Saturday 29 December 2018

Dialogues on faith with Billy Graham

Clearing the thoughts holding you back


                              By Bayo Ogunmupe
    Ever so often we allow the rejections of the past dictate every move we make. We do not believe ourselves to be any better than what some jealous person once told us. certainly, an old rejection doesn't mean we aren't good enough for excellence. It just means some circumstance in our past failed to align with what we had to offer at the time. Somehow, we hinder our own progress, when we refuse to see it that way. Which is why we hit a mental barricade that stops us in the tracks. This is a most damaging thought pattern we must stop.
    Even when we instinctually know we are stronger we were in the past, our subconscious often forgets that our capabilities are infinite and are eternally growing. Here is a metaphorical insight I got recently. Zookeepers typically strap a thin metal chain to a grown elephant's leg and attach the other end to a small wooden peg that's hammered into the ground. The ten foot tall, 10,000 pound elephant could easily snap the chain, uproot the wooden peg and escape to freedom with little effort. But the elephant doesn't. In fact the elephant doesn't even try. The world's most powerful land animal, which can uproot a tree as easily as you could break a toothpick, remains defeated by a small wooden peg and a flimsy chain.
    Why? because when the elephant was a baby, its trainers used the exact same methods to domesticate it; a thin chain strapped around its leg with the other end of the chain tied to a wooden peg in the ground. The chain and the peg were strong enough to restrain it as a baby elephant at the time. Whenever it tries to break away the metal chain would pull it back. Sometimes, tempted by the world it could see yonder, the elephant would pull harder. But the chain would not budge, soon the baby elephant realized trying to escape was fruitless. So it stopped trying.
    Now that the elephant is all grown up, it sees the chain and the peg and remembers what it learned as a baby - that with the chain and peg it is impossible to escape. But of course, this is no longer true. But it doesn't matter that the 200 pound baby is now 10,000 pound powerhouse. The elephant's self-limiting thoughts and beliefs prevail. This metaphor makes us all like elephants. We all have incredible power inside us. But we have our own chains and pegs- Self limiting thoughts and beliefs that hold us back. Often it is a childhood experience or failure. Or sometimes, it was something we were told when we were a little younger.
    Another example is an old journalist telling his son that he must learn both short hand and typing to be an effective journalist, with the veteran not being aware advances in technology had eliminated his advice- that the typewriter has been replaced by the computer and shorthand replaced by the midget. however, what we need to realize is that we need to learn from the past, but be ready to update what we learned based on how our circumstances have changed, as they constantly do. Thus, we have to learn to think better on the past and the present so we can ultimately live better from now and in the future. But somehow, thinking better takes guidance and practice. Thinking better is the soul of living better and self development.
      What follows are some truths to guide you to happiness. Happiness is not something really made. It comes from your actions. happiness is like a kiss, you must share it to enjoy it. Actually, life is simple but we insist on making it complicated. Learn to let go of your goals. It is the key to happiness. Enjoy your life without comparing it with that of another. If you spent your whole life waiting for the storm, you will never enjoy the the sunshine. When what we are is what we want to be, that is happiness. Don't wait for happiness to be thrust upon you, seek it out in your learning and service to the people.


Be committed to your dream

Be careful what you say


                    By Bayo Ogunmupe
     Perhaps, I need to expatiate that this headline is inadequate to explain my message today. By what you say I mean what you dream, pray for, think and what you do. "The tongue also is a fire,"James 3:6. On a windy day in March 1997, a father and a son visited the Valley Forge National Park, Pennsylvania,USA where George Washington stationed the American Revolutionary Army in the winter of 1777-1778. The man and his son wanted to launch a model rocket. At first they used electric ignition wires to light the fuse, but to no avail. So they lighted the fuse with a sparkler.
     That was when trouble started; the sparks ignited a grass fire and the winds quickly spread the blaze. Then burning spread into the field where the Revolutionary war soldiers camped and trained, coming within a mile of George Washington's headquarters. The value of what they put at risk was incalculable. It took thirty units of fire fighters  over one hour to bring the blaze under control. In the end over thirty acres were charred and the man with the sparkler was charged with destruction of government property and improper use of fireworks. The Bible says: "Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body,"James 5-6. "He who would love life and see good days, let him refrain his tongue,"I Peter 3:10. "The lips of the godly speak helpful words,"Proverbs 10:21. So beware of what you do.
     "Oh, that You would bless me indeed,"1 Chronicles 4:10. Jabez prayed that God would bless him in three specific ways. One, Enlarge my territory." He had a dream of owning more land, and he asked God to bless that dream. When you stop dreaming you lose direction. When you stop setting goals you stop growing. As long as your horizon is expanding you will be spiritually healthy. Two, "That Your hand would be with me." God's hand represents His power. Jabez believed that if he got more territory, he would have more responsibility. So he requested God to be with him. And when you ask for God's presence in your life, you can be sure He will answer you.
     Three, "That You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain." Jabez asked God for His protection. Why? This because in those days the more land you owned, the greater your influence and the better known you were. But that made you a bigger target, even today. The more successful you are the more critics you have. The closer you grow to Jehovah, the stronger you become, and the greater your ability to resist the harassment of the Devil. But you can be sure as Jabez successfully got his prayers answered, that with God's protection, you have conquered fear. If you want to break out of Nigeria's stifling mediocrity, pray the prayer of Jabez, like Jabez your prayers are bound to be answered.
     Like Jabez, dare to ask and believe God for great things. God told Jeremiah, "Call to me I will answer you and tell you great things you do not know,"Jeremiah 33:3. Paul tells us that God "is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us" Ephesians 3:20. You cannot out ask, or out dream God. So start asking Him whatever you want from today. And believe me, He will give them to you.


