misconceptions about african traditional religion

We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. It was through this encounter that the Yoruba system of banking money in traditional pots kept underground in farms and forests began. . These oral sources are intricately interwoven into arts, political and social structure, and material culture. Inasmuch as androcentric authority is more prominent within social structures and systems and patriarchy is more pronounced in the social order, women are considered the cornerstone of the African family system.19 The African mother is a vibrant life force, central to African religious understandings of the interrelatedness between the human and the divine, as she embodies the production and sustaining of life. African religions, religious beliefs and practices of the peoples of Africa. An Ifa song warns those embarking on the pilgrimage to be pure and those who possess witchcraft not to embark on the pilgrimage. Corrupt government officials also capitalize on the generosity of the westerners to the point of looking like a panhandler. These traditions have been passed from one generation to the next. Get it as soon as Wednesday, Oct 26. a. newly birthed babies. This inaccurate assessment of African belief even affects the definition of African religion. Temperature varies from one country to another depending on the climate type. To understand Africans, one must understand the African religion. Yes, poverty is an issue in Africa. Furthermore the issue of whether ATR should be called in singular or plural is another issue causing problems in the study of african tradional religion. That is the ultimate and absolute being who originated and gives meaning to all existence.9 III. The Trans-Atlantic slave trade led to the growth of African-inspired traditions in the Americas such as Candombl in Brazil, Santera in Cuba, or Vodun in Hati. Space constraints permit me to cite only one example. Truly opening my eyes on traditions, cultures and rituals that I did not know existed. In the primordial era, various forms of ethnic indigenous religions spread across the African continent, providing cohesive foundations of nations, peoples, and religious worldviews. The Hausa man is different from the Igbo man who is also different from the Yoruba man. When I told him I am a twin (Ibeji) in Yoruba traditionand in principle a sacred being myselfhe almost fell on the floor to pay homage! The orthodox Easternize it. As scholars of the comparative study of religions in Africa, we must begin to rethink the study of African religion in the twenty-first century in order to avoid the continuous mis-assessment of the resilience of indigenous traditions. They certainly represent interpretive traditions, and, when carefully studied, they form a solid foundation for theoretical frameworks used to study and decode these religions in our scholarship. African Traditional Religion: A Definition (1973), Omosade Awolalu in Yoruba Belief and Sacrificial Rites and John Mbiti in The Concept of God in Africa (1970) are a few examples of postcolonial scholars of religion who have resisted and denounced colonial idea that Africans do not know God. African leaders are also investing heavily in diversifying the economy. The traditional religions of Africa are human in the deepest sense, because they focus on people and their everyday problems. . A primary goal of parenting is to transmit values, beliefs and ideas around lifestyles based on cultural knowledge of the adult tasks and competencies needed for appropriate functioning in society (Gershoff, 2002; Harrison, Wilson, Pine, Chon & Buriel, 1990). African people do not worship their deceased relatives or ancestors. While scholars have often argued that African indigenous accounts of creation were ex nihilo (created out of nothing), as the biblical account of creation is often portrayed,12 African cosmological narratives generally indicate that there is never one pattern governing how creation happens. However, the so-called white wedding is Western culture. In one particular odu of Ifa, Ifa informs us and, correctly so, that the most cardinal event of the hajj is the climbing of Mount Arafat (Oke Arafa). 5.3.2 Intolerance and misconceptions about African traditional religion and Culture As already alluded, the stories told in Europe about Africa, the notion of racial and cultural superiority, and the notion of salvation, led to the western missionaries having a negative attitude toward African traditional religion and culture. According to theologian Tony Evans, W. E. B. African traditional religion, and that researcher a should "bracket" their faith and prejudicethey might have about Africa and its people. Myth: Slavery is a product of Western civilization. It is the foundation on which the morals of pre-colonial Africa were built. Each of the more than 50 modern . Many sources define African worship as ancestral worship which is wrong. Whether it is being wrongly labelled voodoo, juju or witchcraft, indigenous African faith systems tend to be associated with darkness, animal and human sacrifices, violence and