Religions in Africa span far beyond the common confines accepted within the western barriers in terms of religion. While Western religion is often separated, overpowering, or distinct within its own borders, African religion may be versatile, as well as varying and abundant. Many different factors go into the religious practices of African people, and this specific location is well known for their diversity and deep dedication to their specific religious practices. There are also specific distinctions between the common religions based on geographical locations from North to South.
To begin, it must be clear that religions within Africa extend beyond the reach of modern religions and traditions, and while individuals are being converted every day, there are still traces within the lives of African people that are rooted in the pre-modern religions of the area. Many of these religions are marked by single deities having rule over lesser deities, sacrifices, and prayer. While these are not the only qualities, they are prevalent within many different religions among the indigenous people from before modern religion made its way into the area. While these practices have not died out, they are becoming less of a factor in everyday life, but there are bits and pieces dispersed throughout life from these religions. They often accompany modern religious practices, as they are rooted within the culture, and may be viewed as supplemental to the religion rather than having a distinct separations (“Traditional Religions”). The religions also take root in the practice of oral tradition, being passed down through generations in the native language, as well as being overall centered around the communities within which they are prevalent within....
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Since early history, religious institutions that encompass gods, worship centers, and oracles have helped shaped political power in many communities because of the worldview and societal hierarchies they imply. In Chinua Achebe’s book, Things Fall Apart, this is exemplified through its story of the Ibo African village and its encounter with European Christian missionaries. Moreover, Achebe demonstrates how Ibo religious institutions structure Ibo political power through their respected hierarchies that are established by their abilities to affirm their authority, uphold and declare Ibo law, and punish community members who go against their jurisdiction.
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Hodgson has been working in Tanzania for 20 years, since 1985. She first worked in the Catholic Diocese of Arusha in the Arusha Diocese Development Office and later taught at Oldonyo Sambu Junior Seminary. She worked with Maasai in a religious context and so was led to her research. She wrote her book “The Church of Women” after noticing the gendered differences in evangelization. In her book Hodgson first addresses the history of Maasai religious practices. Women were imperative to most religious ritual and even nonritual practices. Their God was often referred to with female pronouns, though a certain level of gender fluidness was apparent. She then chronicles the history of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, or Spiritans, in Tanzania. She interviews three American missionaries who worked with the Maasai in three different time periods. With the interviews Hodgson comprises the history of the approaches taken to evangelize the Maasai. She uses the next two chapters to compare men and women’s responses to the missionaries, following three communities. She ends the book with an exploration of this new Maasai Catholicism, a mix of Maasai and Catholic ritual and spiritual practices the Maasai have
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The comparison and contrast of ceremonies performed by African religions to those of Hinduism, Buddhism and Oceanic religions
ABSTRACT: Kuona is a Shona (one of Zimbabwe’s major languages) verb meaning "to see." In poetic constructions, it is often used as an ocular metaphor meaning insight or understanding. This ocular metaphor can be used to describe Mugambi’s assessment of the exclusivistic claims one often encounters in the Abrahamic religions. Such claims often arise from a strongly held belief that the adherent is one of God’s chosen. Mugambi has emerged as one of the most articulate philosophical theologians in the African continent. His reflections, ubiquitous in classrooms on the continent, deserve a much broader audience. My paper seeks to introduce Mugambi’s perspective on religion. Part of Mugambi’s project has been to make an assessment of this notion of chosenness in the Abrahamic religions. He does so particularly with reference to the relationship between Christianity and the African religious heritage.
Africa is made up of more than fifty countries and is home to just over a billion people. Africa is not only diverse in its landscape and animals but the people are also extremely diverse. There are hundreds of different ethnic communities that, together, speak over 1000 languages. With this much diversity among the different communities, it is not surprising that there is much diversity in the religions in Africa. In Africa, there are many groups of people who follow different religions. These religions are different from each other in the sense of the Gods they follow, the rituals they practice and the importance of each community’s history in Africa. There are many different religions celebrated in Africa because each
Some of Africa’s problems—especially those caused by forces other than man—are so enormous, so constant, that a people of lesser spirit long since would have succumb...
Stanford, Karin L., and Ranald J. Stephens. "International Jornal of Africana Studies." International Jornal of Africana Studies 16.1 (2010): 117-40. Web. 24 Mar. 2014.
...’s depictions of both traditional and modern beliefs in varying degrees illustrate the importance of both in contemporary Nigerian culture, as well as the greater Africa as a whole, and how both are intertwined and cannot exist without the other. In effect, she skillfully subverts stereotypes or single perceptions of Africa as backward and traditional, proving instead, the multifaceted culture of Africa. She further illustrates that neither traditional African nor western culture is necessarily detrimental. It is the stark contrast of the fundamental cultures that inevitably leads to clashes and disagreements. In the end, what holds African countries such as Nigeria together is their shared pride. Modern, western influences can bring positive changes to society, but new cultures cannot completely eradicate the foundational cultures to which a society is founded on.
...San hunter gatherers and the Bantu speaking farmers. It would be entirely incorrect to speak of ‘one African indigenous religion’, or even two, one has to speak of multiple African indigenous religions as there are many rich and colourful beliefs rooted throughout Africa, some of the earliest ever recorded.
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Countless philosophies over centuries have overlooked and undermined the significance of indigenous African religions. Africa is a mainland that has long been shrouded in a cover of misjudging and stigma. The general misguided judgments about Africans are boundless and strike almost every part of African society and social orders incorporating religion. Many of the religions do not write and document everything but rather add more importance to oral history and rituals. Colonization and philosophers like Emile Durkheim have consciously or subconsciously stripped these religions of their value. Durkheim does not believe in animism because scientific laws or morals cannot back it up. Many indigenous African religions believe strongly in spirits and souls that link them to God. The idea of an isolated God does not make the supernatural un-important in Africa religions. Indigenous African indigenous religions share the same teachings like Christianity or Islam and we should not allow European philosophers as well as colonization diminishes its value.