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Extremist Interpretation of Sharia Threatens Nigeria's Stability

BY VIOLA HUGHES, news correspondent for the General Conference Public Affairs and Religious Liberty Department

he Talibanization of Nigeria: Sharia Law and Religious Freedom, a 101-page report released by Freedom House, reflects the rapid spread of extreme Islamic rule in Africa's largest nation.

The report warns that the implementation of extremist interpretations of the Sharia could provoke further inter-religious conflict in Nigeria. Thousands have already perished as a result of the adoption of the law in 12 of the 36 states in Nigeria.

There is no dispute among Muslims that the Qur'an is the basis of the Sharia. The Sharia contains the rules by which a Muslim society is organized and governed, and it provides the means to resolve conflict among individuals and between the individual and the state. While parts of Sharia law had always existed in Nigeria's civil law, some Nigerian states are expanding Sharia jurisdiction to criminal law matters in ways that violate the country's constitution and international human rights standards.

Northern Christians fear that the Sharia-based laws will be applied to them, and will create an atmosphere and legacy of discrimination and "second class" status, creating the potential for violence. The report concludes that if left unchecked, the rapid spread of extreme Sharia could push Nigeria into civil war.

"The majority of Muslims are moderate people of faith who promote peace. While the Sharia is based on the Qur'an and prophet Mohammad's teachings, extremists' interpretation has led to confusion, and in some cases conflict," said Karim Bromund, director of inter-religious affairs for the Islamic Supreme Council of America. "The Qur'an teaches that everybody has the God-given right to practice what they believe, and the sharia is like a road on which a Muslim travels. Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) like yourself can help people understand our differences by helping us to promote principles of tolerance, love, and acceptance," Bromund concluded.

The Seventh-day Adventist Church has always stood by principles of tolerance and religious freedom, and its mandate to uphold them is implemented by its Department of Public Affairs and Religious Liberty in countries around the world. The Adventist Church also operates a Muslim Relations Center in California that seeks to promote relationships of mutual understanding and respect between Muslims and Adventists.

"We are engaged in seminars for educating our people about Islam and how to relate respectively for spiritual encouragement and growth of both faiths," said Jerald Whitehouse, director of the Muslim Relations Center. "Our unique lifestyle (forbidding unclean meats, alcohol and tobacco as harmful to our body) provides us unique opportunities for relating with muslims. We also encourage local churches participating with local Mosques in joint seminars and in community projects that enhance the quality of life and values in the community. It's helpful to understand that most Muslims share the same concerns for family morality and values as we, and we can work together to preserve these," Whitehouse concluded.

Bordering the Gulf of Guinea, between Benin and Cameroon, Nigeria's more than 126 billion citizens are made up of 50 percent Muslims, 40 percent Christians, and 10 percent indigenous beliefs. The Adventist Church has approximately 150,000 members in Nigeria, worshiping in more than 1,000 congregations.

Adventists Seek Correction to Jeopardy!
Game Show Question
Seventh-day Adventist Church officials in North America are asking the syndicated television game show Jeopardy! to include more questions about the church after the show incorrectly indicated a relationship between the Adventist Church and the Davidian cult.

During its May 2 show, Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek gave the answer, "The Davidians are a branch of this religion."

A contestant supplied the question, "What is Seventh-day Adventist?" Trebek said the contestant had responded correctly and the game moved on.

After checking more thoroughly, Jeopardy! producers say they agree that this was an incorrect answer. "The Seventh-day Adventist Church has no relationship with the Davidians," says Kermit Netteburg, communication director for the Adventist Church in North America.

"Rather than asking Jeopardy! to run a direct correction, we are asking the show to include several more questions about the Seventh-day Adventist Church," says Netteburg. "These questions will help portray us more correctly and appropriately."

Millions of viewers in the United States and Canada tune in to Jeopardy! each day. The program is a long-running syndicated television quiz show, currently ranked as the number one game show in North America.                                                             --Adventist News Network

News Notes

Mount Ellis Academy, located in Bozeman, Montana, one of the oldest Seventh-day Adventist secondary educational institutions in North America, recently celebrated its 100-year anniversary. Established in 1902 in a modest log cabin, the academy developed into an institution that has produced hundreds of alumni and educated multi-generations of many families in the Montana Conference.

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