THE JESUS IMBROGLIO


The 1991 Gulf War, codenamed Operation Desert Storm is a watershed in the history of the Arab world and its afterburner and attendant consequences are still being felt. But, it is not the first desert storm. A storm has been raging in the ‘desert’ for more than 2000 years over a prophet of God called Jesus and his mission. Disputes concerning the nature of Jesus have deluged the earth with the blood of millions of people since his birth: From the persecution of his followers to the adoption of his creed by the Roman Emperor Constantine as state religion, followed in time by the altercation with Islam and the crusades, the Great Schism, the Reformation and the Inquisition, to present day bad blood between his followers and the followers of Islam. The name of Christ has caused more persecutions, wars, and miseries than any other name has caused. The darkest wrongs are still inspired by it. The wails of anguish that went up from Kishinev, Odessa, and Bialystok pogroms still vibrate in our ears.  Whole libraries have been devoted to academic discourse on the nature and mission of the man who his followers have elevated to a position of divinity and co-equal with God: A concept that was never contemplated during the lifetime of the man but was surreptitiously made into a creed three hundred years after his demise. Even the concept of Trinity is not mentioned or enunciated in the Bible: The Platonic term trias, meaning three, was Latinized as trinitas, which gave us the English word trinity which is neither biblical nor Christian.  Therefore, it is only proper in this season of Christmastide for us to peep into the Jesus imbroglio from the perspective of Islam; seeing that Jesus is also a revered prophet of Islam.  What then is the Islamic standpoint regarding the personality of the Prince of Peace - Jesus?
"We Muslims believe, that Jesus (Eesa) was one of the mightiest messengers of God; that he was the Christ and that he was born miraculously - without any male intervention. The miracles of Jesus are the supernatural deeds attributed to him in Christian and Islamic texts. The majority are faith healings, exorcisms, resurrection, control over nature and forgiveness of sins. However, in the Synoptic Gospels (Mark, Matthew, and Luke), Jesus refuses to give a miraculous sign to prove his authority: “. . . and said unto them, ‘An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it. Matthew 12:39
Notwithstanding, no Muslim is a Muslim if he does not believe in Jesus!" But, Islam takes great exception to the concept of the ‘Sonship’ of God and the deification of Christ: Islam teaches the existence of a PERFECT God, meaning there is no sharer in His Nature and His Attributes: "Say: He is God, the One and Only; God, the Eternal, Absolute; He begetteth not, nor is He begotten; and there is none like unto Him." (Quran, 112:1-4)
As regards the sons of God, no prophet can claim exclusivity of that phrase as there are tons of ‘sons’ in the Bible: The Bible contains 2541 instances. Though John 3:18 mentioned “the only begotten Son of God”; Psalms, 2:7, says " I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee." This reference is to David which makes the ‘begotten son’ doctrine untenable as there are other instances of such references.
As for the deification of Christ and his divinity Deuteronomy 6:4 (which is the Shema recited by every Jew each morning) echoes Quran 112.  Note in Mark 12:28-34 how Jesus and a Jewish scribe he encountered understood this text: “And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him; which is the first commandment of all? And Jesus answered him, ‘The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord. . . . . . .  ” Mark 12:28-34.  Jesus said ‘The Lord our God’.
There are many instances in the Holy Bible that corroborate the notion of one God and the messengership of Jesus. For, a messenger is defined as ‘he that is sent’; hear John: John 17:3 — “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.”
The oneness of God received emphasis in the following verses:  Deuteronomy 32:39,  2 Samuel 7:22; 1 Kings 8:60; 2 KINGS 5:15;  2 Kings 19:15; 1 Chronicles 17:20;  Nehemiah 9:6;  Isaiah 43:10,11;  Isaiah 46:9; Hosea 13:4 and also in  Joel 2:27.  Ephesians 4:61 Timothy 1:17; And many other places.
We could call Jesus many things, even as in 1 Timothy 2:5 where it is said: “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” Yes! As a mediator between man and God; but not God! For, as James 2:19 says: Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.
Two reasons have been advanced to prove that Jesus is God, according to them; Jesus is God because HE SHARES THE NATURE OF GOD, and HE IS IN EVERY WAY LIKE GOD.
Numerous verses from the Bible prove that Jesus neither SHARED THE NATURE OF GOD, nor is he IN EVERY WAY LIKE GOD. These verses negate the very concept of God in both its etymological and spiritual sense. What would God want to prove by subjecting His majesty to the challenges and tribulations Jesus was subjected to?
