This thesis is a practical theological endeavour that evaluates church preaching as a means
of changing the paradigms relating to communal and ethnic violence in Nigeria. The study
critically examines the phenomenon of ethnic conflict and violence to show the magnitude of
its impact on Nigerians. The impact is evident in the number of violent conflicts recorded in
the Calabar area in the last few years.
The interdisciplinary approach employed in the study helps to locate the causes of violent
conflict and its impact on the people of Calabar, on the one hand, and investigating the
perception of church preaching and its impact on congregants, on the other hand. In
particular, the historical method is employed in the process of investigating, analysing and
recovering materials on the causes of violent conflict in the area. Practical theological
methods are employed to evaluate the purpose of preaching. However, a sociological
approach is adopted in structuring questionnaires and interviews while using critical analysis
to evaluate and interpret both the qualitative and the quantitative data.
In the first place, the data has proved that economic factors are the main causes of violence;
other contributing factors are described as ethnic, political, demographic and social factors.
It is noted that victims of violence have suffered physically, psychologically, economically
and socially. Secondly, data has also shown that, if re-evaluated, preaching can be used to
change paradigms relating to ethnic violence and to inspire concrete congregational change
and societal action against ethnic violence.
Since this thesis presents views of people at the grassroots, people who are victims of
ethnic violence, it has contributed, therefore, to a deeper understanding of the impact of
violent conflicts on Africans, and especially on Nigerians. The most important contribution of
this research to knowledge seems to be the provision of a model of transformative
preaching, which can be explored further by the church.
This research effort consists of five chapters. The first chapter is the introduction while the
second chapter provides a brief historical survey of the Presbyterian Church in Calabar and
the history of violent conflicts in Nigeria. Chapter Three focuses on biblical perspectives on
violence, theories on violence, and data analysis of violence in the Calabar area. Chapter
Four is concerned with data analysis and the evaluation of contemporary preaching in the
context of violence in the Calabar Synod of the Presbyterian Church of Nigeria. A
transformative model is proposed as a way forward. Chapter Five, which is the final chapter,
presents the summary and conclusion, as well as the contribution of the research to
knowledge, recommendations and suggestions on areas for future research.