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Kenan, John Sarauta. "The worship of God in African traditional religion : a Nigerian perspective." Master's thesis, University of Cape Town, 1997. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/17492.
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Bibliography: pages 89-92.To date numerous works in the African traditional religion have appeared In this devoted to the description of field many have been particular religion phenomena, while some have attempted to refute the beliefs and practices of the religion. But examining the effort of various investigators who have grappled with this task, one has the impression that they may have overlooked something. This something is bringing together the beliefs and practices of African traditional religion to form the worships in other world religions. It can be said the worship of God in Africa traditional religion is the very soul of African religion. This study attempts and examines what some scholars have written about African traditional religion, its beliefs and practices, and brought it together to form what may be called the worship of God in the religion. In constructing the purpose of this study, many writers have been used. Here the writer would like to mention some scholars by name, because much of their material have been constantly used. Such scholars as John S. Mbiti, Geoffrey Parrinder and Emmanuel, Bolaji Idowu. These writers recorded careful observation of African traditional religion, its beliefs and practices. This provides useful insights into the worship of God in the religion. In achieving the study, the problem of ancestor-worship has been discussed, although a final conclusion has not been reached, because it is an ongoing debate. The practices and believes have been discussed as the starting point of the worship in religion. The study observed particular practices which constitute the worship. These includes: sacrifice, offering, prayer and the religious leaders who performed the worship. To make what constitutes the worship complete, the spiritual aspect of it has also been discussed. At the end of the study, some suggestions and recommendations have been made so as to stimulate and motivate the African students undertaking the studies of African traditional religion. It is also a challenge to the students who are studying African theology.
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Affum, John Badu. "Images of God examining and expanding formatee's images of God, images that challenge but also fit our particular milieu, a Ghanaian perspective /." Chicago, IL : Catholic Theological Union at Chicago, 2008. http://dx.doi.org/10.2986/tren.033-0853.
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Coats, Heather, Janice D. Crist, Ann Berger, Esther Sternberg, and Anne G. Rosenfeld. "African American Elders’ Serious Illness Experiences: Narratives of "God Did," "God Will," and "Life Is Better"." SAGE PUBLICATIONS INC, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/623518.
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The foundation of culturally sensitive patient-centered palliative care is formed from one's social, spiritual, psychological, and physical experiences of serious illness. The purpose of this study was to describe categories and patterns of psychological, social, and spiritual healing from the perspectives of aging seriously ill African American (AA) elders. Using narrative analysis methodology, 13 open-ended interviews were collected. Three main patterns were prior experiences, I changed, and across past, present experiences and future expectations. Themes were categorized within each pattern: been through it . . . made me strong, I thought about . . . others, went down little hills . . . got me down, I grew stronger, changed priorities, do things I never would have done, quit doing, God did and will take care of me, close-knit relationships, and life is better. Faith in God helped the aging seriously ill AA elders overcome things, whether their current illness or other life difficulties.
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Omotoso, Andrew A. "Middle Schoolers' Attachment to God at Harmony Christian School, South Africa." Thesis, Nyack College, Alliance Theological Seminary, 2018. http://pqdtopen.proquest.com/#viewpdf?dispub=10830182.
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Harmony Christian School in Rustenburg, South Africa is a missionary outreach program of Bethel Gospel Assembly, Inc., New York. The school was founded in 2006 to educate learners and develop in them a close attachment with God even as they attained high academic standard in their school work. However, while there were established measures of academic progress from grade to grade, there was no comparable measure of the spiritual growth of the students in terms of how closely they were attached to God in their relationship as a result of their exposure to consistent Bible Study. The Researcher thus created an intervention study using the Attachment to God Inventory to measure the level of attachment of the adolescent learners to God in the school. The study did show that there was an attachment relationship between the learners and God. The study also showed that as a result of their consistent exposure to Bible study, there was a shift to a closer attachment to God. The level of the shift was minimal but statistically significant at a low level of confidence. The study then offered ministry recommendations.
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Holmgren, E. Henry. "Signs and wonders in Africa a biblical perspective in interaction with western missions, African independent churches and African traditional religion, with particular reference to Zambia /." Theological Research Exchange Network (TREN), 1989. http://www.tren.com.
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Ofosuhene, Godwin Kwame. "The concept of God in the traditional religion of the Akan and Ewe ethnic groups compared the Bible /." Berlin : Viademica, 2006. http://deposit.d-nb.de/cgi-bin/dokserv?id=2841159&prov=M&dok_var=1&dok_ext=htm.
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Claridy, Keith Robert. ""'Bring God to the Negro, Bring the Negro to God': Thomas Joseph Toolen, Archbishop of Mobile (1927-1969), his culture, his religion, and his mission /." Auburn, Ala., 2006. http://repo.lib.auburn.edu/2006%20Spring/master's/CLARIDY_KEITH_41.pdf.
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Hall, Delroy. ""But God meant it for good" : inter-personal conflict in an African Caribbean Pentecostal congregation : a pastoral study." Thesis, University of Birmingham, 2013. http://etheses.bham.ac.uk//id/eprint/4647/.
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This thesis examines conflict within a UK Black Majority Church. It uses personal observation and journals, with the work of academic historians of the Black churches, to establish that Black Majority Churches have a tendency to conflict that is usually unacknowledged yet often pervasive and damaging. The thesis locates this within a Black cultural history (almost entirely untold in the academy until after the present author’s schooling ended) that involves deep-seated past causes for present conflict among post-colonial Christians. The thesis then proposes a model for the pastoral analysis, practical management, and spiritual resolution of conflict. The key methods for this (drawing on psychology and counselling as well as theology) are autoethnography, transpersonal analysis and pastoral journal records. The final stage of the pastoral model is resolution by scriptural teaching and active faith in the Holy Spirit; key passages of scripture show that conflict has been crucible for making Christianity, and has often been integral to the discovery and transmission of God’s word. Finally, the thesis offers a training plan for Pastors in the CoGoP – a plan combining the practicalities of work in that church with the historical and theological conclusions drawn from the present academic research.
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Munyai, Alidzulwi Simon. "Understanding the Christian message in Venda a study of the traditional concepts of God and of life hereafter among the Venda, with reference to the impact of these concepts on the Christian churches /." Pretoria : [S.n.], 2007. http://upetd.up.ac.za/thesis/available/etd-01082009-161905/.
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Kamau, Teddy Njoroge. "The foundation of the African idea of God a philosophical analysis and critique from a Chrisitan perspective /." Theological Research Exchange Network (TREN), 1994. http://www.tren.com.
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Kombo, James Henry Owino. "The doctrine of God in African Christian thought : an assessment of African inculturation theology from a trinitarian perspective." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2000. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/51962.
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Thesis (DTh)--Stellenbosch University, 2000ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Christian faith knows and worships one God known in the Son and in the Holy Spirit. In his revelation, the Father is depicted as being from Himself, the Son as eternally begotten from the Father and the Holy Spirit as eternally proceeding from the Father and the Son. This is what Christian thought means by the doctrine of the Trinity. Although Christian orthodoxy holds the doctrine of the Trinity, the intellectual tools used to capture and convey it vary depending on the epoch, cultural context as well as availability of alternative intellectual images. This point is demonstrated well in Western Christianity. Western theologies exhibit three models of the doctrine of the Trinity: 'God as Essence', 'God as an absolute Subject', and 'God as Community in Unity'. These models can be explained by the influence of specific philosophical presuppositions preferred in certain contexts and at certain times. 'God as Essence' is constructed from the point of view of neo-Platonism, 'God as an absolute Subject' uses the infrastructure of German Idealism, while 'God as Community in Unity' recovers and applies the conceptual tools of the second-century Greeks. Taking note of the theological methodology of Western Christianity and recognising the intellectual resources in the African heritage, African inculturation theology has argued for the use of the conceptual framework of African peoples in the development of theology for African audiences. In an attempt to make a statement to the effect that African Negroes are not neo-Platonists, German Idealists or the Greeks of the second century, and to demonstrate that the African Negroes do have a different ontology that can be deciphered, interpreted, and systematized in one common way, African inculturation theology has posited a simple identity between the African notions of God and God known in the Christian faith. This research assesses and finds inadequate the notion of a simple identity between the African concepts of God and the Christian understanding of God. In view of this it appeals to African inculturation theology to critically and creatively deal with the African Christians' understanding of God. This call means at least two things. Firstly, Nyasaye, Mulungu, Modimo and so on are to function as the conceptual gates for the Christian view of God. This calls for 'Christianisation' of the African notions of God. Secondly, a 'Christianised' Nyasaye, for example, must for the Luo people mean God known in the Son and the Holy Spirit. The 'Christianised' Nyasaye must then make use of native metaphysics for the purpose of indigenising or grounding it in the cultural milieu of the situation of reception. To achieve this goal, this research has located and proposed the NTU metaphysics, which is used widely by African Negroes. According to this metaphysics, God is not just a static 'substance', an authoritarian 'absolute Subject', or a mere relationship; God is 'Great Muntu'. The Son is God because he derives wholly from the whole NTU of the only 'Great Muntu'. The Holy Spirit is God because he has the NTU shared by both the 'Great Muntu' and the Son. The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are persons because the 'genuine muntu' in them is the 'Great Muntu', who alone is the ultimate person. Thus the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are persons in the ultimate sense.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die Christelike geloof ken en aanbid een God in die Seun deur die Heilige Gees. In sy openbaring leer ons die Vader ken as synde uit Homself, die Seun as van ewigheidheid verwek deur Vader, en die Heilige Gees as van ewigheid uitgaande van die Vader en die Seun. Dit is wat die Christelike geloof bedoel met die leer van die Triniteit. Alhoewel die Christlike ortodoksie gekenmerk word deur die leer van die Triniteit, varieer die intellectuele vorm wat dit aanneem en waarin dit oorgedra word afhangende van die tydperk, kulturele konteks sowel as die beskikbaarheid van altematiewe intellektuele aparatuur. Laasgenoemde kom duidelik na vore in die geskiedenis van die Westerse Christenheid. In die geskiedenis van die Westerse teologie vertoon die leer van die Triniteit drie gestaltes nl. 'God as Essensie', 'God as absolute Subjek', en 'God as Gemeenskaap in Eenheid'. Dit hou verband met die voorkeur vir spesifieke filisofiese voorverondersellings in sekere kontekste en tye. 'God as Essensie' is die resultaat van neo-Platoniese voorveronderstellings, 'God as absolute Subjek' dra die kenmerke van die Duitse Idealisme, terwyl 'God as Gemeenskap in Eenheid' terggryp op en gebruikmaak van die konseptuele aparatuur uit die Griekse denke van tweede eeu. Na aanleiding van die teologiese metode van die Westerse Christendom en met erkenning van die intellectuele moontlikhede van die Afrika erfenis, argurnenteer die Afrika inkulturasie teologie ten gunste van die gebruik van Afrika konsepte vir die ontwikkeling van 'n teologie vir Afrika. In 'n poging om die eie en gemeenskaplike aard van die ontologie van Afrika in onderskeid van die neo-Platoniste, Duitse Idealiste en Griekse filosofie van die tweede eeu, aan te toon, het die Afrika inkulturasie teologie op 'n simplistiese wyse 'n identeit tussen Afrika Godsbeelde en die God van die Christelike geloof geponeer. In hierde navorsing word hierde identifikasie beoordeel en van die hand gewys. Derhalwe word 'n appel gemaak op die Afrika inkulturasie teologie om krities-kreatief om te gaan met die Afrika Christene se verstaan van God. Hierde oproep het ten minste twee implikasies. In die eerste plek moet Nyasaye, Mulungu, Modimo, ens. dien as konseptuele poorte vir die Christlike Godsverstaan. Dit impliseer 'n 'Christianisering' van die Afrika Godsbeelde. Tweedens bring dit mee dat 'n 'gechristianiseerde' Nyasaye by voorbeeld, vir Luo volk impliseer dat God geken word in die Seun en die Heilige Gees. Vervolgens moet gebruik gemaak word van inheemse metafisika met die oop op die verinheemsing of fundering van hierdie 'gechristianiseerde' Nyasaye in die kulturele milieu van die resepsie gemeenskap. Om hierdie doel te bereik, word in hierde studie gebruik gemaak van die NTU metafisika, wat algemen in Afrika voorkom. Volgens hierde metafisika is God nie net 'n statiese 'substansie', n' outoritere 'absolute Subject' of 'n blote relasie nie, maar God is die 'Groot Muntu'. Die Seun is God omdat Hy volkome uitgaan uit die totale NTU van die enigste 'Groot Muntu'. Die Heilige Gees is God omdat Hy die NTU het wat die 'Groot Muntu' en die Seun gemeenskaplik besit. Die Vader, die Seun en die Heilige Gees is persone omdat die 'egte muntu' in hulle die 'Groot Muntu' is, wat allen die absolute persoon is. Derhalwe is Vader, Seun en Heilige Gees persone in absolute sin.
