Abstract

Underdevelopment is a condition where the economy of the host nation is being expropriated by the dominating nation. It is equally a stage where the developing society must pass through before it finally gets to the developed stage. The Nigerian economy has had a truncated history from the period of its colonization, through the ‘civilizing mission’ of the colonialists to a peripheral zed and dependent status today. Historically, the Church – through its missionary activities – has played pivotal roles in the socio-cultural liberation and economic development of the people. Conversely, the Church equally plays colluding roles in sustaining the bourgeois’ domination of the proletariat in a manner characteristic of the capitalist economic order. This paper, therefore, examines the role of the Church in sustaining the underdevelopment of the state through religious exploitation of the followers and adherents, and economic condition of the state. The paper is anchored on the Marxian political economy theory as a major tool of analysis where the leadership of the church, in connivance with the political elite, has perpetuated itself through the struggle to cling to power and dominate the followers through resources exploitation and expropriation. It was found that the Nigerian political leaders have not lived up to the critical role of delivering on people’s expectation of guaranteed economic advancement of the Nigerian state; and that the political manipulation of the Church and its leadership works not only to impoverish the members but also to 
under-develop the Nigerian economy. The paper recommends that the church should exercise its power of spirituality to liberate itself from political grips and embrace democratic participation in decision making while vigorously and conscientiously pursuing members’ wellbeing and economic prosperity of the state.