0000008365 00000 n 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. OLUPONA: One of the basic reasons is that indigenous African spiritual beliefs are not bound by a written text, like Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. 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). mixing of Christianity and traditional African religions What were maroon communities? 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. Olupona, professor of indigenous African religions at Harvard Divinity School and professor of African and African-American studies in Harvards Faculty of Arts and Sciences, recently sat down for an interview about his lifelong research on indigenous African religions. Corrections? Updates? 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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. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. 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. I want to make a pilgrimage into Christ. 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 degree at Harvard Divinity School. At first, Christianity made few inroads into the African slave population, which had its own religious traditions. The defining line between deities and ancestors is often contested, but overall, ancestors are believed to occupy a higher level of existence than living human beings and are believed to be able to bestow either blessings or illness upon their living descendants. The Church in Africa, 1450-1950. The numerous traditional African religions have in common the notion of a creator god, who made the world and then withdrew, remaining remote from the concerns of human life. 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. The beliefs and practices of the traditional religions in Africa can enrich Christian theology and spirituality." 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. 1"7$X9Xyyyb GNpL!9I&mxo0++44cA@5c. (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 I am not a historian, and I have not done careful thinking in this direction. For terms and use, please refer to our Terms and Conditions A close geographical correlation exists between the location of African religion and the rapid expansion of the Christian faith. The bottom line then is that Africans who still wholly practice African indigenous religions are only about 10 percent of the African population, a fraction of what it used to be only a century ago, when indigenous religions dominated most of the continent. 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. After that date there will be more Christians in the south than in the north. Overall, however, Christians outnumber Muslims in sub-Saharan Africa by about two-to-one. OLUPONA: Thats a mixed bag. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. In Nigeria, the population in 1900 included 4.2 million Muslims and 180,000 Christians. 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%. Christianity is more dominant in the south, while Islam is more dominant in the north. These were not empty names. Indigenous religion in Africa is the way Africans understand and worship their god. 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. While Islam and Christianity tend to . 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. 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. A calendar of ritual feasts, syncretized with the Roman Catholic calendar, provides the yearly rhythm of religious practice. God is not insensitive to the history of peoples other than Israel. <>stream (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. "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. I have concentrated these comments on the role of African background in my theological reflection. Indigenous African religion is primarily an oral tradition and has never been fully codified; thus, it allows itself to more easily be amended and influenced by other religious ideas, religious wisdom, and by modern development. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. For this reason, some African theologians take African religiosity to be one of the sources of theological reflection (besides the Bible, Christian heritage, etc.). It sensitized my thinking in many areas, one of these being the quest for Christian unity. First, the association of traditional African religion with an other-worldly orientation may appear problematic, given the "pragmatic" basis of this religion. Request Permissions, Published By: Canadian Anthropology Society. So I read on and on, and conducted field research to learn more and more. Par contre, les croyances en la sorcellerie ont persist. In this overpowering environment, one simply accepted this stand and looked at the world from its perspectives. Religion Online is designed to assist teachers, scholars and general seekers who are interested in exploring religious issues. OLUPONA: My father, a faithful Anglican priest, was a good example. Because of this, Africa is now home to some of the world's largest Christian and Muslim communities. This article appeared in the Christian Century, August 27- September 3, 1980, pp. 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. He later earned both an M.A. Read our research on: Congress | Economy | Gender. Then was he not there in other times and in such places as Mount Fuji and Mount Kenya, as well as Mount Sinai? hb```b``g`a`.ef@ aV68+ +$.0t9$r8A2Or}6=<4. In one case the thinking and experience of the people produced a written record of Gods dealings with the Jewish people in particular. 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. Indigenous African spirituality today is increasingly falling out of favor. interaction between the Christian churches and West African religious culture. But in practical terms, there is a Christian Yes to African religiosity. This is in sharp contrast with the religious composition . 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. 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. My doctoral studies in New Testament eschatology led me also to the field of Christology. The award allows Olupona a year of study and research in Germany; he is on leave this year (201516). Today most Zairians belong to either the Catholic or Protestant church, and the Bira themselves are predominantly Catholic. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Take em with a grain of salt. 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. 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. In this case, so-called "salvation history" must widen its outreach in order to embrace the horizons of other peoples histories. There is no room to describe them, and I can mention only two or three of them briefly. Olupona earned his bachelor of arts degree in religious studies from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, in 1975. 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. Syncretistic movements in the Orient, such as Manichaeism (a dualistic religion founded by the 3rd-century-ce Iranian prophet Mani, who combined elements of Christianity, Zoroastrianism, and Buddhism) and Sikhism (a religion founded by the 15th16th-century Indian reformer Guru Nnak, who combined elements of Islam and Hinduism), also met with resistance from the prevailing religions of their respective areas. The first and most intriguing topic that immediately engaged my attention was the thinking of African peoples about God. in social anthropology from Oxford University, is studying for a master of theological studies (M.T.S.) 4 0 obj 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. But Gods dealings with the African people are recorded, nevertheless, in living form -- oral communication, rituals, symbols, ceremonies, community faith. settlements formed by African slaves who ran away from imprisonment the Americas religious syncretism, the fusion of diverse religious beliefs and practices. In 1900 there were an estimated 9 million Christians (accounting for about 7 per cent of the population of Africa). 