A "God" that was created from the seed of David: "Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the SEED of David according to the flesh." (Romans, 1:3) Haba! “The Fruit of the Loins of David”. (Acts, 2:30); For the ancestors of "God" (Matthew, 1:1); the sex of "God" (Luke, 2:21); How Mary conceived and delivered "God"(Luke, 2:6) which means that she went through all the normal stages of pregnancy. Nor was her delivery any different from other expectant mothers see (Revelation, 12:2) and (Luke, 11:27); the country of origin of "God": Jesus (God) was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king. (Matthew, 2:1); Jesus (God) was a carpenter by trade (Mark, 6:3), and the son of a carpenter. (Matthew 13:55). Mental, physical and moral development of "God (Luke, 2:52); "God" Was Twelve Years Old when his parents took him to Jerusalem for Passover (Luke, 2:41-42); The powerless "God" said, "I can of mine own self do nothing." (John, 5:30);
And the ultimate contradiction was when Jesus (God) was asked about the ‘Hour’, he said: "But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father." (Mark, 13:32)
The ultimate profanity and blasphemy was the supposedly ‘capture of God’ see John, 18:2-3, thereafter "God" was arrested, bound and led away see (John, 18:12-13); "God" was humiliated (Luke, 22:63-64). "They spit in his face”, (Matthew, 26:67). And "God" was defenceless (John, 18:22-23). And "God" was condemned to death (Mark, 14:64), (Matthew, 26:66). And "He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth." (Acts 8:32).
Finally: The Dying "God” cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost." (Mark, 15:37)
This definitely cannot be the God we worship and pray to five times daily and whose praise we sing in churches all over the world every Sunday. There is no iota of doubt; the primitive man is higher in his concept of God the Almighty than the millions of civilized men and women of both East and West who strut the world today.
The whole discourse is centred and premised on an erroneous and fallacious conception of God. It is a noxious notion of an anthropomorphic conception of God. God has become the creation of man in the image of man; a God that wrestles with a man, who imbibe wine, who eats and is romanced by a woman who uses oil to massage his feet; these are far from the conception of God in the holy books. No doubt, the discourse is a continuation of pre-biblical age, borrowed from the Sumerian/Babylonian conception of God as an extraterrestrial. It is this that informed the various references in the bible to the Nephilim:  The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came into the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown. The first mention of "sons of God" in the Hebrew Bible occurs at Genesis 6:1–4.
Yet we know from inference that Almighty God is Spirit and, in His usual glorified state, is invisible to the human eye (Colossians 1:15; 1 Timothy 1:17; Hebrews 11:27). That partly explains why John said, "No one has seen God at any time" (John 1:18). God is spirit - His nature is not flesh and blood.
Though Jesus is mentioned by name in twenty-five places in the Holy Quran, he is also addressed with respect as: "Ibn. Maryam" - son of Mary; and as "Rasul-ullah" - Messenger of Allah. He is spoken of as "the word of God", as "the spirit of God", as a "sign of God", and numerous other epithets of honour spread over fifteen different chapters. There is not a single disparaging remark in the entire Quran to which anyone can take exception.
The Holy Quran refers to Jesus as "Eesa", and this name is used more times than any other title, because this was his name. Actually, his proper name was "Eesa" (Arabic), or "Esau" (Hebrew); classical "Yeheshua", which the Christian nations of the West Latinised as Jesus. Neither the "J" nor the second "s" in the name Jesus is to be found in the original tongue - they are not found in the Semitic languages. The word is very simply -"E S A U" - a very common Jewish name, used more than sixty times in the very first booklet of the Bible, called "Genesis". There was at least one "Jesus" sitting on the "bench" at the trial of Jesus before the Sanhedrin. Josephus the Jewish historian mentions some twenty-five Jesus' in his "Book of Antiquities". The New Testament speaks of "Bar-Jesus" - a magician and a sorcerer, a false prophet (Acts 13:6); and also "Jesus-Justus" - a Christian missionary, a contemporary of Paul (Colossians 4:11). These are distinct from Jesus the son of Mary.
After a description of the high position which Jesus occupies as a prophet, the jury is out to repudiate the dogma that he was God, or the son of God, or anything more than man. If it is said that he was born without a human father, so also was Adam. Indeed Adam was born without either a human father or mother. Eve his wife, was ‘manufactured’ from the ribs of Adam without a father or a mother. Finally, there was“Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God... Without father, without mother, without descent, having NEITHER BEGINNING of days, NOR END of life..." Hebrews 7:1-3. Here is a candidate for Divinity itself, for only God Almighty could possess these qualities. Adam had a beginning (in the garden), Jesus had a beginning (in the stable); Adam had an end and so had Jesus "and he gave up the ghost". But where is Melchisedec?
The greatness of Jesus arose from the divine command of Allah ‘KUN’-"Be": for after that he was - more than dust - a great spiritual leader and teacher."
Barka Juma’at and Best Wishes for a Merry Christmas!


Babatunde Jose
Ojogbon Baba'oba+2348033110822

THE LANGUAGE OF GOD


Language is a human construct, designed to convey ideas and concepts so as to communicate with other humans. God transcends human constructs. Further, “speaking a language” is a physical action. God is not physical.
This question presupposes the wholly inaccurate image of “God” as a physical being who vocalizes by expelling air from His lungs and further chooses to communicate with specific human words. This question is like asking “What language does love speak?”
“Silence is the language of God, all else is poor translation.”―Jalal ad-Din Rumi
There is an old chestnut from WWI. Hans and Dieter are in the trenches, and on one boring evening they are speculating about who is going to win the war. Hans: We’re going to win, obviously. Dieter: Why do you say that? Hans: Well look around you. We’ve got thousands of men here and every one of them is praying to God for our victory right now.Dieter (Pointing to the English lines): But, Hans, they have just as many over there. Don’t you think they’re praying to God too?Hans: Yes, of course they are, but God doesn’t speak English.
The foregoing illustrates the follies inherent in human thinking on what language God speak; God can speak any language. God is the original source of all talents and qualities.
Apparently, there is a supposition that God speaks whatever language we do not understand, but which the local priest, imam, shaman (or other equivalent) does happen to speak, in order to … interpret God’s wishes and commands to us. There’s always a book or a handed-down lore, and it always is somehow in human language, and it always somehow needs interpretation, and it never does well (in terms of preserving ‘veracity’ and ‘legitimacy’ ) in translation. However, this has not deterred the Bible from being translated into many languages from the biblical languages of Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek. As of October 2017 the full Bible has been translated into 670 languages, the New Testament alone into 1,521 languages and Bible portions or stories into 1,121 other languages. And interestingly all services are held in the vernacular.
The God of Judaism is addressed in Biblical Hebrew through prayers, yet Jews speak to him outside the synagogue in all languages, he appears to have spoken to Jewish prophets in their language - biblical Hebrew.
Allah revealed the Quran in Arabic and is still prayed to in Arabic; despite its translation into major languages of the world. It is the most anachronistic of the Abrahamic religions.
Hindu gods are addressed and acknowledged in their rituals in Sanskrit, yet when they appear in films and TV series, they speak Hindi, Punjabi, and Gujarati etc.
The Shinto pantheon is addressed in Japanese, likewise the multitude of Chinese gods are addressed/invoked/propitiated in all manner of different Chinese dialects.
Tibetan Buddhists use Tibetan and Sanskrit in their services, yet for the benefit of those practising Vajrayana Buddhism all over the world; - services are also conducted in all manner of different languages.
Gods are perceived as being somewhat more powerful than humans, and as such perhaps can use any language they wish, when communicating with humans - they'll use whichever languages humans will understand.
The problem of religious language is worrisome to practitioners of the Abrahamic religious traditions because it has the potential to undermine those traditions. All three faiths proclaim truths about God in written texts, commentary traditions, and oral teachings. In fact, speech about God is essential to both personal praxis and organized celebration in these traditions. Without adequate solution to the problem of religious language, human speech about God is called into question. Without the ability to speak about God and to understand the meaning of what is spoken, the Abrahamic (Middle Eastern) faiths are vulnerable to the criticism that their sacred texts and teachings are unintelligible.
The problem of religious language also provides a challenge for philosophers of religion. If there is no adequate solution to the problem of religious language, large discussions in the domain of philosophy of religion will also be rendered unintelligible.
Once a language becomes associated, with religious worship, its believers often ascribe virtues to the language of worship that they would not give to other language even their native tongues. Religious or sacred language is vested with a solemnity and dignity that ordinary languages are perceived to lack. Consequently, the training of priests in the use of religious language becomes an important cultural investment and the use of the language is perceived to give them access to a body of knowledge that untrained lay people cannot have. This is the reason for the proliferation of Imams, Alfas, marabouts, Pastors and ‘prophets’. On the contrary, services and preachments in vernacular have a spiritual and soul lifting quality which the foreign language can never achieve. The liturgy in Yoruba is a very good example. No amount of English grammar can drive home the essence of the service to a Yoruba congregation. It’s like comparing Shakespeare to D.O. Fagunwa.
If the Holy prophet had emerged among the Bantu of South Africa, the Quran could possibly have been revealed to him in Xhosa. The same reason God revealed the Torah in Hebrew. Had He decided to send His messenger to the people who spoke Urdu He would have chosen Urdu. The Quran 44:58 states explicitly: “Thus We have revealed this [Qur'an] to you in your own tongue so that they may take heed;” because He decided to send His messenger to the Arabs: “Had We sent this as a Qur'an (in the language) other than Arabic, they would have said: "Why are not its verses explained in detail? What! (a Book) not in Arabic and (a Messenger an Arab?" (Quran 41:44).  There is no doubt God raised a prophet from among the brethren of the children of Abraham: I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. Deut 18:18
It's not rocket science: Prophet Muhammad was an Arab. For him to understand the Quran, it had to be in Arabic. Otherwise how can he understand the message and tell/teach other people. It is like God sending the 10 Commandments to Moses in Chinese. However, one does not have to know Arabic to learn Quran. 1,400 years after, the motive is to understand and live it. People waste years learning Quran in Arabic but do not understand the divine message. People should read and understand the message of Allah in the easiest possible language that they can understand, not necessarily Arabic. Arabic language is for Arabs only. There is also the issue of cultural imperialism associated with religion in a foreign language; as it is impossible to divorce language from culture. This is the main reason for the change from Latin to English and later to vernacular. It is also the major reason for the hiatus over the Hijab and other foreign paraphernalia of the Islamic religion. The head cover is patently a Palestinian (Middle Eastern) dress sense and its common to all Abrahamic religions.
Though it has been argued that the continued use of Arabic as the language of Islamic liturgy is to facilitate the universality of the Umma because it enables every Moslem to worship in the same language; second, Arabic had been used to good effect for a very long time, with the result that there was a great wealth of liturgical material in that language; third, the use of Arabic made it easier to avoid certain dangers of change and experimentation which are congenial to the modern mind; fourth, the continued use of Arabic in the liturgy would make it easier to maintain Arabic as the official language of the religion.
However, it is a fact that if one attends a Masjid, especially in this clime, 80% of the congregants are ignorant of the language in which the proceedings are being conducted, except it is in vernacular. I was asked to deliver a Ramadan lecture to members of NASFAT, Ipaja. I had to stop the lecture to change to Yoruba because majority of the people especially women could not understand English. A Yoruba Moslem attending a Hausa mosque is a glorified spectator; like a blind man in a cinema hall. Ditto for a Hausa in a Yoruba Mosque. Majority of our people who recite the Quran only do so by rote and do not understand the meaning of what they recite. There is a belief that saying prayers in a language one did not understand created a more mysterious, reverent and transcendent atmosphere, but this has been proved erroneous. It is therefore for this reasons that the Catholic Church in 1964 changed from Latin to the vernacular in its Mass.
The Catholic Church and its sacred documents were codified at the Council of Nicaea in 325, and it didn’t change for 1200 years. As a response to the Protestant Reformation, the Church called the Council of Trent in 1545. A recurring topic at the Council was Language of the Church. At the Council of Trent, they reaffirmed the Vulgate, which was a Latin version of the Bible translated by Saint Jerome in the 300s. Pope John XXIII convened the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council (also called Vatican II) in 1959. The major change initiated by Vatican II was to translate the traditional Latin mass into the vernacular; a language specific to a place. Until 1965, all Catholic Mass was said in Latin, and the Church realized that may alienate parishioners who spoke Latin only in church.
Translation is a notoriously difficult feat. It is often said that there are as many translations as there are translators. Despite its problems, the Church stood its ground in favour of the benefits to its wider adherents. This is what we expect Islam to do. Let the people worship in the vernacular. It’s only a matter of time and we will get there.
There is no doubt, when the language is not properly understood adherents could recite inappropriate verses of the Quran for prayer. Understandably, prayer and admonition are two different propositions and the Quran contain both. A congregant reciting an admonitory verse as prayer fails to communicate with God. These facts are never understood except the Book is learnt in the language of the follower. For the foregoing reasons, there is a need to free Islam from the shackles and albatross of the Arab language and culture because: God has no language. It is a spiritual feeling. Languages are just man made creations for communication. Calm your mind and try to establish a connection with the Almighty in whatever language you understand. That is the only road to salvation.
Barka Juma’at and Best wishes for a Happy New Year and a better understanding of God.


