The paradox of transcendence and immanence of god in African religions: A socio-historical explanation

Abstract

The paradox of the transcendence and immanence of God is not peculiar to African religions . Rather, it is one example of what Evans-Pritchard calls `the unresolved paradoxes and ambiguities which are found in different religious systems' . It is a universal human experience, he says, that `Divinity to man is both friend and foe, whom one summons for aid and asks to turn away, seeking at the same time union and separation from him' .' He calls this the paradox of a 'deus absconditus' hidden god, in the sky, and `dens revelatus', revealed god, in human affairs . Different writers in African religion have expressed this paradox in different ways. Among the Nupe, says Nadel, `the most common and most strongly emphasised comment on the nature of the deity is 'Soko Lokpa', God is far away, and yet in a different more mystic sense he is present always and everywhere' .' This is what Taylor called `the dichotomy of primal religion' ; God is said to be withdrawn and far away . He has no temples, sacrifices, and festivals, and yet, he is often in people's lips and thoughts and is invoked and approached for some of the most basic human needs . 3 His immanence is seen in the numerous praise-names, sayings, proverbs, and invocations which express the omnipresence of God and his care for men . Examples of these abound . Some praise-names call him, `He who is everywhere', `Infinity of the forest' . Some proverbs say; `If you would tell God, tell it to the wind' ; `The cattle shelter under the same tree with God' ; `God drives away flies for a tailess cow' . `An enemy may sound the drum of your downfall, but God will not let it sound' . `God is infront, he is at the back' . People pray to God often in times of need . This paper will be discussed in two parts . In the first part, I give summaries of two of the many explanations of the paradox and immanence of God in African religions given by different authors . In the second part, I shall compare the ethnographic data and culture history of two adjacent African