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GAZETTE: In trying to understand African spirituality, is it helpful to refer to it as polytheistic or monotheistic? Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. "For us in Africa, God is not dead" -- and that applies whether or not there is a written record of his relations with and concern for people. 9_r'v>#z2"syiBm?mry8%;m8v L,WNHitMJk#RZwEl+M3N1n[nt4]C$i2y]_6Iasrt w?0t7/Oa84P]T}T}?gHq.qsRnkc;]X*s1!E"l^~K_/|j p z|9~p uf:}[Mc|4!#"Zg!/vc _~|oyuQ'dX :?NmU)?oPSw?6#?[OUN@6oz{j;\e7nWsV~XyU4vMm4#f4c:[Wefkd&88XB|cMh6)mt<4M8}; *:7??+0:0$! 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. All too often, the result is conflict and radicalisation. (+1) 202-419-4300 | Main Africans consequently played a crucial role in establishing the doctrines and theology of the early church. I have concentrated these comments on the role of African background in my theological reflection. settlements formed by African slaves who ran away from imprisonment the Americas Oxford: Clarendon, 1994. In 1900 there were an estimated 9 million Christians (accounting for about 7 per cent of the population of Africa). In most countries, however, less than one-in-twenty say this is their primary religious affiliation. /// Dans le nord-est du Zare, la communaut rurale Bira a t expose depuis plus de cinquante ans au message chrtien. mixing of Christianity and traditional African religions What were maroon communities? Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. What factors are responsible for it? OLUPONA: If we lose traditional African religions, we would also lose or continue to seriously undermine the African practice of rites of passage such as the much cherished age-grade initiations, which have for so long integrated and bought Africans together under a common understanding, or worldview. One important task, then, is to see the nature, the method and the implications of Gods revelation among African peoples, in the light of the biblical record of the same revelation. What the data says about gun deaths in the U.S. I feel deeply the value of biblical studies in this exercise, and the contribution of biblical insights in this development. The Yoruba, however, do have a concept of a supreme being, called Olorun or Olodumare, and this creator god of the universe is empowered by the various orisa [deities] to create the earth and carry out all its related functions, including receiving the prayers and supplications of the Yoruba people. Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World, Chapter 3: Traditional African Religious Beliefs and Practices, Tolerance and Tension: Islam and Christianity in Sub-Saharan Africa, Next: Chapter 4: Interreligious Harmony and Tensions, Chapter 2: Commitment to Christianity and Islam, Chapter 4: Interreligious Harmony and Tensions, In the U.S. and Western Europe, people say they accept Muslims, but opinions are divided on Islam, In Western Europe, familiarity with Muslims is linked to positive views of Muslims and Islam, Q&A: Measuring attitudes toward Muslims and Jews in Western Europe, Europes Muslim population will continue to grow but how much depends on migration, The Growth of Germanys Muslim Population, Size & Demographic Characteristics of Religious Groups, Pew-Templeton Global Religious Futures Project, 60% of Americans Would Be Uncomfortable With Provider Relying on AI in Their Own Health Care, Gender pay gap in U.S. hasnt changed much in two decades. Copyright by The Christian Century Foundation; used by permission. The continued influence of traditional African religion is also evident in some aspects of daily life. He sees the other faith as complementing and even adding spiritual potency to his own spiritual practice of constructing effective amulets. (back to text), 3 Nigerias 2006 census did not ask about religious affiliation, and recent estimates of the numbers of Muslims and Christians in the country vary. 1996 Canadian Anthropology Society Eating pattern tied to 24% reduction in cardiovascular, cancer mortality in people diagnosed with the chronic condition, HMS/Brigham study shows most advertised medicines little better than other treatment options. Instead, God brought them. 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. Corrections? 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. 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. 0000002884 00000 n 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 . Read our research on: Congress | Economy | Gender. They include the work of missionaries (of whom there are about 40,000 today, without counting their family members); the work of African Christians in evangelism and pastoral care (their numbers are infinitely greater than those of overseas missionaries, and include men, women and children, both lay and ordained); the role of Christian schools; the translation and distribution of the Bible (which is now available in full or in part in nearly 600 of Africas 1,000 languages); and the ending of the colonial era during the decades 1960-1980. OLUPONA: Your question underscores an important facet about African spirituality: It is not a closed theological system. interaction between the Christian churches and West African religious culture. startxref In most of the 19 countries surveyed by the Pew Research Centers Forum on Religion & Public Life, 90% or more of the respondents say they belong to one of these faiths. 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. This massive expansion within a short time is unprecedented in the history of Christianity. One read Honest to God and a variety of other works in an effort to understand the hot debate then raging in Europe and America. When we identify the God of the Bible as the same God who is known through African religion (whatever its limitations), we must also take it that God has had a historical relationship with African peoples. They depended on the labor of enslaved Africans who often constituted the majority of the population in these areas and developed their own forms of cultural and religious autonomy Examples: plantation agriculture, the Carolinas (rice), Barbados (sugar), tobacco Colonial government The conviction that people will be reborn in this world again and again tends to be more common among Christians than Muslims. It is essentially a postcolonial approach to what AIR and . APUSH Unit 1 Flashcards | Quizlet 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. At Makerere University I taught New Testament, African religion and other courses. For instance, in a few years time, I pray that I will be participating in an age-grade festival for men around 70 years of age called Ero in my native Nigerian community in Ute, in Ondo state. 