Today, the about 2.38 billion Christian faithful all over the world commemorate the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ more than 2000 years ago.
To believers, Easter is the most important and significant feast in Christendom. A season that marks the triumph of good over evil, light over darkness, hope over despair, truth over falsehood, life over death. Christ's death and resurrection are the substance of the hope in eternal life, the central mission of Christ on earth - the salvation of mankind.
To prepare for this momentous occasion, Christians embarked on a 40-day journey of prayer, fasting, abstinence, penitence, almsgiving, and other forms of piety to atone for their sins and the sins of the whole world.
This spiritual walk, known as Lent, started on Ash Wednesday and culminated on Good Friday, a day that commemorates his death on the cross. He rose on the third day as He had promised during His earthly ministry. The last week of this holy season started on Palm Sunday, in which Christians remembered His triumphant entry into Jerusalem, where he would be arrested on trumped-up charges by Jewish authorities, prosecuted by Roman authorities, and sentenced to death by crucifixion - death on the cross reserved for the worst kind of offenders, even though no guilt was found on him.
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Christ, Himself, is God made man, a form He humbly assumed to achieve His salvific mission of redeeming mankind from sin and reconciling them with their Creator. For this, He sacrificed Himself on the cross so that His precious blood would be a once-and-for-all sacrifice of atonement for Mankind. For Christians, it is this redemptive work that is celebrated at Easter - for it gave them a hope of salvation, of eternity, if they followed the ways prescribed by Christ the Saviour.
This Easter comes amidst a troubling time for Nigerians. Merchants of death and violence have tried to taint this Holy Week by carrying out bloody attacks on residents of Angwan Rukuba in Jos, Plateau State, and on wedding guests at a village in Kaduna State, with both raids claiming about 40 lives, with many injured and several others missing or kidnapped. These tragic incidents by the kind of sinners that Christ came to convert from their evil ways have, no doubt, tainted this season, but it will not detract from the celebration of this auspicious feast. In a way, the victims and their grieving loved ones can take solace in the essence of Christ's resurrection as it assures them that their suffering is not in vain and that their loved ones have a hope of everlasting life due to His resurrection.
Nigeria today faces daunting challenges--economic hardship, insecurity, corruption, and political instability. These struggles often test the resilience of its people. Yet, Easter reminds us that renewal can emerge from suffering. Just as the resurrection followed the crucifixion, Nigeria can rise above its trials if its citizens embrace the values of sacrifice, forgiveness, and hope.
For ordinary Nigerians, the season calls for compassion toward neighbours, unity across ethnic and religious divides, and perseverance in the face of adversity. The Easter message of reconciliation is particularly relevant in a society where divisions in terms of region and religion often aggravate tensions. Forgiveness and dialogue, rather than bitterness and conflict, must guide our interactions if Nigeria is to flourish.
Easter also offers some lessons to Nigerian leaders. Their actions have largely been motivated by self-interest, corruption, and a lack of accountability. However, as Christ showed, true leadership is rooted in service and sacrifice. Christ's example was one of humility--washing the feet of his disciples, carrying the cross, and laying down his life for others. While nobody expects this level of self-sacrifice from Nigerian leaders, we, at least, urge them to accommodate the basic needs of the Nigerian people, alongside their own, in their policies and programmes.
In this period of renewal, the present administration's mantra of Renewed Hope seems apt. However, the government must go beyond sloganeering to putting down concrete governance actions on the ground that can really renew their hope and energize their aspirations. For now, most Nigerians do not share the government's optimism of a renewed hope in their country's fortunes and in their personal well-being. Insecurity, poverty, corruption, poor power supply, lack of basic amenities to support a meaningful life, etc, - the same things that have plagued the nation over the years - are still with us.
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However, Easter reminds us that renewal is possible, but it requires hard work, vigilance, courage, sacrifice, and faith. Nigeria's story, like the Easter story, is one of struggle and hope. The nation has myriad challenges, but it can rise again if its people and leaders can embrace the values of Easter. The resurrection is proof that no situation is beyond redemption, and Nigeria, too, can look forward to that. The occasion demands that both the leaders and the led must hold themselves to higher levels of responsibility and accountability.
Also, the followers of Christ do so out of free will; it is not forced or imposed. Our present leaders must imbibe the spirit of Easter by committing to ensuring participatory democracy, improving governance, and ensuring justice for all. It must demonstrate this in the processes leading to the 2027 general elections.
If Nigeria embraces the lessons of Easter, it can rise above its present challenges and step into a future defined by real hope and progress.
Happy Easter.