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Hounguevou, Barnabé. ""Mi Na Kpa Glagla Nu Aklunon: We will Lend a Hand To God”: Challenges and Opportunities of Double Religious Belonging in Benin and Nigeria." Thesis, Boston College, 2021. http://hdl.handle.net/2345/bc-ir:109187.
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Thesis advisor: Catherine CornilleThesis advisor: Margaret Guider
Thesis (STL) — Boston College, 2021
Submitted to: Boston College. School of Theology and Ministry
Discipline: Sacred Theology
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Willis, Lynyetta Gittens. "African American Baptist Church Community: Influence of SocioCultural Factors on Faith Development." Digital Archive @ GSU, 2007. http://digitalarchive.gsu.edu/cps_diss/11.
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When describing faith development, established models often fail to incorporate the effects of an individual’s sociocultural context and control for additional dimensions of their identity such as ethnicity, gender and religious denomination (Mattis, 2001; Myers, 1991; Willis, 2005). This study involved 18 African American women and men between the ages of twenty and seventy-seven who identified as Baptist Church goers within the Southeastern region of the United States. A mixed methods design informed by interpretive and emerging social network paradigms was used (Hanson, 2005; LeCompte & Schensul, 1999). There were two phases of this study. Within phase one, twelve participants completed one semi-structured interview and the Optimal Theory and Identity Development-Revised (OTAID-R) instrument (Haggins, 1996) which was designed to evaluate identity development along multiple dimensions, including spirituality. Within phase two, six participants took part in a follow-up focus group to validate the emergent themes. Grounded theory was used to analyze the data (Strauss & Corbin, 1998). A circular socioculturally informed model of faith development was devised. The current model was most congruent with African centered models of faith development and revealed non-linear process of faith development. The OTAID-R survey was not significantly correlated with the age of the participants. Implications for research and practice include the importance of considering sociocultual context and experience when conceptualizing developmental processes within a culturally informed framework.
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Moore, Travis James. "Article 1- "God will Glorify Your Marriage": Marital Satisfaction and Relational Spirituality in Religious Black Couples Article 2- "A Godly Man": A Qualitative Exploration of the Influence of Religion on Black Masculinity and Fatherhood." BYU ScholarsArchive, 2018. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/7445.
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Research suggest that Black couples tend to marry later, with less frequency, have marriages that do not last as long, and are more prone to divorce than other racial categories. However, religion may play an important role to counteract the negative marriage trends among Black heterosexual couples. As a growing subfield of family psychology this study examines the influence of religion on marital sanctification and relational spirituality among 33 Black married couples (N = 66). In-depth qualitative interviews with Black married couples were analyzed to see how religion informed and shaped perceptions of marital sanctification as well as unique relational domains of relational spirituality. Major findings indicate that religious and spiritual beliefs, practices, and communities helped to form a perceptual framework that marriage was holy and sacred. Findings about marital sanctification suggested that religious couples may view their marriage as sacred or holy in four distinct ways: a) God-given; b) God-ordained; c) God-created; and, d) God-inspired. These perceptions of marriage a sacred institution seemed to influence four relational domains of relational spirituality by: a) creating a religiously-inspired goal-oriented perspective for partner or mate selection; b) encouraging a sense of sacred permanence to the relationship; c) fostering a willingness to sacrifice for one's relationship; and, d) evoking a pattern of religious and spiritual relational maintenance within the context of marriage. Marital sanctification was associated with increase in relational spirituality. Likewise, relational spirituality seemed to perpetuate an increase in marital sanctification. Thus, suggesting the potential for positive bi-directionality between marital sanctification and relational spirituality that may foster increased marital satisfaction, quality, and commitment and may also serve as a potential buffer against divorce among Black religious couples. Additional subthemes of marital sanctification and relational spirituality were also discussed as well as limitations of this study and suggestions for future research.Contemporary societal and media portrayals of Black masculinity and fatherhood often give a limited, or potentially negative view of manhood, and/or parenthood among Black males. Black American males are often represented and lauded as sports stars and rappers or marginalized as gangsters and deadbeat dads. The present study seeks to expand the paradigm of Black masculinity and fatherhood and provide a potentially positive, more expansive view of Black males in the success frame of religion and family life. In depth qualitative interview data was analyzed from a subsection of the American Families of Faith Dataset involving 33 religious Black couples (N = 66) from different religious backgrounds (Muslim and Christian) across the United States. Major findings identified two psychological processes that seemed to suggest a religious and family-oriented success frame for defining masculinity and manliness. Participants described undergoing a process of personal spiritual growth and maturity in which individuals left behind the "street life" mentality, in favor of becoming a "Godly man." This process was positively connected with the process of religious or spiritual masculine-identity transformation in which manhood was defined in terms of being relational with God and family, rather than the "bachelor mindset" or "single life" which suggested a relationally isolated view of masculinity. Implications, applications, limitations, and future directions for research were also discussed.
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McCormick, Philip Anthony. "“ONE GOD, ONE AIM, ONE DESTINY”: THE RELIGIOUS RESPONSE TO COLONIAL POWER IN THE UNITED IN THE EARLY TWENTIETH CENTURY." Miami University / OhioLINK, 2011. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=miami1295013682.
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Norman, Emma. "Didn’t My Lord Deliver Daniel? An’ Why Not Every Man? Black Theodicy in the Antebellum United States and the Problem of the Demonic God." Scholarship @ Claremont, 2010. http://scholarship.claremont.edu/pitzer_theses/3.
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Introduction Didn't My Lord Deliver Daniel? An' Why Not Every Man: Black Theodicy in the Antebellum United States and the Problem of the Demonic God is an ambitious attempt to construct a coherent narrative that spans many centuries and connect numerous historical persons and figures in recent scholarship. I set out to understand how an enslaved person could have faith in the goodness of god despite their oppressed condition. I learned that most enslaved Africans first encountered Christianity when they became the “property” of Christians. Then, in a revolutionarily creative move, the Black community re-signified Christianity from a religious system synonymous with oppression to a theology of liberation. The Black community claimed they knew the real Christ, embodied by Jesus, the suffering servant. They discovered an intimate spiritual connection with the Children of Israel, delivered from slavery by the grace of God. Black people of the Christian faith created thousands of Spirituals lamenting their suffering and celebrating the promise of a liberated future on Earth and in God's heaven. Not everyone accepted Christianity, however. Many enslaved or otherwise oppressed people found much to be cynical of in those who claimed to be Godly; corruption, hypocrisy, violence, inhumanity. These skeptical voices speak to us through Slave Narratives and records of preachers who documented a certain humanistic doubt in the antebellum Black community. The lyrics of the Seculars, non-theistic music produced at the same time as the Spirituals, express humor and irony in reaction to the absurd nature of life as experienced by a Black person during slavery. I went on to explore contemporary critiques of the emancipative potential of theodicy, ending up mostly won over
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Mills, Kamara Carol V. "Do No Harm?Trauma-Informed Lens for Trauma-Informed Ministry| A Study of the Impact of the Helping Churches in Trauma Awareness Workshop (HCTAW) on Trauma Awareness among predominantly African- and Caribbean-American leaders in Church of God 7th Day churches in the Bronx and Brooklyn, New York." Thesis, Nyack College, Alliance Theological Seminary, 2017. http://pqdtopen.proquest.com/#viewpdf?dispub=10275904.
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The aim of this dissertation, Do No Harm: Trauma-Informed Lens for Trauma-Informed Ministry: A study of the Impact of the Helping Churches in Trauma Awareness Workshop (HC-TAW) on Trauma Awareness Among Predominantly African- and Caribbean-American leaders in Church of God 7th Day churches in the Bronx and Brooklyn, New York, is to conduct an experimental study assessing whether HC-TAW is an effective intervention to increase trauma awareness among participating leaders?pastors and lay leaders. The study used a trauma-informed quiz as a pretest to measure trauma awareness of 41 participants (participants from churches in the two experimental groups)) prior to participation in HC-TAW. The same trauma-informed quiz was given to participants as a posttest to assess whether change in levels of trauma awareness occurred. A control group of 10 participants also completed the trauma-informed quiz but did not participate in HC-TAW. Chapter 1 develops the purpose, goal, ministry context, and general scope of this study. Chapter 2 provides a review of germane literature related to the need for trauma awareness, nature and impact of psychological trauma, healing trauma, the fundamental elements of trauma-informed care (TIC)/trauma-informed ministry (TIM), and biblical and theological literature advocating for trauma-informed ministry. Chapter 3 sets forth the research methodology utilized in recruiting and selecting participants, description of instrument used to collect and measure data, and a description of how the intervention was executed. Chapter 4 presents an analysis of the findings. Chapter 5 assesses the data and points to strategies for areas of further research of trauma awareness among leaders in the Church of God 7th Day and leaders in other denominations or faith-based organizations.
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Fiorotti, Silas André. "A Igreja Universal e o espírito da palhota: análise dos discursos \'religiosos\' e \'políticos\' da Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus (IURD) no sul de Moçambique." Universidade de São Paulo, 2018. http://www.teses.usp.br/teses/disponiveis/8/8134/tde-17092018-145126/.
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O estudo analisa alguns discursos da Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus (IURD) no sul de Moçambique e problematiza os diálogos desta igreja com aspectos de diferentes contextos religiosos e com o poder político. A inspiração teórica está nos autores que apontaram as implicações políticas de diversas práticas religiosas e dos discursos sobre feitiçaria em contextos africanos (P. Geschiere, H. G. West, e outros) e nos autores que apontaram as dificuldades para designar algo como estritamente político ou estritamente religioso (T. Asad, e outros). Neste sentido, o estudo não partiu de uma definição de religião, mas busca identificar o lugar que a religião ocupou e ocupa em Moçambique. Além da utilização de fontes secundárias, o estudo analisa alguns materiais escritos produzidos pela IURD em Moçambique, alguns programas televisivos, algumas reuniões da IURD em Moçambique, e entrevistas com líderes religiosos moçambicanos. Sem ignorar as continuidades em relação à IURD no Brasil, o estudo aponta que diversas práticas de outros contextos religiosos, principalmente tradicionais e zionistas do sul da África, criaram e criam condições para que os discursos da IURD sejam significativos no sul de Moçambique.The study analyzes some discourses of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) in southern Mozambique and problematizes the dialogues of this church with aspects of different religious contexts and with political power. The theoretical inspiration lies in the authors who pointed out the political implications of various religious practices and witchcraft discourses in African contexts (P. Geschiere, H. G. West, and others) and in the authors who pointed out the difficulties to designate something as strictly political or strictly religious (T. Asad, and others). In this sense, the study did not start from a definition of religion, but seeks to identify the place that the religion occupied and occupies in Mozambique. In addition to the use of secondary sources, the study analyzes some of the written materials produced by UCKG in Mozambique, some television programs, some cults of the UCKG in Mozambique, and interviews with Mozambican religious leaders. Without ignoring the continuities in relation to the UCKG in Brazil, the study points out that several practices in other religious contexts, mainly \"traditional\" and Zionist in southern Africa, have created and created conditions for the UCKGs speeches to be significant in southern Mozambique.
