John Cardinal Onaiyekan Calls for Theological Rethink and Interreligious Harmony at CATHAN 39th Conference

Benin City, Nigeria, April 23, 2025/Okhueleigbe Osemhantie Àmos

In a keynote address that thundered with theological depth and contemporary urgency, His Eminence John Cardinal Onaiyekan delivered a soul-stirring call for religious introspection, mutual respect, and peace at the 39th Annual Conference of the Catholic Theological Association of Nigeria (CATHAN), currently holding in Benin City. With the theme “Theology and Contemporary Approaches to Religion in Nigeria,” the Cardinal’s address was more than a scholarly contribution—it was a moral clarion call to the soul of Nigeria and the conscience of the global religious community.

> “Religion is a human construct. God is not,” Cardinal Onaiyekan declared with striking clarity. “While religion and God normally go together, we must distinguish between the two. God is greater than any and every religion.”

With theological precision and pastoral warmth, the Cardinal dismantled the walls of exclusivism and urged a mature re-engagement with the reality of religious plurality in the modern world. Drawing from the wisdom of Vatican II, and invoking the groundbreaking Document on Human Fraternity co-signed by Pope Francis and the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, he emphasized that “the recognition of other religions is not a betrayal of faith, but a maturity of it.”

> “If Christianity and Islam—which together form the majority of the world’s religious population—jointly work for peace, the world will be at peace. But if they continue to harbor attitudes of superiority and rivalry, then we are setting the stage for endless conflict.”

In a country like Nigeria, bruised by sectarian tensions and poisoned by the politics of religious identity, Cardinal Onaiyekan’s words resonate like the voice of a prophet crying out in the wilderness. He lamented that despite the beautiful principles of freedom of religion, “the reality is often different.” The suppression of religious minorities—whether by overt state policy or silent collusion—he described as “a great shame,” especially in the face of the continued silence of the global community.

> “The Catholic Church,” he noted, “has set an example, especially since the Second Vatican Council’s Dignitatis Humanae, which upholds the sacredness of conscience and the right to religious freedom.”

On interreligious dialogue, the Cardinal invoked the wisdom of Cardinal Francis Arinze: “I speak, you listen. You speak, I listen.” But then he added, “This is not as easy as it sounds. Dialogue will be fruitful only when done with sincerity and humility—not with pretense or diplomatic politeness.”

Perhaps the most electrifying moment came when he reframed the Christian mandate to evangelize—not as an imperialistic drive to fill baptismal registers, but as a holistic mission to proclaim the love of Christ in every human encounter.

> “We need a broader understanding of evangelization,” he insisted. “As Paul VI teaches in Evangelii Nuntiandi, human development is part of the Gospel. We plant and water, but only God produces the fruits of salvation.”

Still, he was unambiguous about the uniqueness of the Christian claim.

> “Christianity is not just any religion built around the message of a great prophet. It is about Jesus Christ—Son of God made man. There is no other name under heaven by which we are saved.”

Yet, he cautioned against triumphalism.

> “Woe to us if we do not preach—but let our preaching be clothed in humility, our dialogue tempered with love, and our faith anchored in truth.”

A Message for Nigeria—and the World

Cardinal Onaiyekan’s address did not spare Nigeria. He decried not only Christian disunity but also the internal tensions within Islam—the marginalization of Shiites, the suspicion towards Ahmadiyya—and called for equal protection for all religious expressions under the law.

> “Can we not see each other as brothers and sisters since one God is our Father?” he asked. “If the Pope and the Imam can call for human fraternity, how much more should we, citizens of one nation, rally together in mutual respect and shared destiny?”

His conclusion was thunderous in its moral clarity:

> “Religion must not be a cause of conflict. If it cannot be a source of peace, then it betrays its purpose.”

As the world continues to watch Nigeria wrestle with its religious complexities, John Cardinal Onaiyekan has once again offered a roadmap—not of naïve optimism, but of courageous faith and rational hope. His words deserve to echo not only in seminar rooms and synods but also in the corridors of power, the chambers of policy, and the hearts of men and women of goodwill everywhere.

This is not just a keynote address. It is a spiritual manifesto for our time.