Abstract
This article discusses the persistence and transformation of rain rituals in contemporary African Christianity. It argues that the concept ‘hybridity’ might be a useful addition to the vocabulary of scholars studying contemporary global Christianity. The use of hybridity could replace ideologically loaded terms, such as syncretism, while still describing the interaction between different religious traditions on the phenomenological level. In Africa, as elsewhere, there are ongoing internal dialogues between the often divergent traditions represented in the worldviews of contemporary Christians. Under the concept hybridity, this internal inter-religious dialogue might be well described using non-pejorative, empirical language.
Highlights
It is the thesis of this article that the term “hybridity”, which has been well used in post-colonial theory to describe so-called hybrid cultures, may be usefully applied in theological studies to describe some of the more recent trends in World Christianity, the phenomenon of African Initiated Christianity
Perhaps it has the potential to circumvent and override some of the more biased connotations associated with typically used concepts, such as syncretism
It is possible to use syncretism in a neutral, phenomenological sense, the word has often been negatively applied to certain forms of African Christianity by observers who themselves hold essentialist understandings of religion in general, and Christianity in particular
Summary
It is the thesis of this article that the term “hybridity”, which has been well used in post-colonial theory to describe so-called hybrid cultures, may be usefully applied in theological studies to describe some of the more recent trends in World Christianity, the phenomenon of African Initiated Christianity. For my purposes here I would point out that in recent times there has been a growing consensus among missiological scholars of Global Christianities to recognise the fact, to quote Richard Fox Young, “that all Christians – of Hellenistic antiquity, of medieval Northern Europe, and of today’s global South – necessarily construct their pluriform identities out of heterogeneous cultural components” (Young 2006:1). This realization occurred to a large extent under the influence of more recent scholarship done on African Christianity, and by Andrew Walls and what we could call the ‘Wallsian’ school of African Christian historiography (Walls 1996/2002).
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
