<> endobj Download chapter 3 in full (3-page PDF, <1MB), Photo credit: Sebastien Desarmaux/GODONG/Godong/Corbis, Part of the Pew-Templeton Global Religious Futures Project, 1615 L St. NW, Suite 800Washington, DC 20036USA 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. Since God is seen as the Creator, various aspects of the universe are permeated by the sense of the sacredthe religious mentality affects the way people see the universe. This condition is under a traditional religion belief called the trokosi system or wives of the ancestral gods. These ancestral gods lived in the spiritual world, which according to ATR, is the world populated by spirits. Copyright 2023 Inculturation, as we will argue later in Morality Truly Christian, Truly African, sheds the light of the gospel on cultural practices like this one to reveal what is sinful in them and to show that human beings, especially women, in this case, deserve better treatment than this. For instance, in the southern Volta Region of Ghana, and in Togo and Benin, thousands of young girls of the Ewe (say Ay-vay) tribe are held as slaves in unspeakable conditions under a traditional religion belief called the trokosi system or wives of the ancestral gods. Observing this moral order ensures harmony and peace within the community. The idea is that the traditional African practitioner who constructed that amulet believes in the efficacy of other faiths and religions; there is no conflict in his mind between his traditional African spirituality and another faith. This hierarchy is also evident in human society, where there are chiefs, clan heads, family heads, older siblings, and so on. It is also present in relationships between persons, based on age and function. These intermediary agents include the ancestors, members of the community who at death become idealized. Those to whom this power is accessible can use it for good, such as healing, rainmaking, or divination, while others can use it for harm, through magic, witchcraft, and sorcery. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). The . The introduced religions of Islam (in northern Africa) and Christianity (in southern Africa) are now the continent's major religions, but traditional religions still play an important role, especially in the interior of sub-Saharan Africa. These could be caves, forests,mountains and so on. It also taps into a common lay attitude to what might be called a secular common sense, which feels impatience or distaste for all forms of what it considers religious extremism, while at the same time shying away from regarding any one religion as more prone to extremism than others. Furthermore, the issue is whether a strict order of retribution cannot be tolerated if human ambition gets in the way of realizing enduring moral virtue and well-being. Just like in Christianity, traditional Africanreligion has organised practices. Its about getting tangible results. According to all the major surveys, Christianity and Islam each represent approximately 40 percent of the African population. African spirituality simply acknowledges that beliefs and practices touch on and inform every facet of human life, and therefore African religion cannot be separated from the everyday or mundane.. These act as Gods associates, assistants, and mediators, and they are directly involved in human affairs. Notre Dame, IN 46556 USA. OLUPONA: One of the basic reasons is that indigenous African spiritual beliefs are not bound by a written text, like Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. %PDF-1.5 It is the religion which resulted from the sustaining faith held by the forebears of the present Africans, and which is being practised today in various forms and various shades and intensities by a very large number . GAZETTE: How would you define indigenous African religions? View all Google Scholar citations He sees the other faith as complementing and even adding spiritual potency to his own spiritual practice of constructing effective amulets. As I have discussed elsewhere in Morality Truly Christian, Truly African, for example, some African societies are so conscious of the implications of crossing the line on some ethical matters, like adultery, incest, and murder, that anyone who engages in these acts is considered automatically to be putting the very survival of the community in danger. Conflict is a universal phenomenon that is inevitable in human interaction. Christ was tempted in all the ways So, basically, to speak of African tradition is to talk about African Traditional Religion. This is the function of Gods providence and sustenance of the universe. Featured Image:Edo people, Queen Mother Pendant mask, circa 16th c.; Source: Wikimedia Commons, CC0 1.0. This is one of the most amazing opportunities l have to speak or write in the hope of bringing freedom, to show the value of every human life, and to help girls who are in immense suffering. 