Paper Short Abstract:

This study puts into perspective the variations of the positive and negative effects of the various levels of Christian-Muslim encounters in the Northern Igbo of Nigeria at such a micro-level, as well as how such a state has strained the relations between Christians and Muslims over the years.

Paper Abstract:

Christian-Muslim relations have become a critical area of research in this contemporary period. This is following the continued tension that has coloured their engagement in the recent past. Their battered images are enrolled in pages of histories, respective ideologies, social and anthropological congruencies, and politics. This study took seriously the areas of their interaction, putting into perspective the variations of the positive and negative effects of the various levels of encounter. It evaluates the state of the Muslim minority in the Northern Igbo of Nigeria at such a micro-level, as well as how such a state has strained the relations between Christians and Muslims over the years. The study is anchored on the theory of social construction of reality and interrogates the areas of inter-cultural and religious relations between Muslims and Christians in the Northern Igbo. To administer the empirical study, the research used interviews as its instruments of data collection. The empirical findings confirmed and found some areas smacked with conflicts. The research highlighted some areas that shed hope in the efforts toward peaceful co-existence. Some of the measures outlined by the study include public enlightenment to deemphasize religious and ethnic-regional consciousness, fostering inter-religious dialogue and politics of inclusion.