What is the nature of God in African traditional religion?
Many religions see God as transcendent or immanent dimension, but in African traditional concept, ‘He is both transcendent and immanent’. He dwells inside human souls and He is also beyond any reach. People cannot even appreciate Him fully in their imagination.
What was the role of God in traditional African society?
God (Supreme Being): There is a widespread belief in God who is believed to be supreme and above all; God is essentially a spirit and is recognized as such in all the African tribes. He is invisible and infinite and cannot be comprehended by the finite man.
What is God in ATR?
In ATR God is understood to be an intangible, invisible phenomenon able to penetrate and defuse things. God is extremely great and far removed from humankind and therefore ancestors act as mediators between them and God.
What are the attributes of God in traditional religion?
In Western (Christian) thought, God is traditionally described as a being that possesses at least three necessary properties: omniscience (all-knowing), omnipotence (all-powerful), and omnibenevolence (supremely good). In other words, God knows everything, has the power to do anything, and is perfectly good.
What was the original religion in Africa?
Animism builds the core concept of traditional African religions. This includes the worship of tutelary deities, nature worship, ancestor worship and the belief in an afterlife.
What are the beliefs of African traditional religion?
Traditional African religions generally believe in an afterlife, one or more Spirit worlds, and Ancestor worship is an important basic concept in mostly all African religions. Some African religions adopted different views through the influence of Islam or even Hinduism.
What is the importance of African traditional religion?
African traditional religion provides deep insights into the minds of African people particularly into the source of their morality, sense of self, sense of community and relationship with the natural and built world.
How do Ga call God?
The name of this creator god is Ataa-Naa Nyonmo that literally means “the god who is both”, in fact “Ataa” means “male” and “Naa” means “female”, while “Nyonmo” means “divinity”; but the creator god is also called “Ofe” or the “first ever” or Maawu.
What was the first religion in Africa?
Christianity came first to the continent of Africa in the 1st or early 2nd century AD. Oral tradition says the first Muslims appeared while the prophet Mohammed was still alive (he died in 632). Thus both religions have been on the continent of Africa for over 1,300 years.
Is African traditional religion a revealed religion?
There is widespread certainty in African scholarship that African religion is a revealed religion. This religion, according to many scholars, has no founder. The other side of the argument is that the religion is purported to have originated or born out of the experiences of our African forefathers.
What are the 5 characteristics of God?
Terms
- Omnipotence.
- Omnipresence.
- Omnibenevolence.
- Omniscience.
Is there a god in African traditional religion?
He contends that although African Traditional Religion generally refers to God as creator and sustainer of the universe, morally good, omniscient, and caring toward humans, “yet even where this is held to be true, the high god in Africa is very often regarded as distanced from human affairs.”
What do Africans use to guide their religion?
Africans who follow a traditional religion rely on no scriptures, canonical texts, or holy books to guide them. In African traditional religions guidance is provided through myths, which are handed down orally.
What are the different types of religious art in Africa?
Religious Art in Africa 1 African Art and the Spirit World. Beliefs about the spirit world are deeply embedded in traditional African culture, but were heavily influenced by Christianity and Islam. 2 Masks in the Kalabari Kingdom. 3 Dogon Sculpture. 4 Mendé Masks.
What is the role of God in African religious ontology?
There are so many other great attributes of God in African religious ontology which we may not expatiate in this work such as: God is the absolute controller of the universe, God is Omnipotent, Omnipresent and Omniscient in Africa; the Supreme Being is one in Africa; God is good and merciful, and God is Holy.