Islam and Christianity in Ghana: A Conversation with Imam Abubakar Mohammed Marzuq

Today's guest on What Matters Most, Imam Dr. Abubakar Mohammed Marzuq, is from Ghana. Imam Marzuq introduces us in this episode to the country of Ghana generally and to the interfaith situation in the West African country specifically.  Imam Marzuq is the assistant to the Chief Imam of Ghana, Shaikh Dr. Osman Nuhu Sharubutu who is 104 years old. Marzuq belongs to the Tijaniyyah tariqa, or order, a branch of Sufi Islam. Islam is not the majority religion in Ghana, that is Christianity, at around 71% of all Ghanaians, but Islam has been a significant presence in Ghana for a long time alongside a smaller contingent of people who belong to indigenous religious traditions. Imam Marzuq discusses how Ghana has been successful in countering the religious violence of Boko Haram, ISIS, and Al Qaeda in their country, unlike some of their neighbours such as Burkina Faso and Nigeria. Marzuq also sees national security as an interfaith matter, in which religions work with the government to forestall the potential rise of religious violence.  He spoke particularly of the Ghana Christian Council and the Office of the Chief Imam working together to create peace. 

Imam Marzuq is a is a bit of a renaissance man, as a lecturer, journalist, and researcher on issues in language, education, and religion.  He is a multilinguist in Arabic, English, and French. If you want to read his writing, he writes the column Literary Discourse on myjoyonline.com and Language Agenda on modernghana.com.  Apart from being an Imam, he holds a PhD in English as a Second Language (ESL), an MA in Adult Education (ESL Specialty), and a BFA in TV Production. Schools he attended include National Film and Television Institute (NAFTI), University of Ghana, Legon, and Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt. Currently, Imam Marzuq lectures in Functional English and  and Academic Writing at the University of Applied Management, Ghana. He is also a member of the Governing Board of the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) and a member of the Governing Board of Ghana Library Authority (GhLA).

 What Matters Most is produced by the Centre for Christian Engagement at St Mark’s College, the Catholic college at UBC. The CCE explores the Christian and Catholic intellectual tradition and seeks to learn from others, other Christians, other religious traditions, and those who do not claim any particular or formal religious affiliation. 

Since St. Mark’s Centre for Christian Engagement seeks to enable the creation of a culture of encounter and dialogue, let me invite you into that discussion. Send me questions, send me ideas for guests, send me comments. Please follow me on Twitter @biblejunkies, or on Facebook, at Biblejunkies, or on Instagram @biblejunkies. Or email me at jmartens@stmarkscollege.ca. Let me know what you think.

I also want to ask you to help out by letting people know about the podcast. If you are enjoying the podcast, please let your friends know. You can also let people know by rating and reviewing What Matters Most on your favourite podcasting platform. This lets people find the podcast more easily and lets people like you enjoy the work that we are doing. I think these are important and inspiring discussions and I would like people to have a chance to listen in!

John W. Martens