4 0 obj Mission Manual Pages Section A Biblical Basis of Mission 1 20, E-journal of Religious and Theological Studies, TITLE A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF SALVATION IN ISLAM AND CHRISTIANITY: TOWARDS DEVELOPING AN EVANGELISTIC MODEL IN SPECIAL REFERENCE TO TUENSANG DISTRICT CHAPTER ONE, Baptism and Original Sin in the Early Church : contributions of Tertullian, THE UNIQUELY CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEW - Ethington Book, CHRISTIANITY AND AFRICAN TRADITIONAL RELIGION IN KUMASI: A COMPARATIVE STUDY Department of General Art Studies, SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY @BULLET An Introduction to Bible Doctrine @BULLET, Monotheism in the Qur'an and in the New Testament: Comparative Theological Explorations of the Role of Prophets and the Covenants. This is not to say that indigenous African spirituality represents a form of theocracy or religious totalitarianism not at all. Traditional Africans communicated to God through ancestors. Mystical power is found in all of them, in diminishing degrees. Traditional Africans believed in the power of magic and medicinemen. In African Traditional Religion, they do believe in a genderless god with the three names: Umvelingqangi, uNkulunkulu, and uThixo (Badoian, 2014). Sarr, Ramon I also celebrate and honor the kings festivals and ceremonies in my hometown and other places where I live and do research. The commitment to theory, 2. This view influences the way humans relate to the universe: on the one hand, they strive to maintain harmony between themselves and the invisible universe by observing the moral and religious order; at the same time, humans see the universe in a utilitarian way, from the point of view of what is beneficial or harmful to them. / DI41@ tD}r;Y w,XVzwiA1JtvrlfFaD7E@s 00=L"q{Vf\}ioKy=lXS.P6ChX m% ~nUV)=vp%FBvy}+6,0+V8sG&>K_iBOntQvyCN[I'uvR;}hA/D|+I9Q$cL, OLUPONA: My father, a faithful Anglican priest, was a good example. Christians do not have regard for their powers because they believethat they overcome all evil through the name of Jesus. Hostname: page-component-7f44ffd566-79tgq This article concerned itself with the modern encounter between Christianity and African Indigenous Religion (AIR) in Africa. ), Heritage of Faith: a history of Christianity in Nigeria, The carpenter's revolt: youth, violence and the reinvention of culture in Nigeria, Yoruba Elites and Ethnic Politics in Nigeria: Obafemi and corporate agency, The Clash of Fundamentalisms: crusades, jihads and modernity, False Prophets: the clash of civilizations and the global war on terror, Christianity, Modernity and Development in Africa, Social mobilization and collective violence: vigilantes and militias in the lowlands of Plateau State, Central Nigeria, The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order, Islam, Youth, and Modernity in the Gambia: the Tablighi Jamaat, Cambridge University Press for the International African Institute, Muslim Modernity in Postcolonial Nigeria: a study of the Society for the Removal of Innovation and Reinstatement of Tradition, Pentecostalism, Islam and culture: new religious movements in West Africa, Christianity and Social Change in Africa: essays in honor of J. D. Y. Peel, The search for security in Northern Nigeria, Islamic Reform and Political Change in Northern Nigeria, Political Spiritualities: the Pentecostal revolution in Nigeria, Sects and Social Disorder: Muslim identities and conflict in Northern Nigeria, Ethnic vigilantes and the state: the Odua People's Congress in south-western Nigeria, Pentecostal presidency? This is called the Trinity. They are thus moral agents. It is the ancestors, however, the custodians of tradition, who determine the way these agents act, and it is tradition that supplies the moral code and indicates what the people must do to live ethically. African traditions carry out their role as ethical guides in many ways, including myths and rituals. They do not offer any libation. . Some scholars have rightly observed that the centre of gravity of Christianity is shifting from the West to the two-thirds world, that is Asia, South America and Africa. 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. African traditional religion cannot be discussed without mentioning that it is the way of life of the people of Africa and so cannot be differentiated from the politics, education, and socialisation, etc. (See the glossary for more information on the evil eye.). Church Life Journal As a resident fellow, Sherman will teach a study group on negotiation and diplomacy this semester. It is essentially a postcolonial approach to what AIR and its essential. OLUPONA: Yes, and the pluralistic nature of African-tradition religion is one of the reasons for its success in the diaspora. Green opines that although superficially regarded, this may seem to be a minimal moral relationshipmore like a kind of egoism on one side and fearful propitiation on the otherit also shows, however, the profound role that respect for age and for the fulfillment of lineage and familial duties play in this traditional setting. This is a universal belief among Africans. The introduced religions of Islam (in northern Africa) and Christianity (in southern Africa) are now the continents major religions, but traditional religions still play an important role, especially in the interior of sub-Saharan Africa. But as we learnt in Unit One, Christians can also worship Him attheir homes or other places. Odozor's Morality Truly Christian, Truly Africanpublished