Sunday Stephen Laabes
Published works
7 pieces
Amadioha: Lightning, Justice, and the Igbo Cosmos
Amadioha, the Igbo deity of thunder and lightning, represents a powerful system of communal justice where moral wrongdoing invites divine retribution.
6/24/2026 · 5 min
The Queen of Sheba and Ethiopian Sacred History
The Kebra Nagast recounts how Queen of Sheba and King Solomon anchor Ethiopia’s claim to sacred history, linking the Ark of the Covenant to Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion.
6/3/2026 · 5 min
Abiku and Ogbanje in Yoruba and Igbo Literature
Abiku and Ogbanje look like the same spirit child. Yoruba and Igbo literature tell two very different stories.
3/28/2026 · 9 min
Hierarchies and Metaphysical Order in Tangale Cosmology
For the Tangale, their supreme being is Yamba, a calm, feminine presence people speak to directly.
3/23/2026 · 4 min
Oyeku Meji Contemporary Consultation
What really happens when Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Méjì appears in an Ifá consultation, and why it is nothing like the fatalistic prophecy most people expect.
3/16/2026 · 6 min
Adau in Tangale Marriage Rites
Weddings are sweeter when you eat Adau and feel part of something bigger —at least that is how the Tangale do it.
3/10/2026 · 6 min
Learning Under Siege: UNIMAID During the Peak of the Boko Haram Insurgency
A personal narrative as an undergraduate student at the University of Maiduguri in 2015, during the height of the Boko Haram insurgency in northeastern Nigeria.
2/4/2026 · 9 min