0000003641 00000 n Islam has experienced a similar rapid growth. God is not insensitive to the history of peoples other than Israel. African diaspora religions, also described as Afro-American religions, are a number of related beliefs that developed in the Americas in various nations of the Caribbean, Latin America and the Southern United States. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. The concept of the church as the body of Christ in the whole world is another growing development for me. <<6D546C3FADADB2110A00A09A6B9CFF7F>]/Prev 416812>> He has researched and written about such diverse religious cultures as the Hare Krishnas, Zoroastrians, Shakers, and the Old Order Amish. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Mozambique, Botswana and South Africa are the only countries surveyed where a significant number of people (roughly one-in-ten) describe their religion as atheist, agnostic or nothing in particular. In all the other countries, the figure is closer to zero. Abstract. I had it. Moreover, the religions developed in the Americas impact Africa in that devotees of the African diaspora have significant influence on practices in Africa. Olupona earned his bachelor of arts degree in religious studies from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, in 1975. So I read on and on, and conducted field research to learn more and more. 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. Belief in the power of such objects is highest in Senegal (75%) and lowest in Rwanda (5%). Indigenous African religions are by nature plural, varied, and usually informed by ones ethnic identity, where ones family came from in Africa. Ancestors also serve as intermediaries (see ancestor worship). For terms and use, please refer to our Terms and Conditions 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. As the map also shows, the ratio of Christians to Muslims increases the further south one goes in the continent. For over 200 years, Africans, largely from the west coast of Africa, were brought to the United States in the slave trade. Indigenous African spirituality today is increasingly falling out of favor. God was not a stranger to African peoples. They will certainly be overwhelming, and I feel very excited about them. 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. He later earned both an M.A. The WCCs very existence as a council of churches is a living hope. The Pew Forums survey finds a similar number of people in Guinea Bissau identifying themselves as Muslim (38%) but a much higher percentage identifying themselves as Christian (62%) and very few describing themselves mainly as practitioners of traditional African faiths. This re-ligion is found in almost all the activities of the African man. Nigeria, the most populous country in all of Africa, has the largest number of Muslims as well as the largest number of Christians in the region.3. But to the disappointment of those theological exporters, this fish was not attracted by the bait. Its fundamental principle is that everything is spirit. It doesnt have a fixed creed, like in some forms of Christianity or Islam. I want to see his healing hand, to hear his word that exorcises evil spirits. colonization_terms_apush.docx - ` Units 1 and 2 Vocabulary Par consquent, Mbali-Dieu est la rponse crative des Biras une rencontre religieuse syncrtique. PDF Christianity and the African traditional religion(s): The postcolonial Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). 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. The previous year I had published African Religions and Philosophy (Doubleday, 1969). 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. Nevertheless, since 1900, Christians in Africa have grown from approximately 7 million to over 450 million today. That would be a serious loss not only for Africans, but also for academics, researchers, writers, and general seekers of wisdom the world over. As the map in the preface to this report shows, sub-Saharan Africa is much more religiously mixed than northern Africa, where the population is overwhelmingly Muslim. Pew Research Center does not take policy positions. Subscriptions are available to libraries and individuals who are not members of CASCA. The missionaries who introduced the gospel to Africa in the past 200 years did not bring God. Unlike in Europe and the United States, very few people in sub-Saharan Africa say they are unaffiliated with a particular faith. Traditional African religions and practices were brought to the Western hemisphere through the African diaspora and the slave trade, often resulting in a syncretic blending with Christianity. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. A close geographical correlation exists between the location of African religion and the rapid expansion of the Christian faith. For myself, I negotiate between my Yoruba and Christian identity by, for example, affirming those aspects of African culture that promote good life and communal human welfare. 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. The first African captives entered England's North American colonies through Jamestown, Virginia in 1619. PDF Traditional African Religion and Modern Christianity in Zaire - JSTOR Did he then reveal himself only in the line of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Samuel and other personalities of the Bible? That finished the interview. Corrections? 