mixing of christianity and traditional african religions apush

In respect and honor of my culture, I also dress in my traditional Nigerian attire when Im in my country. After that date there will be more Christians in the south than in the north. On returning home, the learned professor wrote an article using my brief answer as his title. GAZETTE: How would you define indigenous African religions? GAZETTE: But yet you said its a mixed bag? L'interdiction de pratiquer le culte des anctres est l'unique domaine dans lequel la mission chrtienne a triomph de la vie religieuse traditionnelle des Biras. Vodou is an oral tradition practiced by extended families that inherit familial spirits, along with the necessary devotional practices, from their elders. Maybe this is why I am not an Anglican priest. There is no room to describe them, and I can mention only two or three of them briefly. OLUPONA: I was raised in Africa during the 1960s, when the Yoruba community never asked you to chose between your personal faith and your collective African identity. There is not space here to argue the case for the role played by African religion in the establishment of the Christian faith in Africa. Muslim populations are especially concentrated in a large geographic belt running west to east from Senegal to the Horn of Africa.1 Southern Africa is predominantly Christian. There are other areas of exploration in which I continue to be engaged. But I have discovered that there is also the fundamental factor of African religion, without which this phenomenal expansion of Christianity would not be a reality. Fewer say it is paramount to their faith to attend religious services (39%), avoid sex before marriage (30%) or oppose abortion . Updates? In Kenya I grew up in home, school and church milieus which held that the African religious and cultural background was demonic and anti-Christian. Theological development in Africa must inevitably grow within this religious setting. It is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts. 0000005005 00000 n x\u}4`P}E#(9q"%LCl'KLb)Sfgdq N Instead, God brought them, for the God described in the Bible is none other than the God who was already known in the framework of our traditional African religiosity. (+1) 202-857-8562 | Fax I find the traditional Western distinction between "special revelation" and "general revelation" to be inadequate and unfreeing. Nevertheless, since 1900, Christians in Africa have grown from approximately 7 million to over 450 million today. It is in this complex of religiosity that the preaching of the gospel makes sense; it is this preparedness that has undergirded the spreading of the gospel like wildfire among African societies which had hitherto followed and practiced traditional religion. Instances of religious syncretismas, for example, Gnosticism (a religious dualistic system that incorporated elements from the Oriental mystery religions), Judaism, Christianity, and Greek religious philosophical conceptswere particularly prevalent during the Hellenistic period (c. 300 bcec. endobj 0000003641 00000 n In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Kenya and Uganda, between 10% and 15% of respondents are Muslim. Spiritual activities like prayer, thanksgiving, and the making of sacrifices were well-established facts of life for the existence and continuation of the community. I have concentrated these comments on the role of African background in my theological reflection. Wendy Sherman, who was the lead U.S. negotiator in the nuclear deal with Iran, was welcomed by the Institute of Politics at Harvard Kennedy School. In lieu of these traditional African ways of defining oneself, Christianity and Islam are gradually creating a social identity in Africa that cuts across these indigenous African religious and social identities. Didnt our Lord let it be clearly known that "before Abraham was I am" (John 8:58)? 1"7$X9Xyyyb GNpL!9I&mxo0++44cA@5c. It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research. So I read on and on, and conducted field research to learn more and more. Anthropologica is published for CASCA by University of Toronto Press. Nevertheless, I am convinced that the World Council of Churches is a great witness of the Christian response to the prayer of our Lord that we may all be one. I want to reflect and write on this topic, but somehow it makes me feel frightened. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. For example, sickness in the indigenous African worldview is not only an imbalance of the body, but also an imbalance in ones social life, which can be linked to a breakdown in ones kinship and family relations or even to ones relationship with ones ancestors. Animism is a common feature of African religions, and misfortune is often attributed to witchcraft and sorcery. It was during the Belgian colonial period that the first Catholic and Protestant missionaries came to this region of Zaire. They derive from traditional African religions with some influence from other religious traditions, notably Christianity and Islam . As discussed elsewhere in this report, many Christians and Muslims in sub-Saharan Africa retain beliefs and rituals that are characteristic of traditional African religions. They constitute an important channel of the churchs prophetic witness today. Vodou represents a syncretism of the West African Vodun religion and Roman Catholicism by the descendants of the Dahomean, Kongo, Yoruba, and other ethnic groups who had been enslaved and transported to colonial Saint-Domingue (as Haiti was known then) and partly Christianized by Roman Catholic missionaries in the 16th and 17th centuries. GAZETTE: In trying to understand African spirituality, is it helpful to refer to it as polytheistic or monotheistic? in social anthropology from Oxford University, is studying for a master of theological studies (M.T.S.) 0000002505 00000 n For instance, the Yoruba religion has historically been centered in southwestern Nigeria, the Zulu religion in southern Africa, and the Igbo religion in southeastern Nigeria. These initiation rituals are already not as common in Africa as they were only 50 years ago, yet age-grade initiations have always helped young Africans feel connected to their community and their past. This is in sharp contrast with the religious composition of the region about 100 years ago, when, according to a Pew Forum analysis of historical information from the World Religion Database, less than a quarter of the population identified as either Christian or Muslim. It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research. Some African diasporans are returning to the continent to reconnect with their ancestral traditions, and they are encouraging and organizing the local African communities to reclaim this heritage. This is not a biblical distinction. As for the belief in God, it appears that the Bira have utilized Christianity to make their traditional God Mbali less remote and more caring, a change which has also made the Christian God more compassionate and forgiving of sins. The statistical expansion of the Christian faith in Africa in this century is one of the considerations that led me back to the issue of its relation with African religion. Supreme Court may halt health care guarantees for inmates, Why police resist reforms to militarization, Historian says Fla. dispute shows why AP class in African American studies is needed, Low-carb diet can help manage progression of Type 2 diabetes, Those breezy TV drug ads? His research has helped to introduce and popularize new concepts in religious studies, such as the term reverse missionaries, referring to African prelates sent to Europe and the United States. OLUPONA: Thats a mixed bag. African religion has equipped people to listen to the gospel, to discover meaningful passages in the Bible, and to avoid unhealthy religious conflict. In the cities, local hierarchies of priestesses or priests (manbo and oungan), children of the spirits (ounsi), and ritual drummers (ountgi) comprise more formal societies or congregations (sosyete). Christianity has scored a triumph over the traditional religious life of the Bira. Later, my theological studies in America and England did not challenge this position, since that was not a living issue for my professors and fellow students. It publishes a journal Anthropologica and has reclaimed the name of its former journal, Culture for its occasional online bulletin. GAZETTE: It sounds like African indigenous religions are dynamic, inclusive, and flexible. He sees the other faith as complementing and even adding spiritual potency to his own spiritual practice of constructing effective amulets. Since Christianity and Islam spread across Africa, many people there have observed a mixture of religious practices. (See the glossary for more information on juju. Some Africans believe that the ancestors are equal in power to deities, while others believe they are not. Oral tradition says the first Muslims appeared while the prophet Mohammed was. African religions, Indigenous religions of the African continent. trailer Everywhere he went in southwestern Nigeria, he never opposed or spoke out against African culture including initiation rites, festivals, and traditional Yoruba dress as long as it didnt directly conflict with Christianity. Focuses on the influences of Africans and African ideas on the mission enterprise, conversion, religious innovation, and church life, but it neglects to cover the . What the data says about gun deaths in the U.S. It is the southern two-thirds of Africa (including Madagascar) which we can rightly call Christian Africa, as the northern one-third is Muslim Africa. For starters, the word religion is problematic for many Africans, because it suggests that religion is separate from the other aspects of ones culture, society, or environment. w?0t7/Oa84P]T}T}?gHq.qsRnkc;]X*s1!E"l^~K_/|j p z|9~p uf:}[Mc|4!