advantages of religion in south africa

(December 22, 2020). Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 1994. South Africa has a population of approximately 55 million people comprising of diverse culture, religion, origin, and languages. Country Analysis The following section will contain an analysis on South Africa’s political, economic, legal, cultural and commercial aspects of doing business with South Africa. A consequence of such protests was that, in the 1990s, many African countries underwent at least a degree of democratization. To ascertain the nature of the contemporary relation between religion and politics in Africa, it is necessary to take into account the impact of European colonialism, especially from the 1880s, as it was the primary modernizing force throughout the region. At times, Christian leaders were very prominent in the fight to oust nondemocratic governments. 3 (1991): 370–399. South Africa comes with its own set of in intricacies, and owning a business requires someone that is committed. Gifford, Paul. European mission churches, on the other hand, were an important facet of attempted colonial cultural domination. The African Experience. As a result, the notion of politics not only involves general relations of power but also relates to the workings of formal political institutions (e.g., legislatures, executives, presidents), as well as focusing attention more generally on issues of authority, legitimacy, power, and equity. Southern Africa - Southern Africa - Independence and decolonization in Southern Africa: After the war the imperial powers were under strong international pressure to decolonize. Multiculturalism is the peaceful coexistence of a culturally diverse or multiethnic population in a country. Healing dances are still among the most widely practiced religious rituals in South Africa, even in the 1990s, and are used in some African Independent churches to heal the sick or eradicate evil. Followers believe in the guidance of their ancestors spirits. Because each style has its own formatting nuances that evolve over time and not all information is available for every reference entry or article, Encyclopedia.com cannot guarantee each citation it generates. Such fundamentalist interpretations of Islam are of particular political importance in Sudan (where it is the ruling ideology) and in parts of northern Nigeria, where conflict (with thousands of deaths since the late 1990s) between Muslims and Christians has long been an important politico-religious issue. There are spiritual leaders, kinds of priests or pastors in most traditional African religions. Therefore, that information is unavailable for most Encyclopedia.com content. Africa is home to nearly 600 million people. Certainly, African Muslim leaders were not, on the whole, in the forefront of demands for political changes in the 1990s. Encyclopedia.com. The consequences of the colonial period for the relation between religion and politics in Africa were profound. The nature and characteristics of the contemporary African state are in large part a function of the legacy of the colonial era, a period of time that ended in most cases, in the 1960s. "South Africa Prophetic Christianity and the Liberation Movement." However, the relation between politics and religion in Africa cannot be so easily compartmentalized. In such protests, religious leaders were frequently well represented. The second factor is that Islamic fundamentalism is rare, although not unknown, in tropical Africa. Lapidus, Ira. Theologians are interested primarily in understanding the nature of its individual or collective spiritual significance. Christianisme, Pouvoir et Etat en Societé Postcoloniale. On 17 August 2016, an article titled, “The Damning Effects Of Religion In Africa,” written by Kofi Asamoah Okyere was published on Modernghana.com in which the writer sought to establish a case that religion impeded the development of Africa.. In Africa, what are widely perceived as unwelcome symptoms of modernization, such as a perceived breakdown of moral behavior (especially among the young), educational overliberalization, and generally worsening social habits, are frequently linked to persistent governmental failures throughout the region to push through and consolidate appropriate programs of social improvement. London, 1991. Mayer, Anne. Fields, Karen. “Every country has a set of rules that governs how to do business,” says Morne Cronje, FNB head of Franchising. There is no established religion which has certain advantages before the law of the land. However, where Islam was already religiously and culturally dominant, as in vast swathes of North, northwest, and East Africa, then the temptation of Western-style education and its attendant material rewards was usually insufficient in the face of cultural and community solidarity to win many, if any, converts to Christianity. A comprehensive overview of neotraditional religion's political involvement in Rhodesia and Zimbabwe during the anticolonial struggle. Many churches, synagogues, mosques, and temples have offered worship through livestream amidst the pandemic.. Benefits of Religion. Africans or South Africans and Bantu-speaking people