Florida International University Course Syllabus
RELIGIOUS STUDIES 4730 African Religions
FALL 2012
Instructor: Dr Albert Kafui Wuaku
Office: Room DM 309
Office Hours: Monday, 11-12:30 IN DM 309
Tel: (305) 348-0112
email: wuakua @fiu.edu
Course Description
This course exposes students to the indigenous [African] foundations of the religious
beliefs and practices of African communities living in Africa and the Diaspora. The
course explores the theological ideas and the ritual forms of African communities such as the
Ashanti, Ga, Fon, Ewe, Ibo, Yoruba and Mende of West Africa, and the peoples of Central, East
and Southern Africa and how these ideas and practices have contributed to the shaping of
outside religions that have flowed into Africa. Because the Africans populations forced to
migrate to the USA, Caribbean and Latin America as slaves, extended their religious beliefs and
practices to their new homes, this course will provide students with insights into the beliefs and
practices of such African centered Caribbean and Latin-American religious traditions as Santeria
[the lukumi tradition], Vodou, Candomble and some religious forms and expressions of African
Americans in the USA. Topics to be covered in this course will include, sources of African
Religious beliefs, African theological notions about God, African Religious beliefs about the
nature of the human being and the universe, Witchcraft, sorcery and the problem of Evil in
African religious thought and practice, Sin and salvation in African religious thought, Illness
health and healing discourses and practices in African Religions, African Islam and African
Christianity.
Course Objectives
By the end of the semester:
Students will become familiar with the indigenous religious beliefs and practices of selected
African ethnic groups and their links with diaspora African communities
Students will be familiar with the various scholarly approaches to the study of African religions,
the challenges involved in this area of study, and how to deal with them
Students will gain an understanding of the central role of religion in the past and contemporary
lives of African communities globally
Students will develop enough taste for the study of African religions, to be willing to study it at
higher levels
Students will be equipped with the scholarly tools they need to articulate their own
understandings of African religious realities, verbally and through writing.
Pre-Requisites NO
Books
There is no single text book required for this course. Class discussions and lectures will be based
on selected texts and readings from texts listed below, and other relevant sources such as
Academic Journals. Students can acquire these sources on their own but they are not required to
do so. The readings are all posted on blackboard so students can have access to them and read
ahead of class lectures and discussions. The texts are all on reserve in the library. Students can
also borrow copies from my personal library.
BOOKS
Ade, Adegbola. Traditional Religion in West Africa, Ibadan: Sefer Books Ltd, 1998.
Amanze James. Traditional Religions and Culture in Botswana. Gaborone: Pula Press, 2002
Asare Opoku Kofi. West African Traditional Religion. Singapore: FEP International Private
Limited, 1978
Badejo, Deidre. Osun Seegesi: The Elegant Deity of Wealth, Power and Femininity.
Trenton: African World Press, 1996
Barnes Sandra: Africa’s Ogun: Old and New. Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University
Press1997.
Bomgba Elias African witchcraft and otherness: a Philosophical and Theological Critigue of
Inter-subjective Relations Albany : State University Of New York Press, 2001
Drewal(ed) Sacred Waters: Arts for Mami Wata and Other Divinities in Africa and the Diaspora
Bloomington &Indianapolis: Indiana University Press
Gyekye Kwame. African Philosophical Thought: The Akan Conceptual Scheme. Philadelphia:
Temple University Press, 1987
Idowu,E.B. Olodumare: God in Yoruba Belief. London,
Longmans, 1962,
Jean and John Comaroff. Modernity and its Malcontents: Ritual and Power in Post-Colonial
Africa, Chicago: The University of Chicago Press
Masquelier A. Prayer has Spoiled Everything: Possession Power and Identity in an Islamic
Town of Niger. Durham and London: Duke University Press, 2001
Mbiti J.S. African Religions and Philosophy. Halley Court, Jordan Hill, Oxford OX2 8EJ:
Heinemann Educational Publishers, 1990.
Mbiti J.S. Introduction to African Religion. Halley Court, Jordan Hill, Oxford OX2 8EJ:
Heinemann Educational Publishers, 1991
Meyer Birgit Translating The devil: Religion and Modernity Among The Ewe in Ghana
Edinburg: Edinburg University Press, 1999.
