INJUSTICE AND CONFLICT: A REREADING OF LUKE 18:2-5 IN THE NIGERIAN CONTEXT

Fr. Peter D. D. Onwuka

Abstract


Insecurity in Nigeria is a product of many factors which include Boko Haram terrorism, banditry, farmer-herders conflict, unknown gunmen phenomenon among others. Whereas motives for these are varied, ranging from religious extremism, greed, poverty among others, some are due to feelings of animosity of not being fairly treated, of marginalization and total neglect either by the Nigerian society or a section of it and therefore, of injustice.  Injustice leads to conflict which can bring about insecurity. A search for security takes the issue of justice seriously. The paper reads Luke 18:2-5 from the point of view of conflict and its resolution. It analyses the parable from the point of view of widow’s persistent search for justice and how attempts to deny her justice led to conflict that was later resolved when justice was granted her. The parable therefore deals with conflict and its resolution through perseverance in seeking for justice. The paper argues that a persistent seeking of justice through dialogue and non-violent means can go a long way in bringing about justice and improving the state of insecurity in Nigeria.


Keywords


Conflict, Injustice, Justice, Widow, Judge, Nigerian Context.

Full Text:

PDF

References


Akinrinde, O. O (2020). “Social injustice, corruption and Nigeria’s national security quest: A theoretical discourse”. Global Journal of Sociology: Current Issues. 10(2), 63–70.

Anstey, Mark,(1991). Negotiating conflict: Insights and skills for negotiators and peacemakers. Juta & Co.

Asogwa, Felix C. & Okafor, Nneka Ifeoma.(2016). “Herders-Farmers’ conflict and national security in Nigeria”, South East Journal of Political Science, 2(2), 22-37.

Bodo, Tombari &Gimah, Batombari.(2020). “The pollution and destruction of the Niger Delta ecosystem in Nigeria: Who is to be blamed” in the European Scientific Journal, 16(5) accessed 27 February 2023.

Bultmann, R. (1978).The history of synoptic tradition.(I Marsh,trans), Harper & Row.

Concise Oxford English Dictionary, 2006. 11th Ed, Oxford: Oxford Press.

Cunningham, Thomas F. (1992).Conflict resolution strategies and the church: The church’s role as an agent of social change in the political conflict in South Africa. Doctoral Thesis. University of South Africa.

Curkpatrick, Stephen. (2002). “Dissonance in Luke 18:1-8” JBL, 107-121, 108.

Deutsch, Morton. (1973). The resolution of conflict. Yale University Press.

Gursoy, Gulsah “Farmer-Herders conflict in Nigeria: An analysis of the root causes and the effects of the conflict”. ResearchGate, accessed 27 February 2023.

Healey, Joseph P. “Peace”, Anchor Bible Dictionary, vol . 5. Doubleday, 206-207.

Jeremias, Joachim. (1972). The Parables of Jesus. SCM.

Johnson, Luke Timothy. (1991). The Gospel of Luke. Sacra Pagina 3, The Liturgical Press.

Marshal, I.H. (1978). The Gospel of Luke: Commentary on the Greek text. Eerdmans.

Mbonu, Caroline. (2012.) “Liberative reading of the parable of the widow in Luke 18:1-8: A paradigm for Christian widows in Igbo world” JIT 13(1) 95-110.

Mckenzie, John L (1998). Dictionary of the Bible. Asian Trading Cooperation.

O’Connor, John T. (2019). The parable of persistent widow: Luke 18:1-8 in context. M.Th. Thesis. University of Divinity.

Osborne, Grant R. (1991). The hermeneutical spiral: A comprehensive introduction to biblical interpretation. Downers Grove, Illinois, 1991, 159.

Procksch, O. (1950). Theologie des Altern Testaments. Gutersloh.

Reumann, John. (1992). “Righteousness (NT)” in David Noel Freedman et al.(eds). The Anchor Bible Dictionary, vol. 5, Doubleday, 745-773,

Reventlow, H.G. (1971). Rechtfertigung im Horint des Altern Testaments. BevT 58. Munich.

Schmid, H.H. (1964). Gerechtigkeit als Weltorddnung. Tubingen.

Scullion, J.J (1992) “Righteousness (OT)”, David Noel Freedman et al. (Eds). The Anchor Bible Dictionary, vol. 5, Doubleday, 724-736.

Tannehill, Robert C. (1986). The narrative unity of Luke-Acts. A literary interpretation. Volume 1: The Gospel of Luke. Fortress.

Uzowulu, C. (2020).“Corrupt but repented Judge – a study of Luke 18:1-8: Implication for the contemporary society” Integrity and Corruption in the Bible. Acts of the Biblical Association of Nigeria, 12, 154-166.

Weeks, Dudley. (1994). Conflict partnership. Trans World Publisher.

Ziesler, J. (1972). The meaning of righteousness in Paul: A linguistic and theological enquiry. SNTSMS 20. Cambridge.


Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c) 2023 Fr. Peter D. D. Onwuka

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 ISSN (Print):   2695-2319

ISSN (Online): 2695-2327

 

 

   

 

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.