Papers by Emeka C . Ekeke
Verbum et Ecclesia, Jan 30, 2024
Verbum et Ecclesia, 2024
The concept of eschatology remained a captivating theological subject that theologians dedicated ... more The concept of eschatology remained a captivating theological subject that theologians dedicated substantial time and resources to comprehend. Contrary to popular belief, some Christians may not prioritise theological discussions about eschatological details. Eschatological discourse – the fate of the universe, including humans and the physical world – may also be prioritised. Death, the second coming of Christ, judgement, rewards, heaven and hell are some of the eschatological themes that fascinate and disturb people because of limited understanding about the afterlife. African tradition religion (ATR) has been criticised for omitting eschatology in its belief system which this study debunks. This study showed that Christianity and ATR have the concept of eschatology and identified the main points of convergence and divergence in their eschatologies to demonstrate that ATR’s eschatology is well-established but different from Christianity’s. This paper adopts theoretical research, often referred to as conceptual research, since it is aimed at advancing knowledge. Christianity and ATR agree that physical death ends life in the body, and death symbolises the afterlife. Earthlings have limited time to fulfil their duties. Both sides agree that the soul and spirit survive death and resurrection. Christianity and ATR share many beliefs and traditions across sects, ethnicities and regions. These factors influence the eschatology of each tradition. Both faiths agree that present decisions impact fate and eternity. They also agree that God opposes immorality, but the virtuous will inhabit a place of joy. Positive and negative conduct are punished differentially. Intradisciplinary and/interdisciplinary implications: This work discusses end-of-life issues that strongly relate to systematic theology and African traditional religion, emphasising that while their eschatologies differ, they share a belief in life after death. African traditional religion should not be mocked as a religion without eschatology.
International Journal of Arts & Sciences, 2013
Democratic principles such as the rule of law and respect for human rights have become the song o... more Democratic principles such as the rule of law and respect for human rights have become the song on the lips of western nations and international organizations such as United Nation, European Union and African Union. Legal institutions now adjudicate based on it. Religious ethos on the other hand have been employed by many western countries and United States as rule in their daily lives, yet openly declared that they are secular states. This paper examined such practice where Nigeria is said to be a secular state, yet promoted religious festivals and programs with state fund asking the basis for the so called secularity. The paper further advocated that instead of pretending to be a secular state when they are not, the Nigerian government should integrate the ethos of religion and principles of democracy to form what it called "religious democracy". This paper as literary research employed analytic method of research in arriving at its conclusion. As literary research, materials from offline and online libraries have been used. The paper recommended among others that the way forward is the intertwining of religious ethos with democracy in Nigeria instead of hiding under the cocoon of secularity which does not exist in practice.
American Journal of Social and Management Sciences, 2010
The concept of God, divinities and spirits in African traditional religious ontology has been so ... more The concept of God, divinities and spirits in African traditional religious ontology has been so misunderstood by many scholars to the point of seeing Africans as people who did not know the Supreme Being nor worship Him. This paper seeks to examine how Africans conceive of the Supreme Being, divinities and spirits. The paper shows that the concept of God is not strange to Africans but in traditional Africa there is no atheist. It sees the divinities as beings who receive authority from the Supreme Being to serve in the unitary theocratic system of government. The paper sees the spirits as strangers, foreigners and outsiders in the category of things that should be defeated using spiritual powers.
International journal of Asian social science, Jul 15, 2012
European Scientific Journal, ESJ, Jul 28, 2012
Persecution and martyrdom among adherents of various religions of the world have been a critical ... more Persecution and martyrdom among adherents of various religions of the world have been a critical issue. In some religions it is honored and given a prominent place and the martyrs seen as having gone to paradise. In others they go as far as killing themselves in their bid to be seen as martyrs and inherit a place of prominent in the world to come. This study examined persecutions and martyrdom among Christians in the Roman Empire between AD 54 and AD100. It traces the history of persecution of Christians from the time of Emperor Nero to Domitian. The paper also traces brief biography of some emperors and their achievements within the period. The paper concludes with a lesson for the 21 st century church. It recommends among others that Christians today should return to the kind of dogged faith that characterized the early Christians that made them grow in number and in strength. They should not resort to retaliation as has been the case in many instances but to turn vengeance to God if they are to be seen and known as Christians indeed.