Babatunde Jose
Ojogbon Baba'oba+2348033110822

A race between an eagle and a bat



 It leaves much to be desired of Nigeria's political development to observe that   the 2019 presidential contest, by realistic computations, shall once again, like in 2015,  be between the All Progressives  Congress (APC) and the   Peoples Democratic Party (PDP); notwithstanding that there are about seventy registered political parties in the country. This is uninspiring; and the names  of the two leading candidates make it even more so. Nigerians have been reading about, and listening to each of these men since the 1980s. Muhammadu Buhari of the APC and Abubarka Atiku of the PDP are household names in Nigeria; and both men share a number of things in common. They are both of the Fulani extraction. They are both Muslim. They are both septuagenarian. And they are both serial contenders for the  highest political office in the land. However, one feature  sharply contrasts the two illustrious descendants of herdsmen. The one is passionate about creating wealth, and is proud to be wealthy; while the other espouses the gospel of asceticism, after a fashion of a marabout. The one lists a sprawling multi-million US dollars export/import processing facility, and a full-fledged university among his  choice assets; while the other lists 200-odd herds of cattle among his premium assets.
Two individuals could hardly be more contrasting. Most commentators have suggested that the aforesaid contrast  would determine the outcome of the 2019 presidential election. It is impossible to controvert that view in a country where wealth and poverty are very sensitive,  and perhaps the most important topics. Only this year, an international study concluded that about 87% of Nigerians  live in extreme poverty. So, as we are already gleaning on the campaign trails, suggestive phrases like, "corruptly rich", and "transparently indigent"  have become recurring decimals. Fixated on the notion that indigent Nigerians  generally perceive their   wealthy compatriots as corrupt, the ascetic candidate would, even blindfolded, see  many vulnerable targets on his opulent opponent, and consequently offload bullets with reckless abandon.  On the other hand, the wealthy candidate seized of his perceived vulnerabilities, and having garnered the requisite agility in his long political walk, would focus on seeing the bullets well ahead of targets - he would become eagle-eyed, thus rendering his opponent as blind as a bat.
Hopefully, that projected scenario should inject a level of excitement into the  2019  presidential race. A race between an eagle and a bat  is certainly novel, and we are beginning to see the effects of this novelty already. The PDP candidate's campaign has so far been remarkably issue-based; it is expected that other presidential, gubernatorial, and legislative candidates would follow that dignified lead. Nigerians could do with less murky electioneering campaigns of, "You be thief! I no be thief!" Come on, now! We can do much better than that. Being an art of the possible, politics affords candidates an infinite scope to make political contests a fine art of sorts, at once educating and entertaining the electorate. I have a hands-on experience of this possibilities from both  my secondary school debating days and years of following political debates in advanced climes. Debates are necessary nutrients for human imagination; they open up hitherto latent worlds. For example, I had put the implicit question herein to some friends who saw the script of this piece. "Ah, come off it!" they retorted in unison; "the bat  doesn't stand a ghost of a chance." "Really?" I calmly uttered, starring at each of them in turn. "Are we not underestimating the bat? " "How?", an indignant voice intoned. "What if the race were conducted in the pitch darkness of...?" "Ah! we see your point - the race doesn't always go to the swiftest!" multiple voices chorused.
That chorus spontaneously minded me of one of the many tales about that cleverest of animals, tortoise. The dog had mockingly referred to tortoise as lazy and sluggish; but the latter surprisingly challenged the former to a long-distance race. The dog just as mockingly accepted the challenge.  The race track; date; and trophy were subsequently determined. On the appointed day, the animal kingdom gathered. The contestants were set on the starting block.  The dog exuding vigour,  trotting on a spot and paying scant attention to tortoise. But the tortoise was as  cool as a field of cucumbers.
No sooner than the race declared open when the dog shot like a bullet ahead of the tortoise. Seconds after the dog  disappeared from sight.  Unperturbed, the tortoise waddled along. Two hours later, the tortoise caught up with the dog. The latter was completely engrossed,  divesting a big bone of what fresh that was left on it.  The tortoise waddled past.  Thirty minutes later the dog came charging behind, and again shot past the tortoise and disappeared from sight.  But the tortoise maintained its pace. And as before, again caught up with the dog, which was indulging in a group play with its kind. The tortoise again waddled past. That trend continued until few minutes before the sun disappeared from the western horizon. As the sun slowly sank, a moving silhouette appeared on the horizon, and headed for the finishing line. The descending darkness temporarily challenged the visual of the gathered animals as to the identity of the moving silhouette. But minutes later the conical hardback came into  full view; "It's the tortoise!!!", the jungle reverberated.
Creative imagination and focus had won the race for the tortoise. Incidentally, my pre-2015 presidential election article, "Choosing between APC and PDP" was based on the same philosophy, though I had lamented then that Nigeria was fielding her Third Eleven. I would decline the offer to classify the 2019 array of candidates for the top job. That's now for Nigeria's increasingly critical voting public to determine. So, bring up the debates and let the candidates exhibit the stuff of which they are made. Nigerians want to hear the candidates creatively dissect the nation's lingering challenges in all spheres; and proffer cost-effective solutions to those challenges. Nigerians want to see deeply  focused and imaginative minds and visions on display. And, crucially, Nigerians want to see zero-tolerance for both pedestrian electioneering and biased officiating by the electoral umpire. Nigeria needs to quickly move in the direction the rest of the world has long waited to see her go - the West African slumbering giant is the next big  global event waiting to happen. So, fellow compatriots, let us in 2019 allow the logic of reason finally clearly  those clouds of emotions  which often cause us as a people to make fatal choices.
Thanks to God we are  once again able to say, "It's that time of year!". Compliments !
Afam Nkemdiche is  an engineering consultant; December, 2018

