Essay from the year 2015 in the subject Theology - Practical Theology, grade: B+, , language: English, abstract: The activities of the Boko Haram sects in Nigeria have negatively affected the Nigerian society. The socio-economic, political and religious aspects of the Nigerian society have a lot due to the activities of the Boko Haram sects especially in the northern parts of Nigeria. The Bishop of Kaduna Diocese of the Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, Reverend Josiah Idowu-Fearon, observed that violence and insurgency has destroyed the economic, social and religious lives of the people of Kaduna State. This can also be said of all the Boko Haram stricken states in northern Nigeria. He pointed out that "The entire North-east of the country, Jos and Kano are almost completely isolated economically, socially and politically..." This essay outlines and discusses some of the impacts of the Boko Haram sects on both the Church and the society in Nigeria.

This book is the first attempt to understand Boko Haram in a comprehensive and consistent way. It examines the early history of the sect and its transformation into a radical armed group. It analyses the causes of the uprising against the Nigerian state and evaluates the consequences of the on-going conflict from a religious, social and political point of view. The book gives priority to authors conducting fieldwork in Nigeria and tackles the following issues: the extent to which Boko Haram can be considered the product of deprivation and marginalisation; the relationship of the sect with almajirai, Islamic schools, Sufi brotherhoods, Izala, and Christian churches; the role of security forces and political parties in the radicalisation of the sect; the competing discourses in international and domestic media coverage of the crisis; and the consequences of the militarisation of the conflict for the Nigerian government and the civilian population, Christian and Muslim. About the Editor: Marc-Antoine Perouse de Montclos is a Doctor in Political Science and a Professor at the French Institute of Geopolitics in the University of Paris 8. A specialist on armed conflicts in Africa south of the Sahara, he graduated from the Institut d'etudes politiques de Paris (IEP), where he teaches, and is a researcher at the Institut de recherche pour le developpement (IRD). He lived for several years in Nigeria, South Africa and Kenya. He has published some eighty articles and books, including Le Nigeria (1994), Violence et securite urbaines (1997), L'aide humanitaire, aide a la guerre? (2001), Villes et violences en Afrique subsaharienne (2002), Diaspora et terrorisme (2003), Guerres d'aujourd'hui (2007), Etats faibles et securite privee en Afrique noire (2008), Les humanitaires dans la guerre (2013), and La tragedie malienne (2013). Reviews For scholars, government officials, journalists, and civic actors, this book expands our understanding of this enigmatic jihadist movement, its genesis, evolution, and political implications. In light of the global significance of militant Islam, the book is indispensable for students of Nigeria, Africa, Muslim societies, and armed conflicts.-Richard Joseph, John Evans Professor of International History and Politics, Northwestern University This collection of essays on Boko Haram is much the best yet-well informed, coolly competent. With the insurgency still evolving, we really need this guide to its early days.-Murray Last, Emeritus Professor of Anthropology, University College of London This valuable collection assembles notable experts who analyze the messages and behavior of Boko Haram. The collection also provides nuanced treatments of actors involved in the conflict, including the Nigerian state and Nigerian Christians.-Alex Thurston, Visiting Assistant Professor, African Studies Program, Georgetown University

This volume brings together seven empirically grounded contributions by African social scientists of different disciplinary backgrounds. The authors explore the social impact of religious innovation and competition in present day Africa. They represent a selection from an interdisciplinary initiative that made 23 research grants for theologians and social scientists to study Christianity and social change in contemporary Africa. These contributions focus on a variety of dynamics in contemporary African religion (mostly Christianity), including gender, health and healing, social media, entrepreneurship, and inter-religious borrowing and accommodation. The volume seeks to enhance understanding of religions vital presence and power in contemporary Africa. It reveals problems as well as possibilities, notably some ethical concerns and psychological maladies that arise in some of these new movements, notably neo-Pentecostal and militant fundamentalist groups. Yet the contributions do not fixate on African problems and victimization. Instead, they explore sources of African creativity, resiliency and agency. The book calls on scholars of religion and religiosity in Africa to invest new conceptual and methodological energy in understanding what it means to be actively religious in Africa today.

A comprehensive study of religious violence and aggression in Nigeria, notably its causes, consequences, and the options for conflict resolution. Violence in Nigeria is the most comprehensive study of religious violence and aggression in Nigeria, notably its causes, consequences, and the options for conflict resolution. After an analysis of the links between religionand politics, the book elaborates on all the major cases of violence in the 1980s and 90s, including the Maitatsine, Kano, Bauchi, Kaduna, and Katsina riots. Zones of religious tensions are identified, as well as general characteristics of violence in Nigeria; and issues in inter and intra-religious relations, relious organizations, and the states, and the main actors in the conflicts are explored in great detail. A product of extensive primary research, Violence in Nigeria makes a contribution to contemporary social and political history that no previous study has attempted, and it is written to appeal to specialists and non-specialists alike. Toyin Falola is the Jacob and Frances Sanger Mossiker Chair in the Humanities and University Distinguished Teaching Professor at the University of Texas at Austin. He is the author or editor of over a dozen books dealing with the history of Nigeria, its people, their religion and politics.

This handbook poses and attempts to answer a series of basic, but complex, questions: Is there any advantage to the peace process in inviting or permitting the participation of proscribed armed groups (PAGs)? What kinds of PAGs are worth talking to and which are not? What form should the talks take and whom should they involve?Each of the following six chapters covers a different step in the process of talking to groups that use terror: * assess the potential for talks * design a strategy for engagement * open channels of communication * foster commitment to the process * facilitate negotiations * and protect the process from the effects of violenceThis handbook is part of the series the Peacemaker s Toolkit, which is being published by the United States Institute of Peace. For twenty-five years, the United States Institute of Peace has supported the work of mediators through research, training programs, workshops, and publications designed to discover and disseminate the keys to effective mediation.The Institute mandated by the U.S. Congress to help prevent, manage, and resolve international conflict through nonviolent means has conceived of The Peacemaker s Toolkit as a way of combining its own accumulated expertise with that of other organizations active in the field of mediation. Most publications in the series are produced jointly by the Institute and a partner organization. All publications are carefully reviewed before publication by highly experienced mediators to ensure that the final product will be a useful and reliable resource for practitioners."

Engaging Extremists concerns negotiation with political terrorist organizations, separating terrorist groups that can be engaged from those that, for the moment, cannot.

This volume is an authoritative and agenda-setting examination of Nigerian politics.