God is not an ‘Instrument’ -By Hussein Adegoke

If there is a quick way to rile people in recent times, it is to drive home a point with religious notions. This could even be evident from here. The mere mention of ‘God’ in the title of this treatise would have driven many people away by now. People, nowadays, do not want any argument to be rationalized with spiritual talks and yet, it is what they have professed. I see it that the greatest dimwits in the world lie between those who profess one religiosity or the other and those who do not. Atheists like Stephen Hawkings—that famous Cambridge Professor who was diagnosed with a Down Syndrome from an early age, and who died recently—and his ‘counterparts’ (people like Tai Solarin etc.) had a clear focus, at least. If anything, they were rigid in their philosophies and proclamations. The famous religionists of the world, too, one like my beloved Shaykh, Assim Al-hakeem in Saudi Arabia, and Daddy Freeze (a Nigerian Christian resident in the United States and with popular refutations on Christmas) have a clear head as it regards their doctrines and the direction of life to tread. But what is it about the people who proclaim one thing and indulge in another? In my view, these are the biggest toubles for this tiny globe of mischief.

It is only from the import of sense for one who professes a religion (or is driven by some contrived philosophies, however impossible) to allow every dialogue and affair pass through the lenses of his proclamations before it is accepted. Sadly, the mischievous persons (who are religionists in theory and not so in practice) believe and do otherwise. They see a ‘setback’ in advancing a thought from religious ends. This would even have been worthwhile, but why do they not just renounce their religions and become atheistic or so, become disciplined with their creeds? Religiosity is not a setback; people are! Those who seem to be lacking in self-discipline and self-conviction in what they do are the bottlenecks in our progression.

For the love of God, why should any religionist take his beliefs with a pinch of salt so much as to desecrate it by himself by supporting a move for the unity of all worldly beliefs? Do you even see it that the whole world can ever be united? Could we ever speak in the same language, eat the same (kinds of) food, wear the same form of clothes? This weird notion can easily be discounted as the realest ‘setback’. Even with religious dissentions creating divisions amongst men, does peace lie in our aggregation either? I laughed hardly the other day a friend’s position was that the different religious doctrines in Nigeria pose to be the biggest challenge of the country. I cited India with more than twice the count of Nigeria doctrines, and yet with a better and a more robust economy.

What most people do not understand is how the management of an entity would dictate its success. Nigeria’s huge population could as well be harnessed for good, especially in human resources (which could be seriously lacking in some countries). Our humongous number could become a curse upon us too, like it has always been, with an improper management The pattern of the world is actually ‘no-pattern.’ That the UAE and Saudi Arabia have their economies booming today is all thanks to their religious values. That Europe and America have come thus far too, in their own rights, would be all thanks to science, and, well, not religion. This is how the matters of the world are interwoven, with no definite pattern. Management is the key thing within the globe. So, do not blame Nigeria’s woes on religion and/or the lack of it. But put blames upon those who manage us.

A lot of people see the God we, the religionists, worship as an ‘instrument’ that can be manipulated to do our will. And this is wherefrom the major trouble erupts. You don’t propose to God every time and expect a consent always. If that were so, then, man would ‘control’ God and not otherwise. And how so would this not upturn the philosophy of omnipotence? So, that He was called at once and would not respond as such does not mean He is non-existent or not ‘All-hearing.’ No. He hears and hearkens to even the faintest cries.

People who often perceive talks about spirituality as drab, boring, and retrogressive, rather than enticing, do not see a point in being faithful and expectant of ‘long’ promises. But the point they fail to understand is this: much of what religion promises—and to be specific now, Islam, as this is the author’s creed—abound in heaven and not on earth. As a matter-of-factly, the whole world is incomparable to what obtains outside of it, and it is the realization of this fact that drives us. Science, too, has corroborated our assertions. No one dares compare the miniscule portion of the universe called ‘earth’ with the cosmos itself, and how much more the seven heavens beyond all that (as we believe). It is thus only logical for the rational (and not the ‘radical’, as most people would find him) being to desire less here. He wouldn’t be delusional after all and he would certainly not be backward indulging his faith. You, a hypocritical lout, should rather change in your indiscretion. You should watch your back.