June 21 2020 | Radio Biafra
“Religion is the opium of the people” stated the German philosopher and economist, Karl Marx. This statement has been used by majority of atheists that insult the notion of religion. Recently, some people that are not Christians have resorted to the use of it to insult Christianity.
Personally, I don’t see religion as the opium of the people. Rather, I see ‘ignorance’ as the opium of the people. Ignorance is the disease that have held us down. Ignorance that came as a result of many years of miseducation and misinformation.
This ignorance is the reason we have tried to kill the messenger of truth and protect those raping and killing us. Silence has become a religion in Nigeria, a sacred religion that cannot be attacked or tampered with. Recently, IPOB led by Mazi Nnamdi Kanu lobbied their way into the United States government and convinced them to start saying something against the incessant slaughtering of Christians in Nigeria, as evidenced in the recent Nigeria government’s press release published by Garba Shehu.
There are thousands of Christian leaders in Nigeria, yet none of them is speaking up against the slaughtering of Christians in the country. They have all maintained absolute silence. Speaking up is not telling your members in the church to pray to God to end the killing of Christians in Nigeria. Whenever I lament against this issue, some people will ask ‘if I am in the church to know whether the pastors are saying something or not’.
I am not supposed to be in the church before I can know whether or not your pastors are speaking up. Whatever your pastor is telling you in your church doesn’t move the government. Your Daddy G.O’s and Bishops must be tasked to speak up. This is the time to protest, write protest letters to world leaders and organize press releases in condemnation of the state-sponsored execution of Christians in Nigeria.
Does this concern only the Christian leaders? No. Where are the atheists? Are you guys only good in insulting Christianity? What are you doing against the killings being perpetrated across the country?
What of other religious organizations? What are you guys doing? Where are the Dibias, Ndị Omenala Religion? What are your leaders doing concerning what is happening? Are the terrorists not killing your members too? Or are you attacking Christianity leaving out the killers.
Silence has been made a religion in Nigeria. It has been weaponized. Those that should join hands together to fight those killing them are now fighting each other.
Believe it or not, the silence of religious leaders is grossly suspicious. They are in bed with the government killing and raping the masses, and the worse of it all is that the people now defend the religious leaders and the government against those truly standing for them.
You think that your Pastor or Priest has been disrespected, and because of it, you now side with those maintaining silence as the government sponsored killers butcher thousands of people. Between those that call you a fool, in order stir you to stand up and defend yourself, and those killing you, who should be confronted?
Have you seen why I said that IGNORANCE and not RELIGION is the opium of the people. America, Asia, Europe, India etc have amidst religion, built for themselves a first-class world. Meanwhile, African people are busy shouting how religion is the reason Africa is underdeveloped. Religion is not your problem, ignorance is your problem.
It is due to ignorance that you complain that you are insulted, but do not complain that your government is raping, looting and killing you. If you are not ignorant, you would have known that Nigeria is not working, has never worked and can never work.
You would have known that you have no good hospital, no good roads, no housing, no pipe borne water, nothing, yet you are proudly Nigerian. Is it not a shame?
It is ignorance that makes you to worship your pastors and revere them more than you do to your God. They fly private jets, while you are poor, sick and dying. And even in your sick bed, you still defend them. Tell me which ignorance is worse than this?
What is under attack is Religion of Silence. That is what Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is confronting. And we are not going to relent until it sinks completely.
Source: The Biafra Herald
Published by:
Chibuike John Nebeokike
For: Radio Biafra Media