An Existential-Psychological Reading of Romans 8:35–39 in the Context of Igbo Christianity

With its reflection on God's love for Christians amidst life crises, Romans 8:35–39 ranks among the most loved of Pauline writings. This study reads Romans 8:35–39 in the context of its existential and psychological implications for Igbo Christianity. The study adopts a lexical exegetical approach and considers aspects of the psychological theory of religious coping in its reading of the pericope. In the study, it is contended that Romans 8:35–39 dealt with existential threats that threatened all first-century CE Christians (particularly those in Rome), and that its teachings were aimed at psychologically conditioning the minds of these Christians towards having a positive perception of existential threats through a belief in the love of God. This interpretation holds promise for Igbo Christianity, where the combination of life crises and spirit-world paranoia has had a negative impact on Igbo Christians' view of human existence. Romans 8:35–39 teaches Christians the need for having a positive perception of life crises, notwithstanding a belief in the reality of the activities of the spirit world; God's love is always enough to pull Christians through life crises.