form the major part of the population (approximately 35 million). The main analytical problem involving an understanding of the relation between religion and politics in Africa is the region's astonishing multifariousness of religious beliefs, ethnic divisions, cultural distinctions, and political modes. Multiple Voices: Challenges Posed for Religion Education in South Africa, David Chidester 28 - 32 6. During the 1960s and 1970s, mainline Christian churches swiftly Africanized, with control shifting from Europeans to Africans. Examines the role of various Christian churches in the antiapartheid and prodemocracy movement in South Africa. Social dynamics in Africa may best be viewed as an entwined triple-stranded helix of state, class, and ethnicity. Civil marriages are recognised and fully protected by the law, as are the other valid marriages in South Africa… "Missionaries and the Intellectual History of Africa: A Historical Survey." Traces the variable responses of Christian missionaries to temporal power in Africa during colonial times. Religion plays a fundamental role in our culture. London, 1996. For many Khoisan peoples, the sun and the moon were gods, or aspects of a supreme deity. Yet religious interaction between ordinary Africans and the colonial authorities was by no means a straightforward relationship between dominance and dependence. London, 1985. In the post-Apartheid period, there is a record increase in the practice of AIR in South Africa. Such religious organizations tended to function well during the colonial period because they served as appropriate focal points for ordinary people's attempts to come to terms with and to adapt to the forces of change (summarized as modernization), that were a result of the intrusion of European rule. As a result, a partnership with state-level politicians is of crucial importance. The first includes the dominant sociopolitical and cultural position of Islam found in the emirates of northern Nigeria, the lamidates of northern Cameroon, and the shiekdoms of northern Chad. Berkeley, Calif., 1985. Christian, especially Roman Catholic, leaders were often prominent in prodemocracy campaigns opposing, denouncing, and frustrating authoritarian regimes and, in several cases, these campaigns were successful in removing entrenched governments from power. Third World Quarterly 18, no. In addition, throughout much of Africa, Muslims had to coexist with and be bound by European power, as they were ultimately under the latter's control. Secular Benefits. A History of Islamic Societies. As true as the general notion of cultism might be, most rooted African secret cults started off as a … 4 (1994): 513–34. There are two basic models of African socialism that represent its variations and development on the continent (Rosberg and Callag…, Neocolonialism can be defined as the continuation of the economic model of colonialism after a colonized territory has achieved formal political inde…, POPULATION 4,465,651 It is significant that such Christian leaders were not, on the whole, in the forefront of demands for similar political reforms during the twilight of colonial rule in the 1950s and 1960s. Paris, 1988. Other Muslim groups adopted armed struggle against the Europeans, especially during the period from the 1880s to 1914, when they were soundly defeated by the superiority of the Europeans' military technology. https://www.encyclopedia.com/environment/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/politics-and-religion-politics-and-african-religious-traditions, African Religions: New Religious Movements, Communication of Ideas: Africa and its Influence. Itinerario 7, no. •Religion has been a major feature in some historical conflicts … Gifford, Paul. In order to discuss religion and the state, the demarcation between the two must be clear, which leads to the postulat…, Islam in Africa, the development of the Muslim religion on the African continent. The Constitution of South Africa allows for freedom of religion, indeed, the freedom of all religions in South Africa. Such differing assessments of the nature of religion in Africa suggest that it would be most constructive to note its combined spiritual and material dimensions. "Some Recent Developments in African Christianity." I believe that with the advent of Christianity in parts of Africa, there has been a huge change is the amount of superstition. 191–222. It should be noted, however, that two of the seven francophone countries—Mali and Niger, which held national conferences on new political arrangements in the 1990s—are both strongly Muslim countries. TO INFLUENCE RELIGION? Outlines the interaction of religion and politics in Africa from colonial to the turn of the twenty-first century. This is a case study of neotraditional religion's political involvement in Rhodesia and Zimbabwe. It benefits many aspects of society. Dr Bompani is also the programme director of the masters in Africa and International Development. "Politics and Religion: Politics and African Religious Traditions The wide variety of religions in South Africa is a reflection of the cultural diversity in South Africa's "Rainbow" society. Retrieved December 22, 2020 from Encyclopedia.com: https://www.encyclopedia.com/environment/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/politics-and-religion-politics-and-african-religious-traditions. This development reflected a reawakening of civil society's political voice, with trade union officials, higher-education students, businesspeople, civil servants, and, in many African countries, Christian leaders coordinating and leading protest efforts. On the other hand, where substantive numbers of white settlers were absent (as in most of West and west-central Africa, as well as Uganda), then Christian missionaries and the colonial authorities tended to develop clearly mutually supportive relationships. An account of the emergence and development of a politicized religious movement in contemporary Uganda. They exert influence by controlling national Muslim organizations. Why was this? "Religious Fundamentalism and Politics." Encyclopedia of Religion. Encyclopedias almanacs transcripts and maps, Politics and Religion: Politics and African Religious Traditions. Africa 51, no. Ṣūfī Islam—the faith of many African Muslims—is actually a frequent target for Islamic fundamentalists found within the ʿulamāʾ and their secular allies because it is regarded as a primitive or degraded form of Islam that must be reformed or purified. 4 (1997): 709–728. A comprehensive discussion of religious fundamentalisms, including a focus on Africa. African Affairs 93, no. Journal of Modern African Studies 29, no. In summary, the main benefits of religion include Peasant Consciousness and Guerrilla War in Zimbabwe. Traditional, animist religion saw humans as being subject to the whims of local gods. Leeuw (2004:20-36) goes further and states that African religion is a misnomer, because the ideas behind actions of ritual and rite relate to African thought and not to religion — a concept not even accommodated originally in African languages. Discusses the political roles of Islam in Nigeria. Some ethnic groups are unique to South Africa while others like Basotho crossed the border into the country. Encyclopedia of Religion. This points to how religious and political power have developed historically in and between African religious traditions. In short, class, racial, and institutional bonds bound Christian leaders to the colonial regimes. The belief systems have the right to run under the wings of democracy and the right to worship. Refer to each style’s convention regarding the best way to format page numbers and retrieval dates. Since the birth of democracy in South Africa, this religion has occupied an important position Page of í ì Through this OpinionFront article, you can learn about the advantages and disadvantages of … In traditional (i.e., precolonial) African societies, the relationship between religion and politics was always a close one, for religious beliefs and practices underpinned political power, while political concerns permeated to the heart of the religious sphere. Concerns were exacerbated by years of popular frustration and disappointment, for the promises of independence had turned out, almost everywhere, to be hollow. 2 (1983): 116–143. African traditional religion also provides our societies with moral values, which undrgird the relationships between people in the community and between then and the environment, spiritual and physical. arrive at a more authentic reflection on African religion. People were afraid to cheat on other people. ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN (TEWAHDO) 40 Oliver, Ronald. Colonial administrations attempted to employ religion as a tactic in their pursuit of political domination. However, attempts to arrive at an analytically precise definition of the term religion is fraught with difficulties because no consensus exists as to the proper understanding of what religion in Africa is. not well thought of by White people in South Africa; however, despite the condemnation, AIR continues to be practiced even in the present. The metaphor of the triple strand is useful in understanding the political and social role of religion in Africa, with the three strands of the helix comprising religion, ethnicity, and politics. In conclusion, the multi-colored nation of South Africa is said to support Christianity as the primary belief system. The main analytical problem involving an understanding of the relation between religion and politics in Africa is the region's astonishing multifariousness of religious beliefs, ethnic divisions, cultural distinctions, and political modes. As a result, there are declining numbers of followers of traditional indigenous religions and very few atheists or agnostics. Many Africans belong to Ṣūfī brotherhoods. In Fundamentalisms and the State: Remaking Politics, Economics and Militance, edited by Michael Marty and R. Scott Appleby, pp. Traces the emergence of popular religion in Africa and outlines its socio-political roles. Politics and Religion: Politics and African Religious Traditions Cambridge, U.K., 1979. In other words, such religious organizations functioned as statements of social, political, and economic interaction as well as important foci of community aims and strategy. 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