A Review of Nigerian Christians’ Response to the 2019 Witchcraft Conference

For centuries, witchcraft was a major part of religious belief in many cultures, including those in Africa. It was the focus of the much-contested conference of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, in 2019. Many Nigerian Christians publicly debated the relevance of a conference on witchcraft and dema...

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Main Author: Egodi Uchendu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Utafiti Foundation 2023-10-01
Series:Eastern African Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://utafitionline.com/index.php/eajhss/article/view/321
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author Egodi Uchendu
author_facet Egodi Uchendu
author_sort Egodi Uchendu
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description For centuries, witchcraft was a major part of religious belief in many cultures, including those in Africa. It was the focus of the much-contested conference of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, in 2019. Many Nigerian Christians publicly debated the relevance of a conference on witchcraft and demanded its cancellation. This paper is a personal contemplation of the reactions of Nigerian Christians to the conference. Data for the paper is drawn from interviews, newspaper publications and the social media. I argue that an academic study of witchcraft is not out of tune with any religious creed, including Christianity; and that the vehemence against the conference by the Christian community in Nigeria, to which I belong, calls into question our understanding of our faith. In effect, the paper probes the public reaction to the conference, considers its unintended outcomes, and draws out the lessons that can be learned about Nigerian Christians and Christianity in Nigeria.
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spelling doaj-art-e438698454c94ad8934f1478e918a65e2025-08-20T02:07:16ZengUtafiti FoundationEastern African Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences2958-45582023-10-012110.58721/eajhss.v2i1.321A Review of Nigerian Christians’ Response to the 2019 Witchcraft Conference Egodi Uchendu0University of Nigeria, Nsukka For centuries, witchcraft was a major part of religious belief in many cultures, including those in Africa. It was the focus of the much-contested conference of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, in 2019. Many Nigerian Christians publicly debated the relevance of a conference on witchcraft and demanded its cancellation. This paper is a personal contemplation of the reactions of Nigerian Christians to the conference. Data for the paper is drawn from interviews, newspaper publications and the social media. I argue that an academic study of witchcraft is not out of tune with any religious creed, including Christianity; and that the vehemence against the conference by the Christian community in Nigeria, to which I belong, calls into question our understanding of our faith. In effect, the paper probes the public reaction to the conference, considers its unintended outcomes, and draws out the lessons that can be learned about Nigerian Christians and Christianity in Nigeria. https://utafitionline.com/index.php/eajhss/article/view/321ContemplationImplicationsNigeriaUproarWitchcraft conference
spellingShingle Egodi Uchendu
A Review of Nigerian Christians’ Response to the 2019 Witchcraft Conference
Eastern African Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences
Contemplation
Implications
Nigeria
Uproar
Witchcraft conference
title A Review of Nigerian Christians’ Response to the 2019 Witchcraft Conference
title_full A Review of Nigerian Christians’ Response to the 2019 Witchcraft Conference
title_fullStr A Review of Nigerian Christians’ Response to the 2019 Witchcraft Conference
title_full_unstemmed A Review of Nigerian Christians’ Response to the 2019 Witchcraft Conference
title_short A Review of Nigerian Christians’ Response to the 2019 Witchcraft Conference
title_sort review of nigerian christians response to the 2019 witchcraft conference
topic Contemplation
Implications
Nigeria
Uproar
Witchcraft conference
url https://utafitionline.com/index.php/eajhss/article/view/321
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AT egodiuchendu reviewofnigerianchristiansresponsetothe2019witchcraftconference