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Sakuba, Xolani Sherlock-Lee. "The relationsthip between sin and evil in African Christian theology." Thesis, University of the Western Cape, 2004. http://etd.uwc.ac.za/index.php?module=etd&action=viewtitle&id=init_9071_1177918844.
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Classic Christian theology regards evil as the product of sin, the emphasis in traditional African religion and culture is on human sin as the result of evil forces. This thesis investigated the way in which African Christian theologians understand the relationship between sin and evil. The question, which was addressed was, does sin lead to evil or evil lead to sin.
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Savage, James Peter Tyrone. "The ambiguity of God : a post-colonial inquiry into the politics of theistic formulation in South Africa." Master's thesis, University of Cape Town, 1997. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/14747.
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Bibliography: leaves 115-131.This thesis sets out to locate a post-apartheid perspective within what might be described as postcolonial Religious Studies, drawing on the genealogical method of Michel Foucault. Roughly stated, I understand the methodology to represent a shift away from preoccupation with the actual truth or otherwise of an idea, towards concern with the agitation - the discord, the discrepancies - that characterizes the appearance of an idea. Within the parameters, paradigms and possibilities imposed by this method, I inquire into the politics of theistic formulation in South Africa prior to the Union of South Africa (1910). Part One of the thesis discusses the politics of the advent of the Christian God in Southern Africa. In the three chapters that comprise this section, I situate colonial beliefs about God within colonialism as a discursive genre; in particular, evidence is provided of the deployment of religious (and in particular theistic) sensibility as a strategic category in the Othering discourse by which European expansion into Southern Africa was promulgated. Chapter Two opens by observing that colonial constructions of Otherness served not only to "erase" (Spivak) autochthonic identity, but also to eulogize and assert the colonial Self. Contextualizing my argument in the debate about the ambiguous effects of colonial missionary activities, I examine the mythically imbued, Othering discourse of Robert Moffat as a particularly conspicuous instance of the missionary qua colonial Self. Chapter Three gathers the concerns of Part One around the problem of theistic formulation in a colonial context, by discussing John Colenso's discovery of a theistic sensibility indigenous to autochthonic Africans as an example of a transgression of the Christian discourse that colonialism made function as truth. Part Two makes use of the categories established in Part One, and applies them to Afrikanerdom: its Othering in British colonial discourse; its religiously imbued, mythic history; and its beliefs in God. Having brought to theistic formulation a Foucauldian suspicion of systems of truth, my argument turns in Part Three to bring a particular theology, theologia crucis, alongside Foucault: accepting that the "dogmatic finitization" (Wolfhart Pannenberg) of Christian belief is inherently susceptible to the play of power, I observe that theistic formulation cast in terms of the cross - the "Crucified God" (Jurgen Moltmann) - holds a subversive potential in which may lie possibilities for an alternative to "truth".
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Norman, Lisanne. ""I Worship Black Gods": Formation of an African American Lucumi Religious Subjectivity." Thesis, Harvard University, 2015. http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:17467218.
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In 1959, Christopher Oliana and Walter “Serge” King took a historic journey to pre-revolutionary Cuba that would change the religious trajectory of numerous African Americans, particularly in New York City. They became the first African American initiates into the Afro-Cuban Lucumi orisha tradition opening the way for generations of African Americans who would comprehensively transform their way of life. This dissertation examines the inter-diasporic exchanges between African Americans and their Cuban teachers to highlight issues of African diasporic dissonance and differing notions of “blackness” and “African.” I argue that these African Americans create a particular African American Lucumi religious subjectivity within the geographical space of an urban cosmopolitan city as they carve out space and place in the midst of religious intolerance and hostility. The intimate study of these devotees’ lives contributes new understandings about the challenges of religious diversity within contemporary urban settings. These African Americans cultivated a new religious subjectivity formed through dialogical mediation with spiritual entities made present through material religious technologies, such as divination, spiritual masses, and possession. Through the lens of lived religion, I examine the experiences of African American Lucumi devotees to better understand how their everyday lives reflect the mediation between a private religious life, defined and structured by spiritual entities, and their public lives in the contemporary sociocultural, economic and political context of urban American society. Based on more than 8 years of intense participant observation and semi-structured interviews and discussions, I analyze how religious subjectivities and religious bodies are cultivated as these African Americans leave their mark on this religious tradition, their geographical surroundings, and African American religious history.African and African American Studies
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Jester, Jerry Stephen. "Empowered belonging through identity transformation| Assemblies of God church planting narratives from West Africa since 1990." Thesis, Assemblies of God Theological Seminary, 2015. http://pqdtopen.proquest.com/#viewpdf?dispub=3683273.
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From 1914 to 1990, Assemblies of God (AG) church planting efforts in Africa produced approximately ten thousand local churches and two million adherents. Since 1990, African Assemblies of God (AAG) churches emphasized ambitious church planting initiatives resulting in the addition of approximately fifty-four thousand local churches and fourteen million believers. This study examines the narratives of AAG church planters in West Africa to ascertain those factors influencing their church planting perceptions and activities in relation to Pentecostal missiology, the sociocultural context, leadership, and organizational development.
In order to discover those factors influencing church multiplication and growth, interview narratives of twelve leaders and fifty-one AAG church planters in West Africa were examined, delimited to the Anglophone context of Nigeria and the Francophone context of Togo. Using a qualitative data collection and analysis process known as grounded theory methodology, I discovered those factors that influence the perceptions and activities of church planters in the contexts of the study.
The findings show that church planters experience transformation in Christ and seek the transformation of their past, represented in the village, by planting new churches of transformed converts. This is a process of "backwarding" the Gospel to the village. These efforts lead to a renewal of the African self in a search for true belonging, enabling redemption of the African past and reclamation of the African future through Christ in Spirit empowerment. Church planting results in the local AAG church being a place of belonging and belonging to a place. This is described as ecclesiastical belonging, dimensionalized accordingly as proximal church planting, accessible church planting, and assimilation church planting. Belonging in these contexts is experiential through Gospel proclamation in Spirit empowerment to meet African aspirations to experience the divine. Additionally, belonging is relational, for the local AAG belongs to a global Pentecostal faith community.
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Graveling, Elizabeth. "Negotiating the powers : everyday religion in Ghanaian society." Thesis, University of Bath, 2008. https://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.492248.
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Engagement with religion has recently become an important issue to development theoreticians, donors and practitioners. It is recognised that religion plays a key role in shaping moral frameworks and social identities, but little attention is paid to how this is played out in everyday life: the focus remains on ‘faith communities’ and ‘faith-based organisations’ as unified bodies. This thesis uses ethnographic methods to examine how members of two churches in rural Ghana are influenced by and engage with religion. Rather than viewing religion simply as (potentially) instrumental to development, it seeks to approach it in its own right. It challenges the rigidity of categories such as ‘physical/spiritual’ and ‘religious/non-religious’, and the notion of ‘faith communities’ as discrete, unified entities with coherent religious cosmologies. Insights from witchcraft studies and medical anthropology indicate that spiritual discourses are drawn on to negotiate hybrid and continuously changing modernities, and people tend to act pragmatically, combining and moving between discourses rather than fully espousing a particular ideology. Residents of the village studied appear to inhabit a world of different but interconnecting powers, which they are both, to some extent, subject to and able to marshal. These include God, secondary deities, juju, witchcraft, family authorities, traditional leaders, biomedicine and churches. Relationships with both spirits and humans are ambivalent and each of these powers can bring both blessings and harm. Religious experience is fluid, eclectic and pragmatic as people continually enter and exit groups and marshal different powers simultaneously to protect themselves from harm and procure blessings. Approaches by the development world seeking to engage with religion and to take seriously local people’s interests and viewpoints should thus be wary of oversimplification according to traditional Western social science categories, and be underpinned by an understanding of how religious discourses are interpreted and enacted in people’s everyday lives.
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Matshidze, Pfarelo Eva. "Pentecostalism and the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God in Thohoyandou, South Africa." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2005. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/50415.
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Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2005.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This thesis examines the role played by Pentecostalism in the lives of people, particularly by the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God in Thohoyandou. The importance of this study lies in its demonstration of how Pentecostalism seems to solve some of the pertinent problems that prevail in society. The change of government in South Africa in 1994 had far reaching implications in the arena of political decisions which also affected the socio-economic aspect of the population. By covering the historical development of Venda and also showing how the democratic government changed the whole set up the study represents how religion, particularly prosperity Pentecostalism, may be used as a weapon to fight against socio-economic uncertainties where youth are the hardest hit. The study is premised on the assumption that the end of youth transition is not simply adulthood but also being part of the global economy. This to most youth, seems to be delayed and this leads young people being delayed to reach full adulthood. Against this background young people today have begun to redefine their identities in relation to the government and thus questioning meanings of success. Besides youth the elderly people who for some reasons feel deprived of their prosperity are trying to seek refuge in Pentecostalism. Some feel they have been robbed of their wealth and, therefore the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God as a coping strategy and a means to recoup what they had in the past. While some view the church in a positive light there are those who see it as encumbered by ill-practices. The thesis examines the above, through chapters entitled: history and functioning of the Universal Church, Youth and the Universal Church, other members of the church as well as the views of non-members of the church. It further opens up space for further research into the whole phenomenon of Pentecostalism as a coping mechanism during time of change.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie verhandeling ondersoek die rol wat Pentekostalisme speel in die lewens van mense, met besondere verwysing na die Universal Church of the Kingdom of God in Thohoyandou. Die belang van die studie lê daarin dat dit aantoon hoe Pentekostalisme blykbaar daarin slaag om ernstige sosiale probleme suksesvol aan te spreek. Die verandering van regering in Suid-Afrika in 1994 het verrykende implikasies gehad in die arena van politieke besluitneming wat die sosio-ekonomiese aspek van die bevolking geraak het. Die studie dek die historiese ontwikkeling van Venda en wys hoe die demokratiese regering die hele sisteem verander het. Dit toon aan hoe religie, en met name voorspoed- Pentekostalisme, gebruik kan word as 'n wapen in die stryd teen sosioekonomiese onsekerheid wat die jeug die swaartse tref. Die studie gaan van die veronderstelling uit dat die einde van jeug nie bloot oorgang tot volwassenheid is nie, maar dat dit deelname aan die globale ekonomie insluit. Die meerderheid jeugdiges ervaar 'n oponthoud ten opsigte hiervan en dit lei tot 'n vertraging in die bereiking van volwassenheid. Teen hierdie agtergrond het jongmense begin om hulle identiteit ten opsigte van die regering te herdifinieer, en sodoende om die betekenis van sukses te bevraagteken. Ouer mense wat vir 'n verskeidenheid van redes voel dat hulle van hulle welvaart ontneem is, probeer ook om 'n veilige hawe te vind in Pentekostalisme. Party van hulle voel dat hulle beroof is van hulle rykdom en daarom verteenwoordig die Universal Church of the Kingdom of God vir hulle 'n strategie om die mas op te kom en 'n middelom terug te kry wat hulle in die verlede gehad het. Die kerk word deur sommige mense in 'n positiewe lig gesien, maar daar is ook diegene wat dink dat dit gebuk gaan onder problematiese praktyke. Die verhandeling ondersoek die bogenoemde temas in hoofstukke getiteld: die geskiedenis en werkswyse van die Universal Church; die jeug en die Universal Church; ander lede van die kerk; sowel as die beoordeling van die kerk deur nie-lede. Die weg word geopen vir verdere navorsmg oor die fenomeen van Pentekostalisme as 'n oorlewingstrategie in tye van verandering.