Populism, a consequence of neocolonialism




Earlier in 2018, Jack Ma, Alibaba's billionaire founder, got me wondering about his theology when, in announcing his retirement from the giant ICT corporation said, "God didn't create human beings to work, but to enjoy the world's abundant wealth...". I couldn't stop wondering about where he got the fanciful idea from. But when I reflected on the theological history of Asia, I wondered less. Indeed, persons with little or no theological training, in spite of their worldly successes, must restrain themselves from making public utterances about God and His mysterious works. Jack Ma's unfounded remark reminded me of another presumptuous remark by the flamboyant Esama of Benin kingdom, Chief Gabriel Igbinedion, during one of his birthday celebrations. The irrepressible chief, rather flippantly, told his guests that the reason God created man on the last day of Creation was to allow enough time for crops to grow!!! His guests, among them senior clergy men, women and university dons, were expectedly in stitches.
But Jack Ma's remark wasn't as hilarious, it was a fundamental distortion of theology; and I hope he would, or be caused to correct himself in the near future. Though I do not hold a certificate in theology, but I have read enough of the holy books to know that God's purpose is for man to be a co-creator - a fellow indefatigable worker. Man's measure of success is therefore to be inseparable from his co-creatorship with God. In a nutshell, man's enjoyment is to be derived from his creative works. In that sense, it is troubling to hear a decided workaholic like Alibaba's founder suggest, at the sunset of his illustrious career, that man was created solely to luxuriate in Nature's many riches. If this erroneous declaration by China's richest man is considered in the light of his country's rapidly rising global influence, I see the need to purposefully correct that potentially damaging casual remark.
Ma's remark is perhaps a wake-up call to shorn humans' spiritual purpose of avoidable  obfuscations. Critically analyzed, such obfuscations could be said to the reason religious conflicts in particular, and wars in general proliferate across the globe. Consider what positive impact it would make if it were clearly etched in the human mind that creative productivity is the more credible worship mode of God than the essentially ceremonial form. The New Testament Gospels specifically made the point: humans' creative potentials are God's principal investment from which huge returns are expected. St. Augustine of Hippo, the 4th century theologian, among notable others, had subsequently written copiously about that proposition, culminating in his magnum opus: The City of God.   Fourteen centuries later, that   treatise literally brought forth the Enlightenment Philosophers, whose works methodically led to the overthrow of monarchical governments in Europe. By making the citizens' work a form of worship of the Creator, their spiritual and civic duties are optimally reconciled, the citizens' loyalty to the sovereign is thereby guaranteed, these philosophers had postulated. The logic of the proposition is simply palpable.
Although St. Augustine's and the Enlightenment philosophers' works greatly influenced the development of world philosophy, regrettably, however, British eighteenth century colonialism and the United States of America's post-World War II foreign policy completely missed The City of God's crucial message. Instead of looking to their populations and local resources to build their respective economies, the British and the US (and to a less degree, other European nations) aggressively pursued foreign campaigns through which the peoples and resources of weaker nations (notably Africa) were captured and employed to build and maintain their mega economies. After the British and other leading nations relinquished their colonial holdings, colonialism was surreptitiously substituted with neocolonialism, through opaque financial, economic and trading policies. Thus, while the developed nations maximally exploited the peoples and resources of developing countries, their own populations and resources were barely productively active and redundant respectively. That was a ticking time bomb waiting to go off  - a la the idle mind...
The 2008 financial collapse acted as a trigger for that bomb, which finally exploded in 2016 in what is now infamously referred to populism, the most potent contagion of the modern age. The barely productive indigenous populations of developed nations are now remonstrating generations of underutilization of their creative potential; these huge populations have been left out of the global wealth creating loop. This is the only objective interpretation of populism in the 21st century. While the respective establishments of the United Kingdom and the US kept their greedy eyes peeled for exploiting the peoples and resources in distant countries Brexitism and Trumpism happened under their insensitive nostrils. And as the feeble-voiced head of the UK belatedly learned about the 2008 financial debacle, no one saw the 2016 dual events coming, of course. Two years after the fact, leading politicians in both the UK and the US have yet to fully come to terms, let alone come up with appropriate responses to Brexitism and Trumpism respectively. Rather than look critically hither, they as yet look through a film darkly thither, lamely blaming Russian meddling in their respective domestic affairs. This is no more than making escapism an art form. We needn't look beyond the previous US midterm elections results and the UK's blunderings with Brexit to be convinced that Brexitism and Trumpism were domestically-induced. The Democrats didn't take the US senate, preparatory to trumping Trumpism as had been widely speculated. Instead the Republicans increased their majority in the upper chamber; and the much talked about Brexit deal with the European Union recedes by the week, even as the 29 March 2019 exit date looms large. Right Honourable Congress and British Parliament, please stop the ongoing political poppycock otherwise known as Russian meddling. Stop looking to justify that allegation for, as the US special counsel, Robert Mueller has since discovered, the evidence of it is a will-o'-the wisp. The answers to your teeming challenges reside in optimal exploitation of your local populations and domestic resources, consistent with Nature and the  Holy Writ.
Thankfully, emerging populist leaders: Donald Trump of the US; Vladimir Putin of Russia; Viktor Orban of Hungary; Recep Erdogan of Turkey; Narendra Modi of India; and President-elect Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil, are blazing that trail. These are simply responding to the dictates of the times. Pity though the reactionary media have quickly branded them as retrogressive nativists, but there is no doubting the fact that time will vindicate their bold initiative, as it ultimately does all truths. Meanwhile, Jack Ma's country, under the prodding of maximum ruler Xi Jinping, is pursuing a one trillion US dollars "One road, one belt" global project that would, in less than a century hence, as likely make Brexitism and Trumpism pale into insignificance in terms of politico-economic upheavals. Ma, Jinping and other similarly oriented persons should be offered crash programmes on history and theology to hedge the world from the risks of an amplified version of the emerging consequences of neocolonialism.

