Four ways into an African sacred wilderness: a study of Johane Masowe's teaching
This article focuses on four ways of explaining the term masowe in relation to the founder figure, Johane Masowe (1914–1973). First, the term refers to a liminal place or threshold for divine intervention. Johane Masowe claims authority as a prophet by making inexplicit yet obvious references to bib...
| Published in: | Religion |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic/Print Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
|
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group
[2015]
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| In: |
Religion
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| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Masowe, Johane 1915-1973
/ Teaching
/ Wilderness areas
/ Liminality
/ Colonialism
/ Near-death-experience
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| RelBib Classification: | AD Sociology of religion; religious policy AG Religious life; material religion KAJ Church history 1914-; recent history KBN Sub-Saharan Africa KDG Free church |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (doi) |
| Summary: | This article focuses on four ways of explaining the term masowe in relation to the founder figure, Johane Masowe (1914–1973). First, the term refers to a liminal place or threshold for divine intervention. Johane Masowe claims authority as a prophet by making inexplicit yet obvious references to biblical stories about a sacred wilderness. Second, the term masowe draws attention to problems of displacement caused by colonialism and postcolonial oppression in Zimbabwe. Third, stories told by Johane Masowe's devotees about the near-death experiences of the prophet turned masowe into a dangerous place wherein Satan-the-Witch caused suffering and death. Although the fourth meaning is yet to be examined more closely, it comes from Masowe Apostles who travel from as far away as Nairobi, Kenya, on pilgrimage to Johane Masowe's burial shrine in Zimbabwe, thereby hinting at hopes for redemption in the form of life after death. |
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| ISSN: | 0048-721X |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Religion
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1080/0048721X.2014.992107 |