Serving humanity, not religion: Making Love Count
Written by Victor Oroyi
The Christian belief is anchored on a vital scripture found in the gospel of John in the third chapter and at sixteenth verse. That notable verse is common amongst children as the first scriptural verse they learn while growing up. It teaches the need for love without boundaries.
It speaks to the very essence why God sent his only begotten son to pay the ultimate sacrifice to redeem the world to Himself. The unconditional love expressed in that verse of the Holy Book is not specific on race, tribe or ethnic groupings but the generality of the human race. As the most concern of God is save the world.
Therefore, it serves as the foundational principles for any follower or believer of God to follow. It simply applies that since we believe in the existence of God and created in His image, it behoves on us to follow in this path of sacrificial love irrespective of persons that comes our way.
Today, Nigeria is regarded as a religious country. Truly so, as evidenced on the number of churches and mosques scattered in every corner. The number of persons that troupe to these revered places of worship weekly gives an idea on a people that have high regard for the Supreme Creator.
Every church organises special fasting programmes running into several days and month at the beginning of the year and periodically. Fridays are earmarked for weekly all-night prayers which is popular amongst the Christian faith.
Therefore, one will believe that such a nation will enjoy the benefits of these religious exercises such as peace, harmony and development of its people. Sadly, this is reverse in our case as a country. It saddening that non-christain states are more developed and sometimes provide aides and grants for us.
Every news channel and newspapers title are full of troubling and scary stories of unrest, under-development, and various forms of violence going on in different part of the country. The questions on our minds should now be are we truly following after the believe of faith especially when it has to do with the word ‘love’?
Love is the foundation that binds humanity as force and basis for any religious practice. Do we displace love in our religious worship with hate? It is pertinent to ask because hatery fosters disunity and violence which is a daily occurrence in our clime.
Safety has become a luxury because it is only affordable by the rich and top government officials at the expense of the common man, who is daily threatened by terror from men from the underworld. Ironically, the cost of affording security by the rich is worth providing jobs for the growing population in Nigeria.
Therefore, there is need for us to examine these two terms ‘religion’ and ‘humanity’. Their meeting point and which comes first in dealing with all manner of persons that we deal with.
According to Wikipedia, religion is a social-cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that relates humanity to supernatural, transcendental, or spiritual elements.
While humanity is defined by Mariam dictionary as the human race, which includes everyone on earth. It’s also a word for the qualities that make us human, such as the ability to love and have compassion, be creative, and not be a robot or alien. It is centred on compassionate, sympathetic, or generous behavior or disposition: the quality or state of being humane.
The underlining links between the two is fact that there will be no religious without humanity. God created man first before He commanded man to worship Him as the only true God. Therefore, if man leaves humanity to focus religion, this will lead to more crises.
God is the author of love which he demonstrated in two important elements of the earth, the sun and the rain. When the sun comes it is not selective. When the heavens give rain it is not selective. They shine and fall on all roofs this is an excellent demonstration of His love on the human race.
It is therefore, worrisome why people created in His image and profess to be following Him are selective in the demonstrating love leading to all manner of violence in our country. A country rich in many natural resources. When letting His son dead, God has a worldview not the 12 tribes of the Israel nation.
This was the crux of his message during a two-day program organized by the Success to the Root International Ministries, Abuja where Dr. Yusuf JS, the founder of the Touch for Recovery Outreach International, TROI, Abuja where he urge believers to embrace humanity and stop playing religion.
Dr. Yusuf emphasized that the believers in Nigeria show begin to demonstrate love to humanity rather than playing religion with God while crime and criminality is on the increase daily, believers should stand up and support government to address some of these development issues.
He challenged believers to note that if they don’t get involved in addressing these issues they will not be spared when the crises escalate to an uncontrollable proportion noting that their wealth will not protect them.
In a swift reaction to these issues, he will hosting a youth empowerment summit across the 36 states of Nigeria where he will awarding instant grant to young entrepreneur with innovative ideas.
According to him, it is has become necessary to provide support for entrepreneurship because violence is not selective whether north or south, he noted that violence doesn’t know religious but it is humanity that is been affected.
Insisting that people should emphasis humanity where love reigns without boundaries and tribes. To curtail the growing insecurity concern, the church should not be concerned with religious but humanity by reaching which Jesus Christ told to do before ascending to heaven.
Beyond organizing special deliverance and prophetic meeting, the church should look outward through its outreach program to economic empower people around them whether Muslim or non-christain through which they can win more soul for Christ.
The empowerment summit will help address the issues of access to funds and create opportunities for meaningful engagement of young persons to shun criminal activities that is causing pains and agony in the land. There will be various vocational training based on the participants choice and idea.
He noted that if the church is involved, and stop discriminating tendencies and focus on the teachings of love demonstrated by God and earthly lifestyle of Jesus, crime will reduce, if not eliminated.
Dr. Yusuf is particular on the love factor for humanity to make for a peaceful co-existence, development and good governance that eliminate corruption and violence in the country.