Modupe Oduyoye. The Vocabulary of Yoruba Religious Discourse, Sefer Books Ltd, Ibadan
Moore and Sanders. Magical Interpretations, Material Realities: Modernity, Witchcraft and the
Occult in Postcolonial Africa, London And New York: Routledge, 2001
Murphy Joseph. Working the Spirit: Ceremonies of the African Diaspora. Boston: Beacon Press
1994
Olupona JK Kinship, Religion and Rituals in a Nigerian Community: A Phenomenological Study
of Ondo Yoruba Festivals. Stockholm: Almqvist& Wilsell, 1991
Olupona Jacob. African Traditional Religions in Contemporary Society. Minnesota: Paragon
House, 1991.
Olupona Jacob. African Spirituality: Forms Meanings and Expressions. New York: The
Crossroad Publishing Company, 2000.
Olupona Jacob. Beyond Primitivism: Indigenous Religious Traditions and Modernity. New York
and London: Routledge, 2004.
Olupona Jacob. African Immigrant Religions in America, New York, New York University
Press, 2007.
Peek Philip. African Divination Systems: Ways of Knowing. Bloomington and Indianapolis:
Indiana University Press, 1991
Quarcoopome. West African Traditional Religion. Ibadan: African University Press Pilgrims
Books Limited, 1987.
Ray Benjamin. African Religions: Symbol, Ritual, and Community. Saddle River, New Jersey:
Prentice Hall Upper, 1999
Course Requirements and Expectations
Attendance and Class Participation
10% percent of your final grade depends on your regular attendance and participation in
class discussion. All must attend class regularly and punctually. Only three unexcused
absences will go without penalty. Any additional unexcused absence will cause a drop in
your final grade. A to an A-, an A- to a B+, etc. Habitual lateness will also impact your
grade negatively. If you cannot come to class, let the professor know beforehand via email
and explain why. Note: Attendance will be taken at the beginning of each class.
You are all expected to come to class prepared to contribute to discussions on the
assigned reading material, and to submit all assignments by their due dates.
Assignments, Evaluations and dates
Attendance and Class Participation: 10%
Three exams (45%) (15% each) First exam is on 16th sept / 2nd exam is on Oct 14/ 3rd exam is
on December 5th
Book Review 15% [due Sept 30th]
Review of Journal Article 10% [review - a peer reviewed journal article on a Topic related to
African Religions] [due October 21]
Analytical paper 20% [due November 20th]
Analytical Paper- Each student must write an analytical paper on topic dealing with an aspect of
African Religions in Africa, or their manifestations in the USA, the Caribbean or Latin America.
The following rules must guide you in the writing of this paper.
• Your paper should be between 8-15pages in length [font 12 double space].
• You should provide references and a bibliography.
• Draw on at least 5 good academic sources;[some can be primary sources]
• Be analytical, that is, show evidence of your ability to engage relevant conceptual frames in the
exploration of their topics. Students are encouraged to develop frames drawing on some of the
indigenous African ideas/beliefs we cover in the course of the semester.
• Choose a topic you can manage successfully, that is, one that is neither too narrow in scope nor
too broad to be researched easily.
Plagiarism Policy
Plagiarism is defined as the deliberate use and appropriation of another author’s work
without any indication of the source, and the representation of such work as the student's
own. Students who do not give credit for ideas, expressions or other materials taken from
others sources, including sources from the internet have plagiarized.
A student will score zero if his or her work is found to be plagiarized. The student may
also face disciplinary action for such academic misconduct. All exams are sit-in exams. You will
select and answer three out of five essay questions. Exam dates--- will be announced in Class
three weeks in advance.
Topics and Readings
Week .1
Introduction- Traditions in the Study of African Religions
Philosophical
Gyekye Kwame. African Philosophical Thought: The Akan Conceptual Scheme. Philadelphia:
Temple University Press, 1987
or
Bomgba Elias African witchcraft and otherness: a Philosophical and Theological Critigue of
Inter-subjective Relations Albany: State University Of New York Press, 2001
PhenomenologicalOlupona JK Kinship, Religion and Rituals in a Nigerian Community: A Phenomenological Study
of Ondo Yoruba Festivals. Stockholm: Almqvist& Wilsell, 1991 [note that this work
demonstrates the use of other approaches too]
Socio-Anthropological
Masquelier A. Prayer has Spoiled Everything: Possession Power and Identity in an Islamic
Town of Niger. Durham and London: Duke University Press, 2001
Or
Meyer Birgit Translating The devil: Religion and Modernity Among The Ewe in Ghana
Edinburg: Edinburg University Press, 1999.
Week 2- Continuation of discussion on Traditions in the Study of African Religions
Week 3.
