A Comparative Study of the concept of sin in Christianity and Efik Traditional Religion of South-South, Nigeria

Abstract

Sin is a universal phenomenon which is common to every society whether primitive or civilized. Every society has a concept of sin and it is this concept that regulates their morality and human conduct. For the Efik people, sin is not seen as a separation, rebellion or transgression of God's law as in the case of the Bible. Neither is it just the breaking of the law or disobedience to God but disturbances to the cosmic order, a disruption or distortion of the divine order. Sin is seen as behaviour against the society, against the cosmic order and a breach of societal equilibrium. In contrast, Christianity teaches that human beings were created in the image of God to love, serve and worship Him but that it is sin of disobedience which separated human beings from God, bringing judgment and death to humanity; hence the need for a new kind of birth or salvation in Christ. However, the religious and social attitudes and practices which amount to sins, the categorization, dimensions and sanctions seem to have some bearing with Efik tradition religion. This work is aimed at surveying the concept of sin, the etymological meaning and the general usage of the word "sin" both in Christianity and the Efik traditional religion and compared same, pointed out the differences and the effects it has on the contemporary Efik Christians. The paper adopted the descriptive approach and used content analysis and empirical studies methods of collecting data for the research. The study revealed that even though Efik Traditional religion has a strong correlation with the Christian concept of sin, their meaning and perception are different.

Keywords: Sin, Christianity, Efik Traditional Religion, Behaviour, Morality, Transgression