By John Amoda
BY every measure of publicized and institutional Abrahamic religiosity, Africa stands out and Nigeria is a leader. This
is one face of Africa and Nigeria, its professed religiosity. The other face is corruption a result of power unrestrained by conscience and fear of God. How can this be? The question is itself its answer.

The two are members of the same body- one is the left hand, the other is the right hand. What do these two facts reveal about religiosity in Nigeria? At the very least the pervasiveness of corruption in the exercise of power and privilege is indicative of unbelief- there is a wide gulf between profession of faith and faith in God.

The Bible provides a working definition of faith- any kind of faith. “Faith is the substance of the things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen”. The vigour with which corruption is practiced shows that corruption itself is the substance of the things hoped for- it is the power to realise the things hoped for; it is the evidence of the attainability of dreams.

This explains the universal practice of corruption, its scale and the apparent disregard of consequences.
This perhaps explains the Mr. Jekyll and Dr. Hyde coexistence of two selves in one personality. Mr. Jekyll the man of God and Dr. Hyde the Office Holder of The Provider of services. Although this piece is titled God and corruption in Africa, the gulf between profession of faith and faith in God characterizes the entire spectrum of office holding and commerce.

The admonition, buyer beware, is of no restraining value; he or she who has a little power in information and knowledge uses that advantage with mendacious ruthlessness.

Our rulers seem to be able to hold onto one principle with the right hand and with the left hold on to its contrary. What the left eye reads in the holy books, the right eye discounts.

One who is already prepared to ditch both God and religion will use the fact of corruption as proof positive that all religions are masks, hypocritical masks of kleptocratic populace. Dismissing all excuses, the cynic asserts: “just give a person power over others the corruption in the person is bound to be revealed”. And the Bible will be quoted to support this assertion. Romans 3:10-11b)

“As it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one there is none that understands”. But this is not the whole truth of that scripture. The quoted verses above describe “effects”. The “cause” is thus stated.

“There is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way; they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good; no, not one” (Romans 3:11-12)

Our public and institutionalised religiosity is a comfortable companion with our spiritual lawlessness. And many of us who criticized the corruption in the society are not sure whether our disapproval is not rooted in lack of opportunity to do the same.

There is, however, a third position, the position of immature believers in God and whose material circumstance make them doubt both the power and righteousness of God.

The third position affirms a God who approves the righteous and condemns the wicked, yet who seem to bless the corrupt and leave the righteous unprotected and unrewarded for the Bible affirms thusly:

“Righteousness exalteth a nation but sin is a reproach to any people”. (Proverb 14:34)
“By the blessing of the upright the city is exalteth; but it is overthrown by the mouth of the wicked.” (Proverb 11:11)

These scriptures affirm the political and security relevance of the predominance of the upright amongst rulers. By the blessing of the upright in heart the city is exalteth and made secure. But by the conduct of the wicked the city is overthrown. Psalm 73 describes the spiritual education and maturation of the child-like believer in the midst of worldly wickedness.

He begins by proclaiming the nature of the God he or she had come to know through the circumstances of life.
“Truly God is good to Israel; even to such as of a clean heart. But as for me, my feet were almost gone, my steps had well nigh slipped. For I was envious at the foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked” (Proverb 1:3).

“When I saw the difference in life style between me and the wicked, observes the baby Christian, I was envious and was already inclined to join them- but for God; “my feet was almost gone, my steps had well nigh slipped”- I was about to sign on the dotted line of the membership of the Corruption Prospers Club (CPC) for there was such a difference in conditions of the life of the corrupt and the righteous:

“For there are no bands to their death; but their strength is firm. They are not in trouble as other men; neither are they plagued like other men. Therefore pride compasseth them about as a chain; violence covereth them as a garment.

Their eyes stand out with fatness: they have more than heart could wish. They are corrupt, and speak wickedly: concerning oppression they speak loftly. They set their mouth against the heavens, and their tongue walketh through the earth…

And they say, How doth God know? And is there knowledge in the most high. Behold, these are the ungodly, who prosper in the world; they increase in riches” (Psalm 73:4-12).

The testimony of the God-fearing seem to be that God rewards the ungodly and leaves the God-fearing at the mercy of the wicked. The place of God seemed to have been taken over by governments and rulers seem to have dared God and found him to be powerless and irrelevant in the conduct of public and family affairs. Thus the God-fearing could so testify:

“Verily I have cleansed my heart in vain and washed my hands in innocency. For all the daylong have I been plagued and chastened every morning. If I say, I will speak thus behold, I should offend against the generation of (God’s) children. When I thought to know this, it was too painful for me”(verses 13-16).

God does not, however, leave the God-fearing in the lurch; He educates those who fear Him. He tells them how to avoid the end that awaits the wicked. He comforts the God-fearing privately. I was about to give up on God says the God-fearing:

“Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then understood their end; (the fate of the wicked). Surely thou didst set them in slippery places; thou castedst them down into destruction. How are they brought into desolation, as in a moment!

They are utterly consumed with terrors. As a dream when one awaketh; so, O Lord, when thou awakes; thou shall despise their image. Thus my heart was grieved, and I was pricked in my reins. So foolish was I, and ignorant I was as a beast before thee. Nevertheless I am continually with thee; thou hast holden me by my right hand.

Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory. Whom have in heaven but thee? And there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee.