DOWN-TO-EARTH SPIRITUALITY
IN THE PREACHING OF AFIS OLADOSU

by Joseph Kenny, O.P.

for CRVP Seminar on Islam, freedom and modernity
Notre Dame University, Beirut, 20 May 2010

Relating to God, and dealing with this world, are constants of both Christianity and Islam. For all their basic stability, both religions are on the move, in both these areas, constantly inventing new responses to changing times. Spirituality is one area of inventive development.

This article derives from a paper for a seminar on "Spirituality: east and west." Spirituality involves both relating to God and relating to the world. As for relating to the world, the seminar discussed Richard Khuri's book, Freedom, modernity and Islam: Towards a creative synthesis.[1] My contribution to that discussion is contained in a collective review of the book, to be published in Philosophia Islamica.[2]

Regarding relating to God, there are many Christian spiritual classics and Muslim treatises on Sufism, which are very relevant today. Nevertheless, they often appear to address an elite. For this reason, I proposed to write on the concrete spirituality of ordinary people, as reflected in the sermons of a Nigerian Muslim preacher.

My original paper, covering two preachers, a Christian and a Muslim, on seven themes, was both too voluminous and gave inadequate attention to each theme. For this article, therefore, I restrict myself to one preacher, the Muslim, and only to a few themes of the above list. I chose those that are more foundational in providing principles that guide other discussions, and those that the preacher develops best.

My first selection, therefore, is "Approaching God", which provides foundational principles. Among application themes, I first chose personal and social morality, gathered under the aegis of Hijra and Ḥajj, then family morality. These are themes in which the preacher is at his best.

The preacher

Dr. Afis Oladoso, a long-time colleague and friend, is a lecturer in the Department of Arabic and Islamic Studies, University of Ibadan. Since December 2009, he has written the Friday Islamic column for The Guardian, the paramount Nigerian newspaper on the intellectual level.

His writings are notably different from other Nigerian columnists. They confine themselves to apologetics and explanation of rules found in books, whereas Afis writes with a journalistic flare about concrete issues Nigerians face, whether on the personal, family, economic or political level.

It is with great regret that I am constrained to make a narrow selection of his sermons. One can always get his current sermons on line,[3] but unfortunately, The Guardian only keeps the latest three sermons available. With so much valuable material unavailable, one can only hope that one day Afis will publish his collected sermons.

We now turn to the texts. Rather than following chronology, I arrange them by theme.

The audience

Afis' column, we may suppose, is read mainly by Muslims -but not exclusively so. One of his strategies is to welcome response, turning his column into a quasi-talk show. And many of the correspondents are Christians.

While Afis' writings have an Islamic perspective, they address common Nigerian problems. Moreover, they address common Nigerian mentalities in facing these problems.

Nigeria is a country of vast resources. Yet corruption entrenches underdevelopment and insecurity. Tap water is rare. Roads are in disrepair. Electricity is sporadic. Health care and education standards are low. Robbers operate by night and in broad daylight.

In spite of intelligence and hard work, most Nigerians live outside the walled compounds of the elite, where every amenity can be found.

Where can they turn, except to God? He is the Refuge of the oppressed, their only assurance.

That does not mean God is first. For most, I am the center of my universe. God is there to solve problems and distribute blessings. Among Christians, this is known as the "prosperity gospel". In the Traditional Religion, as attested in pre-colonial times,[4] people would shop around, abandoning any deity who did not deliver, for another who would. The same is seen in Christianity and Islam, where people seek out the powerful "prayer warrior" or the effective prayer formula, usually a particular Psalm, or Qur'an passage.

With such a mentality, cheating, embezzlement and other transgressions have no blame. After all, they are my due. If God is disturbed, I will settle him with 10%, for the advancement of his religion.

Such is the background of Afis' preaching.

His method

In connecting with people, not only does Afis target their problems and their mindset, but he displays considerable originality in treating standard Qur'anic themes. He does not confine himself to literal or historical exegesis, but makes effective use of figurative or metaphorical interpretation. This consists in using historical events (e.g. the hijra) as paradigms for present action. This boils down to a qiyās based on a mathal (the historical event), which is a powerful rhetorical argument. Of the kinds of rhetoric,[5] Afis uses the moral variety.

A moral interpretation of events narrated in Scripture is widespread, both in Christianity and Islam. Afis justifies it by reference to al-Jurjānī. Thomas Aquinas justifies it as follows:

The author of Holy Writ is God, in whose power it is to signify His meaning, not by words only (as man also can do), but also by things themselves. So, whereas in every other science things are signified by words, this science has the property, that the things signified by the words have themselves also a signification.

Therefore that first signification whereby words signify things belongs to the first sense, the historical or literal.

That signification whereby things signified by words have themselves also a signification is called the spiritual sense, which is based on the literal, and presupposes it. Now this spiritual sense has a threefold division. For as the Apostle says (Heb. 10:1) the Old Law is a figure of the New Law, and Dionysius says (Coel. Hier. i) "the New Law itself is a figure of future glory." Again, in the New Law, whatever our Head has done is a type of what we ought to do.

Since the literal sense is that which the author intends, and since the author of Holy Writ is God, Who by one act comprehends all things by His intellect, it is not unfitting, as Augustine says (Confess. xii), if, even according to the literal sense, one word in Holy Writ should have several senses.[6]

With this in mind, let us turn to Afis' preaching.

1. Approaching God

On 12 February 2010, Afis wrote a critique of the way Nigerians pray:

"Effective supplications in times of trial": One of the fundamental qualities of believers in Allah is their unceasing supplication to Allah not only in times of happiness but equally in times when the tide of life changes from the positive to the seemingly negative. We say seemingly negative because not all events in human life which occasion sadness and grief have negative ends. In fact, neither happiness nor sadness are ends in themselves, but means towards a greater end: the recognition of the existence of an entity whose love and care transcends the momentary pain and suffering that accompany calamities and misfortune; the uncanny nature of happiness and sadness as strategies in the hand of the divine to return humanity back to its origin; the temporality of life which is itself reflected back in the temporality of all human emotions...

That the tide of life has changed and continues to change for quite a large segment of humanity is exemplified in the incidence of tragedies and calamities that occur on a daily basis. It is equally evident in the "invasion:" by humanity, male and female, young and old, the rich and the poor, of the various centers of worship all in an effort to enjoy the attention of the Almighty. It is a common sight nowadays to see Muslims engage in supererogatory spiritual litanies and invocations out of fear of the known and unknown, out of their desire for that extra blessing from the owner of the heavens and earth. A musician even sings: "God, please don't forget me!" I could only mutter fa-l`iyāḍ bi-llāh. What a blasphemy! What ignorance! How could Allah forget an article of sand in the desert; how can Allah fail to take care of that drop as it comes in contact with the ocean?...

However, a Muslim whose supplication will be accepted by Allah must possess at least five qualities. The first is what is called thiqat bi-llāh-unshakable trust and faith in Allah. To have trust in Allah is to distrust everything other than Allah. To have trust in Allah is to acknowledge and affirm that aside from Allah no other being or entity is capable of bringing to reality that important object of desire that we nurture so passionately. It is to operate with such clear mind that even if that thing were to be achieved through the intervention of our fellow human being, Allah must have used that person as His agent, as a means for the realization of His divine and unknowable plans for us. A Muslim who would work with this element would be such as would not erect besides Allah any other entity as a center of worship he would not fear any other thing aside from Allah; he would not supplicate any other thing aside from Allah.

Quality number two of a Muslim who would enjoy the acceptance of supplication and enjoy happiness here and in the hereafter is īmām bi-l qadar—faith in the decree of Allah. To have faith in the decree of Allah is to resign oneself to the fact that everything that has been decreed by Allah would surely come to pass. In other words, faith in the decree of Allah means that a Muslim must be prepared at all times for the knowable and the unknowable, the evitable and the inevitable, the possible and the, given human limited knowledge, impossible. Faith in the decree of Allah does not and should not, however, become an escapist strategy. Put differently, a Muslim who believes in and recognizes the fact that the decree of Allah is immanent in things of nature does not turn that knowledge upside own by refraining from activities that have the potential of turning his destiny for the better.

Quality number three is as-ṣabr —patience. Patience is the quintessential state of the mind which withstands all human challenges and confronts all human situations. A Muslim who invokes the name of Allah would do well to remember that Allah is, in His essence, as-Ṣabūr (the ever-patient). This means that for a Muslim to enjoy the reward of her supplication, she must patiently persevere. It means we must never be in haste; it means we must constantly keep in mind that since Allah knows the beginning and the ending of all human affairs, we must refrain from giving Allah deadlines while we are engaged in supplicating to Him. The position of patience in Islam, according to Alī b. Abī Tālib, is like the position of the head in the human body. A Muslim who believes that supplication to Allah is an act of worship would not turn Allah into a computer keyboard. This implies that after having keyed all the words in (supplication), you do not assume that once you press "enter", your prayers and supplications are "entered" automatically. Allow time for your prayers to incubate, to ripen; work with the certainty of mind that a supplication is never suffered once it has been offered.

Quality number four is to know the best of times for prayer and individual supplications and knowing exactly what to supplicate for. Allah, out of His infinite mercy, has not left humanity in a quandary as how to go about this. He commands the Prophet Muhammad (may Allah's mercy and benedictions be on his soul) and by extension the entire Muslim Ummah as follows: "During a part of the night, pray Tajahhud, and additional prayer for you (O Muhammad); very soon your Lord may exalt you to al-maqām al-maḥmūd (a station of great glory). During the prayer say: "Lord, make my entrance the entrance with truth, and make my exit the exit with truth, and grand me a supporting authority from your presence" (Qur'an 17:78-79). Here it is stated without doubt that the best of times for supplication is during the early morning hours of the day.

Quality number five is to act our prayers and supplications. In other words, connecting with Almighty Allah spiritually is not enough particularly when the human body is disconnecting from Him physically. A Muslim who calls and supplicates Allah throughout the night but goes on to indulge himself in indecencies and sinful actions during the day would derive no value from his tahajjud. What this implies, as has been mentioned, is that we must act our prayers and supplications. Once we know that Allah, to whom we dedicate our supplications in the night, does not sleep neither during the day nor during the night, then we must sufficiently be aware that to commit sins during the day is to assume that He the Almighty is absent from our reality. It is to assume that Allah is usually "off duty" during the day, and as such we are at liberty to infringe His injunctions at will.

Thus, for our supplications to enjoy the acceptance of the Almighty, our actions should affirm our belief in his power and knowledge of all entities in nature... The prayer of the righteous enjoys special treatment in the court of the Almighty.

On 21 January 2011, Afis published: "How much are you worth?" In it, he takes the example of Muhammad to present 5 stages of the spiritual life:

Prophet Muhammad emerged as a head of state, a family man, a judge, a peacemaker and a close confidant to Christians, Jews and Muslims in Madina. He was the leader of the executive arm of government, the minister of finance and the works minister. He had access to the opportunities from which our politicians nowadays exploit to make millions and indeed, billions of naira. Yet he lived a life, which was devoid of plum and plenitude...

Wait a minute! Does it not verge on insanity for a man to insist that unless he has houses in such cities as Kuala Lumpur, London, New York, Kano, Ibadan and Lagos his life would be of no value? One of those who had the correct vision of life passed by a man who was building a house then he said: "do you build houses for the immortal"?

Thus I woke up today to confront the question: how much do I worth? How much do you worth?... To know your worth in the estimation of your creator is very simple. Examine the way you treat His injunctions. Reflect on the way you serve Him.

Let us take our daily prayers (salat) as an example. According to Ibn Qayyim in his book "The path to guidance", there are five levels of Muslim worshippers. "The First is that of the one who is negligent and wrongs his soul. He is the one who falls short in performing ablution properly, performing the prayer at its time and within its specified limits, and in fulfilling its essential pillars.

The second level belongs to the one who guards his prayers upon their proper times and within their specified limits, fulfils their essential pillars and performs his ablution with care. However, his striving (in achieving the above) is wasted due to whisperings in his prayer so he is taken away by thoughts and ideas.

The third level is that of the one who guards his prayers within the specified limits, fulfils their essential pillars and strives with himself to repel the whisperings, thoughts and ideas. He is busy struggling against his enemy (shaytaan) so that he does not steal from the prayer. On account of this he is engaged in (both) prayer and jihad.

The fourth level is that of the one who stands for the prayer, completes and perfects its due rights, its essential pillars, performs it within its specified limits and his heart becomes engrossed in safeguarding its rights and specified limits, so that nothing is wasted from it. His whole concern is directed towards its establishment, its completion and perfection, as it should be. His heart is immersed in the prayer and in enslavement to his Lord.

The fifth level is that of the one who stands for the prayer like the one mentioned above. However, on top of this, he has taken and placed his heart in front of his Lord, the mighty and majestic, looking towards him with his heart with anticipation, (his heart) filled with His love and His might, as if he sees and witnesses Allah. The whisperings, thoughts and ideas have vanished and the coverings, which are between him and his Lord are raised. What is between this person and others with respect to the prayer, is superior and greater than what is between the heavens and the earth. This person is busy with his Lord, the mighty and majestic, delighted with Him.

The first worshipper will be punished, the second will be held to account, the third will have his sins and shortcomings expiated, the fourth will be rewarded and the fifth will be close to his Lord, because he will receive the portion of one who makes his prayer the delight and pleasure of his eye.

Observation

Our preacher defends the reality of a transcendent, yet provident, God. If there are few irreligious, atheist or agnostic Nigerians, there are many who wonder why he is not intervening in their lives.

In addressing this problem, and all other problems of life, our preacher bases his remarks on a metaphysical foundation. Everything in our experiential world is limited and contingent. It depends for its existence and operation on a necessary being, which is pure act, i.e., God. God, moreover, is all-knowing, all-powerful, and fully in control of everything that happens in creation. In his providential love, he made us without our cooperation, but he will not bring us back to himself without our cooperation.

From this metaphysical foundation, Afis concludes that we must have faith in God, who fully knows our needs and cares for us. But he has his own plans and acts in his own time. He wishes us to pray, not to manipulate him to do what we want, but to put our will entirely in union with his. Concretely:

2. Hijra and Ḥajj: A moral interpretation

In accord with the metaphysical principles referred to above, Afis has no fear of discussing all areas of life. They are all God's domain. There is no dichotomy between the most mystical ascent to God and the ordinary things of every day life and society.

Afis, as noted above, is a very original preacher. He shows this not only in the themes he chooses, but also in his method of treating them. One of his devices is the use of metaphor, extended into a parable. The Hijra and the Ḥajj are used, not in their literal, historical sense, but as paradigms for a change in moral life.

In the following sections, Afis takes Hijra, and by extension, Ḥajj, in a moral sense. I present first passages concerning personal morality, then those concerning social or political morality, even thought the two are never completely separate.

Personal morality

On 17 December 2010, he published "On the seasons of migration". The topic "migration" was inspired by the recently concluded Ḥajj, and was used as a bridge to write about Hijra. Here is a paragraph which lays the basis for a moral interpretation of Hijra:

Let us side step the eschatological in the Hijrah for the existential. Brethren in Islam! It was Ibn Khaldun who says "the past resembles the future just like water resembles water." This is particularly true of the event, which made the Hijrah a categorical imperative. In other words, the Hijrah was a history and the history of history; it was about women and men of history. The Hijrah was about the struggle between truth and falsehood; it was about the triumph of truth over falsehood... Thus in this sense, the Hijrah should not be viewed as an event with relevance only to the past.

On 11 December 2009, Afis proceeds to apply Hijra to a number of moral issues:

The Hijra was all about forsaking and repossessing... It is either you are deprived of the world or you are made to forsake the world. In both instances, the world is meant to be forsaken, not coveted. But the irony lies in the fact that those who forsake the world usually have the world come to them pleading that it be possessed; those who covet the world might or might never gain it; those who excessively covet the world are more likely going to lose it and lose their souls. To leave Makkah behind meant leaving the city with its insuperable odor of greed, covetousness, self-conceitedness, oppression of the poor and sexploitation of women.

Specifically on the Hajj, on 22 Oct 2010, Afis published "The Greatest Trip On Earth" (1). After talking about the blessings of the Hajj, he digresses to condemn abuses:

Whereas the whole Hajj exercise usually provides the greatest opportunity for some Muslims to attain eternal bliss and heavenly rapture, it ironically usually opens the greatest vistas for others to manifest the basal and villainous constituents of their very beings. Or how else might we describe the chairman of the pilgrim board of my village who puts extra ten thousand naira on each fee he collected from the intending pilgrims under the rubric "Service charge"? How else might we describe the pilgrim commission which collected money from pilgrims with the intention to buy quality luggage for them only to come to the Hajj camp with sacks which are fit only for harvesting cocoa in my granny's farm? How else might we explain the scenario in Makkah where pilgrims are made to pay for accommodation near the Ḥaram only for them to be taken to areas of the city where the pilgrims would find it difficult to come to Ḥaram for their Hajj duties? How might we explain the situation where Nigerian pilgrims are the ones who usually stay beyond their welcome in Makkah and Madinah months after the Hajj had been concluded? How might we explain the occasional fraud in the conversion of the Basic Travelling Allowances (BTA) of the pilgrims? How would you feel if you were to be at the Jeddah International Airport when a pilgrim looks the chairman of the Pilgrim board of his state in the face and goes on to give him a "dirty" slap (Is there a slap which is beautiful?); what could be responsible for the action of the Muslim who decide to carry cocaine on his trip to Saudi Arabia, a country where the death penalty is applied for trafficking in narcotics? Questions which agitate the minds of concerned Nigerians with regard to the proper operation of the Hajj exercise in this country are legion. They are as multifaceted and engaging as the questions which assail our minds each time we ponder the status and comatose condition of this polity. Who should go on hajj? What type of individuals should be appointed as chairmen of pilgrims' board? How might we use the hajj to "rebrand" the image of this country, notwithstanding the fact that the "Rebranding" campaign seems to have gone silent at the government level?

In the same vein, on 8 October 2010, Afis published "Why is your country so corrupt?" After citing several examples, he continues:

"Wait a minute! my neighbor interjected. "If men and women who turn chalk into Paracetamol or those who "rebrand" old books into "current" titles merit being executed, the those people in Abuja who appropriate our resources unto themselves, the road contractor who collects money and constructs a road which would lead to the death of hundreds of Nigerians, the governor who sits over the resources of his state and prefers to junket around the world, the medical doctor who ignores a dying patient just because his call allowance has not been paid, the lecturer who lusts after his students in return for unmerited grades, all these people should be taken to the guillotine. Ditto for the clerical officer in the government's office who would not "push" the file unless he is settled, or the newspaper editor who would "bury" news involving "big" men, and women in society in return for millions of naira. All these people are corrupt and are corrupting the fabric of Nigerian society. They are all guilty of either corrupting the intellect of young Nigerians or corrupting their future...

The reason the rich commit corruption is because excessive wealth is like water in the ocean-the more you drink of it the more thirsty you become. This explains, in part, why the rich man always yearns for money. He desires more money because he suffers from poverty of the mind-a psychological state in which a man perpetually suffers lack of contentment. "There the rich man goes in search of more money. He is probably going to keep and appointment with death" (Quran 102).

Although unrelated to a journey, the Ramadan fast likewise calls for moral reform. On 30 July 2010, Afis published "How to prepare for Ramadan". Here is an excerpt:

Brethren, settle all existing disputes and issues with your neighbor, fellow Muslims, Christians, and others before the onset of Ramadan. Remember that you cannot supplicate Allah during Ramadan and expect your supplications to be granted while you unjustly sit on the rights of your neighbor or your subordinates in the office. Your fasting in the month of Ramadan would hang in the horizon when your oppression of your wife, your husband and even your children does not cease before the onset of Ramadan.

On 13 August 2010, in a sequel to the previous citation, Afis published "How to prepare for Ramadan (3)". Here is an excerpt:

There are some Muslims who usually fast the whole month of Ramadan but would not refrain from listening to Obesere's music. How could you say you are fasting, yet you are listening to "I love you! I hold you tight! I tantalize you!" Muslims who fall into this category and engage in this type of fasting are likely to be deprived of the blessings and benefit of the glorious month of Ramadan.

Morality in governance - against corruption

Afis' article on 17 December 2010 extends the application of the Hijra to the social and political sphere:

Thus I make bold to say that Nigeria, my country and yours, is today, like Makkah of over 1432 years ago. Nigeria is the Makkah of today awaiting the emergence of its own Muhammad. Hardly would historians of Islam, both Christians and Moslems, be faulted should they suggest that there is a strong necessity for Nigerians to migrate from this "Makkah" to that "Madinah" that the need for Nigeria to migrate has become urgent and important. But to where should Nigeria and Nigerians migrate?... Thus the real emigration that Nigerians and Nigeria should embark upon is that migration from non-performance and lack of development to that of consolidated and comprehensive development and growth in all spheres of life.

For Nigerians to migrate with their country to their own "Madinah" there is, therefore, an urgent need for the emergence of a "Muhammad" for this country. Yes, we are waiting for our "Muhammad." We are waiting for a leader who would confront the Abu Jahl and Abu Sufyan of Nigeria. Yes, we are waiting! We are waiting for our "Muhammad" who would effectively put an end to the unceasing oppression of the poor by the rich. We are waiting. We are waiting for our Muhammad who would migrate with Nigeria from the abyss of greed and selfishness to that Madina where the rich would not be happy until the poor is fed and become joyous. Yes, we are waiting. We are waiting for our Muhammad who would be responsive and responsible while in office. Yes, we are waiting. We are waiting for a leader who would take Nigeria to a Madina where there would be no moral depravity and the commoditization of women's bodies by men and women.

The last citation might give the impression that Afis was expecting a Muslim president. But, in line with the Sultan of Sokoto's pronouncement that voting should not be based on religion or ethnicity, but on the qualifications of the candidate, on 15 April 2011, just before the Presidential election, Afis clarifies his position, using historical prophets as metaphors:

In line with the kernel of our past sermons, I thought you should vote for the future of this country. Cast your ballot for that candidate who you think possesses the highest qualities to turn this wasteland to a land of plenitude; cast your ballot for that man whose personality reminds you not of this world but the hereafter; cast your ballot for that man who would harvest the "honey" on this land without breaking the hive. It is high time we had our own "Musa" who would take this country out of the wilderness of underperformance and arrested development; it is high time we had a "Jesus" as President whose asceticism would serve as a shield against graft and whose piety would impede the ascendancy of sleaze and social putrefaction. Vote for a "Muhammad" who knows that "to be a leader one must be trustworthyto be trustworthy, one must be truthful."

On 28 May 2010, Afis published "Democracy Day: Three fitness tests for our politicians":

The "light" actually shined on Nigeria on May 29, 1999 when this country transited from military oligarchy to "popular" democracy. The light shone on that day when Nigerians were set free from the clutches of the men and women in khaki in order that they may be "enslaved" by men and women in flowing gowns and costumes.

On May 29, 1999, corruption ceased to be a hidden secret perpetrated only by men and women you know but you dared not mention their names.

Since that day, Nigerians have become aware not only of the insipient odor of corruption in the society, but equally of the fact that the bigger the paraphernalia of office, the more dastard the corruption.

Nowadays, corrupt elements ride big cars, live in big houses, talk on television and even ask people to emulate them since, in their view, they represent the crme de la crme of society. Allah says, "when they are told to stop perpetrating mischief on earth, they say, we are ones doing good on earth" (Qur'an 2:8).

Nigeria joined the democratic bandwagon as a categorical imperative. Democracy, which in reality is the government of the few by the few and for the few, is hinged, in line with Aristotle, on the false idea of universal equality. Experience has shown that even in America, the bastion of "the free world" in contemporary times, democracy, or rather, dem-all-crazy, is usually government of the few by the few and for the few...

When Muslim politicians buy bullet-proof cars, live in fortified palatial mansions, talk as if they own tomorrow, one could feel the insult in the high heavens when such individuals enter the mosque and say Allah Akbar! The conduct of such politicians in office not only creates a lacuna between Islam in the text and Islam in practice, it equally serves to corrupt the minds of the laity, the unlettered.

On 23 July 2010, Afis continues to criticize the government, in the the article, "On the ₦10 billion for independence anniversary". I only cite a short paragraph:

The point we are making is this: The decision of the Federal Government to waste ₦10 billion in the name of 50th Independence anniversary raises a number of issues for our contemplation. Such might include the problem of the ideal leader, the utter lack of vision and wisdom on the side of our politicians which often manifests itself when they indulge in profligacy, and the uselessness or usefulness of public opinion vis--vis governmental responsibility and accountability.

Morality in governance - assuring common good

On 15 January 2010, Afis published "The stream at Gwagwalada: metaphor for a failing governance":

The first time I ventured into Abuja was in 1993... Travelling from Onitsha, the ever-bustling city of Anambra State-a city in constant search for meaning-and after many hours on the road, we eventually got to Gwagwalada, a suburb of the city of Abuja. From inside the luxurious bus, we all peeped outside. Right under the bridge, which leads to the town, we saw a stagnant stream, blackish in color, still, and ominous in content. But in and around the stream, we saw Nigerians, young and old, men and women. Some were busy taking their bath, while others were savoring the "comfort" the water was providing their naked bodies.

Far up the stream were artisans washing vehicles and motorcycles, while others were seen squatting beside the stream in compete "submission" to the call of nature. For at least five minutes during which we were held up on the same spot atop the bridge, the stream under the bridge in Gwagwalada remained "peaceful", calm and quiet. It was "happy" receiving as much of human oddities as my compatriots in that suburb were ready to deposit inside it! That was close to twenty years ago.

During the past week, however, I had cause to travel by road to Abuja once again... Eventually, we got to Gwagwalada. Lo and behold, I saw my compatriots, once again in the stream under the bridge. Immediately, I remembered the similar scene which I beheld in 1993. Men and women, young and old, in search of basic necessities of life, in search of good and potable water. Immediately, I remembered Franz Fanon's classic, The wretched of the earth. I remembered his portrayal of life in the colony. Then I said to myself No! In other words, I hate to think that Gwagwalada, like other similar suburbs in Nigeria, is a hungry land, hungry for bread, for light and for water. Then my thought was invaded by the following questions: Is it the case that my compatriots in the suburb were armored against water-borne diseases as they bathe, wash and defecate in the same stream with reckless abandon?...

It was around four in the evening. Due to the long traffic congestion, I fixed my gaze on the stream, shook my head again and again. Then I found myself muttering once again: May Allah bless Prophet Muhammad, who would not live in a mansion while his companions and followers slept under the bridge and in the open space, a leader who would not drink fruit juice and Swan water while his followers trek long distances in search of potable water in a brackish stream, in abandoned terrains, a leader who would not ride in Hummer Jeep and bullet-proof cars, while his followers are exposed to tokunbo buses...

The stream in Gwagwalada is a metaphor for the Nigerian state-a state in utter need of statesmen and women, a state where, unlike the Qur'anic city, the rulership is in a state of stupor occasioned by excessive power, a state where the followership is inebriated as a result of excessive poverty.

In other words, when Lord Acton says "Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely," I seek a reconstruction as follows: "Poverty corrupts and absolute poverty—with reverence to scenes of poverty all around the country—corrupts absolutely.

On 16 April 2010, Afis published "On Global Research Report for Africa", on the document by Jonathan Adams, Christopher King and Daniel Hood. Afis focuses on two phenomena described in this report: brain drain, and the poor state of education in Nigeria, leading Nigerians to go elsewhere for their degrees.

On 21 May 2010, Afis writes on another Nigerian problem: "On Lagos airport road & Lagos-Ibadan expressway". He begins with this line: "Two road networks, among many others, bleed my heart and assault my dignity: the one that leads to and from the International Airport in Lagos, and the Lagos-Ibadan-Lagos-Ore highway."

Observation

We can observe that, besides using the paradigm of Hijra or Ḥajj, Afis attacks abuses head-on, both in the personal and the socio-political arenas. His preaching is rich in local examples and imagery. These, as Aristotle's Rhetoric points out, greatly add to the impact. They are very clear to a Nigerian reader, but some of the nuances may escape readers elsewhere.

The preacher insists that, in preaching, example is more powerful than words, action must replace passivity, and courage must replace timidity.

He accepts the legitimacy of civil government, but rejects absolute power. A government is legitimate to the extent that it serves the common good. It must assure security and justice, and provide basic amenities. He is vocal in saying that Nigerian government has failed to do so. Besides personal reform, the only social action he advocated was to get out and vote.

3. Marriage and the family

Marriage is an area where Afis' eloquence shines. The metaphysical principles outlined above continue to underlie this discussion, since the family is a divinely ordained institution, and is the place where virtue is planted and nourished. As a husband and father of four children, Afis can speak from experience.

I present three extended passages, and summaries of a few others.

On 4 June 2010, he wrote "When men become wives to men":

In December 2009, two men in Malawi got engaged to each other and organized a ceremony to mark their "union:". The Malawian society, apparently acting true to its African identity and culture, deprecated the union not only because it was anomalous and odious to the essential African identity, but equally for being portentous of even more calamitous trends that are lurking around the African continent.

The "couple" was consequently arraigned in court with competent jurisdiction, found guilty and sentenced to 14 years imprisonment. In passing his judgment, the judge sought to remind African youths that even though Africa is seeking to catch up with the West in almost all areas of human endeavor, it would be wrong for them to assume that the continent would throw its backyard open to deviant behavior, including that of homo-social relations.

But the judge failed to reckon with the fact that Malawi is a country being aided by the West, that his country occupies perhaps the topmost position in the hierarchy of African countries receiving "hand-outs" from the United States, Britain, and other Western countries. When the West gives aid to the non-West, the non-West gives something to the West in return. It gives out its freedom, its culture and its perspective on life.

Thus, as soon as the judgment was passed, the media immediately became awash with comments and analyses. The consensus was soon reached: the judgment was an infringement on the fundamental "human rights" of the two men concerned. Britain was quick to issue a statement to the Malawian government: "We hope that the government of Malawi would rectify this anomaly". The United States equally sent an advisory (a euphemism for an order, a command, an instruction) to the Malawian authority which could be summarized as follows: to be gay and to express it in the open is to be free; to be free (only Americans are free!) is to be American, to be modern. To legislate against homosexuality is to be uncivilized, to be anti-American, to be anarchic.

Westomanic elements within the African continent also rose up to assert their identities. They reminded the Malawian government that it had far more important things to be concerned with than to seek to regulate the sexualities of its citizens. A couple of days ago, the Malawian government commuted the "couple's" jail term to state pardon. The Malawi "couple" are probably on their way to the West now. The fastest way to fame nowadays is to destroy that which your society holds dear...

The increasingly popular discourse on homo-social behavior, which has led to the efflorescence of same-sex "marriages" in Western societies, is therefore, a rebellion by humanity against Allah, the Creator of the heavens and the earth. It is equally a rebellion of humankind against its own nature. In other words, when a man decides to go into sexual union with his own sex, he is affirming, in his opinion, a divine error which he alone experiences to the exclusion of all. He is equally posturing on the margin of the society, not at its centre. He is reminding his society of the prevalence of a pervasive social disorder. Whenever the gays and lesbians say they are born that way, one gets the feeling that the thief and armed robber should not be taken to account for their evil ways any more. The latter should be excused, for they were born that way. The murderer should suffer no tribulation any more, since he is using the argument of the lesbian, born to be a murderer...

Islam abhors homosexuality not only because it is a rebellion against the will of the Almighty, for which nations have perished in the past, but equally because it is dangerous for the health of the individuals and incongruous to human society. Homosexuality constitutes a perversion of human nature, decreases human worth, returns humanity to a level where even animals would not operate. Even if Animals were to engage in the act, would it be seemly for humans to engage in it? Should humans say, because animals copulate at will, even with their mothers, human beings should go to bed with their forebears? Should we say just because homosexuality has become a normal way of life in the West, the rest of the world should commit cultural suicide and adopt the West's social predilections, no matter how odd they are?

Islam teaches that men should be men and women should be women in all ways. Homosexuality seeks to invalidate this order. It seeks to deprive a man of his manhood and a woman of her womanhood. It is the most unnatural way of life.

One very simple criterion or litmus test whether a behavior that it is beneficial to humanity at large is the question: "Will this act or behavior be of advantage or disadvantage to humanity? The homosexual philosophy is hinged on the superiority of the "I:". The gay and the lesbian operate with the frame of mind that in so far as it is "good" for them, the rest of the world can go to hell. Thus they chorus: "Be what you are," and "do not be ashamed of it."

On 9 July 2010 Afis took up a challenging topic: "The Muslim woman and home management":

It was around seven o'clock in the evening. Our brother sat in apprehension in the living room. His brows were full of sweat, his heart palpitating as if he was going to suffer a cardiac arrest the next moment. He was busy kicking into empty space and shouting on the top of his voice. Seated beside him was his 12-year-old male child. Both of them were watching one of the matches in the ongoing FIFA World Cup in South Africa.

Some distance from the living room is the apartment's kitchen. His wife was there. She was busy as usual, performing one of her innumerable "experiments". She was investing all her energy in the task of preparing the best dinner for her family. The kitchen was, as usual, hot, oven-like and scalding. She spends a minimum of four hours in that space every day.

Soon it was half time. The players on the playing field were seen heading towards the dressing room. Then, suddenly, our brother remembered he had not taken his dinner. "Dear! When will this meal be ready?" he queried.

Throughout the duration of the match he did not remember his meal. Football had done its "magic": again. As if his son had also just come back to reality, he, too, looked his father straight in the eyes and muttered as follows: "Mummy! I am hungry, where is my food?"

Islam views women as home-makers and builders. Muslim communities often yield the control of the inner space, the sacred space, the space of power and energy to their women. When the woman is not at home, the homely becomes, in line with Sigmund Freud, the un-homely. The home loses its glamour and touch; the man feels the loss of something irreplaceable. The woman is the enigma. When a man has an ideal woman as wife, such a man is considered to have succeeded in life...

In discharging her marital responsibilities, however, Islam demands that the woman is accorded her respect, that her humanity should not in any way be treated with levity.

In a typical Muslim home in this country, preparation of the meal is seen as one of the marital responsibilities of the wife at home. She is expected to toil and labor in the home in order to keep the family together, healthy and safe. While the husband goes out to get the means, to procure rice, beans, palm oil, salt and magi-cubes, she is expected to be there, eagerly expecting his return. As soon as he appears in the doorway she is expected to welcome him with all her heart, collect the items he might be carrying and head straight to the kitchen.

But is the wife under any obligation to do this in Islam? Is the Muslim woman expected to show here affection and love in this way? Is this not even idealistic in this age and time when the husband and wife are both corporate "guys" and "babes", each struggling to make his/her million naira mark before the age of twenty-five?

As is usual with Muslim jurists while dealing with the non-fundamentals in Islam, there is difference of opinion regarding whether it is obligatory (wājib) or preferred (mustahabb) for a woman to discharge some duties on behalf of her husband. The majority of Muslim scholars are of the opinion that it is praiseworthy but not obligatory for the wife to do household chores such as cooking, washing, and cleaning of the household.

In Muslim societies where cultural forces would demand that the Muslim woman carry out such activities, then she would not be infringing on any Islamic ideal if she rises up to discharge such responsibilities as much a she can...

Thus I return to the anecdote with which this sermon is prefaced. When our brother seats in the living room while his wife is busy in the kitchen, he is definitely engaged in a process of acculturating his son to the presumably rigid separation of marital responsibilities in the Muslim home. In other words, his son, who equally cries out to his mother thus: "Mummy, I'm hungry" would grow up with the belief that the kitchen space is meant only for the woman and that it is Islamically perfect that the man, even though it is his responsibility to provide the "raw materials for the home," should neither join his wife in the kitchen in order to relieve her of the burden nor utter words of appreciation for the thermogenics she suffers on a daily basis while ensuring that her family enjoys the right combination of a balanced diet.

The point I am trying to stress is this: The good Muslim husband is the one who truly appreciates the work his wife does around the house the same way she is expected to appreciate the stress her husband goes through in order to ensure the family lives above the poverty line.

The ideal husband is the one who overlooks the shortcomings of his wife, particularly when such inadequacies are not premeditated. The Muslim husband does not and should not treat his wife like his maid-servant. Rather, he should treat her like his close confidant. He should consult with her on such important matters like naming children, changing his job, making an investment, going on a trip, having his family members move in. The way I relate to my wife in the presence of her children goes a long way to determine the way our children will relate to their spouses in the future.

Let us return to the story of that Muslim woman and her family. When she heard the questions from her spouse and son, she smiled. She knew that life, as Allah has described it in the Qur'an, sometimes features playing and merrymaking. She also knew that her husband would have done better to come to the kitchen to assist her. She knew that she has a duty to teach her son how best to behave in all circumstances of life. Thus she engaged the latter in a conversation, which goes as follows:

Mother: Muhammad, what is the reward for every good deed in Islam?
Muhammad: Mummy, every good deed is rewarded tenfold.
Mother: Good. How many rewards to you hope to reap from watching football as compared to the reward you would gain when you come to the kitchen to assist your mother?
Son: (The question caught the boy napping. He did not know what to say. He looked at his father as if in need of his assistance. But the latter got the moral in his wife's question. He therefore said as follows:
Father: Muhammad, let's go to the kitchen to join your mother in preparing our dinner!"