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Wilson, John. "The religious contribution of C.H. Mason and the Church of God in Christ toward racial unity." Theological Research Exchange Network (TREN) Access this title online, 2005. http://www.tren.com.
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Zebley, Kathleen Rosa. "God and Liberty: the Life of Charles Wesley Slack." Kent State University / OhioLINK, 1992. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=kent1603362324341883.
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Kasambala, Amon Eddie. "The interplay between God-images and healing in pastoral ministry : engaging an African spirituality." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/53772.
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Thesis (DTh)--Stellenbosch University, 2004ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study can as well be termed as "an attempt to interpref' pastoral care and counseling methods and modules in an African understanding. For this reason, the study engages concepts, metaphors and images that reflect an African understanding of pastoral ministry. It is argued that pastoral ministry will be enriched more by accommodating an African spirituality and cosmology that usually influences the world view of African people on God, life and the cosmic life-force. The study attempts to work with God-images that will help people to gain meaning in moments of pain and suffering, and much more also that will help them appropriate faith to life situations in a more meaningful way. Thus the study gives attention to defming God-images in light of pain and suffering within a given pastoral care situation. Two God-images are therefore proposed for use in a pastoral care setting in Africa, namely, God as a friend (Mubwezi) and God as companion (woyenda naye). The study proposes a working model that can be used by pastoral ministry in the process of assessment of God-images. It is argued that unless pastoral ministry undertakes to work with models that are going to help African people come to terms with situations of pain and suffering, the work of pastoral ministry will be limited to a large extent. For this reason, the study proposes that pastoral ministry should reckon with African cultural values that are always expressed through metaphors and symbols. It is argued further that pastoral ministry should work with Christian rituals, such as Holy Communion, Baptism and the Cross which are going to help African people understand the involvement of God in their lives and also in times of pain and suffering.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die navorsing is 'n poging om 'n pastorale hermeneutiek te ontwikkel wat in die prosesse van heling rekening hou met die eiesoortigheid van 'n Afrika-konteks. Vandaar die fokus op 'n Afrika-spiritualiteit en 'n Afrika-kosmologie. Die navorsing is 'n poging om die verstaan van die lewe as 'n werklikheid, beinvloed deur spirituele werkinge en kosrniese lewenskragte, te kombineer met 'n pastorale antropologie. Die navorsingsvoorveronderstelling is dat 'n bepaalde kulturele verstaan en ervaring van God (Godsbeelde en Godsvoorstellinge) menslike identiteit en derhalwe ook prosesse van heling en terapie wesenlik beinvloed. Die navorsing konsentreer daarom op die interaktiewe en wisselwerkende verband tussen Godsbeelde en die vraagstuk van lyding en heling. Die uitkoms van die navorsing is die ontwerp van 'n beradingsmodel vir die pastoraat waarin rekening gehou word met die eiesoortige spiritualiteit van 'n bepaalde kultuurkonteks. Vandaar die ontwerp van 'n ses-fase model vir die maak van 'n pastorale diagnose (pastorale assessering). Verskillende simbole en metafore vanuit 'n Afrika lewenservaring kan help om her na te dink oor die verstaan van God binne lyding in 'n pastorale gesprek oor die vraagstuk van teodisee. Die beradingsmodel wat voorgestel word, verskuif die fokus weg van 'n analitiese, individualisties-georienteerdheid na 'n meer holistiese en sisterniese kommunale georienteerdheid. In die verb and moet die dinarnika van verhoudinge saam met 'n narratiewe benadering opnuut herontgin word vir pastorale berading.
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Sias, Márcia Denise Dutra. "ASSOCIATIVISMO RELIGIOSO E OS IMIGRANTES AFRICANOS: O caso do Campo Missionário Congoangolano da Assembleia de Deus na cidade do Rio de Janeiro." Universidade Metodista de São Paulo, 2011. http://tede.metodista.br/jspui/handle/tede/190.
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This research is an analysis of the Congoangolano Mission Field of the Assembly of God, located in the district of Brás de Pina - northern region of the city of Rio de Janeiro. It intends to identify the role that this religious community plays for Angolan and Congolese immigrants who belong to it. This way, seeks to reflect on the formation of a religious territorial space consolidated by elements of African religiosity and the Assembly of God Pentecostalism and its imbricated association with the formation of support and social cohesion networks around the maintenance and sustaining of an identity space. This space is marked by elements that express symbols and signs from the countries of origin of its members - Congo and Angola when using the African liturgy in their worship services. The research takes into account the demands that guide the migration process, the laws governing these immigrants and how much this process contributes to associative practices that involve factors inherent to the socio-cultural and economic insertion and integration within the missionary field.
Esta pesquisa faz uma análise do Campo Missionário Congoangolano da Assembleia de Deus, localizado no bairro de Brás de Pina - Zona norte da cidade do Rio de Janeiro. Procura identificar a função desta comunidade religiosa para os imigrantes congoleses e angolanos que a ela pertencem. Desse modo, visa refletir sobre a formação de um espaço territorial religioso consolidado por elementos da religiosidade africana e do pentecostalismo assembleiano e sua imbricada associação com a formação de redes de apoio e de coesão social em torno da manutenção e sustentação de um espaço identitário. Esse espaço é marcado por elementos que expressam símbolos e signos dos países de origem de seus integrantes - Congo e Angola - ao utilizarem a liturgia africana em seus cultos. A pesquisa leva em consideração as demandas que norteiam o processo migratório, as leis que regem esses imigrantes e o quanto tal processo contribui para práticas associativas que envolvem fatores inerentes a inserção e integração sociocultural e econômica no interior do campo missionário.
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McCoy, Brenda G. ""God will get me through": African American women coping with breast cancer and implications for support groups." Thesis, University of North Texas, 2005. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc4763/.
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This research examines the coping processes of African American women with breast cancer and how those processes relate to low usage of cancer support groups by these women. Prior coping research has utilized predominantly White samples. The limited research on African American coping responses is conflicting and characterized by small samples and non-probability sampling techniques. In this study, 26 respondents from Central and North Texas metropolitan areas were interviewed, including 9 key informants, 9 African American breast cancer survivors, and 8 White survivors. The data suggest that African American and White women cope with breast cancer in significantly different ways. Culture appears to account for the differences. All African American breast cancer survivors identified faith as their primary coping strategy. In contrast, only half of the White survivors claimed faith as their primary coping strategy, but like the other White survivors, tended to rely on multiple coping strategies. The African American survivors conceptualized God as an active member of their support network. Most prayed for healing, and several attributed examples of healing to God's intervention. The White survivors found God's presence in the actions of other people. They prayed for strength, peace, and courage to endure the illness. The use of faith as a coping strategy was the most significant difference between the African American and White breast cancer survivors, but different social support needs were also evident. White survivors readily disclosed the details of their illness and actively sought the assistance of other people. African American women were much less likely to discuss their illness with other persons and expressed a greater inclination to rely on themselves. This study indicates that cancer support groups must be structured to consider cultural coping differences for wider African American usage. Coping research conducted on primarily African American samples is necessary to develop interventions intended to serve African Americans.
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Jones, Dina Johanna Christina. "An evaluation of the Accelerate Christian Schools for reaching children for the Kingdom of God as part of Missio Dei in South Africa / Jones D.J.C." Thesis, North-West University, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/10394/7602.
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Secularist views are a challenge to the field of religious education. Their worldview and influence in
society will be discussed. This study evaluates the theocratic model under the apartheid regime, the
co–operative model and the religion policy under the new democratic government.
The areas that the researcher investigated in this study are centred on the effectiveness of the mission
calling of the School of Tomorrow, Accelerated Christian Education. In order to achieve this
outcome, the history of ACE Schools in America and South Africa will be discussed, as well as the
role of the school, the parent and the teacher in missio Dei.
An analysis and evaluation will be done on Christian educators such as Martin Luther, John Calvin
and John Knox, as well as educational deform under Hitler.
A study will be done on how Biblical doctrine was formed in children’s lives in the Old and New
Testament.Thesis (M.A. (Missiology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012.
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Akper, Godwin Iornenge. "Contemporary African perspectives on Jesus' cross and human suffering : a critical comparison of African christologies." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/49893.
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Thesis (DTh)--Stellenbosch University, 2004ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This research investigates the problem: do contemporary African Christologies reflect the portrayal of the personhood and the significance of the Cross of Christ in the New Testament? It explores the Christo logical views of African theologians in Black Theology, African Theology and African Women's Theology, and the fundamental presuppositions of these forms of Christologies rather than providing a detailed treatment of the individual Christo logical views of these theologians. The research argues that the methodological assumptions of African theologians, specifically, their hermeneutical starting point and convictions, deeply influence their Christological thoughts and constructions. Therefore, this research examines contemporary African hermeneutical methods, particularly searching for their congruence with the original and characteristic Protestant hermeneutical conviction of Sola Scriptura. As a comparative study, this research deliberately compares these contemporary and representative African Christologies with Paul's view of Jesus Christ and the significance of his Cross, thereby inquiring specifically after the role of Christian Soteriology in these African Christo logical approaches and comparing them with Paul. The research argues that, looking at dominant contemporary African Christologies from the perspective of Pauline Protology and Soteriology, they do not always fully reflect the New Testament portrayal of the personhood and the Cross of Christ in the New Testament. For future work on African Christologies, the research concludes and suggests that African Christologies be critically evaluated based on their congruence with the Protestant hermeneutical principle of Sola Scriptura.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie stel ondersoek in na die vraag: Hoe reflekteer hedendaagse Afrika- Christologiee die persoonskap en betekenis van die Kruis van Christus soos voorgestel in die Nuwe Testament? Dit bestudeer die Christologiese sienings van Afrika-teoloe in Swart Teologie, Afrika Teologie en Afrika Vroue- Teologie. Die klem val op die grondliggende voorveronderstellings van hierdie Christologiee eerder as op 'n gedetailleerde hantering van die onderskeie Christologiese sieninge van hierdie teoloe. Die navorsing voer aan dat die metodologiese aannames van Afrika-teoloe, spesifiek in hul hermeneutiese vertrekpunt en oortuigings, 'n diepgaande invloed uitoefen op hul Christologiese denke en konstruksies. Derhalwe bestudeer hierdie navorsing hedendaagse hermeneutiese metodes in Afrika, in besonder wat betref hulle ooreenkoms met die oorspronklike en kenmerkende Protestantse hermeneutiese oortuiging van Sola Scriptura. As 'n vergelykende studie word hierdie hedendaagse en verteenwoordigende Afrika- Christologiee gemeet teen Paulus se sieninge van Jesus Christus en die betekenis van die Kruis. Die ondersoek gaan dus veral in op die rol van Christelike soteriologie in hierdie Afrika-Christologiese benaderings, en vergelyk dit dan met Paulus. Die navorsing voer aan dat dominante hedendaagse Afrika-Christologiee, bestudeer vanuit die oogpunt van Christelike soteriologie, nie altyd die Nuwe Testamentiese voorstelling van die persoonskap en die Kruis van Christus voldoende reflekteer nie. Dit blyk veral uit 'n ondersoek van die Briewe van Paulus. Ter afsluiting doen die studie aan die hand dat toekomstige werk oor Afrika- Christologiee krities geevalueer word ooreenkomstig hul ooreenstemming met die Protestantste hermeneutiese beginsel van Sola Scriptura.
