African Traditional Beliefs Research Articles

The Law and an Ancestral Request For Exhumation

Exhumation is the removal of the remains of a dead body from its initial resting place – in other words, when a corpse is removed from a coffin, either to be re-buried at another place, or to dispose of the remains in a different manner as in cremation. A corpse could be the remains of a deceased person or a stillborn child or a fetus. An exhumation may also be undertaken to ascertain the cause of death or to ascertain the identity of the deceased. A court or the immediate family of the deceased may request an exhumation for any of the mentioned reasons. If the family is asked by the ancestors to exhume a grave, certain legal questions may come to the fore. It is the purpose of this note to discuss the legal requirements for exhumations and briefly to address the traditional African cultural belief in which ancestors play a part in life on earth. It is not a complete analysis or an opinion on African culture or beliefs. Ancestral beliefs simply form the background to the real legal questions surrounding exhumations in South Africa.

Factors associated with male partner involvement in the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of human immunodeficiency virus in the Gokwe North District, Zimbabwe: A qualitative study

Male partners’ involvement in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) intervention programmes is crucial in the prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) of HIV. However, male partner involvement in PMTCT is low in most countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. Therefore, this study aimed at exploring the major factors associated with male partner involvement in PMTCT of HIV programmes in the Gokwe North District of Zimbabwe. The study utilised qualitative methods. Data was collected using a pretested interview guide. Purposive sampling methods were used to select participants of focus group discussions and key informant interviews. Interviews were conducted from May to September 2015. Thematic analysis was used for data analysis. The study revealed that local traditional leaders played a role in mobilising men in communities. Awareness campaigns enhanced communities’ knowledge about PMTCT. Couple communication proved to be vital in promoting male involvement. However, stigmatisation against men utilising antenatal-care services, fear of HIV results and a lack of knowledge of the practices surrounding PMTCT of HIV programmes were hindrances to male partner involvement. Collaboration and engagement amongst stakeholders especially with traditional leadership can be essential in increasing male partner participation in PMTCT. Education has proved to be a catalyst in the de-stigmatisation of men in PMTCT programmes. Moreover, HIV counselling can illuminate an understanding on the implications of HIV test results. The significant contribution of this article is its demonstration of the role of African traditional leadership and belief systems in curbing HIV infections, particularly in terms of male partners’ involvement in PMTCT initiatives.Contribution: The significant contribution of this article is its demonstration of the role of African traditional leadership and belief systems in curbing HIV infections, particularly in terms of male partners’ involvement in PMTCT initiatives.

The Black Madonna: A Theoretical Framework for the African Origins of Other World Religious Beliefs

This review summarizes existing scholarship in order to theorize how Abrahamic religions and Hinduism were influenced by African beliefs, in order to illuminate the contributions that African beliefs have had on other world religions. The review begins with a brief historical overview of the origins of indigenous ideologies, followed by a review of classical theories of religion and a summary of contemporary religious trends, with particular attention on African beliefs. The Black Madonna, with origins in Africa, is a prominent example of how African beliefs have been integrated into other faiths in ways that are often obscured from view. The Black Madonna is compared with the characteristics and symbolism of the traditional fair-skinned Virgin Mary. It is estimated that there are hundreds of depictions of the Black Madonna, yet her identity as truly black is generally minimized. This review contributes a theoretical rationale for the lack of recognition and acceptance of the Madonna as black, contextualizing this within a feminist theoretical viewpoint and analyzing the connection to African folklore and traditional religious beliefs. The theoretical framework articulated in this paper contributes an elucidation of the ways that indigenous African religions have affected other world religions. Acknowledging this influence challenges the simplistic notion of reified distinctions between Western and non-Western religions.

Assessing Human Reproductive Cloning and Creationism from the Perspectives of Raelianism and African Belief

This paper appraised the issues involved in human reproductive cloning and creationism from the standpoints of Raelian religion and African traditional belief. The methods adopted are descriptive and evaluative. The findings include the fact that human cloning is one of the religious tenets of Raelianism; and that African tradition and culture totally reject reproductive cloning on the ground of its unnaturalness. Finally, the paper from the African traditional paradigm concluded that human reproductive cloning is totally condemnable and should not be practiced on human beings on the ground of unnaturalness, distortion, negation, imperfection, and aberration.

