Academic literature on the topic 'Religions – Malawi'

During 3-5 September 2007, scholars associated with University of Witwatersrand’sDepartment of Anthropology and key members of the Johannesburg-based Institute of French Studies in South Africa explored ways toengage South African and French scholars in forms of cooperation. Toaddress this event’s focus, “Muslim Cultures in South Africa and France,”the organizers brought along the School of Social Sciences and Humanities(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg) and the Institut d’Etudesde l’Islam et des Societes du Monde Musulman (Ecole des Hautes enSciences Sociales [EHESS]) to partner with them.The theme, “Islam, Democracy, and Public Life in South Africa and inFrance,” identified three basic objectives: to re-imagine Islam as an objectof academic enquiry, explore the epistemological dimensions of the study ofIslam, and foster scientific networks. The organizers highlighted a key question:“How do Muslims employ their religion to explain and clarify theirposition and role in public life in South Africa and France?” and identifiedthree focus areas: The Status ofMinority Religions: The Case of Islam; ReligiousIdentity - Political Identity; and Trans-nationalism/regionalism.The “Southern Africa” panel, chaired by Aurelia Wa Kabwe-Segatti(French Institute of South Africa [IFAS]), consisted of Alan Thorold’s (Universityof Melbourne) “Malawi and the Revival of Sufism,” SamadiaSadouni’s (Wits Institute for Social and Economic Research [WISER])“Muslim Communities in South Africa,” Liazzat Bonate’s (Eduardo MondlaneUniversity) “Leadership of Islam in Mozambique,” and Eric Germain’s(EHESS) “Inter-ethnic Muslim Dialogue in South Africa.” Sadouni examinedsuch crucial concepts as religious minorities and extracted examplesfrom both countries. Thorold, who analyzed Sufism’s revival in Malawi,relied on the work of ErnestGellner. Some participants, however, argued thathis ideas have been surpassed by more informed theoretical scholarship.Bonate reflected upon the differences that played out within northernMozambique’s Muslim communities vis-à-vis the government. Germain,who explored early Cape Muslim social history, provocatively argued thatmuch could be learned from this community’s make-up and attitude. Asexpected, he was criticized for sketching a romantic picture.The “Media and Power” panel, chaired by Eric Worby, featured GabebaBaderoon’s (post-doctoral fellow, Penn StateUniversity’sAfricana ResearchCenter) “Islam and the Media in South Africa.” She traced how Islam ...

AbstractIn Malawi, Rastafari students are prevented from attending public schools on account of their dreadlocks. This article seeks to analyse a framework for assessing whether Rastafari qualifies as a religion under section 33 of the Constitution of Malawi. The article argues that Rastafari is a recognized religion and that its sincere adherents should have full protection under the Constitution of Malawi, as do members of other religious groups. The article discusses potential problems for Rastafari litigants in Malawi and proposes some solutions. It introduces a three prong balancing test, which has been applied in particular cases in Zimbabwe and South Africa, and makes recommendations about future interpretation of the Constitution of Malawi using this test. It examines the current interpretation of the freedom of religion in Malawi and concludes with an argument for Malawi to follow the approach taken in Zimbabwe and South Africa.

Abstract An obituary of Matthew Schoffeleers, a leading Dutch anthropologist of Malawi and of African religion, presenting his life, his work (under the headings of: religious anthropology; historicising anthropology; African religion and the state; religion and development; African religion and Christian theology), and a provisional appraisal.

The Twentieth and twenty first centuries have been described as the age of anxiety. This is largely due to the many civil wars and conflicts that have been prevalent in our contemporary world, and especially with special reference to Africa which is the worst hit. In particular, armed conflicts been witnessed in Angola, Ethiopia Mozambique, Rwanda, Somalia and Sudan among others. Equally, civil wars have been witnessed in Angola, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Somalia and Sudan. Sadly, some of these States are at the verge of collapse due to the effect of these unfortunate civil wars and conflicts. Other countries that were affected by civil or ethnic conflicts, albeit at lower levels include: Burundi, Cameroon, Kenya, Nigeria, Togo, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Chad, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Malawi, Senegal, and South Africa. The latter has witnessed xenophobic attacks, especially in May 2008. Terrorism activities have also Increased, as it continues to create tensions among nations, religions, tribes and so on. To this end, this article seeks to explore the causes of civil wars and conflicts in Africa, that bleeds poverty on a mass scale. How can the church participate in curbing these wars and conflicts, and eventually usher-in sanity in these troubled waters? In its methodology, this article strives to redefine war and discusses the characteristics of modern warfare. Through an extensive review of relevant literature, the article has also attempted to explore the place of individual persons, the nation-states and the international network systems in combating civil wars; and lastly, it has endeavored to show the contribution of the church in wrestling out all forms of conflicts in the Sub-Saharan Africa.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has unsettled societies and economies of people and countries all over the world. Malawi is no exception. As such, the COVID-19 pandemic is more than just a health crisis. Countries have responded by instituting lockdowns and other restrictive measures among the populace. These have, in turn, elicited negative responses and legal challenges; most of which are rights-based. The main challenge has been that of the restriction of individual and religious freedoms. It is, thus, no surprise that reactions against government decrees restricting religious gatherings in the wake of the pandemic have been challenged in the courts. We will explore the Malawian traditional religious concept of healing and wholeness, give a chronological outline of government decrees and the responses to the pandemic, and conclude with an analysis using some reflections on Ferdinand Tönnies concepts of Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft and recollection of traditional religion and critique of the new evangelicalism leading to an understanding of the Malawian response to the pandemic.

AbstractThe study of the relationship between religion and the environment in Malawi has only recently begun to be appreciated. Christian missionaries in general did not actively promote the campaign for conservation of resources but some early missionaries frequently evoked biblical images and ideas that had a strong bearing on the perception and management of the environment. Later, certain religious groups were vocal in their support for or opposition to state-sponsored conservation schemes in the colonial period. This paper demonstrates that African religious beliefs and customs equally played a critical role in creating a set of ideas about conservation and the environment. The study is part of an effort to recover some early voices promoting conservation of natural resources in the country. It thus addresses the issues of religion and conservation as critical in the initial encounter between Europeans and Africans.

AbstractThis article analyses the complexities of religious identity and stakeholder discourse concerning religious education (RE) reform in Scotland and Malawi. Drawing on Bourdieu’s concept of ‘social space’, it explicates the extent to which religious identity and conflicts over symbolic power in the social space of RE reform engender polarised debates imbricated by entrenched ideological positions because agents’ discourse in the social space draw on elements of their particular culture, tradition, spiritualties, and theologies. A comparative analysis of qualitative data from Scotland and Malawi reveals stakeholders’ reflections, frustrations, and insights on the conflicting nature of religious identity in the discourse of RE reform in a social space where symbolic struggles are inimical to the production of common sense. Despite the data arising from two countries with different socio-cultural contexts—one African and religiously conservative (Malawi), the other European and secular-liberal (Scotland)—the findings reveal similar challenges regarding how agents engage with RE reform in the social space, and the complications that religious identity engenders in that dynamic.