Death is not natural: the African story
Due to its tolerant attitude towards religious pluralism, Sub-Saharan Africa provides a fertile ground for religious syncretism. Converts to Christianity or Islam are unconsciously unable to let go of their traditional religions. Rather, they blend or marry their traditional beliefs with those of th...
| Published in: | The journal of religion & society |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Creighton University
2012
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| In: |
The journal of religion & society
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| Further subjects: | B
Africa; Social life and customs
B Africa; Religion B Christians; Africa B Children; Death B Dead; Religious aspects; African religion B Youth; Africa |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (kostenfrei) Volltext (kostenfrei) |
| Summary: | Due to its tolerant attitude towards religious pluralism, Sub-Saharan Africa provides a fertile ground for religious syncretism. Converts to Christianity or Islam are unconsciously unable to let go of their traditional religions. Rather, they blend or marry their traditional beliefs with those of their newly embraced faiths, coming up with doctrines that are neither Islamic nor Christian. The negative result of this unconscious alliance becomes evident during serious life crises such as death, especially "untimely deaths." Today the Christian teaching on death and resurrection has been replaced by a strange doctrine according to which there can be no natural death. Every death, apart from that of elders, is considered untimely or premature because the hand of one's enemy is presumed to be involved. Given the contemporary climate of "witch hunt" on the continent today, addressing this wrong attitude towards death has become urgent and imperative. Using a phenomenological method of philosophy of religion, the author explores and exposes the implications of the African attitude toward death, and proposes a radical change of attitude and the return to a authentic Christian doctrine on death. |
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| ISSN: | 1522-5658 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: The journal of religion & society
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| Persistent identifiers: | HDL: 10504/64306 |