Afam Nkemdiche is an engineering consultant; December, 2018

Eucharistic Healing, the potentials of the Holy Spirit

Identifying the character traits of fraudsters


                    By Bayo Ogunmupe
     Since being defrauded twice over my efforts to build a website and sundry activities, I have assembled a list of the character traits of fraudsters. And absolutely, I don't tolerate any of these traits for any reason. The moment I spot any of these traits, I immediately start playing my cards defensibly- making it a point to keep such a person far, far away from whatever I do. One, People who ask for something before first offering to help you in some way. Every great connection I have had in business and career has manifested away from this way of being. Once a person is asking for remuneration without work, steer clear of him. There isn't a single person from my network of helpers who doesn't operate from my philosophy of offering work first before remuneration.
     In fact I wrote for The Guardian for more than a year before being paid for my columns. The joy is in seeing my name in print, not the money accruing from it. The second character trait of fraudsters is that, they don't always give you the full story. They won't give you the accurate particulars of their background or the extent of their skills. If you listen closely, which you must, you can tell when a person is purposefully withholding details of certain situations. And if you watch long enough, you will start to realize why: they have things they want to hide. These aren't the people you want to trust.
     Three, people who steal; I once had a great friend at Ijegun,a suburb of Lagos. I thought he adored me for my creative problem solving proclivities. Until I paid him a surprise visit one evening only to find my long missing stapler, books and a mouse of my desktop computer. He had been hindering me rather than being a loyal and faithful friend. I even saw more. I immediately cut off the relationship. No questions asked. As a writer, there are few things in life more infuriating than seeing someone put their name on your work.
     Four: People who get jealous of your success. As you continue to grow, especially if you begin to achieve fame and recognition, you will start to see the true colour of those you hang out with. In each chapter of my life, I have made and lost friends. The ones I have lost, suddenly felt threatened by the things I was achieving, no matter how much I encouraged by my generosity. A foe argued himself hoarse over the veracity of my being a published author. It was not until I showed him a copy and googled it through an ipad that he believed. He never showed up again at our usual cafe. The friends that I have kept and there are many of them; are those who are happy with the trail blazing lifestyle we are pursuing.
     A few weeks ago, I got a call from a reader of my blog in Italy. He is teaching economics there and was seeking a clarification over Nigeria's economic and growth plan. I obliged him with the information he asked for. He is happy that we're able to be of service to Nigerians in the diaspora. That is a real friend. Finally, people who blame others for their lack of success or happiness belong to that class of people likely to hinder you in life. They hate successful people around them. If there is one thing I pay attention to in others, it is how they talk about their lives. That their current situation is the result of someone else, that is a red flag. If they blame other people for their shortcomings, that's a red flag.
     If they struggle to admit their own faults that's a red flag. These people are leeches. The happier you become the more they prey on you. The more successful you become, the more jealous they will feel. They live in a constant state of playing victim. Life is happening to them and there is nothing they can do about it; which makes it the fault of others. I have learned the hard way not to allow these kinds of people into my life. You should do the same, you should avoid them like the plague. But once you know what to look for, it becomes apparent who is worth your time and who isn't. Never allow fraudsters infect you with their belief in destiny. The truth is that anyone can make it in life. That's why God granted you free will.

