A critical analysis on African Traditional Religion and the Trinity

Abstract

To what extent do the resources of African Traditional Religion (ATR) contribute towards Christian theological discourse and benefit the African church? ATR is accommodated in the African Initiated Churches (AICs). The members of these churches aim to be Christian without losing their African identity. ATR is a religion that was practised throughout Africa before the arrival of the Western missionaries. The core premise of ATR is the maintenance of African culture and its main feature is loyalty to the ancestors and the accompanying rituals that express this loyalty. This study addresses the appropriateness of ATR’s resources in terms of their contribution to the doctrine of the Trinity. When the early church worshipped God the Father and God the Son (Jesus) in the presence of the Holy Spirit, a tension developed. The questions of monotheism versus polytheism and the nature and position of Jesus within the Trinity were put forward and addressed. The doctrine of the Trinity is uniquely Christian and includes the belief in Jesus Christ as the Son of God who alone mediates between God and men. There is, on the other hand, an understanding that Africans worship one Supreme Being and venerate ancestors as intermediaries to the one Supreme Being, without clear roles being ascribed to Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. This article enquires whether the process of Africanisation and contextualisation consciously or unconsciously downgraded Jesus Christ as Mediator who came to reveal who God is and to reconcile humankind to him

Animals and African Ethics

“…Yet, not only are there certain parallels between the various myths (for example, human disobedience and recklessness, and God's subsequent displeasure or even anger), but there are also some interesting commonalities between the various African religions. One of these is the hierarchy of beings, with God 11 at the apex, and then at different levels below, the ancestors ( amadlozi ) 12 or 'living-dead' ( abaphansi ), then human beings ( bantu ; singular: muntu ), and finally the rest of animate and inanimate creation, including animals ( isilwane ) (see Mkhize 2008: 35-37 andManganyi &Buitendag 2013).…”

“When I am with my husband, I do not feel mosquito bite”

“…Therefore, the father's spirit serves as a protection for the child (Akwabi-Ameyaw, 1982). This ideology is very strong amongst people in some communities in Ghana in particular, as well as other African countries (Mangany and Buitendag, 2013). This phenomenon could encourage people to either accept or reject certain orthodox medical interventions.…”

Reflections on accessing indigenous research settings: Encounters with traditional health practitioners and leaders in Vhembe district, South Africa

“…The negative opinion about THPs as narrated by Mokgobi (2014) was bracketed to allow learning through storytelling be experienced. Manganyi and Buitendag (2013) assert that the negativity on THPs, cultural beliefs and practices was linked to some western belief that in Africa, there was no religion before Christianity which is more associated with biomedical practices. Similarly in China and India there was no cooperation between the allopathic and THPs because they did not trust each other (Abdullah, 2011).…”