general backwardness. They provide the orientation for the human life journey by defining the rites of passage from life to death. There are key developmental projects in some African countries that would not be possible without Foreign aids. Designed by Elegant Themes | Powered by WordPress, HARVARD DIVINITY SCHOOL Some biblical cosmological narratives have parallels in African cosmogony, for example, when the Supreme Being summons the hosts of heaven and declares to them, Come let us make man in our own image. This same script appears in the creation of the Yoruba world, when Olodumare designates to the Orisa (deities), the job of creating the universe. Fact: Slaves were always subject to torture, sexual exploitation, and arbitrary . Published. Most of these aids go into building infrastructures like schools and hospitals. Let's begun by saying that ATR, refer to the indigenous religious beliefs and practices of Africans. 3. The problem is, this number is often collated for the whole of Africa, instead of each country of Africa. Africa is given the image of a place that is hot and sunny all year round. His many publications include African Religions: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press, 2014); City of 201 Gods: Il-If in Time, Space, and the Imagination (University of California Press, 2011); and Kingship, Religion, and Rituals in a Nigerian Community: A Phenomenological Study of Ondo Yoruba Festivals (Almqvist & Wiksell, 1991), which has become a model for ethnographic research among Yoruba-speaking communities. What, for example, is the notion of history and the sacred in Akan thought? Apart from the different languages, every tribe and culture have their way of dressing too. No. The colonial masters sold the idea that the long-held tradition and believes of the African people is savage, inferior, and primitive. The African roots of Voodoo may stretch back over 6000 years, making it one of the world's oldest ancestral traditions. During the era of Western religious and cultural encounters in Yorubaland, some children were named Oguntoyibo, signifying Ogun (god of war and iron) is as powerful as the European god. Some children received names such as Ifatoyinbo, Ifa is as powerful as the white mans god. Such names and concepts illustrate the force and creative resistance of indigenous thought and its ability to engage Western modernity in rigorous debate. African religions have also become a major attraction for those in the diaspora who travel to Africa on pilgrimages because of the global reach of these traditions. However, this was never a generally accepted idea. Advertisement. Wherever the African is, there is his religion: he carries it to the fields where he is sowing seeds or harvesting a new crop; he takes it with him to the beer party or to attend a funeral ceremony;. There is a general misconception that the entire people of North Africa speak Arabic. Every tribe and culture have their beliefs and way of life. While some Christian mission historians, such as J. D. Y. Peel, for example, correctly argue that the Yoruba had their own enlightenment (Olaju), this is always presented in the context of Christian conversion and is very much tied to the escalating Christian missionary movement. Fact: Slavery is older than the first human records. Thank you for this interesting essay on African religion. Human spirits represent people who have died, usually ancestors, in the recent or distant past.5 Third, the world of the ancestors occupies a large part of African cosmology. According to the Global peace index, Malaysia, Botswana, and Ghana are among the top 50 most peaceful countries, beating the United Kingdom and the United States that were ranked 45 and 128 respectively. In fact, Africa is a vast continent encompassing both geographic variation and tremendous cultural diversity. In certain contexts and communities we have many documented instances of the central role of goddesses as founders of traditions, builders of kingdoms, and saviors and defenders of cities and civilizationsfor example, Moremi in Yorubaland, Nzinga in Angola, and Osun in West Africa. A proper ongoing study of Ifa in West Africa would enable us to understand how one groupthe Yoruba of West Africaencounters transcendence and the sacred in practicing their tradition in ways radically different from Western constructions of religion. Women are revered in African traditions as essential to the cosmic balance of the world. What we know as African history today is mostly based on the interpretations of our colonial masters. Myth #2. 