The Pew Forums survey found 52% of the population is Muslim. There are other areas of exploration in which I continue to be engaged. 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). For this reason, some African theologians take African religiosity to be one of the sources of theological reflection (besides the Bible, Christian heritage, etc.). Didnt our Lord let it be clearly known that "before Abraham was I am" (John 8:58)? "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. Overall, however, Christians outnumber Muslims in sub-Saharan Africa by about two-to-one. 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. Humans are spirits who inhabit the visible world. This is not a biblical distinction. The Church in Africa, 1450-1950. 4 0 obj (back to text), Photo credit: Sebastien Desarmaux/GODONG/Godong/Corbis, Part of the Pew-Templeton Global Religious Futures Project, 1615 L St. NW, Suite 800Washington, DC 20036USA mixing of Christianity and traditional African religions What were maroon communities? 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. I feel deeply the value of biblical studies in this exercise, and the contribution of biblical insights in this development. Christianity is more dominant in the south, while Islam is more dominant in the north. The beliefs and practices of the traditional religions in Africa can enrich Christian theology and spirituality." Below is the article summary. According to all the major surveys, Christianity and Islam each represent approximately 40 percent of the African population. 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. {PB,`s These impinge upon their daily life- and experience of the Christian faith. In 1900 there were an estimated 9 million Christians (accounting for about 7 per cent of the population of Africa). The book comprised ideas that I had gathered from 300 African peoples ("tribes" -- a term that today is sometimes used in derogatory ways). But Gods dealings with the African people are recorded, nevertheless, in living form -- oral communication, rituals, symbols, ceremonies, community faith. 0 That book was followed by a flurry of literature on the so-called "death of God" theology (if "theology" it was, for I would call it "atheology"). Pew Research Center does not take policy positions. Rituals are aimed at maintaining a harmonious relationship with cosmic powers, and many have associated myths that explain their significance. Ethiopia's Christian population, at 6 million in 1900, will grow to a projected 100 million in 2050. The decisive word here is "only." (a) The Structures of African Traditional Religions: Sometimes it is a difficult task among scholars to choose a unanimous name for the religious traditions and beliefs of the African people. Read our research on: Congress | Economy | Gender. 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. But it is nevertheless a working Yes and one that demands theological understanding. I find the traditional Western distinction between "special revelation" and "general revelation" to be inadequate and unfreeing. Oxford: Clarendon, 1994. Today most Zairians belong to either the Catholic or Protestant church, and the Bira themselves are predominantly Catholic. 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. 0000000676 00000 n
It is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts. settlements formed by African slaves who ran away from imprisonment the Americas 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. OLUPONA: Yes, and the pluralistic nature of African-tradition religion is one of the reasons for its success in the diaspora. (See the glossary for more information on the evil eye.). 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 . 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. This is, obviously, a general statement, one which needs detailed elaboration. The first and most intriguing topic that immediately engaged my attention was the thinking of African peoples about God. This is not to say that indigenous African spirituality represents a form of theocracy or religious totalitarianism not at all. Following a period of parish work in England, I went to teach at Makerere University, Uganda, where I remained for ten years until 1974. Ritual sacrifices and witchcraft beliefs are still common. That which had been seen as the enemy of the gospel turns out (to me) to be indeed a very welcoming friend. 43. 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. A follower of African diaspora religions has many choices in terms of seeking spiritual help or succor. The church is composed largely of people who come out of the African religious background. Anthropologica They were names of one and the same God, the creator of the world, the father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Anthropologica is published for CASCA by University of Toronto Press. For terms and use, please refer to our Terms and Conditions <>stream
I wont pray to an orisa, but I will affirm the importance of my connection with members of my age group. 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. Updates? The unseen world is populated by lwa (spirits), myst (mysteries), anvizib (the invisibles), zanj (angels), and the spirits of ancestors and the recently deceased. 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. It is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts. 0000005005 00000 n
