POST-CIVIL WAR SPIRITUALITY IN NIGERIAN CHRISTIANITY AN ASSESSMENT OF CHRISTIAN SPIRITUALITY IN CONTEMPORARY NIGERIA (1970-2025)

Abstract

Over the years, one economic, social, religious, or political issue or the other has influenced Christianity in Nigeria. The Nigerian civil war of 1967 had driven the nation, especially the Eastern part of the country, into a state of economic, social, and religious uncertainty. As uncertainties rented the atmosphere, those who survived the war were left with little or no hope of survival. Churches had become ghost-lands; market places and schools were almost no more. This situation led to spiritual paucity, poverty, and hunger in the land. It was in this situation that Prayer and Spiritual Houses sprang up. Prophets and seers became the last resort for the people, who never questioned the genuineness and source of their power. These prophets kept promising spiritual solutions to the already bad socio-economic situation, and the more these promises, the more they were patronized. This paper identifies similar trends in Nigerian Christianity today. In the midst of unimproved socio-economic conditions in the country, new churches keep springing up with promises of prosperity, health, and wealth. Large crowds of people devoid of class and status patronize these centres. The multidimensional approach is adopted in this work, drawing insights from both historical and phenomenological methods. This research finds that people, over time, have always resorted to spiritual solutions to the fundamental questions of human existence. The paper concludes with the recommendation that while people will always seek spiritual solutions to problems, the State should make socio-economic amenities affordable and available to the people.