Leading Nigeria in treacherous times



                      By Bayo Ogunmupe
     Leading a country in this age of the internet demands you find ways to adapt more quickly to change. The old systems of command and control don't work anymore. It hasn't worked well for decades now. Which is why Nigeria is where we are. What is the alternative? Traditional management has been about improving control using best practices, standardization, measurement and reports. Focus has been on improving administrative practices, rather than psychological and cultural improvement. The industrialization of business processes through centralization, standardization and measurement has resulted in the improvement of efficiency at the expense of human freedom and creativity.
     What then has been the result of this centralized control and statistical reporting? National prosperity and success is measured against the question, "How well do you follow standards, execute tasks and adhere to process?" It has caused people to focus on adhering to tasks and processes, rather than focusing on the achievement of customer satisfaction. This management approach has killed creativity and innovation. Project execution based on standards, templates, processes and checklists, causes people to lose the ability to think holistically, leaving us unable to take initiative.
     The challenge of leading in a fast changing environment isn't new. Military commanders have for decades wrestled with this exact problem. More than 200 years ago, military thinker Carl von Clausewitz (1780-1831) described war as chaotic, uncertain, full of friction and unpredictable. Clausewitz found that systems and rules don't work in environments of uncertainty and rapid change. Instead, for organizations to perform well, they need to adapt to fast changing environments. Learning from Napoleon's style of command.
     On the 14th October, 1806, Napoleon's French force faced a much larger Prussian Army at the Battle of Jena, yet despite the odds against the French, Napoleon's army defeated the larger Prussian forces. After their defeat, the Prussian army reviewed their battlefield performance. Seeking to understand why they were so easily beaten. The lesson they learned was that the primary reason for Napoleon's victory was his style of command. Napoleon did not lead by command and control.
      Instead he gave his officers the authority to make decisions as the battle changed. Rather than waiting for approval from senior officers, Napoleon's commanders were able to adapt and take independent action. In contrast, Prussian commanders dared not act on their own, they had to wait for orders from superior commanders. This led to wasted time and lost opportunities, as command and control required troops to blindly follow orders, even when those orders no longer made sense.
     After World War 1, the Germans drawing inspiration from the Prussians where tight control over the troops led to poor decision making, created an alternative style of command. This new style required commanders to provide soldiers clear direction as to what needs to be done, while allowing soldiers the freedom to determine how to achieve it. Thus, soldiers were able to act independently. German commanders would never discipline a subordinate for showing initiative.
     "In general, one does well to order no more than is absolutely necessary and to avoid planning beyond the situation one can foresee. These change very rapidly in war. Seldom will orders which anticipate far in  advance succeed completely to execution. The higher the authority, the shorter and more general will the orders be. The face to face commander adds what further precision appears necessary. The detail of execution is left to the verbal order, to the command. Each thereby retains freedom of action and decision within his authority"-Helmut von Moltke, 1869 Chief of the German General Staff (1858-1888).
     Creative leadership required the development of leaders who were willing to take responsibility for initiative and independent action. Fast changing situations in battle prevents you from doing advanced planning in any meaningful detail. This is made worse by the poor quality of information received during battle, which is often incomplete. What's required is rapid decision making on the battle field. In Nigeria's present situation of treachery and economic recession, speed matters more than precision. To trump a perfect solution, Nigeria needs leadership at all levels, not just in Aso Villa alone.
     Which is why the acrimony surrounding the suspension of Usman Yusuf, the Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme should not be repeated again. For the second time Yusuf was suspended by the board of his organization. Allegations of corruption was levelled against him. he has been accused of illegally executing N30 billion investments, inflating the cost of biometric capturing machines and unlawfully posting staff. Earlier in 2017, the supervising minister of Health, Professor Isaac Adewole suspended him over an alleged N919 million fraud. It has since become clear that Yusuf's defiance has the complicity of Aso Villa.
     Now that Yusuf has finally been suspended by the president, it shows a lack of creative leadership and respect for delegation of authority as cardinal principles of democracy. Creative leadership enables strong mutual trust  to reign between leaders and followers making for good governance in the face of uncertain and ambitious situations. In the aftermath of upcoming 2019 elections, Nigeria demands good leadership. Traditional management approaches such as federal character, best practices which have been bastardized by the present administration must be restored in the days to come.
     The roots of successful leadership in a treacherous terrain like Ni8geria is cultural rather than technical. Cogent leadership lessons have been learnt again again, over the centuries. but in Nigeria, it seems political leaders aren't ready to absorb them. They prefer power politics to ideological and effective leadership. For the future, we prefer leaders with clear purpose and outcomes. For our unemployment woes, don't plan far beyond what you can foresee. Making a mistake through immediate initiative is preferred to delayed decision making. Good enough now is better than a perfect solution later.
     Mutual trust lies at the foundation of effective leadership; creative leaders are required to adapt to change. Leaders at all levels must be willing to take responsibility for initiative, independent decision making and action.

A CREED TO LIVE BY

Don't undermine your worth by comparing yourself with others. It is because we are different that each of us are special. Don'...