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Figueiredo, Rodolfo Aquino. "Pierre Verger e o culto dos orixás /." Marília : [s.n.], 2005. http://hdl.handle.net/11449/86649.
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Orientador: Claude LépineBanca: Sérgio Adolfo
Banca: Edemir de Carvalho
Resumo: O nosso trabalho apresenta o objetivo de realizar uma análise de duas das principais obras escritas por Pierre Fatumbi Verger ("Notas sobre o culto aos Orixás e Voduns" e "Orixás"). Em primeiro lugar, procuramos investigar como o autor consegue elaborar um panteão de deuses relativamente estruturado. Dito de outro modo, nosso primeiro objetivo foi compreender como Verger constrói o panteão do candomblé e, dessa forma, denunciar as profundas mudanças entre uma religião e outra, ou seja, questionar a tese central do livro Orixás, a qual postula uma congruência inalterada de dois corpos religiosos separados pelo Atlântico. Por último, propomos avaliar a apresentação da religião dos orixás no Novo Mundo, defendida pelo autor, que sugere uma religião tradicional preservada. Dessa forma, debater a questão, sustentada pelo etnógrafo, de uma pureza afriacana existente no Brasil. Por meio de nossas leituras e pesquisas realizadas, não temos o conhecimento de nenhum trabalho acadêmico analisando a obra de Verger sob essa perspectiva. Pretendemos, assim, proceder a uma análise crítica contribuindo não só para a literatura específica, mas compreender os pressupostos contidos em um autor que se tornou referência não só para os estudos afro-brasileiros mas também para os religiosos em geral.
Abstract: Our task presents the goal of realizing analyses of two works written by Pierre Fatumbi Verger ("Notes about cult for Orixás and Voduns" and "Orixás") First we investigate how the author can make a pantheon of gods relatively structured. In other words, our first goal was to understand how Verger builds the pantheon of candomblé. Second we look up to point tea main differences between religion of orixás and candomblé and this way report the deep changes between one religion an other one so to question about the central thesis of the book of Orixás, that assume an unchangeable congruence of two religion bodies separated by the Atlantic. Finally we propose evaluate the presentation of Orixás religion in the new world carried out by the author, the sugget a preserved tradicional religion. This way to debate the question supported by the ethnografer of an African purity existing in Brazil. Through our readings and researches carried out, we don't know any work analyzing the work of Verger under this perspective. We intend to proced an critic academic analyses contributing for specific literature and understand the contained presupposed in an author that became a reference to African brazilian studies and for religious people generally speaking.
Mestre
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Mukadam, Ahmed. "Muslim common religious practices at the Cape : identification and analysis." Master's thesis, University of Cape Town, 1990. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/14407.
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Bibliography: leaves 92-96.This dissertation examines the side by side existence of Popular Islam, or Muslim Common Religious Practices, with Official Islam in the Cape of today. Our task is thus primarily to identify the popular movement as no systematic documentation in this field has to date been attempted. Almost all approaches in Islamic Studies have concentrated an Official Islam and mostly from theological perspectives. In those works references to particular common beliefs and practices have been made and sometimes suggestively. Comparatively, however, much more, and perhaps methodologically not enough, has been done in Christian studies under the headings of Popular Religion, African Christology and very importantly, African Indigenous Church movements. The academic study of Islam, however, is still a relative novelty in South Africa and we suspect that the area of research into the popular movement may not gather momentum as rapidly as studies on the official movement. This apathy towards this "invisible institution" is attributable to the marginality it receives as a religious response.
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Nicholls, Gordon Charles. "Accountable to God alone? : theologising with a hammer : the HIV/AIDS crisis, condoms and Catholicism." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2003. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/53230.
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Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2003.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Theological positions are usually considered as coterminous with ethical considerations. That which the Church has earnestly considered in the light of what is believed to be God's will, as elucidated in religious texts and through prayerful contemplation, are considered to be ethical without contradiction. Recently the Roman Catholic Church adopted a position forbidding the use of condoms as protection from contracting HIV/AIDS. Instead, the Church has declared that the way to controlling the AIDS pandemic is via sexual abstinence for the unmarried and sexual faithfulness within marriage. It is acknowledged that it is not possible for all the church's theological positions to be driven by pragmatic concerns within society. Nor can a church easily be seen to be promoting sex outside of marriage by recommending the indiscriminate use of condoms. However, the Roman Catholic Church, by forbidding the use of contraception, puts itself in an ethically questionable light relative to other Christian churches. The Catholic Church needs to reconsider its stance on contraception from first principles, divorced from dogmatic beliefs and practices which were derived by men and which have endured beyond their usefulness or theological veracity. It is evident that a church should not adhere to dogmas that are ungodly in their impact and ethically questionable in their import. If a church needs to revise its dogmatic stance on such issues, it should have the courage to do so. This research considers whether the stance of the Catholic Church on condoms can be considered ethical. The position of the Catholic Church is considered critically from a variety of philosophical, empirical and ethical viewpoints. In so doing, it highlights the principled and practical problems of resolving differing moral positions that cross the religious and secular divide. The approach adopted is one of an applied ethical nature, given the probable effects of participating in unprotected sex. Pregnancy and contracting HIV/AIDS are the likely outcomes of not using condoms, and these conditions will create enormous problems for the individual concerned, her, or his, family, as well as for the greater society. The position taken in this research is that the Catholic Church's stand on abstinence before marriage and faithfulness in marriage, as the answer to the HIV/AIDS crisis, would be a realistic ethical position, if, and only if, it was at all feasible and realisable in practice. However, it is the contention of the author, based on empirical considerations, that the idealistic stance taken by the Catholic Church is out of touch with the realities in our contemporary South African society and is doomed to failure. Given this perspective, the Catholic stance is morally questionable, as, if sexual relationships continue to occur outside of marriage, and if condoms are not used, the result will be unwanted pregnancies, HIV infections of both mothers and their babies, crises for families and society at large, and ultimately widespread death from AIDS. Given the pandemic facing South Africa, the Catholic position in banning the use of condoms, is ethically questionable and morally suspect. The Church needs to be called to account for the implications of its dogmatic stance. The HIV/AIDS pandemic is simply too serious for a public institution, such as the Catholic Church, to be involved in perpetuating theological niceties and holding idealised positions. The Church is not divorced from the society it exists in and a realistic, responsible and accountable response is needed in the current context of hundreds of thousands of persons facing death from AIDS and its related diseases.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Teologiese standpunte word gewoonlik beskou as gelyktermig met etiese oorwegings. Dit wat die Kerk met erns beskou het word sonder weerspreking as eties aanvaar in die geloof dat dit die wil van God is wat belig word in religieuse geskrifte en deur gebedsoordenking. Onlangs het die Rooms-Katolieke Kerk 'n standpunt aanvaar wat die gebruik van kondome verbied as beskermingsmiddel teen MIV/VIGS-besmetting. Daarteenoor het die Kerk verklaar dat die VIGS-pandemie beheer moet word via seksuele weerhouding vir ongetroudes en seksuele getrouheid binne die huwelik. Daar word toe gegee dat dit nie moontlik is om al die die kerk se teologiese standpunte aan pragmatiese kwellinge binne die gemeenskap te onderwerp nie. Daarmee saam kan die kerk ook nie buite-huwelikse seks aanmoedig deur aan te beveel dat kondome onoordeelkundig benut word nie. Relatief tot ander Christelike kerke plaas die Rooms- Katolieke Kerk homself egter in 'n etiese bevraagtekenbare posisie deur die gebruik van voorbehoedmiddels te verbied. Die Katolieke Kerk behoort sy standpunt oor geboortebeperking te heroorweeg in die lig van primêre prinsiepe - geskei van dogmatiese oortuigings en bedrywe wat deur mense bedink is en wat hulle bestaansreg as nuttigheid of teologiese waarheid oorskrei. Dit is duidelik dat 'n kerk nie dogmas behoort aan te hang wat onverantwoord in haar impak en eties bevraagtekenbaar in hulle belangrikheid is nie. Indien 'n kerk sy dogmatiese standpunte oor sulke sake moet hersien, behoort dit die moed te hê om dit te doen. Hierdie navorsing skenk oorweging aan die vraag of die Katolieke Kerk se standpunt oor kondome as eties beskou kan word. Die posisie van die Katolieke Kerk word krities beskou vanuit 'n verskeidenheid filosofiese, empiriese en etiese standpunte. Dit verlig die beginsels en praktiese probleme wat verband hou met die resolusie van die verskillende morele posisies wat die kloof tussen die religieuse en sekulêre moet oorbrug. Die benadering wat benut word is van 'n toegepas etiese aard, gegewe die waarskynlike gevolge van deelname aan onbeskermde seks. Swangerskap en besmetting met MIV /VIGS is die waarskynlike resultate indien kondome nie benut word nie. Dit lei gevolglik tot enorme probleme vir die betrokke individu, familie en die breër samelewing. Die aanspraak van hierdie navorsing is dat die Katolieke Kerk se standpunt - dat weerhouding van seks voor die huwelik en getrouheid binne die huwelik as antwoord dien vir die MIV /VIGS krisis - 'n realistiese etiese posisie verteenwoordig indien, en slegs indien, dit toepasbaar en haalbaar binne die praktyk is. Dit is egter die bewering van hierdie skrywer, gebaseer op empiriese oorwegings, dat die idealisriese standpunt van die Katolieke Kerk uit voeling is met die realiteite van ons kontemporêre Suid-Afrikaanse samelewing en dat dit gedoem is tot mislukking. Gege hierdie perspektief, word dit duidelik dat die Katolieke standpunt moreel verdag is, veral as in gedagte gehou word dat - indien seksuele verhoudings buite huweliksverband voortduur en kondome nie gebruik word nie - die resultaat onbeplande swangerskap, MIV besmetting van beide moeders en babas, krisisse vir families en die samelewing en uiteindelik wydverspreide sterftes as gevolg van VIGS sal wees. Gegewe die pandemie wat Suid-Afrika in die gesig staar word die Katolieke standpunt waarin die gebruik van kondome verbied word eties bevraagtekenbaar asook moreel verdag. Die Kerk moet tot verantwoording geroep word vir die implikasies van sy dogmatiese standpunt. Die MIV /VIGS'pandemie is eenvoudig te ernstig vir 'n openbare instansie soos die Katolieke Kerk om betrokke te bly in die voorsetting van teologiese kieskeurigheid en die verkondiging van geïdealiseerde standpunte. Die Kerk is nie los van die samelewing waarbinne dit bestaan nie en 'n realistiese, verantwoordelike en toerekenbare respons word benodig binne die huidige konteks waarbinne honderde duisende mense dood as gevolg van VIGS in die gesig staar.
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Figueiredo, Rodolfo Aquino [UNESP]. "Pierre Verger e o culto dos orixás." Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), 2005. http://hdl.handle.net/11449/86649.