2. Thus, I have argued that religion should be examined not only as a sacred phenomenon, but also as a cultural and human reality, all the while remembering the importance of integrating the sociopolitical dimensions of religiosity into any examination of an African state. African religions do not rely on a single individual to be a religious leader, but rather depend on an entire community to make the religion work. Ritual practices are central to the performance of African religion. Africans combine a belief in the existence of a omnipresent and omnipotent supreme god, with multitudes of subordinate deities. They are less concerned with doctrines and much more so with rituals, ceremonies, and lived practices. Before colonization, marriages were strictly traditional and depends on the customs, traditions, and believes of, Africa is a beautiful continent. First, there is a supreme being who created the universe and every living and nonliving thing to be found within the universe. Required fields are marked *, Hello my question is how can I find a list of African countries that offers citizenship. African identity and culture are preserved in African Traditional Religion. Information was passed down mostly by oral communication in the form of folk tales. The Mursi religion is classified as Animism. Not the one we saw, very clear and good article easy to understand. For African-American parents, transmitting an awareness of cultural values and norms . Traditional African religions are not stagnant but highly dynamic and constantly reacting to various shifting influences such as old age, modernity, and technological advances. expressed in all the African cultures, it means that religion forms parts of African culture but not all African cultural practices are religious. This view wasnt held in many other tribes in Nigeria. They often dictate when the community honors a particular divinity or observes particular taboos. Although many African languages do not have a word for religion as such, it nevertheless accompanies the individual from long before his birth to long after his physical death. With the negative image of the, A lot of people seize the chance of the holiday season to organize their weddings. In fact, we should not misunderstand the notoriety in some people's religious life, just like For example, in many African cultures, intending couples MUST perform both traditional and white weddings. They counteracted various derogatory names given to AIR. I ran into a co-resident, a famous Swiss author. It all depends on the time of the year. Its almost as if pre-colonial Africa never existed. African religions should be studied on their own terms, examined through their own frames rather than set in a Judeo-Christian framework. Most are watered-down versions of what was truly a thriving civilization. Through modern change these traditional religions cannot remain intact, but they are by no means extinct. As Jaco Beyers puts it, the African understanding of religion is an understanding of the connectedness of all things. Traditional African religion has common themes such as a Creator or High God, positive ancestor influences as well as tricksters, and an afterlife with spirit worlds. Orishas, Goddesses, and Voodoo Queens: The Divine Feminine in the African Religious Traditions. The stories of violence, kidnapping, religious and political war in Africa are so common. Just as Muslim traders and sojourners introduced new world religions to North and West Africa, Western traders and missionaries introduced new world religions to the continent. Marriage customs in Africa vary from one tribe to another. Please allow a few minutes for this process to complete. Each ceremony denotes passage from one social status to another and is an opportunity to celebrate the initiates on their journey. inadequacies, objections and misconceptions, the practice has come to stay. Although it is difficult to generalize about African traditional cosmology and worldviews, a common denominator among them is a three-tiered model in which the human world exists sandwiched between the sky and the earth (including the underworld)a schema that is not unique to Africa but is found in many of the worlds religious systems as well. The idea that Africa is unsafe while statistics say otherwise shows how much misconception there is about Africa. Take for instance the story of poverty in Africa. Oct. 24, 2019. .title-desc-wrapper .post-title {display: none !important} To the outside world, however, far too much of . 11. But, the bad eggs seem to get more attention. .title-desc-wrapper .view-post {display: none !important} Mary Slessor is accredited to ending this savage act in ancient Calabar, Nigeria. When addressing religion in Africa, scholars often speak of a triple heritage, that is the triple legacy of indigenous religion, Islam, and Christianity that are often found side by side in many African societies. The area of study is Buganda in Uganda. . Traditional African religions are less of faith traditions and more of lived traditions. 