EXEGETICAL STUDY OF MATTHEW 25: 31-46 IN CONTRADISTINCTION TO THE IGBO COSMOLOGICAL NOTION OF REINCARNATION
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- NGN 3000
ABSTRACT
The belief in reincarnation has affected some Christians at many levels ranging from belief, experience and ritual relation to their ancestors. The levels are intrinsically bound together and cause great harm to the Igbo Christian, especially when his conversion to Christianity fails to address what he experiences in his everyday life. Continual adherence to the beliefs and practices of traditional religion that reveals belief in reincarnation has not only weakened the Church but has also given rise to syncretism. This therefore betrays a gap in knowledge among some people who are being converted from traditional religion to Christianity. The Igbo Christian is so fundamentally bound to this indigenous belief that it presents stiff resistance to key Christian contentions such as eschatological judgment. The purpose of the study is to exegetically analyse the text: Matthew 25: 31-46, examine the inference deducible from it in relation to the Christian notion of eschatological judgment, and study how the textual position on eschatological judgment relates to or differs from the concept of reincarnation among the Igbo of the South East Nigeria. The research is both qualitative and quantitative. Data are collected from both primary and secondary sources using the survey method and documentary or historical method respectively. The questionnaire technique is used to collect primary data while secondary data are gathered from written sources such as books, journals, articles and so on. Primary data are analyzed and presented in Tables using the simple percentages while secondary data are analyzed using descriptive method. The historical-critical method and contextual/inculturation tools are used for the interpretation of the biblical text. The resurrection theory was used because this theory, more than any other delved into the mysteries beyond the grave and offer plausible solutions. The research revealed that the last judgment and reincarnation agreed to the point that the Supreme God and the Matthean God is not merely a power but a Person; and that the resurrected individuals and the living dead are not souls but spiritual persons. They differed in that the last judgment is a one-time-event that can never be repetitive unlike the Igbo concept of reincarnation. Also, contrary to the Igbo concept of reincarnation, the last judgment proffers lasting solution to the problem of evil. Again, unlike what we see in Igbo concept of reincarnation, the Christians will possess bodies that are not only new and glorious but will also not be subjugated to earthly limitations. The relationship between reincarnation and the last judgment is rather negative and non perfect. The index of relationship between the two can present some left to right downward trend if the graph of the relationship were to be plotted. The researcher, therefore, concluded that the Igbo Christian needed a genuine Igbo expression of the Christian faith and a corresponding theology for a possible inculturation. This includes seeing Christ as the Ancestor, making room for local names which do not contain any idea of reincarnation and possibly combining naming ceremony with baptism in some areas. The Church should be at pains through her teachings and practical life to introduce a fulfilment into the Christian conscience, that belief in the resurrection of the dead.
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