by theUniversity of Notre Dame Press. (+1) 202-419-4372 | Media Inquiries. <>>> This is not to say that indigenous African spirituality represents a form of theocracy or religious totalitarianism not at all. 2 0 obj Updates? This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Who Should Christians Worship? Journal of Biblical Unitarianism 1:1, 5-33, 2014. Indigenous African religions are pragmatic. To browse Academia.edu and the wider internet faster and more securely, please take a few seconds toupgrade your browser. Holding or maintaining to a uniform doctrine is not the essence of indigenous African religions. The other question: Stereotype, This essay deals with the relationship between Christianity and other religions. Most African communities offered animals and not humans as sacrifices. 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. in social anthropology from Oxford University, is studying for a master of theological studies (M.T.S.) The religious functions, especially of chiefs and lineage heads, are clearly demonstrated during such periods as the Odwira of the Akan, Hogbetsotso / Tedudu of the Ewe, the Homowo of the Ga-Adangbe, or the Aboakyir of the Efutu (coastal Guan), when the people are organized in activities that renew and strengthen relations with their ancestors. Our duty is to preach the Word of God and trust the saving grace of Jesus Christ for conversion of souls. Acts are wrong if they hurt or damage relationships or if they are discovered to constitute a breach of custom or regulation. To buttress his point Mbiti states that in certain African societies to sleep with someone elses wife is not considered evil if these two are not found out by the society which forbids it, and in other societies is in fact an expression of friendship and hospitality to let a guest spend the night with ones wife or daughter or sister. Mbitis assertions must be read as a limited reference to some African societies and in some limited settings. They form a chain through the links of which the forces of the elders [now with the community] exercise their vitalizing influence on the living generation. For Magesa, the ancestors are primarily authority figures whose being implies moral activity in that they are the maintainers and enforcers of norms of social action. Although they are entrusted with these roles in their relationship with humans, any capriciousness of the ancestors is not taken kindly by the living, just as it would not be acceptable from any elder in society. The ancestors are beyond reproach. Traditional Africans had to go to specific sacred placesfor them to worship but Christians can worship God anywhere at any time. 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. These gods are generally perceived as intermediaries between the Supreme Being and society. Whilst interacting with the local African indigenous communities, and observing, The contact between African Traditional Religion (ATR) and Christianity is inextricably linkedto European economic activities that culminated into colonialism. Some of these myths explain the origin of the universe, the nature of the relationship between creation (including humanity) and God, and the source and cause of the human predicament and of evil in general; they also provide a synopsis of the forces comprising the African moral conception of the universe. Religious rituals provide ameans by which the community seeks redress and repairs wrongs that have been committed and that call down calamities and afflictions from spiritual beingsall this to restore the status quo ante or even to maintain the existing good status quo that society or an individual may be enjoying., In the hierarchically ordered world of African Traditional Religion, God is the ancestor, par excellence. OLUPONA: Your question underscores an important facet about African spirituality: It is not a closed theological system. However, in African religious thought God is distanced from the task of moral affairs because the task of moral retribution and maintenance of effective moral norms is usually performed by spiritual agents of much lower standingthat is, by spirits of various sorts, by ghosts and even by human practitioners of spiritual arts. Other characteristics that show the contrast between (Western) Christian thought and African Traditional Religion,according to Green, are the nonexistence of concepts of heaven and hell in African Traditional Religion, the lack of messianic expectations and hope, and the absence of eschatological thought with God stepping in to right all wrongs or to punish wickedness. And although African Traditional Religion affirms the continuation of life after death, where the person is believed to join the spirit world of the ancestors to continue life in some ways similar to the life before death, this belief does not constitute a hope for improved existence or for ultimate reward and punishment since a persons moral depravity or moral rectitude [does] not count in the beyond and whatever penalties or rewards those may bring have no bearing on life after death.. Uniform doctrine is not to say that indigenous African religions this moral ensures... 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