Timeless Taboo: New Attacks on African Spirituality

[natina]

This practice of referring to anything in the realm of African spirituality as evil or devilish is a continuation of the propaganda used by missionaries, slave traders, and colonizers ever since they ventured onto the continent. Enslaved Africans were treated as a people without culture. They were reduced to being treated as cargo. Africans were viewed as heathens because they had their own religious traditions prior to the introduction of Christianity and Islam. These traditions include ancestor veneration, systems of initiation and respect for the natural environment.


African Traditions in the Americas


African spiritual systems, which fall under the category of African Traditional Religion (ATR), are the traditions that have sustained us since time immemorial. Enslaved Africans brought these traditions to such places as Haiti, Brazil, Cuba, New Orleans, Florida, and South Carolina. They can be seen in the burial custom of placing items on the graves of deceased family members, knowledge of certain ritualistic and medicinal practices, known under various names as juju, hoodoo, rootwork, etc. They can be seen in the tradition of adorning trees with bottles, vessels, and other objects to protect the household through invocation of the dead as noted in places like Mississippi, South Carolina, and Virginia.




http://atlantapost.com/2011/06/06/ti...-spirituality/

[robertlouis]

This practice of referring to anything in the realm of African spirituality as evil or devilish is a continuation of the propaganda used by missionaries, slave traders, and colonizers ever since they ventured onto the continent. Enslaved Africans were treated as a people without culture. They were reduced to being treated as cargo. Africans were viewed as heathens because they had their own religious traditions prior to the introduction of Christianity and Islam. These traditions include ancestor veneration, systems of initiation and respect for the natural environment.


African Traditions in the Americas


African spiritual systems, which fall under the category of African Traditional Religion (ATR), are the traditions that have sustained us since time immemorial. Enslaved Africans brought these traditions to such places as Haiti, Brazil, Cuba, New Orleans, Florida, and South Carolina. They can be seen in the burial custom of placing items on the graves of deceased family members, knowledge of certain ritualistic and medicinal practices, known under various names as juju, hoodoo, rootwork, etc. They can be seen in the tradition of adorning trees with bottles, vessels, and other objects to protect the household through invocation of the dead as noted in places like Mississippi, South Carolina, and Virginia.




http://atlantapost.com/2011/06/06/ti...-spirituality/

I'd agree pretty much with every word of that, Natina. And the same could be said of any continent into which an imperialist faith like christianity or islam has moved, either as colonisers in their own right or to bolster the colonising power. Latin America, Asia, Australia, it's a world-wide phenomenon.

It even existed in the dark and middle ages in Europe - "pagan" is a word now taken to mean heathen and imply primitive attitudes, but it originally meant "of the village", in other words things like ancestor and nature worship etc. Witch hunts as often as not selected those women who had simply maintained ancient herbal means of healing.

I guess I'm saying that it isn't an exclusively African-American issue, although I'd accept that it continues insidiously, especially in the south.

And Pat Robertson? He's an evil bigot with too many followers, but heaven help us all if he ever comes to represent majority opinion in the US.

[Stavros]

There is a fine line between 'African Spirituality' and violence against children, your rosy view of it does not match the ugly facts -you may not have heard of Victoria Climbie, Natina, but she represents a very real, a very terrifying, and a sick application of 'spirituality'. Perjorative use of the words Kindoki, Juju and Voodoo or whatever you call it does not mask the belief in devils, witches and the other Africans who can defeat them. The fact that African 'spiritualists' are mostly frauds even though they openly advertise and con people out of their money may say more about the fools who pay than the ideas they believe, but the ideas are bogus to begin with.

You wont agree with it, perhaps, but you can read about Victoria Climbie and some of the other victims of 'African Spirituality' here:
http://louhall.co.uk/witchcraft.html

[joeninety]

There is a fine line between 'African Spirituality' and violence against children, your rosy view of it does not match the ugly facts -you may not have heard of Victoria Climbie, Natina, but she represents a very real, a very terrifying, and a sick application of 'spirituality'. Perjorative use of the words Kindoki, Juju and Voodoo or whatever you call it does not mask the belief in devils, witches and the other Africans who can defeat them. The fact that African 'spiritualists' are mostly frauds even though they openly advertise and con people out of their money may say more about the fools who pay than the ideas they believe, but the ideas are bogus to begin with.