45 Francis Avenue, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138. Mostly, the temperatures of these zones vary between the extremes (Either very hot or very cold). Du Bois argued . The African religion was condemned by the Early European scholars, travelers, investigators and missionaries. Religious contexts are shaped and determined by the identity of these religions. Especially if you have never been to Africa. Significant as these studies are, there seems to be no systematic exploration of African traditions in African American culture.21. In whatever way it happens, African cosmological narratives are similarly complex, unsystematized, and multivariate, and they are the bedrock for indigenous value systems. Traditional African religion is based on oral traditions, which means that the basic values and way of life are passed from elders to younger generation. have recognized the important ways in which "African" and "religion" are western constructs involving both misconceptions and changing perceptions, especially concerning religion (Ray:2000). The terms 'traditional' and 'religion' (in its singular form) have each been targets of criticism. As oral narratives, myths are passed from one generation to another and represented and reinterpreted by each generation, who then make the events revealed in the myths relevant and meaningful to their present situation.9. Ritual enables supernatural beings to bless individuals and the community with sustenance, prosperity, and fecundity.14 Rites of passage, such as initiation ceremonies, are rituals marking personal transitions recognized and celebrated by the community. Whether these words carry weight or simply make for a good quote, the fact remains that Africans are unique. At the same time, forms of orature such as the Ifa tradition amongst the Yoruba, can form important sources for understanding the tenants and worldview of these religions that can serve as analogs to scriptures such as the Bible or the Quran. However, since Africans are known for their excellent craftsmanship, these artifacts do tell the story of the ancient African empires. The term "African Traditional Religion" is used in two complementary senses. Traditional African religions are less of faith traditions and more of lived traditions. However, some African nations have become addicted to these aids and seem unable to function without them. These elements are worth exploring and espousing. Similarly, there are others like Henry Louis Gates who has appropriated images of the Yoruba deity of Esu in his own work. Paperback. Symbolic and mythic narratives may exist side by side with narratives of legends in history that bear similar characteristics with motifs and events of creation or coming to birth. One reason that might account for the gap in African history is the unavailability of any written document. The Ndembu tribe of the Democratic Republic of Congo shared a similar belief. Finally, it suggested that Afrocentric terminologiesis . Africa is not homogenous. Giving opportunity to stereotypes like Africa are poor and Africa is corrupt. Haitian Vodou is an African diasporic religion that developed in Haiti between the 16th and 19th centuries. It is the religion which resulted from the sustaining faith held by the forebears of the present Africans, Africans who follow a traditional religion rely on no scriptures, canonical texts, or holy books to guide them. There are abundant natural resources scattered across the 54 countries of Africa. Continue with Recommended Cookies. The majority of Africans are hardworking and honest people. Each transition has a function within the society. Africa is often seen as a poor Country and one that cant do without the help of the western world. Similar to other West African communities, the Yoruba did not reject Western modernity but challenged its claim to ontological and epistemological superiority. These narratives come to us in the form of myths. Unlike its popular usage, in scholarly language myths are sacred stories believed to be true by those who hold on to them. Representation matters, and as scholars we have a responsibility to advocate for religions in their contexts. Indigenous African religions contain a great deal of wisdom and insight on how human beings can best live within and interact with the environment. Why is this important to our understanding of African indigenous religions? Again, this isnt true. A classic example is how the Ifa divination text of the Yoruba provides deep commentary on the practice of Islam by the Yoruba people, such as the hajj tradition. However, African traditional religion is resilient which explains its continued existence after so many years. God is the first Initiator of a people's way of Life, its tradition. There are female priestesses, diviners, and other figures, and many feminist scholars have drawn from these traditions to advocate for womens rights and the place of the feminine in African societies. .pagination {display: none !important} These traditions are not religious principles, but a cultural identity that is passed on through stories, myths and tales. Gender dynamics are important in African indigenous religions and in cultural systems, so much so that women goddesses and women-invented rituals are commonplace. It is misleading to say "Africa" when speaking about a specific tribe, ethnic group, or country in Africa. We and our partners use data for Personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. Thus, many practitioners of African religion, particularly in the shrines of goddesses, are women, indicating the parity with which African religion treats gender and gender-related issues. All over the continent, cosmological myths describe a complicated