Russell Poole Jr, Articles M

Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). African religions, Indigenous religions of the African continent. African Christianity - African Studies - Oxford Bibliographies - obo So I read on and on, and conducted field research to learn more and more. In these congregations, knowledge is passed on through a ritual of initiation (kanzo) in which the body becomes the site of spiritual transformation. The first and most intriguing topic that immediately engaged my attention was the thinking of African peoples about God. Sign up for daily emails to get the latest Harvardnews. interaction between the Christian churches and West African religious culture. The Story of Africa| BBC World Service - Logo of the BBC Most people in sub-Saharan Africa now identify with either Christianity or Islam. What factors are responsible for it? mixing of Christianity and traditional African religions What were maroon communities? The award allows Olupona a year of study and research in Germany; he is on leave this year (201516). I completed my doctoral studies at the University of Cambridge in 1963, the year that Honest to God, by J.A.T. 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. colonization_terms_apush.docx - ` Units 1 and 2 Vocabulary 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. Religion informs everything in traditional African society, including political art, marriage, health, diet, dress, economics, and death. Religion Online is designed to assist teachers, scholars and general seekers who are interested in exploring religious issues. In four countries, for instance, half or more of the population believes that sacrifices to ancestors or spirits can protect them from harm. Following a period of parish work in England, I went to teach at Makerere University, Uganda, where I remained for ten years until 1974. The suppression of ancestor worship is the only area where mission Christianity has scored a triumph over the traditional religious life of the Bira. Most people in sub-Saharan Africa now identify with either Christianity or Islam. Their history has a theological meaning. Par contre, les croyances en la sorcellerie ont persist. Christianity has scored a triumph over the traditional religious life of the Bira. religious syncretism, the fusion of diverse religious beliefs and practices. Animism is a common feature of African religions, and misfortune is often attributed to witchcraft and sorcery. The Encounter of Christian Faith and African Religion 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. 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. African spirituality is truly holistic. 0000002026 00000 n This is, obviously, a general statement, one which needs detailed elaboration. Traditional African religious beliefs, such as belief in the protective power of sacrifices to ancestors, Traditional African religious practices, such as owning sacred objects. These statements await further exploration by African theologians. Religious syncretism - Encyclopedia Britannica | Britannica It publishes a journal Anthropologica and has reclaimed the name of its former journal, Culture for its occasional online bulletin. 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. Omissions? This approach is intended to shed further light on the problem of African cultural influence and . 0000014025 00000 n Olupona earned his bachelor of arts degree in religious studies from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, in 1975. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. 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. First, the association of traditional African religion with an other-worldly orientation may appear problematic, given the "pragmatic" basis of this religion. AR-Ndhdnn}H\{%jC!a,]c8F`1LE(3%"w+tj}](q w[,p8i$dd$GrMRD K4wLG4@h\WfPY They proclaimed the name of Jesus Christ. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. {PB,`s 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.. 300 ce). (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. African religions, Indigenous religions of the African continent. 9_r'v>#z2"syiBm?mry8%;m8v L,WNHitMJk#RZwEl+M3N1n[nt4]C$i2y]_6Iasrt But after braving that first blizzard in a land far from his native Nigeria, Olupona stuck it out and earned his Ph.D. In three of the countries surveyed (Djibouti, Mali and Senegal), Muslims clearly outnumber Christians. African diaspora religions - Wikipedia In most of the 19 countries surveyed by the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion & Public Life, 90% or more of the respondents say they belong to one of these faiths. 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. 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. So the church which exists on the African scene bears the marks of its peoples backgrounds. Indeed, ten years ago I had no significant theological position. I want to walk with Jesus of Nazareth on the shores of Lake Galilee and the hillsides of Judea, through the gates of Jerusalem. 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. What the data says about gun deaths in the U.S. They were names of one and the same God, the creator of the world, the father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Islam And Christianity Christianity came first to the continent of Africa in the 1st or early 2nd century AD. Ancestors can offer advice and bestow good fortune and honor to their living dependents, but they can also make demands, such as insisting that their shrines be properly maintained and propitiated. That which had been seen as the enemy of the gospel turns out (to me) to be indeed a very welcoming friend. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. 75 19 Diviners who go through a long educational and apprenticeship program hold the history, culture, and spiritual traditions of the African people. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. 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. It is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts. An old African adage says: The sky is large enough for birds to fly around without one having to bump into the other.. In 1900 there were an estimated 9 million Christians (accounting for about 7 per cent of the population of Africa). 0000008365 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 missionaries in the 16th and 17th centuries. In 1988 the society changed its name to the Canadian Anthropology Society to clarify its identity and emphasize its role as an anthropology association. Their culture, history, world views and spiritual aspirations cannot be taken away from them. The continued influence of traditional African religion is also evident in some aspects of daily life. 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). 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%. 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"). 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. 0000002505 00000 n (See the glossary for more information on juju. 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. 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. Corrections? We can list some obvious and often publicized factors. He went on to conduct some of the most significant research on African religions in decades. Unlike in Europe and the United States, very few people in sub-Saharan Africa say they are unaffiliated with a particular faith. 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. African development. Par consquent, Mbali-Dieu est la rponse crative des Biras une rencontre religieuse syncrtique. Africans consequently played a crucial role in establishing the doctrines and theology of the early church. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Aujourd'hui, la plupart des Zariens sont soit catholiques, soit protestants; les Biras pour leur part sont principalement catholiques. Since Christianity and Islam spread across Africa, many people there have observed a mixture of religious practices. The missionaries who introduced the gospel to Africa in the past 200 years did not bring God.