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figueiredo_ra_me_mar.pdf: 292468 bytes, checksum: 26353fe385ea7de023712925c50a1568 (MD5)O nosso trabalho apresenta o objetivo de realizar uma análise de duas das principais obras escritas por Pierre Fatumbi Verger (Notas sobre o culto aos Orixás e Voduns e Orixás). Em primeiro lugar, procuramos investigar como o autor consegue elaborar um panteão de deuses relativamente estruturado. Dito de outro modo, nosso primeiro objetivo foi compreender como Verger constrói o panteão do candomblé e, dessa forma, denunciar as profundas mudanças entre uma religião e outra, ou seja, questionar a tese central do livro Orixás, a qual postula uma congruência inalterada de dois corpos religiosos separados pelo Atlântico. Por último, propomos avaliar a apresentação da religião dos orixás no Novo Mundo, defendida pelo autor, que sugere uma religião tradicional preservada. Dessa forma, debater a questão, sustentada pelo etnógrafo, de uma pureza afriacana existente no Brasil. Por meio de nossas leituras e pesquisas realizadas, não temos o conhecimento de nenhum trabalho acadêmico analisando a obra de Verger sob essa perspectiva. Pretendemos, assim, proceder a uma análise crítica contribuindo não só para a literatura específica, mas compreender os pressupostos contidos em um autor que se tornou referência não só para os estudos afro-brasileiros mas também para os religiosos em geral.
Our task presents the goal of realizing analyses of two works written by Pierre Fatumbi Verger (Notes about cult for Orixás and Voduns and Orixás) First we investigate how the author can make a pantheon of gods relatively structured. In other words, our first goal was to understand how Verger builds the pantheon of candomblé. Second we look up to point tea main differences between religion of orixás and candomblé and this way report the deep changes between one religion an other one so to question about the central thesis of the book of Orixás, that assume an unchangeable congruence of two religion bodies separated by the Atlantic. Finally we propose evaluate the presentation of Orixás religion in the new world carried out by the author, the sugget a preserved tradicional religion. This way to debate the question supported by the ethnografer of an African purity existing in Brazil. Through our readings and researches carried out, we don't know any work analyzing the work of Verger under this perspective. We intend to proced an critic academic analyses contributing for specific literature and understand the contained presupposed in an author that became a reference to African brazilian studies and for religious people generally speaking.
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Johns, Emily M. Busiek. "Investigating factors relevant to a multicultural HIV/AIDS Curriculum for Assemblies of God." Thesis, Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/1306.
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Thesis (PhD (Curriculum Studies))--University of Stellenbosch, 2009.The HIV/AIDS crisis in South Africa has reached pandemic levels, with over 1 000 deaths per day. The church in South Africa represents a largely untapped resource for addressing this problem. One of the largest Evangelical church groups in South Africa is the Assemblies of God (AOG/SA). This church group consists of three culturally distinct fraternals: The Group (white), The Association (coloured), and The Movement (black). Although they function under one executive committee, these fraternals have remained organizationally distinct even after the dismantling of apartheid laws in 1991. On the issue of HIV/AIDS, all three fraternals have remained largely quiet and uninvolved. They have made no attempt to strategize on a unified response to the pandemic, nor have they attempted to promote culturally relevant curricula capable of empowering their pastors and theological students to respond effectively to this crisis. The research consisted of two phases, following Rothman and Thomas's Intervention Research model (1994), with special emphasis on the design and development component. The first phase identified and assessed educational, cultural, and religious factors relevant to the development and delivery of a clergy-focused multicultural curriculum intervention addressing the HIV/AIDS pandemic in South Africa. Data-gathering strategy for the first phase consisted of semi-structured interviews with ethnographic notions. The target groups for the first phase of the research included 15 credentialed AOG/SA pastors and the three fraternal leaders. The leaders and fraternal members participated in semistructured interviews designed to establish cultural and religious points of divergence pertaining to topics surrounding the AIDS pandemic (e.g. sickness, death, sexuality and gender roles). The second phase of the research consisted of the development and delivery of a curriculum intervention. Integrating the cultural and religious factors identified in the first phase of the research, the nine-day curriculum intervention was presented to 34 tertiary-level theological students in two culturally distinct venues. The content of the curriculum primarily emphasized aspects of gender, tradition, and culture as they relate to HIV/AIDS and surrounding issues. The intervention utilized three curriculum theories that were deemed relevant to the educational context of South Africa: humanistic curriculum theory, social reconstructionist curriculum theory and dialogue curriculum theory. Data-gathering strategies for the second phase of the research utilized both quantitative and qualitative instruments with ethnographic notions. The quantitative instruments included the Scale of Basic HIV/AIDS Knowledge (SHAK), Personal Reflections of Men with HIV/AIDS (PRM) and Personal Reflections of Women with HIV/AIDS (PRW). Reflective journaling was used to acquire qualitative data from student participants. Scores significantly improved on the SHAK in both venues. Scores on the PRW improved in both venues, significantly so in one. Unexpectedly, scores on the PRM declined at both venues, although not significantly so. Males with HIV/AIDS were viewed more negatively by both genders at the end of the intervention in both venues. Reflective journal entries indicated that students at both venues clearly perceived a need for the church to be involved in the pandemic; many proposed that sex education should be taking place within the context of church youth ministry. Affective responses were markedly positive for those suffering with AIDS, particularly females. The data clearly indicated that the curriculum was effective in two culturally distinct venues.
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Sauvey, Juliette. "Junon, "trop amie des Africains" : une déesse romaine de la colère et de la réconciliation : étude religieuse et littéraire du début de la République jusqu'à l'époque augustéenne." Thesis, Strasbourg, 2015. http://www.theses.fr/2015STRAC007.
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Cette étude a pour origine le constat d'un paradoxe : Junon, grande déesse romaine qui siège au sein de la triade Capitoline, a aussi combattu le projet d'installation d'Énée dans le Latium, a été hostile à l'apothéose de Romulus ou a protégé les Carthaginois d'Hannibal. Si cette hostilité semble a priori le fait des poètes depuis Ennius jusqu'aux poètes augustéens, elle est aussi intrinsèque à la nature de la déesse qui fut celle qui subit le plus souvent le rituel d'euocatio destiné à apaiser la divinité de l'ennemi et à l'intégrer au panthéon romain, comme à Véies en 395 av. Mais surtout, cette colère semble inséparable de la réconciliation finale de la déesse avec les Romains. Enfin, cette hostilité et cet apaisement ont été réactualisés au cours de l'histoire de Rome : guerres contre les Étrusques, les Carthaginois ou guerres civiles. Notre démarche suit un plan chronologique pour analyser la dynamique du phénomène tout en étudiant à la fois le fait religieux et le fait littéraireThis study results from the observation of a paradox : Juno, great Roman goddess, part of the Capitoline triade, has fought the Aeneas' project to establish a settlement in Latium, was hostile to Romulus' apotheosis and has also protected the Carthaginian army of Hannibal. Juno's hostility was told by the poets since Ennius, up to the augustan poets, but can also be studied in the cultual practice, owing to the fact that she was subject to euocatio-rituel several times as in Veii in 395 BC. The ritual of euocatio has been used in order to calm ennemies' divinity and to integrate it in the Roman pantheon. Moreover, Juno's anger implies to be examined simultaneously with her final reconciliation with Rome. Finally, this hostility and reconciliation underwent some updates during the Roman history : Etruscan, Punic or Civil wars. Our approach follows a chronological plan in order to analyze the phenomenon's dynamics while studying both religious and literary facts
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Diop, Cheikh. "L'inscription de la religion dans "La Symphonie pastorale" (Gide), "Journal d'un curé de campagne" (Bernanos), "L'Aventure ambigue" (Kane) et "La Flèche de Dieu" (Achebe)." Thesis, Bordeaux 3, 2015. http://www.theses.fr/2015BOR30025/document.
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A la lecture des récits de Bernanos, Gide, Kane, Achebe inscrits dans notre corpus, il ressort que l’imagerie religieuse offre un tableau composite. En effet, s’appuyant sur un ensemble de représentations, la religion varie selon les époques et les sociétés. Bien que considérant le divin comme entité influente, elle intègre des croyances et théogonies locales. Par ailleurs, la divinité ne conditionne pas toujours l’appartenance religieuse car « pas plus qu’il n’y a de religion sans société, il n’y a pas de société sans religion: une société athée serait sans doute une société sans dieu(x), mais il ne s’ensuit pas qu’elle serait sans religion ni croyance ». Il est notable que dans ces textes, l’évocation de la religion, par-delà les marques de ferveur qu’elle est susceptible de traduire, pose un problème existentiel. Plus qu’un rapport entre le divin et l’humain, c’est l’avènement d’une conscience évolutive chez l’homme dans un univers où les liens qui ont toujours forgé l’unité collective tendent à se délier. Autrement dit, la religion se veut le reflet d’un faisceau de valeurs sur la base desquelles s’inspirent les conduites humaines. Et c’est œuvrant à l’encontre d’une telle prescription que le malaise s’est instauré chez la plupart des personnages des romans. Au demeurant, de l’approche de la religion résulte le constat à la fois séduisant et décevant qu’offre l’image d’un univers pris dans le tumulte des exigences sociétales. Au regard des fictions, il s’avère que la nature du sacré émeut et se meut à travers les peuples mais, aussi, s’estompe plus qu’elle ne s’affirme, se dévoie plus qu’elle ne s’enracine. Bien qu’adossé au point de repère de la foi, l’homme est de plus en plus gagné par le vertige. Et ce malaise s’universalise car « une religion est un phénomène qui se vit collectivement ». Autrement dit, les textes dévoilent la dérive de l’être aux prises avec le mal. Mais plus qu’une lutte contre autrui, c’est plutôt l’expression d’un combat acharné contre soi afin de renaître à la première splendeur. Il est clair que l’univers des récits est peuplé d’individus dont la voix porte l’écho du divin. Une perpétuelle cohabitation entre le bien et le vice, ainsi s’établit la condition humaine telle qu’elle est présentée dans les romans. Car, que peut bien révéler le journal d’un curé, arborant la flèche de Dieu et faisant face aux démons, si ce n’est la symphonie d’une aventure ambiguë voire périlleuseIn reading the stories of Bernanos, Gide, Achebe incorporated in our corpus, it emerges that religious imagery offers a composite picture. Based upon a set of representations, religion indeed varies according to the times and society. Though viewing the divine as an influential entity, religion implies beliefs and local theogonies. In fact, divinity doesn’t influence religious belonging for no much more than there is not religion without society, there isn’t society without religion: an atheist society undoubtedly would be a godless society but it wouldn’t mean a society devoid of religion or belief. It is worth noting that in these texts the mere mention of religion poses an existential problem beyond any fervor it is likely to stand for. More than a relationship between the divine and the human, it’s about the advent of man’s evolving conscience in a universe where bonds which have always created the collective unity tend to untie. In other words, religion is meant to be a set of values by which human behaviors are inspired. It is in fighting against such a prescription that some discomfort came to be among most characters in some novels. As a result, the observation both stunning and unsatisfactory provided by the image of a universe caught up in the turmoil of societal demands stems from the approach of religion. In view of fictions, it turns out that the nature of the sacred stirs and moves throughout all peoples but also fades away more than it shows off, leads astray more than it takes root. Though leaned to the landmark of faith, the human being is more and more subjugated by vertigo. This uneasiness becomes universal because religion is a collectively-lived phenomenon. In other words, the texts unveil human being’s drift in his struggling against evil. But more than a fight against the others, it’s rather a bitter struggle against oneself in order to be reborn to the first splendor. It is obvious that the universe of stories is peopled by individuals whose voices bear the echo of the divine. A perpetual cohabitation between good and evil, this is how the human condition is established and so depicted in the novels. For what may reveal the diary of a priest bearing the arrow of god and striving against demons except that it is the symphony of an ambiguous adventure, if not a perilous one
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"A critical comparison of the concepts of Modimo (God) in Sotho traditional religion and the concepts of the Christian God as a missiological problem." Thesis, 2002. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/3032.