On 14 January 2011, still on the family, Afis asks: "Where is your mother?" He shared a post he had received:

One young academically excellent person went to apply for a managerial position in a big company. He passed the first interview, the director did the last interview, made the last decision. The director discovered from the CV that the youth's academic achievements were excellent all the way, from the secondary school until the postgraduate research, never had a year when he did not score. The director asked, "Did you obtain any scholarships in school?" the youth answered "none". The director asked, " Was it your father who paid for your school fees?" The youth answered, "My father passed away when I was one year old, it was my mother who paid for my school fees. The director asked, " Where did your mother work?" The youth answered, "My mother worked as clothes cleaner. The director requested the youth to show his hands. The youth showed a pair of hands that were smooth and perfect. The director asked, " Have you ever helped your mother wash the clothes before?" The youth answered, "Never, my mother always wanted me to study and read more books. Furthermore, my mother can wash clothes faster than me. The director said, "I have a request. When you go back today, go and clean your mother's hands, and then see me tomorrow morning.

The youth felt that his chance of landing the job was high. When he went back, he happily requested his mother to let him clean her hands. His mother felt strange, happy but with mixed feelings, she showed her hands to the kid. The youth cleaned his mother's hands slowly. His tear fell as he did that. It was the first time he noticed that his mother's hands were so wrinkled, and there were so many bruises in her hands. Some bruises were so painful that his mother shivered when they were cleaned with water.

This was the first time the youth realized that it was this pair of hands that washed the clothes everyday to enable him to pay the school fee. The bruises in the mother's hands were the price that the mother had to pay for his graduation, academic excellence and his future. After finishing the cleaning of his mother hands, the youth quietly washed all the remaining clothes for his mother. That night, mother and son talked for a very long time...

Just before closing, I want you to answer the following questions: When was the last time you visited your mother? Do you think your mother is happy with you? Have you ever said "go to blazes" to your mother? What is it that your mother really wants to have? How much do you know about your mother? What might be five things your mother really doesn't want you to do? What are three things that make your mother happy or sad? How many minutes do you engage in "quality talk" with your mother in a week? When was the last time you cooked for your mother or ensured she had that meal she so much loves? When was the last time you gave your mother a gift?

On 26 March and 9 April 2010, Afis wrote "How much should your wedding cost?", in two parts. Here he decries the extravagant cost spent on clothing, food, limousines, bride prices etc. He also decries departing from Islamic rules in favor of traditional or imported customs.

On 14 May 2010 he writes on "Ahmad Sani's 'engagement'". This is on the marriage of the man who, as Governor, introduced Shari`a to Zamfara State, the first to adopt Shari`a. He married a young Egyptian girl, who was under the minimum age required by Nigerian law. Afis defends the marriage, because the girl was not under-age by Islamic law.

On 15 October 2010, Afis has "Women bankers, the moral fabric of our nation". He sees career women as loaded with two competing full time jobs: the home and the career. He also decries the use of women to bait customers.

On 2 July 2010, Afis published "Islam, the Muslim child & television". In it he highlights the danger of exposing children to pornography and violence, as well as to scenes of children insulting their parents. Television, moreover, is addictive, and takes up more time than any other activity. He says:

Researchers have also shown that prolonged television viewing by children is associated with more aggressive behavior, lack of creativity, patience, imagination, participation, and physical mental and spiritual development.

Observation

On the question of homosexuality, Afis does not merely say "Islam teaches", but also appeals (without naming it) to "natural law". "African identity" witnesses to it by recognizing homosexuality as deviant. There is also the consideration that men should be men, and women women, i.e. complementary to each other. More importantly, he argues from the purpose of marriage, the good of humanity through procreation. Here, Afis resists the aggression of a distorted modernism.

On the roles of husband and wife, Afis notes that to make a marriage succeed, fulfilling obligations is not enough. There must be communication, cooperation, sensitivity to needs and appreciation of services rendered. As Afis artfully shows, the same holds with regard to mothers.

In attacking extravagant expense on weddings, and warning of the dangers of TV for children, he touches on problems all Nigerians face.

His defense of the legal minimum age for a Muslim girl to marry could have been balanced by a consideration of the girl's over-all interest.

Conclusion

Our preacher has his feet firmly on the ground. He is not preaching from books, although his preaching supposes considerable book knowledge.

His preaching is grounded on firm theological/philosophical principles. These reach vertically to submission to God, trust in him, fidelity towards him, and communion with him by total union of wills. The same principles carry our preacher horizontally to the whole domain of human life, both personal and social.

His method of preaching is to use well-known rhetorical devices. He does so effectively, with stories from concrete experience, parabolic interpretation of Islamic rituals, and direct confrontation of abuses, using arguments of natural law, the example of prophets, and, above all, the contrast between perishable gains and eternal reward.

He is a good model for other preachers, Muslim or Christian, in combining adherence to the pillars of tradition with inventive advice for Nigerians today.

NOTES

[1] Syracuse University Press, 1998.

[2] The journal of the International Society for Islamic Philosophy, published In cooperation with the Iranian Philosophical Society. Cf. www.isiphilosophy.com.

[3] http://www.guardiannewsngr.com/, under "Friday Worship".

[4] See Peter McKenzie, Hail Orisha!, A phenomenology of a West African Religion in the mid-Nineteenth Century (Brill, 1997).

[5] On the types of rhetoric, see my paper presented at the World Day of Philosophy, Tehran, November 2010, "The scope of logic according to Aristotle, Ibn-Sīnā, and Benedict Ashley ," provisionally at: www.josephkenny.joyeurs.com/Scope of Logic.htm.

[6] Summa theologiae, I, q. 1, a. 13.