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ssues related to faith are touchy and complex. The complexity emerges not only from the strength of a believer's convictions, but also from the multiplicity of beliefs systems that exist across cultures and ethnic nationalities. A further layer of complexity is added by the clash of belief systems, symbols and core values that influence the way people perceive religious matters. Because it is difficult to capture the full range of the issues surrounding religion, most people reduce these complex issues into convenient scripts and anchor their beliefs.

Few would argue that religion plays a significant role in the human experience. Religion fulfills people's aspirations for affiliation, fellowship, sanctification and connection with the supernatural. However, credulous acceptance of any form of religious belief creates a distorted view of reality and is harmful to individuals and society. The argument can be made that traditional religion with its tranquilizing sermons imprisons the mind and as a result left millions of people at the periphery of progress and development. Thus, the need to sensitize the world to the scale of human suffering and mobilize Christians to take control of their lives and liberty provoked the rise of liberation theology in the 1950s and 1960s.

The emergence of liberation theology represented attempts to move theology from the abstract to practical life situations and call attention to the social implications of the gospel. Liberation theology emerged to deliver millions of people trapped in abstract thoughts and re-direct their minds on concrete situations. It provided a balance between the longing of the oppressed for liberation and ecclesiastical expositions regarding spirituality.

Subsequently, liberation theology led to the rise of strong popular movements seeking profound changes in the socio-economic structures that contributed to poverty in many developing countries. Black liberation theology emerged from a similar quest to address issues people contend with on a daily basis. Quoting from scripture, Reverend Martin Luther King cautioned Americans against conforming to the world, but to be transformed by renewing their minds. Dr. King's admonition shows that true Christian faith is transformational. True Christianity liberates believers from the psychology of dependence on providence for solutions to human problems. Transformational religious expositions arouse consciousness that man can transform himself by gaining control of his liberty and allows Christians to see the testimony of Christ as the ultimate gift of freedom and salvation.

In many African countries, evangelical religion is growing at an accelerated pace. However, in light of the serious developmental challenges facing Africa, it falls on Africans to assess the influence of contemporary religion on poverty. Two areas of concern addressed in this article are: (1) the emergence of the theology of affluence on the African scene and (2) the insidious effects of credulous followership.

In the past decade, it is evident that African Christians have embraced the theology of affluence, which has translated neither to an acceptance of the theology of liberation, nor collective African prosperity. Instead, the new found theology of affluence is closely wedded to the corrupt and fraudulent social-economic and political systems found in most African countries. Leaders of these churches use their congregations as platforms for easy access to wealth, power and influence. Consequently, while the leadership of modern African churches live in affluence, the teeming majority live in abject poverty. Blinded by faith and lacking the capability to interrogate their leaders and their own beliefs, the poor flock into these churches, sacrificing their meager finances to the church and its leaders. For the majority, the church is a means of escaping the pain and suffering caused by excruciating poverty. The late Nigerian Afro Beat king, Fela Anikulapo Kuti, aptly described the population as "suffering and smiling," while the ecclesiastical hierarchy live in comfort.

Unfortunately, lyrics with such hunting veracity have not dissuaded desperate people from flocking to churches that at best peddle hope. The late Edahosa, Chris Okotie, Daniel Kolawole Olukoya, Oyedekpo, Mike Okonkwo, Ayo Orishejafor, Oyakhilome, and Bakare some of the millionaire pastors leading churches that have rapidly expanded across Nigeria and the rest of Africa. Chris Okotie justifies the theology of affluence, openly acknowledging that prosperity is an integral part of the gospel. This view of the gospel fails to address the critical issue of the "doing" or "production" path to prosperity. The message emanating from the likes of Okotie seems to minimize the model Christ provided, which emphasized attending to the needs of the poor.

The contagion of relying on providence is also spreading among middle class hard working Africans in the US. They have been seduced into these churches in the hope of improving their financial status. Members believe that by divine intervention their debts and financial burdens will be wiped out. In June 2013, as part of the ritual of invoking the Holy Spirit, an African Pastor, asked members to present before God their wallets, purses, bills and other symbols associated with money for sanctification either for a bounty of cash, or to eliminate unpaid bills, loans and other debts. While there may be no shortage of arguments to support prosperity teachings, their impact on people's financial health can hardly be measured. Merely relying on prosperity sermons without doing something is most likely to lead ardent believers on a path to financial ruin. Whether or not prosperity is the motivation for attending these churches, believers ought to examine their transactional approach to building a relationship with God.

To be continued in part II