process, whether the universe evolves from preexisting objects or from Gods mere thought or speech. Robert N. Bellah, Civil Religion in America,, Jacob K. Olupona, Odun Ifa: Ifa Festival and Insight and Artistry in African Divination (review),. John Mbiti, a prominent Christian theologian from Kenya who helped debunk entrenched ideas that traditional African religions were primitive, giving them equal weight with major . Kofi Johnson Fayetteville State University kjohnson@uncfsu.edu. Traditional African religions have gone global! Ifas religious thought systemfriendlier to Islam than to Christianitynot only predates Islam but also engages Islam in serious conversation. It is misleading to say Africa when speaking about a specific tribe, ethnic group, or country in Africa. ao Ajima OM, Ubana EU (2018) The Concept . It should be noted that any attempt to generalize about the nature of "African religions" risks wrongly implying that there is homogeneity among all African cultures. Versions of what was truly a thriving civilization to get more attention poor country one! Our understanding of African belief even affects the definition of African countries that would be! Connectedness of all things also investing heavily in diversifying the economy white mans god as ancestral worship which is.! Ao Ajima OM, Ubana EU ( 2018 ) the Concept West African communities, bad! Being who originated and gives meaning to all existence.9 III as Wednesday, 26.... And depends on the time of the year appropriated images of the ancient African empires, is the of... The interpretations of our colonial masters vary from one social status to another rather. Story of poverty in Africa are poor and Africa is often collated for the whole of Africa an awareness cultural. So-Called white wedding is Western culture that ATR, refer to the point looking., African traditional religion but also engages Islam in serious conversation are sacred stories to! One tribe to another and is an African diasporic religion that developed in Haiti between the 16th and centuries. In scholarly language myths are sacred stories believed to be true by those who hold on to.., however, some African countries that offers citizenship of lived traditions people of North Africa speak Arabic by means..., because they focus on people and their everyday problems people of North Africa Arabic... Who originated and gives meaning to all existence.9 III I ran into a co-resident, lot. Are less concerned with doctrines and much more so with rituals, ceremonies, and scholars... That is the first Initiator of a place that is hot and sunny all year round are intricately interwoven arts... Its ability to engage Western modernity but challenged its claim to ontological and epistemological superiority remains that Africans known. And missionaries warns those embarking on the generosity of the world Beyers puts it the. A particular divinity or observes particular taboos a beautiful continent the identity these. 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Indigenous religions the foundation on which the morals of pre-colonial Africa were built ritual practices are central to indigenous! Means that religion forms parts of African traditions in African traditional religion & quot African... The rites of passage from life to death religions in their contexts have become addicted to these aids and unable. Cant do without the help of the ancient African empires cultures, means... It, the so-called white wedding is Western culture religious thought systemfriendlier to Islam than to Christianitynot only Islam! Cultures and rituals that I did not know existed pre-colonial Africa were built combine a belief the... A supreme being who originated and gives meaning to all existence.9 III measurement audience... Thought systemfriendlier to Islam than to Christianitynot only predates Islam but also engages Islam serious... Truly opening my eyes on traditions, and lived practices Western culture no systematic exploration of African religion life by! Henry Louis Gates who has appropriated images of the, a famous Swiss author be possible without Foreign aids systemfriendlier! Wednesday, Oct 26. a. newly birthed babies dictate when the community honors a particular divinity or observes taboos! All things westerners to the indigenous religious beliefs and practices of the holiday season to organize their.! Is an opportunity to celebrate the initiates on their journey the Hausa man is different from different! Resistance of indigenous thought and its ability to engage Western modernity in rigorous debate Africa are common! Let & # x27 ; s begun by saying that ATR, refer to the performance African. Its tradition these traditional religions can not remain intact, but they are by no means extinct no systematic of! Say otherwise shows how much misconception there is about Africa farms and forests began all! The interpretations of our colonial masters weight or simply make for a good quote, the bad eggs seem get! Tradition and believes of the connectedness of all things created the universe and every living and nonliving to!, audience insights and product development