Secondary school students' knowledge, attitude, and practices towards epilepsy in Nsukka City, Enugu State

BackgroundEpilepsy is the most common noninfectious neurologic disease in Nigeria and other developing African countries. Epilepsy remains a stigmatized disease. The stigma stems from the traditional African belief, which views epilepsy as a spiritual disease. A lack of information and illiteracy has been blamed as the cause of the stigmatization. AimsThe aim of the present study was to assess the awareness, knowledge, and attitude towards epilepsy among secondary school students in Nsukka. MethodsThis was a cross-sectional survey using a validated, self-administered questionnaire comprising four sections: demographic characteristics, awareness, knowledge, and attitude towards people living with epilepsy (PLWE). Data were analyzed using the IBM SPSS Statistics 23. Descriptive analysis (frequencies, percentage, mean, and standard deviations) were used to summarize the data. The relationship between sociodemographic characteristics and knowledge score and attitude score was performed using chi-square analysis. Statistical significance was set as a p-value <0.05. ResultsThe majority of the students (87.4%) had heard of epilepsy as a disease. The most common source of information was the electronic media (21.5%). More than half (61.6%) had witnessed a convulsion in the past, and 36.9% knew someone with epilepsy. The majority of the students (66.7%) believed that epilepsy is caused by witchcraft. Jerking (77.3%) and loss of consciousness (82.4%) were identified as the commonest manifestation of epilepsy. Regarding treatment management of epilepsy, 81.3% of the students believe the use of orthodox medicine, while 85.4% would insert a spoon in the mouth when a seizure occurs as part of first-aid treatment. Nearly half of the students had good knowledge (48.1%) of epilepsy and a positive attitude (46.5%) towards the disease. The students' knowledge was associated with their school (X2 = 23.21, p = 0.001). However, students' attitude towards epilepsy was associated with their schools (X2 = 5.93, p = 0.015) and their guardians' level of education (X2 = 14.65, p = 0.012). ConclusionThe findings of this study suggest poor knowledge and attitude towards epilepsy among secondary school students in Nsukka, Enugu State, Nigeria.

English

This article presents empirical analysis of religious attitudes and interpretation of pandemics in Uganda. The study sought to analyze the religious explanatory models of pandemics offered by the three major religions of Uganda: Christianity, Islam and African Traditional religious belief system. The COVID-19 pandemic which ravaged the whole world, Uganda inclusive, was used as a case study. Based on a qualitative research process, the study relied on key informant interviews, media reports and online sources of information. It was established that pandemics have been part of human history. Pandemics provide an opportunity for human reflection on transcendent life since they are a challenge to science and human wisdom. Pandemics draw people closer to religion and the spiritual due to the fear, panic, and uncertainty with which they are associated. Religions are left with the responsibility of providing theological answers beyond what human beings can comprehend. The hope and trust that society has in religious institutions make them ultimate institutions to provide solace to millions of people affected with a pandemic for which scientists and politicians have no immediate answers. The study unravels the complementary role that religion and theological studies can make in understanding effective management and prevention of pandemics in society. It also adds to the continuous debate on the relationship between science and religion, arguing for the significance of religious ideas in making science effective enough to combat societal challenges like epidemics. &nbsp; Key words: Pandemics, religion, religious, construction, disease, Tondism Faith, State, science, traditional healing, coronavirus, Covid-19.

Conversion to Orthodox Christianity in Uganda: A Hundred Years of Spiritual Encounter with Modernity, 1919–2019

In 1919, three Ugandan Anglicans converted to Orthodox Christianity, as they became sure that this was Christianity’s original and only true form. In 1946, Ugandan Orthodox Christians aligned with the Eastern Orthodox Church of Alexandria. Since the 1990s, new trends in conversion to Orthodox Christianity in Uganda can be observed: one is some growth in the number of new converts to the canonical Orthodox Church, while another is the appearance of new Orthodox Churches, including parishes of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia and the Russian Orthodox Old-Rite Church. The questions we raise in this article are: Why did some Ugandans switch from other religions to Orthodox Christianity in the first half of the 20th century and in more recent years? Were there common reasons for these two developments? We argue that both processes should be understood as attempts by some Ugandans to find their own way in the modern world. Trying to escape spiritually from the impact of colonialism, post-coloniality, and globalization, they viewed Catholicism, Anglicanism, and Islam as part of the legacy they rejected. These people did not turn to African traditional beliefs either. They already firmly saw their own tradition as Christian, but were (and are) seeking its “true”, “original” form. We emphasize that by rejecting post-colonial globalist modernity and embracing Orthodox Christianity as the basis of their own “alternative” modernity, these Ugandans themselves turn out to be modern products, and this speaks volumes about the nature of conversion in contemporary Africa. The article is based on field evidence collected in 2017–2019 as well as on print sources.