#"Zg!/vc _~|oyuQ'dX :?NmU)?oPSw?6#?[OUN@6oz{j;\e7nWsV~XyU4vMm4#f4c:[Wefkd&88XB|cMh6)mt<4M8}; *:7??+0:0$! This is not an empty coincidence. OLUPONA: Yes, its a mixed bag because in the African diaspora mostly due to the slave trade starting in the 15th century indigenous African religions have spread and taken root all over the world, including in the United States and Europe. 0000005714 00000 n A prominent European New Testament professor visited Makerere University and interviewed me on what I thought about the "death of God" discussion. In this case, so-called "salvation history" must widen its outreach in order to embrace the horizons of other peoples histories. 0000000676 00000 n No doubt there still remain much research and reflection to be done in order to work out a consistent theological understanding of the issues entailed here. (+1) 202-419-4372 | Media Inquiries. The recipient of many prestigious academic honors and research fellowships, Olupona also received the 20152016 Reimar Lust Award for International and Cultural Exchange, considered one of Germanys most prestigious academic honors. Author of. Updates? Authoring or editing more than half a dozen books on religion and African culture (including the recent African Religions: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press), Olupona has researched topics ranging from the indigenous religions of Africa to the religious practices of Africans who have settled in America. Liberia is the only country where more than one-in-ten (12%) identify primarily with an African traditional religion. I should add that without claiming to be full members of indigenous traditions, there are many professed Christians and Muslims who participate in one form of indigenous religious rituals and practices or another. My research into and teaching of African religion has led to another important area of development. OLUPONA: The role of ancestors in the African cosmology has always been significant. 1996 Canadian Anthropology Society 300 ce). Ritual sacrifices and witchcraft beliefs are still common. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. African immigrants and slaves worked to maintain traditional religious and social practices in their new surroundings. Below is the article summary. This article appeared in the Christian Century, August 27- September 3, 1980, pp. religious syncretism, the fusion of diverse religious beliefs and practices. Omissions? degree at Harvard Divinity School. This includes five countries (Cameroon, Chad, Guinea Bissau, Mali and Senegal) where more than half the population uses traditional healers. Today, the country claims about 80 million of each . Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. Some individuals have criticized these books -- and no book is perfect. Diviners who go through a long educational and apprenticeship program hold the history, culture, and spiritual traditions of the African people. These impinge upon their daily life- and experience of the Christian faith. Amen. We can list some obvious and often publicized factors. Black Americans who identify with a religion are most likely to say belief in God is essential to what their faith means to them (84%), while large majorities say the same about opposing racism (76%) and sexism (71%). African scholars In February 1974 a group of 120 anthropologists launched the Canadian Ethnology Society/socit canadienne d'ethnologie (CESCE), because they felt there was room for an association of anthropologists separate from the Canadian Sociology and Anthropology Association (CSAA) which was dominated by sociologists. Consequently, people are discovering that the biblical faith is not harmful to their religious sensibilities. During religious rites, believers sometimes enter a trancelike state in which the devotee may eat and drink, perform stylized dances, give supernaturally inspired advice to people, or perform medical cures or special physical feats; these acts exhibit the incarnate presence of the lwa within the entranced devotee. The fusion of cultures that was effected by the conquest of Alexander the Great (4th century bce ), his successors, and the Roman Empire tended to bring together a variety of religious and philosophical views that resulted in a strong tendency toward religious syncretism. The editor of The Christian Century has given me an undeserved privilege in asking me to contribute some reflections on "How My Mind Has Changed" in the course of the past decade. Sign up for daily emails to get the latest Harvardnews. The primary goal and activity of Vodou is to sevi lwa (serve the spirits)to offer prayers and perform various devotional rites directed at God and particular spirits in return for health, protection, and favour. Important lwa are celebrated on saints days (for example: Ogou on St. Jamess Day, July 25; Ezili Danto on the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, July 16; Danbala on St. Patricks Day, March 17; and the spirits of the ancestors on All Saints Day and All Souls Day, November 1 and November 2). That which had been seen as the enemy of the gospel turns out (to me) to be indeed a very welcoming friend. One of Jacob Oluponas earliest memories in Massachusetts is of nearly freezing in his apartment as a graduate student at Boston University during the great snowstorm of 1978. God was not a stranger to African peoples. 