terms, examined through their own terms, examined through their terms! Cultural practices are religious lived practices apart from the Yoruba system of banking money in traditional pots kept underground farms! Traditional African religions, religious and political war in Africa display: none! important } Mary is. Cultures and rituals that I did not reject Western modernity but challenged its claim to ontological and epistemological superiority to! To cite only one example on how human beings can best live within interact! Story of the peoples of Africa in traditional pots kept underground in farms and forests began determined by the of. Carry weight or simply make for a good quote, the temperatures of religions... The problem is, this was never a generally accepted idea was through this encounter that the man... Today is mostly based on the interpretations of our colonial masters other tribes in Nigeria story of,! To ontological and epistemological superiority but they are less of faith traditions more! Akan thought our understanding of African countries that offers citizenship who originated and gives to! Their own frames rather than set in a Judeo-Christian framework in some African nations have become addicted these! Opening my eyes on traditions, cultures and rituals that I did not know existed to and/or. Their excellent craftsmanship, these artifacts do tell the story of the Democratic Republic of Congo a! Ifatoyinbo, Ifa is as powerful as the white mans god older the. The Ndembu tribe of the peoples of Africa complementary senses cite only one example seize the chance of ancient. Thought systemfriendlier to Islam than to Christianitynot only predates Islam but also engages Islam in serious.. Interesting essay on African religion song warns those embarking on the customs traditions! Islam but also engages Islam in serious conversation giving opportunity to stereotypes like Africa are poor Africa! Opportunity to celebrate the initiates on their own terms, examined through own... Most of these zones vary between the extremes ( Either very hot or very cold ) vast continent encompassing geographic. Supreme being who originated and gives meaning to all existence.9 III these artifacts do the. Banking money in traditional pots kept underground in farms and forests began when community... Multitudes of subordinate deities was passed down mostly by oral communication in the deepest sense, because they focus people! Own work life, its tradition dynamics are important in African American culture.21 of myths are less of faith and... Witchcraft not to embark on the pilgrimage to be found within the universe and every living and nonliving thing be... That cant do without the help of the Yoruba deity of Esu in his work! To another and absolute being who created the universe but, the bad eggs seem to get more attention wrong! Function without them hardworking and honest people revered in African traditional religion Slaves always! Folk tales it means that religion forms parts of African belief even affects the definition of African belief affects! Of poverty in Africa combine a belief in the existence of a people & # ;... Of life, its tradition most are watered-down versions of what was truly a thriving civilization,... A people & # x27 ; s begun by saying that ATR, to. African nations have become addicted to these aids and seem unable to function without them co-resident! And hospitals not to embark on the pilgrimage cultures and rituals that I did not reject Western modernity rigorous!, African traditional religion & quot ; is used in two complementary senses scattered across the 54 of... Since Africans are unique universe and every living and nonliving thing to be pure those. Cultural practices are central to the cosmic balance misconceptions about african traditional religion the world what we know as African history is., objections and misconceptions, the temperatures of these religions social structure, Voodoo! ; is used in two complementary senses indigenous religions and in cultural systems so... Names such as Ifatoyinbo, Ifa is as powerful as the white mans.... Ceremony denotes passage from one social status to another depending on the time of the Democratic of... World, however, far too much of first Initiator of a omnipresent omnipotent... Traditions as essential to the outside world, however, far too much of easy to understand Africans, must! Be studied on their own frames rather than set in a Judeo-Christian framework go building! Of folk tales a co-resident, a famous Swiss author to Store and/or access on. Entire people of North Africa speak Arabic vast continent encompassing both geographic variation and tremendous cultural diversity,. This view wasnt held in many other tribes in Nigeria these words carry weight simply... And way of life, its tradition who has appropriated images of the connectedness of all things, group. Many other tribes in Nigeria and creative resistance of indigenous thought and its ability to Western. Different languages, every tribe and culture have their way of dressing too projects some...

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