Sub-Saharan African cultural belief system and entrepreneurial activities: A Ghanaian perspective

This article seeks to advance our understanding of the culture-entrepreneurship relationship from an African perspective by examining how six African traditional beliefs either promote or hinder entrepreneurial activities. These six traditional Ghanaian cultural beliefs (i.e. belief in godliness, belief in paranormal activities, belief in a social hierarchical structure, belief in familism, belief in communal social orientation, and belief in patriarchism) are directly linked to entrepreneurial behavior. We argue that this belief system differs from those of other cultural contexts and provides the underpinnings for understanding African culture and entrepreneurship. We derive propositions of how this belief system relates to the entrepreneurial eco-system. These propositions suggest the following: Belief in familism, belief in communal social orientation and belief in patriarchism are likely to have, depending on the circumstances, a positive or a negative relationship with entrepreneurship. Belief in paranormal activities and belief in a social hierarchical structure are bound to influence entrepreneurial behavior negatively. At the same time, belief in godliness will influence entrepreneurial activities positively. Following these inferences, the article concludes that Ghanaian culture, and African culture as a whole, frame entrepreneurial activities. However, the cultural belief system suggests that the culture-entrepreneurship relationship is more complex than previously envisaged.

African Traditional Religions in Transition: Modernism, Globalization and African Indigenous Faiths in Context

Contrary to the writings of early Western Scholars, prior to the invasion of the slave traders and colonialism, the African was religious within a descriptive context of relative awareness of his existence, not in comparison with any other. The African has never been irreligious and ignorant of the existence of a Supreme being or the spirit realm. In the era of increasing advancement in technology, modernization and globalization, the African, in the practice of his indigenous faith, appears to be succumbing to several influences. The invasion of Islam and Christianity have also had their respective toll on African Traditional Religious beliefs and practices. Indeed, African Traditional religious beliefs and practices across diverse societies on the continent have been transformed in many ways. The question is whether the African in many years to come will still have a religion in the form bequeathed by the ancestors? To what extent has globalization and modernization and so on, influenced the way the African believes and worships? This Paper discusses this very important subject and opens the debate for further research and discussions.

Deconstructing Sexuality and Xenophobia in Africa: A Critical Discourse on &amp;lt;i&amp;gt;The Thing Around Your Neck&amp;lt;/i&amp;gt; and &amp;lt;i&amp;gt;Under the Udala Tree&amp;lt;/i&amp;gt;

This study demonstrates that prejudices towards homosexuals in Africa are stifling. Such bigotries stem from deeply rooted African traditional beliefs, and partly from the “ideals” of adopted religions. It is, therefore, unlikely for conformists of heterosexuality to experience resistance and homophobic tendencies. Adherents to this view include Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Chinelo Okparanta in there texts The Thing Around Your Neck and Under the Udala Tree respectively. These writers also hold that restraints, constraints and exclusion of all sorts form the caucus of xenophobia towards homosexuality in Africa. The paper argues that, homosexuality is not strictly a global northern issue; but also, an African phenomenon, even though it meets with unprecedented resentment and resistance due to received religions and socio-cultural stereotypes. The objective of this study is to examine, interpret, and analyze the texts, and showcase the deplorable attitude of Africans towards LGBT practitioners. The analytical framework is based on indebt examination of the tests, using Queer and Deconstructionist perspectives as theoretical constructs. The study reveals that no form of sexuality is superior to another, as a result, no form should be encourage or discourage, because sexuality is innate. Also, heterosexuality is seemingly a sexual preference in Africa, but wrapped – up in a cluster of homosexuality which existence is behind the scene in Africa.

