The position of the religions in military enlistment
No doubt, the military profession is a noble one, as officers, especially those in the artillery, are obliged to always defend the territorial integrity and sovereignty of their country. It is also their duty to protect the citizens. So, it can be rightly said that anyone in the military should be protective. In the course of carrying out their duties, however, military officers often have to kill the enemies and sometimes even take hostages. But then, all the holy books enjoin the faithful to abstain from harming and killing their fellowmen, which appears to negate the essence of soldiering. So then, is it advisable for a Christian or Muslim to enlist in the military, knowing full well what it entails? Is there any way Christians/Muslims soldiers can help to avert war/violence? CHRIS IREKAMBA and EKEMENA AZAINO (Delta State) report.
‘We need godly people in the military’
(Rev. (Dr.) Felix Omobude, National President of Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, PFN)
All through the Bible, there has always been military, because if you want peace you prepare for war. So, Israel as a nation always had soldiers. However, soldiers don’t just go to town and start killing anybody; they defend the poor and ensure there is order. So, I don’t see why Christians should not enlist in the military.
In Nigeria, we need godly people to be in the military. It is true the Holy Bible says, “thou shalt not kill,” but remember that there are people out there, who kill indiscriminately. It is the military that protects the innocent and weak, which is a good thing and does not hurt in any way. The law is there to protect the just and law abiding. However, those who choose to violate the law must be taken care of somehow.
So, I don’t believe the Bible is against the military. For instance, Boko Haram has killed so many Nigerians. If all of us only carry the Bible and there is no police, no soldier to protect us, can you imagine what the terrorists would have done to us? So, if they kill a Boko Haram person who wants to kill others, that is not against the law. To that extent, I don’t think there is anything wrong at all with the military profession. Right from the time they left Egypt, Israel has always engaged in war. In the bid to defend your territory from aggressors, the military is essential. In modern day Nigeria, I don’t think any right thinking Christian would think it’s an offence to go into the military.
Recently, the Nigeria Police recruited people and I know so many Christians that struggled to join. Yes, police officers handle gun and do sometimes kill, but they don’t just start killing anyhow. They do it within the ambit of the law and they are right.
‘Being in military or security services is a noble act’
(Imam Morufu Onike Abdul-Azeez, Deputy Chief Missionary, NASFAT, Headquarters, Lagos)
AS a religion, Islam cannot be divorced from any other areas of human endeavour, be it social, economic and political among others. This means that Islam is not just a spiritual entity, but also a political one. Therefore, military expedition, as a socio-political concept, is treated in Islam. Looking at the objectives of shariah, nay Islam, according to Imam Ghazali, they are for the protection of life, property, religion, family and intellect. These objectives have been summarised as: “Promotion of benefit and removal of harm, which was based on the Allah’s statement that says the Holy Prophet Muhammad was sent as a mercy to the entire mankind, Qur’an 21:107.
Therefore, if people’s lives are threatened, conscious and legal means should be used to protect them, but such means have to be initiated and coordinated by the constituted authority, as there is no jungle justice in Islam. In as much as Islam supports the use of military, it strongly abhors unnecessary aggression, Surah Mumtahana 60:8-9, “Allah does not forbid you from those who do not fight you because of religion and do not expel you from your homes – from being righteous toward them and acting justly toward them. Indeed, Allah loves those who act justly. Allah only forbids you from those who fight you because of religion and expel you from your homes and aid in your expulsion – [forbids] that you make allies of them. And whoever makes allies of them, then it is those who are the wrongdoers.”
There are justifications for military expedition in Islam. While it would seem that there are verses encouraging waging of wars in Islam, they should not be quoted out of context. Those seemingly “violent verses” were revealed, when wars were going on. It should be noted that the holy Prophet did not fight any war throughout his stay in Makkah. It was when he migrated to Madinah and the hostilities from the enemies of Islam continued that he was ordered to defend the Islamic community. All the war verses are contextualised into three: those revealed before the war or in peaceful situation like Q60: 8-9 quoted above, those revealed when wars were ongoing for instance in Quran 8: 60 and the one revealed when wars had ended. In Islam, wars are recommended for the following reasons:
• When all forms of peaceful reconciliation have been exhausted.
• To fight tyrannical rulers,
• To counter oppression and aggression.
