Major Issues and The Place of Traditional Religion - Essay Example

MAJOR ISSUES AND THE PLACE OF RELIGION Topic: Major Issues and the Place of Religion Chapter 2: Major Issues in the Study of African Traditional Religion This chapter explores the nature of the major issues surrounding the study of the African Traditional religion. The study of the African Traditional Religion is exiting especially because of its many myths, stories, beliefs, magic, performatives, and objects of worship (Olupona, 1991). However, according to Olupona, it is uncared and unregarded even by the Africans themselves who in normal circumstances would be expected to be in the frontline of seeking its importance and worth.

This particularly explains why the study of the African traditional religion has mostly been undertaken by foreign observers who unfortunately have been less analytical due to their lack of knowledge of African languages, which are normally rich in cultural expression and linguistic (Olupona, 1991). Olupona examines the reasons that made the study of African religion study to suffer serious setbacks in the initial efforts by scholars to get a unit of study from it. According to Olupona, the impact of Christianity and particularly its emphasis of particularity did much damage to the overall study of the African traditional religion and the rightful recognition of its experience.

This is essentially what has contributed to the many difficulties bedeviling the study of Africa religion to date, among them being the problem of sources and what could be referred as the goal of Africa religion study. Other problems that have been besetting this study that Olupona has pointed is the size of the Africa as a continent and derogatory appellations like “dark continent, not to mention the multitude and complexity of each and every quality of Africa’s various language, climate, culture and such like.

Another issue that Olupona has examined in depth in this chapter is the problem of the consequences of the European settlements that have wiped out whole cultures and obliterated lots and lots of racial memories, consequently establishing what has been referred to as “a bit of whiteness” syndrome in the African continent. He also explores the unrepairable blow that has been caused to the Africa traditional religion by the western education, mercantile or civil services crisscrossing the Africa continent (Olupona, 1991).

Chapter 3: The Place of Traditional Religion in Contemporary South Africa In this chapter Olupona look at the effect of traditional religion to today’s South Africa. According to him it is difficult to talk of a single world view in Africa because of the cultural heterogeneity that predominate Africa. He proceeds to interrogate the issue of whether worldview can be differentiated in the late 20th century, with the secularization that has touched even the most traditional cultures in South Africa.

Olupona argues that the traditional religion has played, and continues to play a role in the many recent and modern wars that have been fought in South Africa both political and socially, and that in this view any effort at conclusively resolving such conflicts; any consideration of such resolve should take in to account traditional religion. Olupona observes that in order not to alienate African from their traditional roots the contemporary religion not only in Africa but in almost the rest of the Africa emphasis has remained on supernatural power, the only difference being that today deliverance is now from God rather than from Isangoma.

References:Olupona, K., J. (1991). African Traditional Religions in Contemporary Society. New York: International Religious Foundation.