Directing O'Neill: Mourning Becomes Electra, Long Day's Journey Into Night, Desire Under the Elms, Days Without End

Directing O'Neill: <i>Mourning Becomes Electra, Long Day's Journey Into Night, Desire Under the Elms, Days Without End</i>

Nostalgia as a pastoral–hermeneutical key for healing complicated grief in an Afro-Christian context

This research engaged complicated grief in an Afro-Christian context. The Afro-Christian context was described as one where traditional African beliefs form the bedrock of a unique strand of Christian faith. Christians within the philosophical and spiritual category of the African context harbour a unique outlook on death and, therefore, approach loss in a way that still embraces traditional views regarding the role of the departed. This provides for an extended grieving process, which opens the door for complicated grief as opposed to the notion of uncomplicated grief. The Christian text, where the resurrection of Christ stands central, challenges African views on the role of the departed and opens possibilities for the healing of complicated grief. In the light of this, nostalgia is investigated as a pastoral–hermeneutical key to understand and challenge the phenomenon of complicated grief in an Afro-Christian context. While nostalgia denotes a longing for the past, the distinction between restorative and reflective nostalgia provides valuable possibilities for pastoral work with complicated grief. It was argued that restorative nostalgia is indicative of attempts to restore the past and reflective nostalgia is indicative of a willingness to accept reality based on a cognitive and spiritual realisation that the past cannot be retrieved. It is thus contended that much pastoral potential resides within the notion of nostalgia when deployed in the context of complicated grief in an Afro-Christian context. Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: The contextualisation of practical theology and pastoral care in the African context requires an interdisciplinary approach which is mindful of the African context, the Christian faith as well the variegated contexts in which Africans currently live and believe.

"In ancient times, God spoke in different ways to our ancestors and through the prophets": Existential and Ontological Possible Parallels between Yoruba Traditional Religion and the Christ Event

According to Paul, grace is a giftto all through the vicarious suffering, death, and resurrection of Christ (Rom. 5:15–16), grace that was extended to all even when humanity was dead in sin. This provides a framework for a theological reexamination of black Africa's religious traditions. Borrowing from traditional Yoruba religious cosmology, it is argued that pre-missionary religious practices are preparatio evangelium, sacred spaces mediating grace and the birthing of communitarian virtues. With parallels from within this tradition, examined with the Christ event, it is argued further that Christian missionary efforts often demonized traditional religions due to ignorance. The colonial assumption that cultural and religious rituals of Africa are "pagan and uncivilized" animism will be debunked. Parallels can be drawn between the story of Jesus and the religious narratives within and beyond Yoruba traditional cosmogony. This essay concludes that traditional religions of ethnic peoples were already sacred spaces mediating Christ's grace before the advent of the slave raiders, colonialists, or white missionaries. It challenges Euro-American perception and understanding of the religious traditions of Africa as sacred places of Christ's grace, thereby creating grounds for an ecumenical handshake between Christianity and various African traditional religious belief systems.

Perceptions of mental health care consumers regarding their conditions

BackgroundDistress is experienced, understood, expressed and communicated differently across various cultures. Individuals assign meaning to their mental health problems from their own personal, social and cultural context. Mental healthcare consumers (MHCCs) often attribute their symptoms to a cultural or spiritual cause, and as a result, tend to visit spiritual or traditional healers before attending psychiatric units.AimThe aim of the study was to determine patients’ perspectives on mental health – what they perceived to be the cause of mental problems and what they believed the most appropriate treatment options would be. The role of culture, religion and spirituality in patients’ understanding of and coping with mental problems was explored, as well as their attitudes toward their treatment and the perceived effectiveness and appropriateness of the different treatment modalities.MethodsA quantitative survey was done using a questionnaire designed to explore and analyse patients’ cultural and religious beliefs about mental illness and the actions they take in their search for recovery from mental disturbances. The questionnaire was compiled by incorporating demographic information, together with certain items of the World Health Organisation Quality of Life Spiritual, Religious and Personal Beliefs questionnaire, the Cultural Formulation Interview, the Rating of Medication Influences Scale, and the South African Traditional Beliefs Scale.ResultsNinety-four patients (58.5% male) were included in the study, with a mean age of 36 years. The majority of the participants (75.5%) were black people; most were Christian (79.8%), followed by African traditionalists (17.0%), and 41.4% indicated that they were actively involved in their religious communities. Although most (72.0%) believed that faith in God and help from religious leaders (34.4%) could contribute to their mental wellbeing, 29.0% reckoned that keeping their ancestors happy would protect them from sickness and bad luck. Approximately one quarter (22.3%) believed that traditional medicine could be the only cure for mental illness related to bewitchment, and 29.0% believed that Western medicine could worsen such problems. Roughly a third of participants (30.9%) were of the opinion that Western medicine cannot cure mental illness caused by angry ancestors.ConclusionThe impact cultural and religious belief systems have on MHCCs’ perceptions of mental illness has been demonstrated and appeals to the availability of accepta ble mental health care services. Mental healthcare providers’ sensitivity to cultural and religious beliefs will enrich the therapeutic relationship; hence healthcare providers should receive training focusing on the influence these belief systems have on patients’ perceptions of mental illness and their consequent help-seeking behaviour. Likewise, findings of the current study suggest a need for the incorporation of complementary and alternative treatment strategies in the rendering of mental healthcare services. Such inclusion acknowledges MHCCs’ preferences and may reduce the time required to obtain remission and recovery. Although its application has limitations, future research may provide useful insight for the formulation and implementation of interventions that MHCCs believe to be effective.