• In self-defence.
Having thus established the fact that Islam supports justified expedition, i.e. the ones not influenced by aggression, it is needless to say that Muslims can join the military.
Concerning how Muslims can help to avert violence and wars, it has to be emphasised that violence is not peculiar to a particular faith group. However, all Nigerians and the government can help in the following ways:
• By cooperating with anyone with similar interests of safety and security for the community and nation. Better social justice and dealing with people’s grievances. Better neighbourliness and community cohesion. Support better systems of justice and Rule of Law. Support better transparency and accountability of leaders, especially in areas of corruptions, abuse of power and especially ethnic and religious discrimination. Better education, job creation and poverty alleviation. Better values-oriented religious instruction and effective countering of the arguments of all forms of extremists. Better interfaith relationship-building activities and peace-building. There should also be sincere forgiveness and initiatives for greater peace and conflict resolution. Legal controls and prosecution of “hate speech” and activities that are known culturally to incite violence. More ethically-conscious religious clergy that should be more concerned about the values taught by religion than pleasing their angry or bigoted followership.
‘There is nothing wrong in that’
(Bishop Francis Wale Oke, President, Sword of the Spirit Ministries, Worldwide)
The military is a profession and men and women in the armed forces are doing a great work, defending the territorial integrity of our nation. They are the people that go in harm’s way to protect us. It is a calling, a profession. The military was there in the Bible time. David was not just a prophet; he was also a king and a general in the army. I commend our men and women that are serving in the military, irrespective of their religion, as they are doing a great work. It is not wrong at all for Christians to enlist in the military. If you are persuaded that you have that call, then go right into it. It is a noble profession.
There are enemies all over the place. The fact that the enemies know there is a standing army that is well trained and well equipped is a warning and deterrent to them. If the enemies misbehave and want to mess around, there is an army to repel them. They are doing their job and so, there is nothing wrong in it. Every Nigerian should support and encourage our military because they are serving all of us. There may be some bad eggs. Some might have stolen money, but we shouldn’t throw away the baby with the bath water. We salute our men in uniform and I pray that God bless them all.”
‘I don’t see it as murdering people’
(Archbishop John Osa-Oni, Presiding Bishop, Vineyard Christian Ministries, Worldwide)
WHAT we are talking about here is the sovereignty of a nation, which to me is in the hand of all the citizenry of that country. And it doesn’t matter whether you are a Christian or Muslim, atheist and what have you. It is safeguarding the sovereignty of that nation that really matters. For me, military is meant for all of us, irrespective of your creed. We must not take ourselves out of it because as long as we are still here on this planet earth, we must fulfil our obligations to our fatherland and the state. I think it is a good thing for a Christian to join the military. It also creates some measure of discipline and high moral standard. It’s a good thing for any one to join the force, including the police, Customs and Immigration, which, of course, is not part of it, but as a citizen of Nigeria, if you are qualified you should go for it. You are fighting for your country.
In the military, you are not taught to die for your country, but those fighting against your country must be made to die. It’s a defence mechanism and soldiers that die in the warfront are heroes.
I was in the Navy for a short while. It’s good for Christians to get involved because it helps to build your character and strength. It’s my desire that every Nigerian should experience military training and not just the NYSC. When the military is mentioned, people always think of death, but this is the least. According to George Washington, “you don’t die, but make your opponent die for their country.” So it is not about you dying or killing, after all, the world is relatively peaceful now and the United Nations (UN) is doing everything possible to ensure that war is abated all over the world. So, with all these efforts, there is minimal aggression except in some countries, where there are pockets of crises. Our own General Yabuku Gowon once said, “to keep Nigeria as one is a task that must be done.” So, keeping this country is our greatest responsibility.
If my children are interested in going into the military, they are free to do so. Duty calls for it. In the Bible, Gen14 talks of Abraham going to fight in order to rescue Lot, his nephew. He fought and the Bible says as he was coming from there, he paid his tithe to Melchizedek.
In Abraham’s household, there were warriors, who were trained to handle bows and arrows. But today, we have machine guns, rifles, Ak-47 and what have you. In the Bible days, they fought wars and maintained territories.