You wont agree with it, perhaps, but you can read about Victoria Climbie and some of the other victims of 'African Spirituality' here:
http://louhall.co.uk/witchcraft.html

Do you see what you did there precisely the thing this post is about, note how you put across an association with the child abuse, the devil, and witches to each of the above religions, but also noted is you absence of a comparison to another famous religion Christianity, which also believes in the above and used to send its missionaries across the globe on a mission of convert or die, and is responsible for mass murder across the globe.

Note you fail to show the other side of picture which is that most practitioners of African spirituality are not evil and are merely carry out a tradition of healing through faith and herbs, just as most Christians are not evil but merely want to get to heaven through their faith, if you are going to present facts it should be done fairly, to give a distorted picture as you just did only proves you are guilty of these same attacks...........

[Stavros]

Joe I know that Africa has a wide range of beliefs, spiritual and otherwise, and I know that in Africa Christianity can be as intolerant as Islam or any other religion -probably because of the social milieu in which it is practised. I acknowledged that there is a 'fine line' between what is acceptable and what is fantastic and dangerous nonsense; in act I was referring to the influence here in the UK or so-called African 'healers' 'spiritualists' call them what you will who are ripping people off by claiming they can exoricise demons -to some extent its just another scam, but when parents are convinced their 8 year old is possessed of the devil and tie her up in chains in the kitchen, even you must know that whatever African spirituality is, this isn't it. My prejudice is against ignorance and superstition, and the violence it can inflict on completely innocent people -mostly children under the age of 12. At least read the background to the awful case of Victoria Climbie before leaping to the defence of people unworthy of your moral support.

[Birgitta]

There are african tribes that are very spiritual as opposed to superstitious, but a lot of them are very barbaric too, like ripping out the heart of humenbrothers, children, to gain power etc

[joeninety]

Joe I know that Africa has a wide range of beliefs, spiritual and otherwise, and I know that in Africa Christianity can be as intolerant as Islam or any other religion -probably because of the social milieu in which it is practised. I acknowledged that there is a 'fine line' between what is acceptable and what is fantastic and dangerous nonsense; in act I was referring to the influence here in the UK or so-called African 'healers' 'spiritualists' call them what you will who are ripping people off by claiming they can exoricise demons -to some extent its just another scam, but when parents are convinced their 8 year old is possessed of the devil and tie her up in chains in the kitchen, even you must know that whatever African spirituality is, this isn't it. My prejudice is against ignorance and superstition, and the violence it can inflict on completely innocent people -mostly children under the age of 12. At least read the background to the awful case of Victoria Climbie before leaping to the defence of people unworthy of your moral support.

I agree with the sentiments in your post as you have outlined things a little more clearly, i do remember the Victoria case, as well as another when a little African boys torso was found in the Thames and they nicknamed him Adam his death was the result of a ritualistic slaying.

The rip off merchants you refer to in the Uk are usually although not exclusively Nigerian and the thing with them scammers is that they are crafty conniving bunch who would sell their own mothers if the price was right, all jokes aside let us not confuse scammers and con artists with practioners who genuinely believe, and that are doing good.

As to the sick fucks that abuse the children well they might as well be catergorised under the demonic satanic section, that goes for the priests and whoever else from wherever else. The point is they are everywhere hiding in some religious sect or another waiting for there next victim but it doesn't mean the religion is inherently wrong, its more the wolf found there was easy pickings to be had if he disguised himself as a sheep and sat amongst a flock of lambs

[joeninety]

There are african tribes that are very spiritual as opposed to superstitious, but a lot of them are very barbaric too, like ripping out the heart of humenbrothers, children, to gain power etc

Yep sounds like Satanism is alive and thriving..........

[Stavros]

Alice Lakwena was an example of what happens when African spiritualism goes bad..
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/6274313.stm

I am more positive about the new Africa that is more interested in reality...
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/13505966

I think its time to move beyond the African stereotypes of lions, elephants, diseases and disasters that do exist in Africa but which should not be allowed to dominate to the exclusion of the scientists, engineers, poets and others who are making the future look so different.