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This thesis states that the concepts of MODIMO [GOD] (Setiloane 1976) in Sotho Traditional Religion are different to the concepts of the Christian God. The notions of MODIMO are panentheistic (all pervading), whilst the notions of the Christian God are monotheistic. The notions of MODIMO are impersonal whilst those of the Christian God are personal. The monotheistic notions of the Christian God are Hellenized (p'Bitek 1970). The task of this thesis is to de-Hellenize
the notions of MODIMO. The Sotho Traditional Religion attributes of deities emphasize their nature and the pragmatism more than their natural and moral attributes. The notions of the Christian God, on the other hand, are conceived through their moral and natural attributes. In addition, the conceptual content of the attributes of the Christian
and Sotho Traditional Religion concepts of deities differ. This investigation seeks to present the Sotho concepts of MODIMO as Basotho would express them, to unearth the Sotho concepts of MODIMO and to present them with the concern and the consciousness of the syncretistic fusion (Kgatla 1992) that has inevitably happened due to contact with missionary Christianity and western culture. One feature of this contact was coercion and domination, as missionary-colonizers imposed their Hellenized concepts of the Christian God, as well as imposing the British capitalist mode of production on the African agrarian and pastoral communities in South Africa. The notion of the cultural superiority of western European culture, in which the missionaries and colonizers were immersed, blinded them. This was because of the 'world' from which they came from. Unfortunately, the Christian God they preached to Africans was a strange deity that had no consideration for African
people as 'full' humans. The African concepts of MODIMO have been resilient and it is possible to unearth them.Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2002.
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Gitari, Marete Dedan. "Concepts of God in the traditional faith of the Meru people of Kenya." Diss., 2006. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/1195.
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This thesis covers the concepts of God in the traditional faith of Meru people but the background goes back to African traditional religion in general. Meru is located at the eastern part of Mount Kenya. The work begins with a literature review and field based on oral tradition, which indicates that Meru people came from northern Africa, moved to Canaan, Meroe, (south of Egypt) Meru-Arusha, Mombasa, and finally through Tana River to their present land. The Meru people also claim that they came along with all Bantus speaking communities in Eastern, Southern, and Central Africa.
The thesis has seven chapters. The first one covers introduction and background, followed by the research plan and methodology (chapter two) Literature review (chapter three). The fourth chapter outlines the geography, migration and the various stages of becoming a human being. That fifth chapter consists of Meru traditional government and specialists. The sixth one describes the concepts of the Supreme Being in Meru traditional religion. The seventh chapter discusses the interaction of Meru traditional religion with Christianity and its implications.Systematic Theology and Theological Ethics
M.Th. (Systematic Theology)
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Opong, Andrew Kwasi. "A comparative study of the concept of the divine in African traditional religions in Ghana and Lesotho." 2002. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/15718.
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Opong, Andrew Kwasi. "A comparative study of the concept of the devine in African traditional religions in Ghana and Lesotho." Thesis, 2002. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/700.
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This thesis finds out how the concepts of the divine in African Traditional Religions are similar or different, particularly in Ghana and Lesotho and in other parts of Africa in general. In doing so, the researcher combines literature review of eminent scholars who have studied the religious and socio-cultural life of the people of Ghana and Lesotho in particular and Africa in general, with personal field study through dissemination of
questionnaires, interviews and personal observations.
Through this approach he finds out the various religious phenomena that reveal the concept of the divine in the two countries concerned and in other African countries through comparison of their worships and socio-cultural activities in order to come out with the differences and the similarities that may call for synthesis of the concept in Africa.
He also finds out how the concept of the divine in Africa has been influenced by foreign religions and culture particularly Christianity, Islam, Western culture and Education. And how their services and disservices have affected the concept of the divine in Africa. The researcher also looks at the issue of monotheism as against polytheism in African
religious perspective to find out whether the African Traditional Religions are polytheistic, monotheistic or monolatry.
The study reveals that the concept of the divine, in the two countries under study, ends up in one Supreme deity-God- .but that the approach to the concept is not always the same. There are some differences and similarities, which also prevail in other African Traditional Religions and in Christianity.
There is also a look into whether the term "African Traditional Religions" is appropriate for the religious belief and practices found in Africa, and whether a synthesis of religious practices in Africa would be possible in future.
In the final analysis the study reveals that the African concept of the divine as pertains in the two countries is not different from that of Christianity and Islam but that the approach to the concept differs due to differences in the perception of the divine through sociocultural and religious milieus.Religious Studies & Arabic
D. Litt. et Phil. (Religious Studies)
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Kahakwa, Sylvester Beyanga. "A Haya interpretation of the Christian concept of God : how applicable is an invocation of the deity in a threefold form for indigenising and understanding the Christian trinitarian model?" Thesis, 2003. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/4486.
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The dissertation details and analyses an interpretation of the Christian concept of God that emerges through the interactions between the missionaries, post-missionary Christianity and the Raya people in Tanzania. It investigates the nature, implications and possible problems encountered in the processes of interpretation. Four main issues are investigated and addressed. Firstly, each group interacted in its own way and played a significant role in creating an arena for successful communication. The main two challenges facing the missionaries were: delivering the Christian message so that the hearers derive its meaning, and the use of the traditional but nonindigenous concept of God for identifying the Christian concept of God, according to the biblical and the classical doctrine of the Trinity. Secondly, the Raya and the convert's reactions to the missionaries' version of God had taken place in two phases, earlier and later interactions. In the earlier phase, the Raya responded to the missionaries' version of God on the basis of their traditional understanding of God. It led them to an initial acceptance of the missionaries' version of God and conversion. The converts later reacted to the missionaries' version and some asked: what happens after a conversion to Christianity? Challenged by their earlier experience of the Christian concept of God, some converts felt the need for a second paradigm shift. On the basis of an invocation of the Deity in a threefold form at a subjective level, these converts had embarked on a self-interpretation and understanding of the missionaries' version of the Trinity in traditional idiom and terms. It resulted in the construction of the Raya Christian theology of the Trinity. Thirdly, the study also addressed the further impacts and responses to the missionaries' version of God. While the missionaries' interpretative approach laid the foundation for the converts' interpretation, in turn both set the course for the post-missionary Christianity's interpretation. At this point, post-missionary Christianity had reinterpreted the Christian concept of God on the basis of a traditional Raya concept of God. The main question faced them is an application of the Ruhanga model according to its frame of reference, although partially applied it paved the way for a full application in later times. Fourthly, in response to the challenges raised by earlier interpretative approaches, missionaries, converts and post-missionary Christianity, the study embarked on interpreting the Trinity in traditional tenns. It aimed at reaching a higher stage of understanding the Trinity by all Haya converts, even the simplest ones. It demanded an investigation of the hypothesis that a Haya invocation of the Deity in a threefold fonn is a key to understanding both the Haya and the Christian concepts of God. An application of it involved addressing the question of how it could be
applied at the church level to interpret and understand the Trinity in Haya idiom. It is proposed that initially this will be achieved through an interpretation and christianisation of the Haya concept of God and a re-interpretation and indigenisation of the Christian concept of God. While biblical, classical and contemporary interpretations of the Trinity are a referral basis for each approach, social and theological models are key methodological instruments. Finally, the need of this study has roots in the fact that, through my pastoral ministry, I have pondered and cross-examined myself on what the Haya and Africans as a whole can contribute to the enrichment of Christian theology. An investigation of the converts' interpretation of the Trinity into their own version of a Haya theology of the Trinity is looked upon as a small part of this contribution.Thesis (Ph.D. ; School of Theology) - University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2003.
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Mdingi, Hlulani Msimelelo. "The Revelation of God : meditations of the black church in existential times." Thesis, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/25123.
Full textAbstract:
Includes bibliographical references (leaves 231-239)Chapter one begins by introducing and orientating the reader to the study and the purpose of the study, namely the revelation of God. It also opens up what is central to the study by a way of a problem statement concerning this revelation of God, the black church and the human condition. The aims of the study and the research methodology are set out. The chapter ends with a hypothesis concerning the future doctrine of revelation and the prospects of this revelation in the lives of black people. Chapter two entails discussion on God and the church, as it pertains to revelation, starting with a historical account of Christian theology on the subject of revelation. The subject of revelation is engaged on an existential level, particularly the main areas of Christian theology, namely; special and general revelation. This is a section that puts both concepts within black experience, to see the viability for a black ecclesiology and black theology. Chapter two moves on to contend that for black church, there is a serious theological insurgent that is necessary and it is part and parcel of God’s revelation to blacks and the oppressed. This outlook places a section of critical reasoning in South African context and society concerning God’s revelation. Chapter three engages a philosophical meditation, ascribing meditation as a state of self-reflection for the black church and black theology. This meditation is cognisant of black experience and is self-diagnosis concern God and humanity, particularly the dehumanising, (how it must affirm essence and substance). The meditation of the black church engages the concept of absurdity as Camus (1995) (also see Melancon 1983) has posited the absurd as a malaise in the world and silence of the word to that malaise. The absurd is also linked to theodicy, however, the black experience and the encounter with God transcends absurdity and theodicy. As part of the transcending aspect of the black experience, the research considers Western atheism, Christianity and death of God, whose burial is in the mind, souls and bodies of blacks. The chapter then moves on to discuss the black church as a receptor of God’s revelation, the new image of the crucified and the new metaphysics guaranteeing the upliftment of blacks. Chapter four focuses on the black invisibility and the hiddenness of God, it is seeing invisibility and hiddenness as linked together. The chapter also focuses on the need for black visibility rooted in the ontological and physiological expression and experience of being human; Imago Dei. The chapter links black visibility with the concept of whiteness, being a dehumanising political identity imposed on the people of colour. The chapter then translates into the context of visibility, invisibility and God’s revelation within the economic South African context. The final analysis of the chapter is a confession of God’s revelation rooted in God’s visibility and running parallel to that of black visibility. Chapter five proposes that the black experience and the use of the Bible Sola Sriptura, as it reveals the black church as part of church history. As such, it takes the early church’s reading of the New Testament and understanding of Christology through kenosis; the emptying of God to be human and using that paradigm to link Christ’s human experience and the experience of the dehumanising and humanising that of blacks. The chapter concludes with a Christology and black Messiah, who links the secular and divine, general and special revelation. Chapter six concerns the findings of the study, recommendations and conclusion.
Philosophy, Practical and Systematic Theology
D. Th. (Systematic Theology)
45
Shoroma, Emmanuel Modibe. "Evangelization by Pentecostals among the poor and marginalized Pedi communities in the Limpopo province : a critical survey of their performance in the light of comprehensive redemption." Thesis, 2003. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/7288.
