RELIGION AND THE WEALTH OF NATIONS 1.
My modest intervention here, is not to court controversy but to attempt to interrogate our minds a bit on what might be holding many nations back economically as poverty continues to surge even with our supposed religiosity.
The major super powers of the world are not known to be all religious but they seem to be making enormous progress in ensuring decent quality of life for its citizenry out of their buoyant economies. What are they doing differently and why are they prospering?
When nations prosper, it becomes natural for the people to prosper and the same is true if nations are poor. In our own case, with the inevitable downsize in inventories as disposable incomes took a hit as a result of inflation overtime, a direct consequence of the perennial bad leadership, our manufacturing companies suffered a colossal blow with closures, giving way for the proliferation of churches. The churches, it would seem became our new industries.
There is as yet no evidence, that the "new industries" have faired any better to improve the people's welfare and the nation continues to be poorer in spite of our assiduousness in prayers. Instead, our intolerance level of ourselves of the same faith, is at an all time high. Hate is suffocating love rather than the other way round. The number of people hungry are more than those praying, don't be deceived by the large turnout every Sunday, or at major crusades, most are seeking succour and life support from the churches. Not to mention the thieves amongst them.
Isreal is perhaps, the most dominant force in food production despite being almost like a desert, yes they are God's people and pray to the same God but have not jettisoned hard work in the process. Aside from the reported case in the bible, where an economy of a nation turned around overnight, it has yet to occur again without visionary leadership and rolling up of the sleeves to work hard, otherwise, our famed religious state should have made it happen.