American journal of social and management sciences, Dec 1, 2010
The concept of God, divinities and spirits in African traditional religious ontology has been so ... more The concept of God, divinities and spirits in African traditional religious ontology has been so misunderstood by many scholars to the point of seeing Africans as people who did not know the Supreme Being nor worship Him. This paper seeks to examine how Africans conceive of the Supreme Being, divinities and spirits. The paper shows that the concept of God is not strange to Africans but in traditional Africa there is no atheist. It sees the divinities as beings who receive authority from the Supreme Being to serve in the unitary theocratic system of government. The paper sees the spirits as strangers, foreigners and outsiders in the category of things that should be defeated using spiritual powers.
Anglisticum Journal, Jan 3, 2016
The establishment of the Byzantine Empire by Constantine the Great in AD 330 ushered a new dimens... more The establishment of the Byzantine Empire by Constantine the Great in AD 330 ushered a new dimension in the religious horizon of the early church. It created a new system of worship and the use of religious art in Christian religious activities. This religious art flourished in the empire until it degenerated into idolatry which led to serious controversy in the Eastern Church. This paper therefore examined the role Byzantine religious art played in the early church. It also considered the historical development of Byzantine art with particular reference to icons and mosaics and their characteristics and finally x-rayed the influence of icons and mosaics on the early church liturgy and theology.
Research Square (Research Square), Aug 30, 2022
Drug usage is a global phenomenon that has been seen throughout human history, whether it is done... more Drug usage is a global phenomenon that has been seen throughout human history, whether it is done for therapeutic, spiritual, or recreational reasons. Hard drug use and misuse have become a severe concern, especially for those living in Nigeria's Niger Delta, where Christianity is the predominant faith. One can wonder if such a phenomenon should be attributed to the churches' lack of dedication to their religion or if their members have not taken spirituality seriously. In order to explore how religion and spirituality might affect drug use, the current study looks at the usage and abuse of hard and illegal substances in the Niger Delta. The study uses a survey research design and the quantitative research methodology. Responses to closed-ended, structured, electronic and paper-based questionnaires dispersed throughout the study region make up the primary data. The information was gathered both manually and electronically (through email). The study shows that the use of hard drugs is very common in the area and that religious organizations are not doing enough to rehabilitate and treat local drug users on a religious and spiritual level. As the keeper of public morals, the report advises the Church to focus its efforts on preaching against the use and misuse of illegal and hard substances.
Infertility has become a terrible cankerworm destroying the joy of many couples the world over. A... more Infertility has become a terrible cankerworm destroying the joy of many couples the world over. Among Christians, this issue has grown to a monumental level so that many Christian couples question God's power and ability. Today many Christian couples could do anything either good or bad to have children. This paper therefore examines some of the various biomedical approaches through which the problem of infertility could be solved among Christians such as artificial womb, artificial insemination, surrogacy, in-vitro fertilization and sperm and egg donation. The paper recommends, among others, that every Christian couple should know that God is the giver of children and look up to Him for direction and not plunge themselves into acts that they will regret about in the future.
Drug usage is a global phenomenon that has been seen throughout human history, whether it is done... more Drug usage is a global phenomenon that has been seen throughout human history, whether it is done for therapeutic, spiritual, or recreational reasons. Hard drug use and misuse have become a severe concern, especially for those living in Nigeria's Niger Delta, where Christianity is the predominant faith. One can wonder if such a phenomenon should be attributed to the churches' lack of dedication to their religion or if their members have not taken spirituality seriously. In order to explore how religion and spirituality might affect drug use, the current study looks at the usage and abuse of hard and illegal substances in the Niger Delta. The study uses a survey research design and the quantitative research methodology. Responses to closed-ended, structured, electronic and paper-based questionnaires dispersed throughout the study region make up the primary data. The information was gathered both manually and electronically (through email). The study shows that the use of hard...
Lumina Vol 22 No 2, 2011
There has been a divergent view regarding the concept and philosophy of African Traditional Relig... more There has been a divergent view regarding the concept and philosophy of African Traditional Religion. Some have seen Africans as not having the capacity to reason on the concept or the philosophy of God. This led them into giving all forms of derogatory names to African Traditional Religion. This paper examines the concept and philosophy of African Traditional Religion from the viewpoint of Africans. It presents the worldview, philosophical nature and foundation of African Traditional Religion. It also shows that the worship of God in African Traditional Religion is through sacrifices, offerings, singing, dancing and prayers. The paper also considers the concept of evil, ethics, justice and time in African Traditional Religion. It concludes that Africans knew God before the coming of the missionaries to Africa.
HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies
Alcoholism is endemic in Nigeria’s traditional religion and society. This abuse is especially com... more Alcoholism is endemic in Nigeria’s traditional religion and society. This abuse is especially common at New Yam festivals, Ekpe, Ekpo and Nmanwu masquerades festivals, burial rituals, birth, marriage and naming ceremonies. Some claim that this is driven by specific beliefs and activities in African culture, such as beliefs in ancestors, libation, hospitality and entertaining guests and strangers and the desire to maintain the cultural traditions of the ancestors. Alcohol abuse has generated major health and social issues for abusers, their families and society, plunging families, towns and tribes into crises and conflicts that bring economic and political retrogression. This research studied how the African traditional religion encourages alcohol misuse and how to decrease it for national development. This study was on Nigeria’s South-South region. The study uses qualitative and ethnographic research methodologies, including key informants, in-depth and focus group interviews and th...
Fahsanu Journal, Sep 30, 2018
Pharos Journal of Theology
Pentecostal Movements are those Christian religious movements founded in the 1950s and 1960s to d... more Pentecostal Movements are those Christian religious movements founded in the 1950s and 1960s to date. Pentecostal environmentalism focuses attention on the need to maintain the environment according to the dictate of the Christian religious injunctions. This practice is achieved through the practice of sacred place, which is a designation of some earth surface as holy ground, and is retained for religious and spiritual purposes. These places include mountains, hills, rivers, streams, valley etc. and are deemed to possess religious mysteries and potent spiritual qualities. This practice is also observed in the Old Testament and is also part of the practice of the African traditional religions. In similar fashion, the Pentecostal movement shares many elements of traditional practices and the Old Testament, and as such sacred place has found its way into the practices of the Pentecostal movement. Environmental degradation, pollution, climate change, deforestation are all major global c...
The issue of overpopulation has been a problem to many generations of scientists and political ec... more The issue of overpopulation has been a problem to many generations of scientists and political economists. Many countries have employed various means to tackle it but it has refused to abate, giving rise to increased poverty, unemployment and an economic downturn worldwide. Some of the technologies employed by many governments to control birth are the use of contraception, abortion and other family planning methods. This paper examines the technology of abortion as a means of population control from a Christian point of view, appraising it bio-ethically. It is suggested, among other things, that human life begins at conception. Therefore the unborn should be preserved until birth.
The overwhelming impact of religions in Nigeria has been very glaring over the years. Many religi... more The overwhelming impact of religions in Nigeria has been very glaring over the years. Many religious organizations in Nigeria have dedicated themselves to different activities to help the downtrodden, the oppressed, the poor and the prison inmates in various Nigerian societies. This, to a large extent, is based on their concept of the Almighty God as a God of justice, love and mercy. This paper examined the roles various religions, such as Christianity and Islam, play in the transformation, rehabilitation and reformation of prison inmates through their chaplaincy programmes, compassion and prison ministries. As a comparative study, the paper examined the impact of Islamic and Christian teachings on inmates in prisons in Calabar, Cross River State and outlined the similarities and dissimilarities. The study adopted qualitative research method and descriptive analysis of data derived from oral and group interview from ex-convicts, prison inmates, prison officers (warders), chaplains a...
The establishment of the Byzantine Empire by Constantine the Great in AD 330 ushered a new dimens... more The establishment of the Byzantine Empire by Constantine the Great in AD 330 ushered a new dimension in the religious horizon of the early church. It created a new system of worship and the use of religious art in Christian religious activities. This religious art flourished in the empire until it degenerated into idolatry which led to serious controversy in the Eastern Church. This paper therefore examined the role Byzantine religious art played in the early church. It also considered the historical development of Byzantine art with particular reference to icons and mosaics and their characteristics and finally x-rayed the influence of icons and mosaics on the early church liturgy and theology. Keywords: Byzantine religious art; mosaics; icons; iconoclasm; early church; iconodules.
European Scientific Journal, 2016
The world today is full of innumerable uncertainties plaguing humanity. There seem to be a growin... more The world today is full of innumerable uncertainties plaguing humanity. There seem to be a growing concern for the future of the world as various natural phenomena such as earthquake, tsunami, flood, draught, famine and war takes its toll on humankind. Suffering is now on the increase even among the redeemed of the Lord. Many scientists and environmentalists are advocating for the reduction of carbon emission as solution to the perceived climate change. In the midst of these uncertainties hope in the Sovereign, Omnipotent, Omniscient and Immutable God become the only sine-qua-non and the panacea for survival and continued existence. Being a literary research, the paper adopted the qualitative analytical research methodology in its approach and examined the necessity of hope as it pertained to mankind in the midst of suffering. In recommendation, it among others, advocated that a life without hope will eventually fall into despair or retires into status quo of the society. The paper ...
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Papers by Emeka C . Ekeke