality. Spirituality in this essay is considered to be the underlying
principle behind any human behaviour. This principle is considered to be the root of all human
actions and the core of any human existence.
In order to achieve the aim of this project, we shall divided the work into three chapters:
Chapter one examines the concept of spirituality. It analyses the Christian and African
Indigenous spiritualities. Chapter two focuses on aspects of African spirituality as they are found
and lived in the Igbo traditional community. Then, chapter three is dedicated to establishing a model for an Igbo Christian Spirituality. In this case, the need for inculturation, the process of and
approaches to inculturation of the gospel message in the Igbo culture are identified and analysed.
This is followed by a general summary and conclusion of the work.
This essay is based on an evaluation of existing literature relevant to the topic of study.
The literature analysed include both Christian and African theologians' texts. Furthermore,
particular attention is paid to the daily life of the Igbos, that is, their experiences and their
nomenclatures. This enables us to explain more fully the inner feelings of the people based on their
own experience and their expressions. Also, the essay is based on discussion with some Igbos and
interview with some missionaries who have worked among the people. In selection of the key
informants interviewed, consideration was given to those with pastoral experience among the
Igbos. Ten informants were interviewed,' but out of this ten people, Fr. Declean was chosen as
the Chief informant for more indepth interview. Rev. Fr. Declean has worked among the Igbos
both as Parish Priest and also a lecturer in a Major Seminary for over twenty years. Also, coming
from outside Igbo land and Nigeria, he was considered to be more appropriate to give an
outsider's evaluation of indigenous Igbo Christians. The bible quotations in this essay are from
The African Bible.'
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Keywords
Christian, Spirituality, Igbo, African, Inculturation