JOURNALS

ABSTRACT

This paper recognizes that the religious landscape in Nigeria is characterized by competition for dominance and self- assertion by contending religious groups. Though, there are various identifiable religious groups, it is important to observe that three leading religious groups are easily distinguishable. They include African Indigenous Religion (AIR), Christianity and Islam. Therefore, this paper investigates and appraises how these religious groups have used militancy, whether inter or intra, in their quest to gain supremacy and other socio-political gains. This paper differs from the typical narrative of questioning militancy only in the context of Christianity and Islam; thereby making it look as if they are the only ones in contention. In order to show its novelty, the paper includes AIR in the discourse. In order to situate the ideological and theological justification for the use of militancy, the paper analyzes the hierarchy of relationships and taxonomy in the geo-religious space. To ensure that the paper achieves the objectives it has set for itself, it uses the qualitative aspect of the approach includes high level interviews and focus group discussions.