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African Traditional Religion Encounters Christianity
The Resilience of a Demonized Religion
Introduction
Right from the beginning of humankind, God has never deprived a people of his grace and revelation. In fact, God's use of people's environment and culture to communicate his will demonstrates his omnipresence.
Religious Diversity
There is no single religion that can claim to have the exclusive possession of God's revelation, for God is too immense to be confined within one faith.
Misconceptions of Missionaries
Hence, it was erroneous, blasphemous, and misleading for some of the early Christian missionaries to Africa to claim that they had brought God to Africa, a mentality that implied the non-existence of God in Africa before their arrival. Of course, God was already in Africa, but the missionaries either failed to discern his presence or just disregarded the traces of his existence.
Focus of the Book
This book explores the religious beliefs, practices, and values of the indigenous people of Africa at the time of the early missionaries' arrival, with particular reference to the Shona people of Zimbabwe. It also evaluates the extent of the missionaries' successes and challenges in converting Africans to Christianity. It finally surveys how African Christians have remained attached to the indigenous religious beliefs that used to provide answers to their existential questions.
