Anglican diocese’s directive on Aso Ebi

A diocese of the Anglican Communion in Anambra State recently banned the use of aso ebi, the uniform clothing contrived for celebrating occasions such as burials, weddings and anniversaries, in order to reduce burial costs. It also banned the use of brochures during such ceremonies. Vicar of St. Andrew’s Church, Obosi, Ikechukwu Ihemtuge, disclosed this during a recent church service. He said that the diocese took the decision at the June 2019 Synod of its 19 archdeaconry at Abatete, Idemili North Local Government Area the state. Ihemtuge  said that the law took effect from July 1, following the Synod meeting at which the decision was taken.

According to him, “The decision was made to checkmate the burial frivolities of the faithful and reduce the challenges of its members.” Provided that the faithful comply willingly with this ordinance, it can be argued that the diocese may have successfully initiated a behavioural change amongst its members without physical coercion, and that’s impressive. Social scientists know the direct influence of religion on behavioural patterns and it is a good thing, seeing the dangerous trends in the aso ebi phenomenon, that a diocese of the Anglican Church has chosen to leverage on this known fact to influence positive change.

Aso ebi, having been made a standard practice by members of the church, apparently exerted undue pressure on many of the congregants. Desperate to fulfil this requirement, many members could have become impoverished and depressed in the bid to live up to expectations. For a society that is criminally short on production but gratuitously long on consumption, this is certainly one of the many practices that do not bode well for development. Apart from plunging members into debt and penury which, truth be told, the church ought not to endorse, wasteful spending on burial rites have little or no spiritual value.

Although the aso ebi phenomenon may come across a sort of social leveller in that it blurs the economic class boundaries which would have been too obvious if people dressed according to how wealthy they are at parties, the fact must not be ignored that there are often different categories of fabrics worn on such occasions, with a select group of attendees wearing the more expensive fabrics. Thus, while the ‘general public’ may be putting on, say, ankara fabric at a party, a select few may flaunt their lace fabric which is much more pricey, thus marking themselves out as the nouveau riche, at least on that occasion.

In any case, the church as a place of sober worship would do well to avoid getting entangled in such mundane practices which tend to encourage banal ostentation and distract the faithful from more spiritual concerns. According to Ihemtuge, the diocese had discovered that many people, during the burial of their loved ones, encountered lots of challenges in the name of organising befitting burials. “What is befitting in Christian burial is the relationship established between the people and their God and the worthy legacy after the people are gone,” he argued, quite plausibly in our view.

This Anglican diocese, without any doubt, has acted in the spiritual and economic interests of its members. This is laudable. It is a notorious fact that many have toed a ruinous path in the name of giving their loved ones “befitting burials”. Besides, the use of religion and faith in correcting social ills is definitely highlighted by this diocese and we commend it for that function which has been latent in the country’s religious organisations for quite a while. Religious organisations and the corrupt larger society seem to have merged in the course of the country’s chequered history, with little benefits to either. It is commendable that, at least for once, a religious organisation found its voice of correction, instruction and reproof.

If the secular sector of the Nigerian society has lost vision and direction, it is only meet and proper for religious organisations to up the ante for the sake of all. The National Orientation Agency (NOA) should find this development interesting. It should see how it can retool itself using churches and mosques as potent vehicles of orientation and behavioural change.