So, I don’t see it as murdering people and if war comes up, everybody should go and defend their country. So, I encourage born again Christians to go for it and get involved. I also remember that in those days, some of my juniors who were Major and Commander wanted to pull out of the military for reasons best known to them. Whatever reason they had then, I think they didn’t have a clear vision of what they really wanted. I persuaded them to stay but they said they were going into church ministry.
If I knew what I know now I would have remained in the military. We are soldiers of Christ, as well as soldiers of our nation. So, Christians should join the military, as I don’t see anything bad in it.
‘Should Christians be in govt, but run away from joining military?’
(Most Senior Evang. Kunle Jacob, Celestial Church of Christ, Oshodi Parish 1, Lagos)
ALL the men of God in the Bible were soldiers and if we say Christians should not join military, who then has the right to defend the territory of the country? Is it the Muslims? Regarding killing, what can you say about those Boko Haram people that are killing Nigerians? The Avengers are bombing pipelines. Do you know that their activities are affecting me here in Lagos? If the military were not there to protect the pipelines, the havoc would have been terrible.
As the Israelites were leaving Egypt, do you think their freedom was easy without fighting and killing? But they had a breakthrough and reached the Promised Land. If they had allowed the enemies to stop them, they wouldn’t have passed through to the Promised Land.
Military is the strength of any nation. Are you saying that Christians should be in government, but then run away from joining the military? If this is advocated, Christians are cheating themselves. If my own children want to enroll in the military, I will support and pray for them. And why not? He is not there as an armed robber or hired assassin. He is there to defend me as his father, my family and my country. Military officers are there to protect the land, so Christians should go there to defend their territory, their states, local governments and family members. They are not doing anything wrong thereby.
Elijah had soldiers, David had soldiers and anywhere he went, he took them with him. I believe there is no difference between that time and now. For instance, is it not in our collective interest, if government deploys the military to combat those bombing pipelines and the Avengers destroying Niger Delta? Can you now see the work of the military and how useful they are to us and to the nation? Christians are in the world and we should be part and parcel of the military, but we should not join hands to do evil.
Soldiering or military has existed from the beginning and shall continue to be so. We have many of our members in the military. There is also a member in Borno and another in Sudan, as well as the Niger Delta. They are there to maintain peace and we will continue to pray for them. There is no peace in Borno and the Niger Delta, but they are the ones sent to these places to restore peace and order. You can call a military man a peacemaker. If not for the military intervention in Borno, Boko Haram could have taken over this nation. I encourage Christians to enroll in the military, including my own son and my church members, because there’s nothing wrong about it.
‘Jesus did not condemn centurion’s involvement in Military’
(His Grace, Most Revd. Emmanuel Josiah Udofia, Primate of the African Church/President, Christian Council of Nigeria)
The Bible contains plenty of information on serving in the military. The Bible is filled with God-honouring military members. It’s clear that the military can be a noble profession for a believer. It is not against the Bible to be a member of the armed forces of a legitimate, sovereign nation. God put civil authorities in place to rule mankind and part of that responsibility is military defence. It is biblical for nations to defend themselves during warfare. The Bible does not specifically state whether or not someone should serve in the military. At the same time, Christians can be rest assured that being a soldier is highly respected throughout the Scriptures and know that such service is consistent with a biblical worldview.
The first example of military service is found in the Old Testament (Genesis 14), when Lot, Abraham’s nephew, was kidnapped by Chedorlaomer, king of Elam, and his allies. Abraham rallied to Lot’s aid by gathering 318 trained men of his household and defeated the Elamites. Here, we see armed forces engaged in a noble task, that of rescuing and protecting the innocent.
Late in its history, the nation of Israel developed a standing army. The sense that God was the Divine Warrior and would protect His people, regardless of their military strength, might have been a reason why Israel was slow to develop an army. The development of a regular standing army in Israel came only after a strong and centralised political system had been developed by Saul, David, and Solomon. Saul was the first to form a permanent army (1 Samuel 13:2; 24:2; 26:2).
What Saul began, David continued. He increased the army, brought in hired troops from other regions, who were loyal to him alone (2 Samuel 15:19-22) and turned over the direct leadership of his armies to Joab, a commander-in-chief. Under David, Israel also became more aggressive in its offensive military policies, absorbing neighbouring states such as Ammon (2 Samuel 11:1; 1 Chronicles 20:1-3). David established a system of rotating troops with 12 groups of 24, 000 men serving one month of the year ‘1 Chronicles 27).
