IRRELIGIOUSNESS IN THE NAME OF RELIGION (AMOS 5:21-24): DIGITAL-AGE EXPERIENCE WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO NIGERIA

Abstract

That human society has advanced a lot in our day and age – the digital age – is a truism. The Trapid progress of humankind in science and technology, especially in the area ofcommunication, has made the world a global village. Advantageous as this may seem, it alsocalls for grave concern, especially in the danger of its abuse or misuse – as in social media or even inthe proliferation of weapons, especially atomic weapons. Furthermore, these scientific andtechnological developments, when not properly reckoned with, tend to generate the feeling of undueindependence from some people prompting, sometimes, their questioning the need for God andreligion in their lives and in the human society at large – ultimately occasioning their abandonmentof or indifference to these important realities in irreligiousness. The aim of this paper is to stronglypresent religion, which is actually part of human culture, as being always important to man andsociety, including in the digital age. Irreligiousness in whatever form is actually a contradiction ofman's essence as a finite being essentially dependent on the divine for his satisfactory existence. Themethod employed in this article is mainly historical – sociological, with the aid also of the historicalcriticalmethod in the exegesis of its biblical section. These methods help to bring out the finding thata deeply religious and, hence, cultured, individual faces life with proper maturity even in our digitalage. The recommendation, therefore, is for the true value of religion to be seen in the life of everyone,especially in our country Nigeria. Proper religious education, particularly for the youth, as well asenduring catechesis for all religionists from the relevant religious leaders are also stronglyrecommended as ways to achieve this.