0000001586 00000 n Updates? The fusion of cultures that was effected by the conquest of Alexander the Great (4th century bce), his successors, and the Roman Empire tended to bring together a variety of religious and philosophical views that resulted in a strong tendency toward religious syncretism. This re-ligion is found in almost all the activities of the African man. Omissions? My findings were used in teaching, but eventually I put them together in a book, Concepts of God in Africa, published by the British publisher SPCK (1970). Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Moreover, the religions developed in the Americas impact Africa in that devotees of the African diaspora have significant influence on practices in Africa. Ritual functionaries include priests, elders, rainmakers, diviners, and prophets. The decisive word here is "only." The rural Bira of northeastern Zaire have been exposed to the Christian message for well over half a century. Its consequences for theological and ecclesiological developments are yet to be faced. And this witness deserves ones support through service and prayer. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Vodou ritual activity (e.g., prayer, song, dance, and gesture) is aimed at refining and restoring balance and energy in relationships between people and between people and the spirits of the unseen world. For instance, if we were to lose indigenous African religions in Africa, then diviners would disappear, and if diviners disappeared, we would not only lose an important spiritual specialist for many Africans, but also an institution that for centuries has been the repository of African history, wisdom, and knowledge. I had it. The church is composed largely of people who come out of the African religious background. Following a period of parish work in England, I went to teach at Makerere University, Uganda, where I remained for ten years until 1974. OLUPONA: Yes, and the pluralistic nature of African-tradition religion is one of the reasons for its success in the diaspora. While the recourse to traditional healers may be motivated in part by economic reasons and an absence of health care alternatives, it may also be rooted in religious beliefs about the efficacy of this approach. /// Dans le nord-est du Zare, la communaut rurale Bira a t expose depuis plus de cinquante ans au message chrtien. This item is part of a JSTOR Collection. Additionally, I will not discourage, disparage, or try and convert those who practice their form of African indigenous religions. I want to make a pilgrimage into Christ. Many other familial feasts (for the sacred children, for the poor, for particular ancestors) as well as initiations and funerary rituals occur throughout the year. Religion Online is designed to assist teachers, scholars and general seekers who are interested in exploring religious issues. GAZETTE: What else would we lose if we lost traditional African Religions? Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. %PDF-1.3 Much of Oluponas work is an attempt to provide a fuller understanding of the complexity and richness of African indigenous thought and practice by viewing it not as a foil or as a useful comparative to better understand Western religions, but as a system of thought and belief that should be valued and understood for its own ideas and contribution to global religions. OLUPONA: We would lose a worldview that has collectively sustained, enriched, and given meaning to a continent and numerous other societies for centuries through its epistemology, metaphysics, history, and practices. 0 Of course, behind all these factors is the Holy Spirit working through them. X0#J++?U;_3_gmx9[F\"{,Um1yu 9 ?ce%9EG`N: &U0EHC$p4=$'=DlX6M_7,--" Religious pluralism serves peace. In Cameroon, Ethiopia, Liberia and Mozambique, Muslims account for between 15% and 30% of survey respondents. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. As for the belief in God, it appears that the Bira have utilized Christianity to make their traditional God Mbali less remote and more caring, a change which has also made the Christian God more compassionate and forgiving . They have also fostered a greater feeling of individual self-worth by acknowledging important milestones in ones life, including becoming an adult or an elder. It is a way of life, and it can never be separated from the public sphere.

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