Christians enlisted in the Roman Empire. Christians have been present in the military since the second century. Marinus of Caesarea, Julius the Veteran, and other military saints were Christian soldiers, although other Christians, such as St. Maximilian, were conscientious objectors, believing that the Bible supported Christian pacifism. Under the Emperor Diocletian, attempts were made to purge Christians from the army. However, the Roman army continued to include many Christians, and the presence of large numbers of Christians in his army might have been a factor in the conversion of Constantine to Christianity.
In the New Testament, Jesus marvelled, when a Roman centurion (an officer in charge of 100 soldiers) approached Him. The centurion’s response to Jesus indicated his clear understanding of authority, as well as his faith in Jesus (Matthew 8:5-13). Jesus did not denounce his career. Many centurions mentioned in the New Testament are praised as Christians, God-fearers, and men of good character (Matthew 8:5; 27:54; Mark 15:39-45; Luke 7:2; 23:47; Acts 10:1; 21:32; 28:16).
Being enlisted in the Army is not condemned in the Bible. Therefore, I have no right to say it is sinful to become an army officer. Luke 3:14 says, “When the soldiers went to John the Baptist the servant of God to demand what they should do, they were not condemned but instead, were instructed on what they should do – Do violence to no man, neither accuse any falsely; and be content with their wages (salaries).”
‘Christians in military should enforce justice, not oppress people’
(Rt. Rev. John Usiwoma Aruakpor, Anglican Bishop of Oleh Diocese, Delta State)
YES, Christians are to join the military. The first thing is that because of sin, God instituted the government. If there were no sin, there would not have been government. There was the need for some people to control man since the heart of man has been depraved. The military is an institution created to prevent the depraved people from harming others. The military is an instrument of government to enforce discipline in the citizens.
Christians in the military should enforce justice and not oppress people of different backgrounds. This is because when they oppress others, they will foster war and violence instead of averting it. When Christians in the military allow the word of God to rule them, they would definitely promote peace and avert violence.
‘It’s no sin for Christians to serve their country in any capacity’
(Rt Rev Dr Isaac Olawuyi, Bishop of the Lagos Mainland, Methodist Church, Nigeria)
WHAT is the military, and its duties? Military, also called the armed forces, are forces authorised to use deadly force and weapons to support state interests and some or all of its citizens. The task of the military is usually defined as defence of the state and its citizens, and the prosecution of war against another state. This definition explains military and its duties.
Every nation is bound to defend its sovereignty, as no nation can afford to be careless and leave its territory without defence. The issue of security is paramount and cannot be trivalised. Any nation, which fails to provide security for its citizens, will soon lose its sovereignty.
A Christian in any nation is a citizen and has the responsibility to perform his/her civic duties. A Christian has a duty to work and serve his nation. As a citizen, he can vote and be voted for. He can enlist in the armed forces, be it Police or Army. It’s no sin at all for Christians to serve their nation in any capacity or strength.
There is no place both in the Old and New Testaments, where God speaks against a believer serving in defence of his community or nation. In actual fact, the Bible supports believers in the defence of their nation. God Himself is always defending His people, as He fights and guards them.
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1 Comments
Military, aka armed forces, means The Army, The Navy or Marine Corps and The Air force. Nations set them up for pure and absolute defense and protection of territorial integrity of state. All others carrying rifles about and around us, at times terrorizing and extorting money and other property from innocent populace are para – military. They are to serve internally and protect the citizens within from harms way and from civil strive. Let’s get this clear right all the time. Then the gist: to belong to or join any of these bodies is not un Biblical or religious belief. What’s is against the Bible or other religious beliefs is the abuse with which the joiners and enrollers often get involved with. That’s wanton killing of innocent citizens for no verifiable justification. Carrying guns and other deadly weapons with a preconceived notion to “kill and go” should be checked and punished by the very government that also authorize the setting up of these bodies. For instance, in peace time, some soldiers could be given other assignments aimed at boosting the GDP not necessarily allowing them to be idle for the devil could find work for idle hands or minds. These are what the Bible or other religious beliefs books teach and forbid.
We will review and take appropriate action.