5 reasons for Inter-religious crisis in Nigeria and how to avert it

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Nigeria as a nation is a place with people of diverse ethnic groups practicing different religious faiths. Among the most prominent of these are the Muslims, the Christians and the African traditional worshippers. Adherents of these religions in Nigeria interacts at the social level as members of the same family, as members of the same political party, as business associates, co-workers in the public and private sectors of the economy as well as in market places and educational sector Yet on the other hand, when the same set of people relate to one another at the corporate body to which the adherents owe allegiance; like the Mosque and the Church where the adherents areindoctrinated on how to relate to the adherents ofthe opposite faith, then their relationship is characterized by suspicion, hatred, envy, blackmail, unhealthy, rivalry and incitement. These irreligious attitudes of devotees manifest itself in the incessant eruption of riots in different parts of the country. Between 1980 and 1991 for example, Nigeria witnessed many devastating religious disturbances involving Muslims and Christians like the Ilorin (1986) incidence, where Christians in their procession/open air preaching reportedly made gestures and insinuations which the Muslims found offensive. The result was destruction of lives and properties. In 1987, a misunderstanding between the Muslim and Christian students of a higher institution in Kafanchan, spread like wildfire to almost all the Northern states of Nigeria. And the result was loss of lives and properties as well. It is in this light that Enyioma, posits that Nigeria especially among African nations is greatest victims of religion crisis because they are harbingers of all possible religions. Thus, this paper aims at finding out the possible causes and solutions to religious conflicts in Nigeria. In actualizing this assignment, the research will first clarify the concept “Religion”, “conflict” and “Religious Conflict” after which the researcher will establish in brief the various religions in the Nigerian society and then move on to discuss the causes of their conflict and the possible solutions in averting these conflicts.