VEJOH - VERITAS JOURNAL OF HUMANITIES

Interreligious relations in contemporary Nigerian Society have been largely characterized with intolerance, antagonism, hatred and suspicion, especially among adherents of Islam and Christianity. Many fanatical Muslims and Christians have continued to exhibit intolerant attitudes toward adherents of other faith traditions, thereby making interfaith relations and dialogue difficult in Nigeria. Therefore, this study examined interreligious relations and dialogue in Nigeria in the light of African indigenous belief system with a view to advocate African indigenous religious model for interreligious relations and dialogue in the country. Data were obtained through observations, news media, text-books and journal articles, and subjected to historical, contextual, content, and constructive methods of analysis. This paper revealed that the extreme and unreasoned approaches to religious beliefs and practices by fanatical Muslims and Christians have serious negative implications for interreligious relations and dialogue in Nigeria. This attitudinal approach to religious beliefs has continued to polarize Nigerian citizens along two main opposing camps, creating the cliché of ‘we versus them’ with hatred and violent tendencies toward each other. This essay submitted that Muslims and Christians need to emulate African indigenous religion in terms of its virtues of respect, tolerance, acceptance and accommodation of all religious traditions in order to extend the frontiers of interfaith relations and dialogue in Nigeria.

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