0000005714 00000 n Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Some individuals have criticized these books -- and no book is perfect. Prayers and sacrificial offerings are usually directed toward secondary divinities, who are intermediaries between the human and sacred realms. 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. Par contre, les croyances en la sorcellerie ont persist. 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. This number has since grown rapidly, to the point that in 1980 there are estimated to be 200 million Christians (or about 45 per cent of the population). 0000001519 00000 n 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 also celebrate and honor the kings festivals and ceremonies in my hometown and other places where I live and do research. Holding or maintaining to a uniform doctrine is not the essence of indigenous African religions. Oral tradition says the first Muslims appeared while the prophet Mohammed was. OLUPONA: No, this type of binary thinking is simplistic. Author of. 0000001586 00000 n <> Following a period of parish work in England, I went to teach at Makerere University, Uganda, where I remained for ten years until 1974. Anthropologica, journal of the Canadian Anthropology Society (CASCA) was created from the merger of the Society's former journal, Culture, with Canada's oldest anthropology journal, Anthropologica. That is anathema to the fundamentalist faith movements that have been gaining momentum in recent decades. First, the association of traditional African religion with an other-worldly orientation may appear problematic, given the "pragmatic" basis of this religion. Anthropologica Rituals are aimed at maintaining a harmonious relationship with cosmic powers, and many have associated myths that explain their significance. They do this by having Africans increasingly identify themselves as either Muslim or Christian, thus denying their unique African worldview that has always viewed as evidenced in their creation myths everything as unified and connected to the land, the place were ones clan, lineage, and people were cosmically birthed. Robinson, came out. But, it has been a sorrowful, disappointment to me to experience the fact that some individuals who exercise great power in the council are not angels: they sometimes practice the exact contrary of those values and goals to which the council is committed. 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. A conference of mainly African theologians, held in Ghana in December 1977, said in its final communiqu: "The God of history speaks to all peoples in particular ways. Of course, behind all these factors is the Holy Spirit working through them. << /Length 5 0 R /Filter /FlateDecode >> Vodou is a worldview encompassing philosophy, medicine, justice, and religion. trailer 0000001198 00000 n 0 This approach is intended to shed further light on the problem of African cultural influence and . This statistical tilting of Christendom from the north to the south, after 2,000 years, holds tremendous prospects and challenges. 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. African Traditional Religion in the Context of increasing Christian and Islamic Encounter . While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. He must have been active among African peoples as he was among the Jewish people. %PDF-1.7 % The Yoruba diviners, for example, draw on this extensive indigenous knowledge every day by consulting Ifa, an extensive literary corpus of information covering science, medicine, cosmology, and metaphysics. Ethiopia's Christian population, at 6 million in 1900, will grow to a projected 100 million in 2050. Christianity has scored a triumph over the traditional religious life of the Bira. 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? In three of the countries surveyed (Djibouti, Mali and Senegal), Muslims clearly outnumber Christians. They proclaimed the name of Jesus Christ. Vodou, also spelled Voodoo, Voudou, Vodun, or French Vaudou, a traditional Afro-Haitian religion. 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. Yet . I am very excited, for example, by the estimate that in 1987 there will be a statistical balance of Christian population between the north (Europe, Soviet Union and America) and the south (Latin America, Africa, Asia and Oceania). Islam And Christianity Christianity came first to the continent of Africa in the 1st or early 2nd century AD. Animism is a common feature of African religions, and misfortune is often attributed to witchcraft and sorcery. They were names of one and the same God, the creator of the world, the father of our Lord Jesus Christ. But in practical terms, there is a Christian Yes to African religiosity. OLUPONA: Thats a mixed bag. %PDF-1.3 43. 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. With it, one began to explore afresh the realm of Gods revelation and other treasures of our faith. Some of these African diaspora religions include Cuban Regla de Ocha, Haitian Vodou, and Brazilian Candomble. Yet consider that in 1900 most Africans in sub-Saharan Africa practiced a form of indigenous African religions. But after braving that first blizzard in a land far from his native Nigeria, Olupona stuck it out and earned his Ph.D. OLUPONA: Yes, and the pluralistic nature of African-tradition religion is one of the reasons for its success in the diaspora. X0#J++?U;_3_gmx9[F\"{,Um1yu 9 ?ce%9EG`N: &U0EHC$p4=$'=DlX6M_7,--" Additionally, I will not discourage, disparage, or try and convert those who practice their form of African indigenous religions. GAZETTE: What is the state of indigenous African religions today? Indigenous African religions are pragmatic. (+1) 202-419-4372 | Media Inquiries. Faith in The One God in Christian and African Traditional Religions: a So the church which exists on the African scene bears the marks of its peoples backgrounds. This was an extremely liberating word in my theological thinking. Dr. Mbiti is on the staff of the Ecumenical Institute at Bossey, Switzerland. There is even a community deep in the American Bible Belt in Beaufort County, S.C., called Oyotunji Village that practices a type of African indigenous religion, which is a mixture of Yoruba and Ewe-Fon spiritual practices.