Full textAbstract:
Pentecostalism is well known for its active involvement in evangelism. But it is true to say as well that questions have been asked about the social upliftment dimension of the Pentecostal mission. This study will focus on the Assemblies of God church. The main reason for this is that, of
all the Pentecostal churches in South Africa, the Assemblies of God has probably had the biggest impact in the rural black communities. To undertake the study I will do the following: • Outline the problem that necessitated commencement of this study, formulate hypotheses and identify methods of research in this first chapter. • Attempt, in chapter two, to outline the historical background of the Pentecostal mission in general and the AOG in particular, describing its theology and evangelism and their impact on the socio-political situation in South Africa. • Conduct in-depth Case Studies, in chapter three, of a range of individuals who are converts of the AOG mission. • The fourth chapter will ask whether the Redemption and lift hypothesis throws any light on the study. • The last chapter will consider how other theological models consider the issue of mission.Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2003.
46
Conteh, Prince Sorie. "The place of African traditional religion in interreligious encounters in Sierra Leone since the advent of Islam and Christianity." Thesis, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/2316.
Full textAbstract:
This study which is the product of library research and fieldwork seeks, 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.
As in most of sub-Saharan Africa, ATR is the indigenous religion of Sierra Leone. When the early forebears and later progenitors of Islam and Christianity arrived, they met Sierra Leone indigenes with a remarkable knowledge of God and a structured religious system. Successive Muslim clerics, traders, and missionaries were respectful of and sensitive to the culture and religion of the indigenes who accommodated them and offered them hospitality. This approach resulted in a syncretistic brand of Islam.
In contrast, most Christian missionaries adopted an exclusive and insensitive approach to African culture and religiosity. Christianity, especially Protestantism, demanded a complete abandonment of African culture and religion, and a total dedication to Christianity. This attitude has continued by some indigenous clerics and religious leaders to the extent that Sierra Leone Indigenous Religion (SLIR) and it practitioners continue to be marginalised in Sierra Leone's inter-religious dialogue and cooperation.
Although the indigenes of Sierra Leone were and continue to be hospitable to Islam and Christianity, and in spite of the fact that SLIR shares affinity with Islam and Christianity in many theological and practical issues, and even though there are many Muslims and Christians who still hold on to traditional spirituality and culture, Muslim and Christian leaders of these immigrant religions are reluctant to include Traditionalists in interfaith issues in the country. The formation and constitution of the Inter-Religious Council of Sierra Leone (IRCSL) which has local and international recognition did not include ATR. These considerations, then beg the questions:
* Why have Muslim and Christian leaders long marginalised ATR, its practices and practitioners from interfaith dialogue and cooperation in Sierra Leone?
* What is lacking in ATR that continues to prevent practitioners of Christianity and Islam from officially involving Traditionalists in the socio-religious development of the country?
Muslim and Christians have given several factors that are responsible for this exclusion:
* The prejudices that they inherited from their forebears
* ATR lacks the hallmarks of a true religion
* ATR is primitive and economically weak
* The fear that the accommodation of ATR will result in syncretism and nominalism
* Muslims see no need to dialogue with ATR practitioners, most of whom they considered to be already Muslims
Considering the commonalities ATR shares with Islam and Christianity, and the number of Muslims and Christians who still hold on to traditional spirituality, these factors are not justifiable.
Although Islam and Christianity are finding it hard to recognise and include ATR in interfaith dialogue and cooperation in Sierra Leone, ATR continues to play a vital role in Sierra Leone's national politics, in the search and maintenance of employment, and in the judicial sector. ATR played a crucial part during and after the civil war. The national government in its Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) report acknowledged the importance and contribution of traditional culture and spirituality during and after the war.
Outside of Sierra Leone, the progress in the place and level of the recognition of ATR continues. At varying degrees, the Sociétié Africaine de Culture (SAC) in France, the All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC), the Vatican, and the World Council of Churches, have taken positive steps to recognise and find a place for ATR in their structures.
Much about the necessity for dialogue and cooperation with ATR can be learnt in the works and efforts of these secular and religious bodies. If nothing else, there are two main reasons why Islam and Christianity in Sierra Leone must be in dialogue with ATR:
* Dialogue of life or in community. People living side-by-side meet and interact personally and communally on a regular basis. They share common resources and communal benefits. These factors compel people to be in dialogue
* Dual religiosity. As many Muslims and Christians in Sierra Leone are still holding on to ATR practices, it is crucial for Muslims and Christians to dialogue with ATR practitioners.
If Muslims and Christians are serious about meeting and starting a process of dialogue with Traditionalists, certain practical issues have to be considered:
* Islam and Christianity have to validate and accept ATR as a true religion and a viable partner in the socio-religious landscape of Sierra Leone
* Muslims and Christians must educate themselves about ATR, and the scriptures and teachings of their respective religious traditions in order to relate well with Traditionalists
These are starting points that can produce successful results. Although at present Muslims and Christians in Sierra Leone are finding it difficult to initiate dialogue and cooperation with Traditionalists, all hope is not lost. It is now the task of the established IRCSL to ensure the inclusion of ATR. Islam and Christianity must remember that when they came as strangers, ATR, played host to them and has played and continues to play a vital role in providing hospitality, and allowing them to blossom on African soil.Religious Studies and Arabic
D.Litt. et Phil. (Religious Studies)
47
Morekwa, Othusitse. "The interchange, exchange and appropriation of traditional healing, modern medicine and Christian healing in Africa today." Diss., 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/1896.
Full textAbstract:
This research work is set out to investigate healing practised in Africa today. There are many ways of healing in African; others are classified as foreign because they came out of Africa especially from European influence while others are considered local or traditional. The research shall dig out the influence of what is known as foreign methods or approaches of healing in Africa today and what African healing can learn from other methods of healing practised today.
There shall be contemporary stories and facts about the situation of healing today and relevant statistics where necessary. The research also comes out with appropriate suggestions on how to combat contemporary illnesses of today. This includes what should be improved and how. This work covers the whole of Africa.Philosophy & Systematic Theology
M.Th. (Systematic Theology)
48
Ngwanya, Richman Mzuxolile. "An ecclesiological analysis of the Church of God and Saints of Christ and its impact on Bulhoek massacre." Thesis, 2005. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/2061.
Full textAbstract:
A tragic massacre in May 1921, commonly referred to as the Bulhoek Massacre, was associated with the ecclesiology of the Church of God and Saints of Christ, founded by Enoch Mgijima. If it were not for the theology of eschatology that this church adhered to, the so-called Bulhoek Massacre would not have happened. The theology of eschatology which Mgijima was focussing on caused the ecclesiology of the amaSirayeli to be the victims of the circumstances.
Dulles defines ecclesiology as the church in the process of self actualisation. There is self understanding of worshippers. In the case of the Church of God and Saints of Christ, such self-understanding caused the Bulhoek Massacre. It is said that when people fervently believe in an Ultimate Being, whether such belief is a construction in their minds or a reality, then those people will be willing to defend their belief and die for, if it needs to be.
For such a believer, it is because of the hope for a better life in the future that they are willing to even defy earthly authorities. When that believer follows a voice of the supernatural, which is revealed only to him and sounds much louder, much clearer and more authoritative than human voices, it is then that he cannot be void. Such an authoritative voice may be transmitted either through ancestors, known as the living dead, or directly from the Supreme Being. In the case of the said church, it is both.
Secondly, an ecclesiology of the Church of God and Saints of Christ should be understood in the light of their mother church in America under the leadership of Crowdy the founder. Such ecclesiology should also be understood against the religious backdrop of the African Initiated Churches (AIC). These two factors, the mother church in America and the religion of the African Initiated Churches, will be the main components that drive this thesis, and thus illuminate the spark in the said church.
Owing to the proliferation of the African Initiated Churches in the continent of Africa, there is a wide speculation that Africa, of the 21st century, will be the centre of World Christianity. Whether this is just a dream or a reality remains to be realized. But the fact remains that, these churches continue to be a religious force that forms part of the church history in Africa.
While this thesis will constantly be referring to the 1921 events, an ecclesiology of the said church is a present phenomenon because the church survived the massacre and is still active today.
The two researchers, Robert Edgar from Los Angeles University in the USA, and Martin Mandew from the University of Natal, completed their doctoral theses on the Bulhoek Massacre. Edgar was researching on, The Fifth Seal. Enoch Mgijima, The amaSirayeli Bulhoek Massacre, 1921. Mandew concentrated on, War, Memory and Salvation, The Bulhoek Massacre and the Construction of a Contextual Soteriology.
Since both researchers come from a distance, and are unable to speak the language of the people they were researching, there were of obviously unfilled gaps in between. As mentioned about cultural differences, therefore, knowing the language of the worshippers makes a big difference. There needs some analysis of idiomatic expressions, enunciated and other formal and informal expressions that tend to be important during communication. However, I acknowledge their research programme but I will go further from their product.
This thesis examines the ecclesiology of this church and then relates it to the massacre where they were killed for their own beliefs. It is also important to analyse, as this thesis does, the church-state relations in South Africa in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in order to establish how other religious bodies related to the governments of the said period.Christian Spirituality, Church History and Missiology
D. Th. (Church History)
49
Conteh, Prince Sorie. "Fundamental concepts of Limba traditional religion and its effects on Limba Christianity and vice versa in Sierra Leone in the past three decades." Thesis, 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/1418.
Full textAbstract:
This study is the product, chiefly, of fieldwork, undertaken in Sierra Leone, which sought to interview and experience contemporary Limba religio-cultural practices. Using a systematic approach, the goal was to provide a broader understanding of Limba religion, as well as to discover the effect of Limba religiosity, and the tenacity with which the Limba hold to their culture and religion, on the National Pentecostal Limba Church (NPLC) over the past three decades.
The study begins with an introduction, which outlines its objectives and structure, the research methods, and its general outline. This is followed by a basic introduction to the socio-history of the Limba people, their origin, environment, language, politics, economy and other socio-cultural characteristics, in order to provide an understanding of the background on which their religion is formed.
The heart of the study is a detailed examination of Limba religious beliefs and their intersection with Christianity. It includes a definition of Limba religion and its components. This seeks to identify the current state of Limba religion amidst the changes it has experienced and continues to experience as a result of internal and external influences, and to provide a template for this study, an analysis of the Limba belief in a supreme creator God whom they call Kanu Masala, his epithets, attributes and activities, Limba worship and worship methods, the Limba understanding of the spirit world, humankind, sin and salvation, and the roles of sacred specialists.
The study concludes with an examination of the causes of the tenacious loyalty with which some Limba Christians hold to their traditional religious beliefs and practices, their reluctance to part with them, and the effects of their dual religiosity on the NPLC, as well as the church's response, and the resulting reciprocal effects over the past three decades in Sierra Leone. This study fills a gap in the extant literature about the ethno-theological landscape of Sierra Leone, and provides a detailed study on the intersection of African Traditional Religion and Christianity.Systematic Theology & Theological Ethics
D.Th. (Systematic Theology)
50
Oosthuizen, Susan. "The third quest for the historical Jesus and its relevance for popular religion : Marcus J Borg as a test case." 2000. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/15715.
Full textAbstract:
The most popular paradigm for Jesus is 'Jesus as the Divine Saviour'. This image is inadequate
for understanding the historical Jesus, because it is also inaccurate as an image for the Christian
life. Marcus J Borg claims that the Christian life is about a relationship with God that involves
us in a journey of transformation. In advocating the 'Third Quest', Borg develops an alternative
image of 'Jesus as Jewish mystic ', contrary to the idea of 'Jesus as Jewish/Christian Messiah '.
The image of Borg involves five universal religious personality types. The paradigm shift from
'Jesus as the Divine Saviour' to that of 'Jesus as Jewish mystic' is investigated as well as the
relevance and consequences of this, for everyday religion and the conventional church. A plea
for a positive assessment of the issue of the historical Jesus is presented. This could have
existential implications for South African society as a whole.Biblical and Ancient Studies
M.Th. (New Testament)