Abstract
In spite of Christianity and western civilisation, polygamy remains a major issue in Christian marriage in Africa. In Nigeria, most of the mainline churches officially adopt monogamy, whilst many of the African Initiated Churches (AICs) practise polygamy. Because Africans consider procreation as the primary purpose of marriage, some childless Nigerian Christians engage in polygamy in order to have children. But apart from the factor of traditional passion for children, some engage in polygamy to have children because they take the phrase ‘Be fruitful and multiply’ in Genesis 1:28 as a divine command to everyone to produce children. Therefore, this article examines the text with a view to ascertain whether it is appropriate to exploit the passage as a basis for the adoption of polygamy as a solution to infertility. The target population is those Nigerian Christian men and women who engage in this practice. The article employs descriptive and exegetical methods. It found that, although couched as an imperative, the phrase ‘Be fruitful and multiply’, rather than being a command to procreate, should be simply understood as a saying that God blessed the humankind with offspring, just as he did the fish that are not expected to obey or disobey (Gn 1:22). It therefore does not provide a basis for adoption of polygamy as a solution to infertility. The article recommends that apart from assisting childless Nigerian Christians to realise their dream of childbearing, the church should make them understand the biblical position that every individual and couple need not have children.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: This research involves the disciplines of the Old Testament and Christian Ethics. It examines Genesis 1:28 with regard to the adoption of polygamy as a solution to infertility amongst Nigerian Christians. The article postulates that the passage is not a command for procreation but is simply a saying that God blessed the humankind with offspring; hence, it does not provide a basis for the adoption of polygamy to solve the problem of infertility.
Highlights
Polygamy1 has been at ‘the heart of the whole marriage debate within the Church in Africa’ since the advent of Christianity in the continent (Falaye 2016:21)
The childless Nigerian Christians who adopt polygamy as a solution are not likely to be compelled by these instances but by the belief that they are under a divine command to produce children; the perceived scriptural support for them resides more in Genesis 1:28, as earlier discussed
One of the desperate approaches to this problem by some Nigerian Christians is the adoption of polygamy for the purpose of having children
Summary
Polygamy has been at ‘the heart of the whole marriage debate within the Church in Africa’ since the advent of Christianity in the continent (Falaye 2016:21). Apart from the traditional perception that every individual must have children, studies on the infertility narrative in Nigeria indicate that some childless Christians find the phrase ‘Be fruitful and multiply’ in Genesis 1:28 as a divine command to procreate (Okonofua et al 1977:211; Omeike 2017:19), and a reason for engaging in polygamy (Egboh 1972:436; Uchem 2016:1). The childless Nigerian Christians who adopt polygamy as a solution are not likely to be compelled by these instances but by the belief that they are under a divine command to produce children; the perceived scriptural support for them resides more in Genesis 1:28, as earlier discussed. New Testament (NT), and not by the OT, it is pertinent to mention that this interpretation finds support in the NT, in Paul’s teaching on marriage in 1 Corinthians 7 (vv. 1–7), where the apostle expressly states that not everyone must get married which implies not everyone must have children (Moss & Baden 2015:191)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
