Interreligious dialogue has gained prominence in Nigeria against the backdrop of cultural and religious plurality cum tolls of violence, loss of life, vandalism, and disruption of peaceful coexistence in the nation. Huge resources have been invested into various forms of interreligious dialogue. However, interreligious dialogue has proved quasi-effective due to mistrust, dishonesty, and lack of commitment to the common goal of dialogue as a means of promoting mutuality in a religiously plural society. The cycle of killings continues unabated with its corresponding effects on political and economic situations. Hence, this paper proposes that Nigeria must shift from the promotion of interreligious dialogue to dialogue of life as a worthy alternative to promote mutuality. Drawing a line of demarcation between interreligious dialogue, which exists as a means to building bridges across religions, and dialogue of life, that perceives and focuses on life beyond the scope of religion, this paper stresses that both the government and civil society groups must arise to promote genuine dialogue of life to bring peaceful coexistence and mutuality.

The pivotal roles of the church and theology in public space continue to dominate the thoughts of many churchmen and theologians from the global south as they grapple with the fact of the increase in the number of Christian communities in those parts of the world. It becomes particularly disheartening as one realises that the poorest people on earth; the most economically disadvantaged, religiously ostracised, and politically marginal people are all located there despite the acclaimed growth of Christianity. One would naturally expect that the church in the global south would be apt at bringing in the knowledge of the person of Jesus Christ to the fore in advocating the urgent need for social transformation. The paper proceeds by arguing that if properly articulated by theologians and church leadership, Christological notions can make useful contributions to lasting solutions to the quest for a social, political, economic and religious emancipation. This paper takesthe West Africa sub-region as a representative of the focus of this discussion. It further suggests a collaboration of ecclesiastical, religious and government approaches which can be directed through Christo-praxis as a new way of living to ameliorate the socio-economic and political challenges.

Purpose Resilience is an increasingly important concept that contributes to sustainability and wellbeing of a community. Asset-based community development (ABCD) may offer promising approaches to boosting community resilience in Australia, especially within marginalised groups. Design/methodology/approach A scoping review was conducted to conceptualise existing literature on ABCD approaches to building resilience. Research databases were searched with relevant details. Findings Thirty-three sources were identified as meeting the inclusion criteria and were reviewed in terms of six themes: integration and identity, health, mental health, education, employment and community planning. Issues identified by the literature within these themes can be alleviated through asset-based approaches. Implications for planning of asset-based programs and policy change are discussed in light of the findings. Practical implications The results of this study provide several implications for practise, policy recommendations and future research into this area. Results suggest that increasing capacity around asset-based coping mechanisms, such as support networks through religious and cultural groups, would promote community development and foster resilience. Furthermore, policy on refugees in multiple areas, such as psychological service provision and employment, should be redesigned in a way that acknowledges their complex and diverse needs and facilitates their integration into the community. Though multiple ways to achieve this goal have been explored in literature, a sustained and broader approach is necessary to see widespread change. Further research and funding are required to explore and implement appropriate responses. Based on the findings and discussion above, the authors make the following policy recommendations. Service providers need to be aware of and incorporate culturally appropriate programs in the areas of mental health assessment and intervention, education and employment. The trauma-informed approach should be used when dealing with refugee groups and other groups who have faced hardships. Government policy should focus on improving community engagement to create and strengthen social networks, which are vital in boosting integration into the community and increasing health education and access to services. Government should focus on asset-based approaches in designing education and employment integration programs to promote social belonging and community engagement, and thus, community resilience, which will consequently have beneficial individual and group outcomes. The current governmental policy surrounding refugees should be overhauled with the goal of successful refugee integration in mind, such as incorporating the ability for refugees to access vital services such as employment and skills transferability programs. Due to current policy, these services are inaccessible to a large portion of refugees, hindering their integration. Government needs to create specific guidelines for the provision of psychological services to refugees to improve the quality of mental health services available to this group. Originality/value This paper comprises an original data analysis of the relevant existing literature by the project team. The process was rigorous, and no content of the analysis has been published previously except the material published by other authors. All previously published materials were duly acknowledged.

Migration, the movement of people from one geographical location to another is an indispensable component of globalisation which has impacted the latter with visible effects. Neo-Pentecostal Christian movements from different parts of Africa have seized the advantage of both migration and globalization to advance their missionary causes. This has resulted in planting new churches and organization of para-church ministries and outreaches in different parts of Europe and elsewhere. Using the Critical Integrated Analysis (CIA) method, which seeks to generate data from the existing body of knowledge, the article explored the trajectories of African migration vis-à-vis the penetration of African-led Pentecostal churches in some part of Europe. This process has stemmed encounters between the European and African cultures plus the hurdle of navigating the cultural nuances of the Europeans. The article discovered that although there are shreds of evidence of growth among African-led migrant churches, more grounds need to be covered. It suggested that migrant churches need to structure their ministries and organisations in ways that propel appropriate cultural engagement with their host communities to enable them to influence and transform their immediate social realities.