An old African adage says: The sky is large enough for birds to fly around without one having to bump into the other.. 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. 75 0 obj Since Christianity came in contact with the traditional religion, there has always been a sharp conflict between traditionalists and Christians. C'est l'poque de la colonisation belge que les premiers missionnaires catholiques et protestants sont arrivs dans cette rgion du Zare. As the map also shows, the ratio of Christians to Muslims increases the further south one goes in the continent. This re-ligion is found in almost all the activities of the African man. 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. 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. AR-Ndhdnn}H\{%jC!a,]c8F`1LE(3%"w+tj}](q w[,p8i$dd$GrMRD K4wLG4@h\WfPY Some Africans believe that the ancestors are equal in power to deities, while others believe they are not. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. Since the Bible tells me that God is the Creator of all things, his activities in the world must clearly go beyond what is recorded in the Bible. 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. 300 ce). African Traditional Religion in the Context of increasing Christian and Islamic Encounter . While Islam and Christianity tend to be overtly resistant to adopting traditional African religious ideas or practices, indigenous African religions have always accommodated other beliefs. 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. So, "Lord, help Thou my unbelief!" A magisterial historical synthesis of the formative period of African Christianity written by one of its foremost scholars. 0000001791 00000 n
ancient Rome: Religious and cultural life in the 3rd century, This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/topic/religious-syncretism, Academia - Religious Syncretism as a Syncretistic Concept: The Inadequacy of the " World Religions " Paradigm in Cross-Cultural Encounter. A prominent European New Testament professor visited Makerere University and interviewed me on what I thought about the "death of God" discussion. My doctoral studies in New Testament eschatology led me also to the field of Christology. African spirituality has always been able to adapt to change and allow itself to absorb the wisdom and views of other religions, much more than, for example, Christianity and Islam. The conviction that people will be reborn in this world again and again tends to be more common among Christians than Muslims. 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. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Robinson, came out. 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. This article concerned itself with the modern encounter between Christianity and African Indigenous Religion (AIR) in Africa. Yet . This is in sharp contrast with the religious composition . 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. <<6D546C3FADADB2110A00A09A6B9CFF7F>]/Prev 416812>> They constitute an important channel of the churchs prophetic witness today. 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. 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. He has researched and written about such diverse religious cultures as the Hare Krishnas, Zoroastrians, Shakers, and the Old Order Amish. As a resident fellow, Sherman will teach a study group on negotiation and diplomacy this semester. Consequently, traditional Africans have different ideas on what role the ancestors play in the lives of living descendants. 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. God was not a stranger to African peoples. While Islam and Christianity tend to . And this witness deserves ones support through service and prayer. African religions, Indigenous religions of the African continent. It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research. Model tested on tens of thousands of routine brain scans spotted disease risk with 90% accuracy, Experts on law, policy say originalist view used to overturn Roe could upend 76 ruling based on cruel, unusual punishment clause, Issues revolve around culture of viewing civilians as potential threats, concerns about self-protection in departments equipped with military-grade arms, Khalil Gibran Muhammad says College Board needs to stand firm behind curriculum, 2023 The President and Fellows of Harvard College. Religion informs everything in traditional African society, including political art, marriage, health, diet, dress, economics, and death. Updates? This includes five countries (Cameroon, Chad, Guinea Bissau, Mali and Senegal) where more than half the population uses traditional healers. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. I am tantalized by the fact that my vision cannot cope with that horizon. He must have been active among African peoples as he was among the Jewish people. 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. The theological horizon continues to expand. Religion Online is designed to assist teachers, scholars and general seekers who are interested in exploring religious issues. 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. In these congregations, knowledge is passed on through a ritual of initiation (kanzo) in which the body becomes the site of spiritual transformation. interaction between the Christian churches and West African religious culture. That testifies to the enduring power of indigenous religion and its ability to domesticate Christianity and Islam in modern Africa. In three of the countries surveyed (Djibouti, Mali and Senegal), Muslims clearly outnumber Christians.
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