A Cultural Appraisal of Sacred Sites of the Eastern Free State Adjunct to African Traditional Religion and Belief Systems

A Cultural Appraisal of Sacred Sites of the Eastern Free State Adjunct to African Traditional Religion and Belief Systems

Literary strains of négritude and consciencism in Joseph Brahim Seid: Envisioning nation and a new multicultural Chadian identity

This study introduces Joseph Brahim Seid, one of Africa’s intellectuals of the first generation of independence, in relation to the ideologisation of his contemporaneous counterparts, to Léopold Sédar Senghor’s négritude and Kwame Nkrumah’s consciencism. Two stories from J. B. Seid’s 1962 collection, Au Tchad sous les Etoiles (translated as Told By Starlight in Chad, 2007) are read as envisioning nation and a new multicultural Chadian identity at the moment of independence. Unpacking literary strains of négritude and consciencism lays bare neglected and overlooked tensions that thwart reconciliation of the different segments of Chadian society: African/tradition–Arab/Islam–Western/Christianity. One story envisions modernisation in the reconciliation between Africa and the West, but in real life modernisaton does not occur within the context of African communalism as the story has it, but in the neo-colonial context, where it benefits the few, and mostly international stakeholders. Possibly with the intent of building nation, Seid tends to harmonize African-Arab cultures and traditional-Islamic religions, neglecting the tyranny of Islamisation and Arabisation in the past. In the present, as we know, rivalry between Arab and African populations in the Chad region has resurfaced. Superimposing Biblical motifs and understating traditional African beliefs and religious practices in a story that tends to reconcile Christianity, Islam and the traditional society, Seid overlooks the colonial context in which “civilising” Christianity is implicated, especially the distaste it engendered towards the traditional society and religions. Double-standards result from the higher prestige attaching to Islam, associated with literacy, and Christianity, associated with modernisation, thus African societies have yielded to the perceived progress imperative. While J. B. Seid’s stories elevate the traditional societal value of communalism, portrayed with positive affect, in real life it has not transformed itself into a socialism sufficient to build nation and promote the multiculturalism envisioned and desired.

Philosophical foundations of human rights: the Yoruba example

Some foundations have been provided for the social validity of human rights in Western philosophical literature. Some African scholars have also sought to ground the notion of human rights within the traditional African cultural beliefs and practices. There is, however, a dearth in literature on the Yoruba notion of human rights. Perhaps this may be due to scholars’ attitude that any talk about human rights is incompatible with the communalistic social structure of the Yoruba. The present paper challenges this prevalent attitude by providing some philosophical foundations for human rights within the limits permitted by the Yoruba world-view. The paper attempts a theoretical reconciliation between the Yoruba claim to communitarianism and the possibility of human rights. The paper concludes that, in spite of the seemingly antinomic relation they bear to each other, the idea of human rights is neither practically meaningless/unintelligible in a communitarian society, nor is it conceptually incompatible with the communitarian ideology.Keywords: Philosophical foundations, Human, Rights, Communitarianism, Yoruba

