Traditional African approaches in the light of natural values, and of modern secular attitude If we are going to speak of traditional African concepts and customs regarding marriage and the family, a few clarifications are called for. In a nutshell, traditional African religion is part and parcel of culture in Africa. And we agree with Professor Idowu that the purpose of the study should be: However, In the African traditional religions, ancestors were never considered demonic or as part of evil spirits (2007;383). on account of the persistent marginalisation of African Traditional Religion (ATR) in Sierra Leone by Islam and Christianity, to investigate the place of ATR in inter-religious encounters in the country since the advent of Islam and Christianity. Traditional African religion is a way of life in which ancestors are part and parcel of every major or minor event such as wedding, births and deaths as well as fetching firewood. Faso more than 33 percent follow African religion, although it is not the religion of the majority. They provided food and traditional medicine to the fighters. civilization in the traditional days. The Cosmos Traditional Africans believe that the cosmos was created by a Supreme Being, God. They counteracted various derogatory names given to AIR. African identity and culture are preserved in African Traditional Religion. The best interpreter of African Religion is the African with a disciplined mind and the requisite technical tools. differs in African countries was mentioned. Mugambi, 1995). Religion and culture as powerful institutions within society play a major role in shaping gender roles and perpetuating gender inequality and are powerful institutions within society. KEY WORDS: pregnancy, birth rites, naming rites, puberty rites, ritual For many Africans and Ghanaians, in particular, it is religion more than anything else that shapes their worldview and participation in social life6. <>>> 3 0 obj African Traditional Religion (ATR) or African Religion in this paper gave meaning and a sense of purpose to all aspects of thought and action (cf. The traditional African understanding and the interpretation of Christianity have deep roots in these fundamental beliefs of the African traditional religions. The African traditional John S. Mbiti, in his book Introduction to African Religion (1977: 63-66) argues that, “in African societies sacrifice was very common and that most, involved shedding of blood of a human being or an animal.” He adds that in African societies, life is closely associated with blood. %PDF-1.4 9�2��#�Lf�R�sNwԬ��vҬ�0;aD�a��(��-{�pSkD�:w9t�!�M1̀ s��)�Ű!�!�O��J�a��"���0Ɯ�p>�)����a&L��DA�L�� =H�eP+g �T���m��0Δ�`-���`X+Z�&E0"Vo�I��Ma�T���fs'��gr�j�i� K�]/>�Ĭ��W�`Kȕ�{�䊨�4{��:�}���* ?a ��p ?��wUu�U���of�y ����:���ά���N�S���>~��ŏ~3���?��ӗ��˅��O��~����޸�����7��eYeß�iv�֧y��dOo�����׮��;,�����n��/�_]����ˇWC7���i�GW�C�k=L�������ܩy4�땾H�'WK���������tv^�t��U��j��B�?-�>��+Q���a���>��oeX��5x�J�]�؉6x��Ҧ���Y��LK�U���a� � Furthermore, gender relations within the religious and cultural communities are a reflection of gender relations within broader society. Culture is part of the African indigenous Religion. This is what made scholars such as Mbiti (1969,p.1), Parrinder (1954,p.9) and Mugambi (1995) conclude … ;�;m��έ�]����mB��"�D��T�S���U���D��[�뻨j�*�3l�� �D{��k���7��@tB����0�cg]�������Er�+�e��)džs�k��f6cƃRU�iu��,Wdm�lA���ִ��#���OLs8�1��/‰��#����q��s� �v(a���6�l�A�`O/H�vX��*���3��S����О�ME_�q����v�&oM����m?�{���{��ў��nˠ� As in most of sub-Saharan Africa, ATR is the indigenous religion … %PDF-1.5 ... 2 E. B. Idowu, African Traditional Religion, S.C.M., 1973, p.87. The major aim of this book is to present the relevance of culture to Africans in the modern era. It deals with their cosmology, ritual practices, symbols, arts, society and so on.because religion is a way of life, it relates to culture and society as they affect the worldview of the African people. ;d�'e$I X=��2.��s�4������FEE�,�a�O��Px�_D"��{�FĤLV��p��Ȭ�0||�m�J�>Xg#�Z�0U{7k�� �D����+ApldJZpj���b�yj̓~��r� l�K��n�w�z�f�z�n�!�31���~N�^�>���@�I8O]�ɺw#H��_�U�z� r/��ڂVȤ��/$HQ�5�x{�ٶ��|�GÅ�l����b�DG8�"��M��N�2��b�>����p?�EnT��O African Traditional Religion cannot easily be studied by non-Africans. Arguably, women’s experiences of being in the world and their aspirations to transcend the world of men are reflected in the Mwari religion despite the tendency in earlier studies to deal with the religion … Rosalind J. Hackett as a guest-editor has been responsible for those pages. African traditional religion refers to the indigenous or autochthonous religions of the African people. In another chapter, puberty rites were mentioned as another rites of passage. Generally, these traditions are oral rather than scriptural and passed down from one generation to another through folk tales, songs and festivals, include belief in an amount of higher and lower gods, sometimes including a supreme creator or force, belief in spirits, veneration of the dead, use of magic and traditional African medic Even thoughmorality is the subject matter of ethics, it is most often usedinterchangeably with ‘ethics’. It deals with their cosmology, ritual practices, symbols, arts, society, and so on. 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. 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