But the basic truth seems to be that Gods revelation is not confined to the biblical record. 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. That finished the interview. It is essentially a postcolonial approach to what AIR and . God was not a stranger to African peoples. Indigenous African religions are pragmatic. Faith in The One God in Christian and African Traditional Religions: a 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. Sign up for daily emails to get the latest Harvardnews. 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. My interpretation of Israels history demands a new look at the history of African peoples, among whom this same God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob has indeed been at work. It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research. Author of. I had it. A close geographical correlation exists between the location of African religion and the rapid expansion of the Christian faith. religious syncretism, the fusion of diverse religious beliefs and practices. Moreover, the religions developed in the Americas impact Africa in that devotees of the African diaspora have significant influence on practices in Africa. Omissions? 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. A belief in ancestors also testifies to the inclusive nature of traditional African spirituality by positing that deceased progenitors still play a role in the lives of their living descendants. They derive from traditional African religions with some influence from other religious traditions, notably Christianity and Islam . In this overpowering environment, one simply accepted this stand and looked at the world from its perspectives. 0 I am not a historian, and I have not done careful thinking in this direction. That testifies to the enduring power of indigenous religion and its ability to domesticate Christianity and Islam in modern Africa. According to the 2003 Demographic and Health Survey, for example, Muslims constituted 50% of the population, while the 2008 DHS figure is 45% and the Nigerian Ministry of Healths 2008 estimate is 50%. 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. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. OLUPONA: My father, a faithful Anglican priest, was a good example. ), In addition to expressing high levels of belief in the protective power of sacrificial offerings and sacred objects, upwards of one-in-five people in every country say they believe in the evil eye, or the ability of certain people to cast malevolent curses or spells. Indigenous African spirituality today is increasingly falling out of favor. A follower of African diaspora religions has many choices in terms of seeking spiritual help or succor. 9_r'v>#z2"syiBm?mry8%;m8v L,WNHitMJk#RZwEl+M3N1n[nt4]C$i2y]_6Iasrt The rural Bira of northeastern Zaire have been exposed to the Christian message for well over half a century. At many points I see intriguing parallels between the biblical record and African religiosity. The continued influence of traditional African religion is also evident in some aspects of daily life. Orthodox Christianity, although influenced by other religions, generally looked negatively upon these syncretistic movements. Since I myself had never heard any lectures on African religion, I set out to do research on the subject in order to teach the course adequately. But in practical terms, there is a Christian Yes to African religiosity. The beliefs and practices of the traditional religions in Africa can enrich Christian theology and spirituality." They will certainly be overwhelming, and I feel very excited about them. 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. (1981) and Ph.D. (1983) in the history of religions from Boston University. African religions, Indigenous religions of the African continent. 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. In one case the thinking and experience of the people produced a written record of Gods dealings with the Jewish people in particular. 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. Corrections? At first, Christianity made few inroads into the African slave population, which had its own religious traditions. He has researched and written about such diverse religious cultures as the Hare Krishnas, Zoroastrians, Shakers, and the Old Order Amish. 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. OLUPONA: Indigenous African religions refer to the indigenous or native religious beliefs of the African people before the Christian and Islamic colonization of Africa. It is essentially a postcolonial approach to what AIR and its essential characteristics is: God and humanity, sacrifices, afterlife and ancestors. The spirituality of Africa - Harvard Gazette Foreign religions simply dont have that same connection to the African continent. The decisive word here is "only." 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. How Africa Is Changing Faith Around the World (PDF) Christianity and the African traditional religion(s): The This chapter includes information on: Download chapter 1 in full (6-page PDF, <1MB), 1 The Horn of Africa is a peninsula in the easternmost part of North East Africa, on the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. 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. According to all the major surveys, Christianity and Islam each represent approximately 40 percent of the African population. 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. The councils programs in response to these problems are impressive. For example, in 14 of the 19 countries surveyed, more than three-in-ten people say they sometimes consult traditional healers when someone in their household is sick. They are not mutually exclusive. Anthropologica is published for CASCA by University of Toronto Press. He later earned both an M.A. 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. Alternate titles: Vaudou, Vodun, Voodoo, Voudou, vodon, Elizabeth McAlister Associate Professor of Religion, Weslyan University. 43. He went on to conduct some of the most significant research on African religions in decades. Ritual sacrifices and witchcraft beliefs are still common. 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. Again, it doesnt reflect the multiplicity of ways that traditional African spirituality has conceived of deities, gods, and spirit beings. The missionaries who introduced the gospel to Africa in the past 200 years did not bring God. Their culture, history, world views and spiritual aspirations cannot be taken away from them. Its fundamental principle is that everything is spirit. Indeed, ten years ago I had no significant theological position. Instead, God brought them. I have met here the church not only in its geographical outreach but also in its historical roots -- seeing, for example, the rich traditions of the Orthodox Church, the universality of the Roman Catholic Church (even though it is based in the Vatican), the reconciling positioning of the Anglican Communion, the dynamic vitality of African independent churches, and so on. 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. With it, one began to explore afresh the realm of Gods revelation and other treasures of our faith. 0000005005 00000 n No viable theology can grow in Africa without addressing itself to the interreligious phenomenon at work there. Yet consider that in 1900 most Africans in sub-Saharan Africa practiced a form of indigenous African religions. 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. I told my father that I was coming home, he recalled. 1996 Canadian Anthropology Society 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 . African spirituality is truly holistic. In Nigeria, the population in 1900 included 4.2 million Muslims and 180,000 Christians. 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. Oxford: Clarendon, 1994. At Makerere University I taught New Testament, African religion and other courses. I was like a snail shyly peeping out of its house after a heavy thunderstorm. He must have been active among African peoples as he was among the Jewish people. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. 0000001519 00000 n I want to walk with Jesus of Nazareth on the shores of Lake Galilee and the hillsides of Judea, through the gates of Jerusalem. Consequently, traditional Africans have different ideas on what role the ancestors play in the lives of living descendants. I wont pray to an orisa, but I will affirm the importance of my connection with members of my age group. While some African cosmologies have a clear idea of a supreme being, other cosmologies do not. The word Vodou means spirit or deity in the Fon language of the African kingdom of Dahomey (now Benin). 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.
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