0000005714 00000 n African religions, Indigenous religions of the African continent. Anthropologica Their culture, history, world views and spiritual aspirations cannot be taken away from them. Copyright by The Christian Century Foundation; used by permission. 0000001019 00000 n They derive from traditional African religions with some influence from other religious traditions, notably 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. 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. Most people in sub-Saharan Africa now identify with either Christianity or Islam. Islam And Christianity Christianity came first to the continent of Africa in the 1st or early 2nd century AD. 300 ce). Abstract. The WCCs very existence as a council of churches is a living hope. Oxford: Clarendon, 1994. 0000002884 00000 n Read our research on: Congress | Economy | Gender, Side by side with their high levels of commitment to Christianity and Islam, many people in the countries surveyed retain beliefs and rituals that are characteristic of traditional African religions. And in Botswana, Rwanda, South Africa and Zambia, the survey finds that 5% or less identify as Muslim. I was like a snail shyly peeping out of its house after a heavy thunderstorm. %PDF-1.7 % Indigenous African religions are by nature plural, varied, and usually informed by ones ethnic identity, where ones family came from 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. 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. << /Length 5 0 R /Filter /FlateDecode >> The book comprised ideas that I had gathered from 300 African peoples ("tribes" -- a term that today is sometimes used in derogatory ways). 0000002505 00000 n Updates? The first African captives entered England's North American colonies through Jamestown, Virginia in 1619. 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. Ifa is an indispensable treasure trove of knowledge that cant be duplicated elsewhere; much of its knowledge has been handed down from babalawo [Ifa priest/diviner] to babalawo for centuries. In contrast, witchcraft beliefs persist. 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. About Pew Research Center Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world. 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. While some African cosmologies have a clear idea of a supreme being, other cosmologies do not. 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. 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. Africans consequently played a crucial role in establishing the doctrines and theology of the early church. But I am grateful for that one step I may be taking under the light of this vision. Nevertheless, since 1900, Christians in Africa have grown from approximately 7 million to over 450 million today. Religious pluralism serves peace. The missionaries who introduced the gospel to Africa in the past 200 years did not bring God. 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. (I myself have consulted with several diviners for my research on specific academic topics regarding African culture and history; consequently, if we were to lose Africas diviners, we would also lose one of Africas best keepers and sources of African history and culture. No viable theology can grow in Africa without addressing itself to the interreligious phenomenon at work there. 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). OLUPONA: No, this type of binary thinking is simplistic. 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. The amount of devotees to indigenous practices has dwindled as Islam and Christianity have both spread and gained influence throughout the continent. 0000001791 00000 n I feel deeply the value of biblical studies in this exercise, and the contribution of biblical insights in this development. 43. 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. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Omissions? In most countries surveyed, at least three-in-ten people believe in reincarnation, which may be related to traditional beliefs in ancestral spirits. <> 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. GAZETTE: What allows African indigenous religions to be so accommodating? 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. 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). stream In 1900 there were an estimated 9 million Christians (accounting for about 7 per cent of the population of Africa). African spirituality is truly holistic. 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. But the basic truth seems to be that Gods revelation is not confined to the biblical record. Belief in the power of such objects is highest in Senegal (75%) and lowest in Rwanda (5%). GAZETTE: Are ancestors considered deities in the traditional African cosmology? I had it. Pew Research Center does not take policy positions. This article concerned itself with the modern encounter between Christianity and African Indigenous Religion (AIR) in Africa. Chapter 1: Religious Affiliation. 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. Fewer say it is paramount to their faith to attend religious services (39%), avoid sex before marriage (30%) or oppose abortion . 9_r'v>#z2"syiBm?mry8%;m8v L,WNHitMJk#RZwEl+M3N1n[nt4]C$i2y]_6Iasrt Spirit possession plays an important role in Afro-Haitian religion, as it does in many other world religions. African development. 75 0 obj 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. 817-820. But today that is not the case due to more exclusive-minded types of Christianity and Islam that see patronizing indigenous African beliefs and practices as violating the integrity of their Christian or Muslim principles, but I believe that one can maintain ones religious integrity and also embrace an African worldview. 0 Animism is a common feature of African religions, and misfortune is often attributed to witchcraft and sorcery. Ancestors also serve as intermediaries (see ancestor worship). A subscription to Anthropologica is included in CASCA's annual membership fee. Corrections? 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. xref Ethiopia's Christian population, at 6 million in 1900, will grow to a projected 100 million in 2050. 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. (1981) and Ph.D. (1983) in the history of religions from Boston University. 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%). 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. 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. This is not to say that indigenous African spirituality represents a form of theocracy or religious totalitarianism not at all. 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? Amen. 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. Did he then reveal himself only in the line of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Samuel and other personalities of the Bible? They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.
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