Religion, Spirituality and Apocalyptic Dystopia

Abstract

The dilemma in Nigeria’s socio-political development over the decades has been widespread religious affinities and spirituality. In the multi-cultural, multi-ethnic and multi-religious environment, her predominantly Christian adherence finds itself encountering more of this dilemma. This article uses Hegelian dialectics and socio-rhetorical lenses to assess Nigeria’s socio-political dilemma based on Jer. 30:7. Its findings include a dissonance between religious piety and theo-praxis which crystallises into a complacency evoking an apocalypticism devoid of utopia, and which is unable to provoke a thesis or anti-thesis that could give birth to a new synthesis. It recommends a pendulum shift from mere Christian religious pietism to a religious involvement of the churches in socio-political action that could provide the needed thesis and anti-thesis for a renewed socio-political synthesis. To do so, however, it must retain the apocalyptic component of the Christian faith while actively engaged in religious cum socio-political action. https://doi.org/10.17159/2312-3621/2023/v36n2a11

Keywords

• Apocalyptic
• Dilemma
• Dystopia
• Eschatological
• Synthesis
• Utopia