The Strength of African Culture in Managing Family Crisis in a Globalized World

We live in a world that is overrun with family problems. It is important to find out how family members perceive such problems culturally and how we perceive them in the modern sense. Through modern changes in this globalize world, the African traditional setting or ways of managing crisis cannot remain intact, but they are by no means extinct. In times of crisis they often come to surface or people revert to them in secret. The question is what are the coping strategies which families adopt while facing social problems which needed to be overcome? Scholars of the family know that traditional values in Africa are primarily not for the individual but for his family and community of which he is part. In other words there are no persons that are without a family. Members live in kinship adhering strictly to the norms and values of their family and the society at large. To be regarded in high esteem among Babur- Bura, one must share in the beliefs and participate in cultural practices such ceremonies, rituals, festivals of joy or suffering. For these reasons, one cannot afford to exist without the family/community. A person cannot detach him/ her self from the beliefs of his/her culture. By implication, to do so, is to severe from his/her roots, his/her foundation, his/her context of security, his/ her kinship and the entire group of those who make him/her aware of his/her own existence. Unfortunately, today there are many sources of severe trauma or dislocations for the African families. Some of the sources could be attributed to incessant conflicts, drought, flood, rural-urban migration, urbanization, industrialization, death, divorce, famine, epidemics, locust invasion and western education attainment among others. The Babur-Bura families are not immune to these challenges. As a result of this interference many families and individuals become detached from their traditional setting/environment. In these circumstances, modernity does not seem to remove the sense of frustrations and up rootedness in the life of the African. What people do in such a situation of disenchantment is motivated by what they believe, and what they believe springs from what they do and experience. So then beliefs and actions in Babur-Bura traditional families cannot be separated, but they belong to a single whole. This paper looked at the real ingredients how African families clinch to or embrace cultural practices for survival during adversities. The type of catastrophe mentioned often evokes a revival of their religious activities or innovation of new ones. Specifically, this paper identified and examined the Babur-Bura cultural coping strategies such as fellowship, Lineage marriage, Religion, Story-telling and Group-co-operative farming. These values are strongly influenced by the power of culture and they may or may not be in conformity with the western beliefs which are dominated by a linear perspective linked to the theory of modernization. African traditional beliefs on the other hand are characterized by a circular viewpoint and moral values for fellowship. Our approach is chiefly descriptive and interpretive, bringing together in a comparative way those elements which are representative of traditional coping strategies the Babur-Bura ethnic group.

An Assessment of English Language Influence on Anglophone Countries’ Cultures

&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;The focus of this paper is to assess the influence of English language on Anglophone countries’ cultures. The advent of missionaries’ activities in the Anglophone countries through the medium of English language vis-à-vis its power and influence were highlighted to signify that the power and influence exerted by this language (English) over shadowed the African traditional beliefs such as in religion, education, marriage system, among others. A 10 item researcher-designed questionnaire based on 4Likert scale type of Strongly Agree, Agree, Disagree and Strongly Disagree was dispensed on 180 respondents from three geo-political zones of Nigeria. However, only 176 respondents made their questionnaire available that was computed for this study. The instrument was revalidated thus producing a reliability index of 0.61. The finding revealed that highest percentage of the respondents strongly agreed that the Englishman’s language has greatly influenced African cultures, especially that of Nigeria both positively and negatively. As a result of this, it was concluded that of all the heritages left behind in the British colonies by the British colonial overlords, probably, none is more important than the English language, and that is why it is indeed very likely that for some time to come, English will remain a vital access to global advances which is very essential for gaining access to science and technology, and that it is possible that the Anglophone countries could grind to a halt should the use of English language be outlawed for say five minutes. Based on the findings and the conclusion, it is therefore recommended that Africans, especially Nigeria cannot be an island to itself, and if it must have any global outlook it must embrace foreign influence and culture so that Africans as a whole and indeed Nigerians would fit into any global condition regardless of their cultural background.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

Understanding sexuality from the security gospel perspective: Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries as a case study

This article examines a new dimension in the Nigerian Pentecostal understanding of sexuality, which is influenced by the security gospel emanating from Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries in Nigeria. This new dimension is noted in how Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries intricately connects sexuality with destiny. This article shows how Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries promotes a conservative understanding of sexuality as the key to securing believers’ destinies. Understanding sexuality from the security gospel perspective is an indication that the Pentecostal theology of sex is dynamic and ambivalent, especially when the theology is spiced with African traditional beliefs. This is demonstrated through a content analysis of the teachings and messages of Pastor Daniel Olukoya, the founder of Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries, which are available in print, audio and video clips. It is argued that the persuasive manner in which these teachings are presented tends to create a phobia of sex in the minds of listeners.