The nature of Indigenous African Religions and descriptions by Earlier scholars
Readings—
“General Introduction to West African Traditional Religions” by kofi Asare Opoku,
“Religion from An African Perspective” by Amanze James,
“Introduction to West African Religion” by TNQ Quarcoopome
“ Introduction : The invention of African Religions” in African Religions: Symbol, Ritual,
and Community.
Week 4
Sources of African Religious beliefs [myths, proverbs, meanings of God’s names, personal
theophoric names, everyday speech, pithy sayings, liturgy, songs, non-oral sourcesReadings---Introduction of West African Traditional Religion, by TNQ Quarcoopome
Chapter 3 of Introduction to African Religion by JS Mbiti.
Chapter 1 of African Religions: Symbol, Ritual, and Community, By Ray Benjamin.
Week 5. Understandings of the Universe in Indigenous African Religions
Reading: Chapter 4 of Introduction to African Religions by JS Mbiti
Weeks 6 Sept 28th/30th
The spiritual Universe and the entities- The Supreme Being, gods, ancestral spirits, evil
spirits, mystical forces and beings, the nature of the human being
Readings--
Gaba, C. R. 1969. “The Idea of a Supreme Being among the Anlo People of Ghana "
The Journal of Religion in Africa 2, no. 1: 64-79.
E. B. Idowu, Olodumare: God in Yoruba Belief. London,
Longmans, 1962,
Metuh E.E The Concept of the ‘High God’ in Traditional Igbo Religion” International
Journal of Frontier Missions 2:4 (October 1985): 315-321.
“Divinity and Humanity” in Chapter 2 of African Religions by Benjamin Ray
West African Concept of Man” in Chapter of West African Traditional Religion by Kofi
Asare Opoku
Ancestral Spirituality and Society in Africa, by Ogbu U Kalu in chapter 4 of African
Spirituality: Forms Meanings and Expressions by Olupona (ed)
Chapters, 5, 6, 7 and 8 of Introduction to African Religion by JS Mbiti
Chapters 2, 3 and 5 of Traditional Religions and Culture in Botswana by James Amanze
“An overview of Yoruba Cosmology” in Chapter 2 of Osun Seegesi by Badejo
“Mami Water in African Religion and Spirituality” in Chapter 9 of African Spirituality by
Olupona (ed)
Week 7-The spiritual universe and the entities contd-- evil spirits, mystical forces and beings,
the nature of the human being
Week 8
Concepts of health, illness, and healing practices
Readings: “Spirit Beings as agents of Illness” in chapter 7 of African Spirituality: Forms
Meanings and Expressions by Olupona (ed) ,
Healing rituals of the Nuer and Ndembu in chapter 3 of African Religions: Symbol, Ritual,
and Community by Benjamin Ray.
Magic, Medicine, and Witchcraft in chapter 6 of West African Traditional Religion by
Quarcoopome
Movies and class discussions on them: “Healers of Ghana” and “Sorcerers of Zaire”
Week 9
Sin and its removal.
Ritual Dirt and Purification Rites Among The Ibo by Emefie Ikenga Metuh, the journal of
Religion in Africa, XV (1) 1985, pp3-24.
Sin and Its Removal in African Traditional Religions, by Awolalu Omosolade in Journal of
the American Academy of Religion, 44/2(1976) 275-287
We will watch and discuss selected Movie clips on ritual cleansings posted on Youtube
Week 10
The problem of evil and sources of supernatural harm in African religions [specific focus on
witchcraft].
Readings: “Witchcraft and Society” by Bourdillon in African Spirituality: Forms Meanings
and Expressions by Olupona. “The Power of evil”[Songhay, Yoruba, Manianga and Azande
] in African Religions: Symbol, Ritual, and Community. [ pges 106-108]
We will watch and discuss selected Movie clips on child witches posted on Youtube
Weeks 11.
Ritual- The place of Ritual, the Categories of Rituals, Ritual Specialists and their roles --Life
cycle Rituals, Festivals, Sacrifice, Divination, Spirit Possession Readings: “
The Ghanaian and Death” “Yoruba Death and Egungun” “Minianga Afterlife” in Ray
Benjamin. African Religions: Symbol, Ritual, and Community.
Introduction, part 1, 2&3 of African Divination Systems: Ways of Knowing. Bloomington and
Indianapolis: Indiana University Press, 1991
Olupona JK Kinship, Religion and Rituals in a Nigerian Community: A Phenomenological
Study of Ondo Yoruba Festivals.
Omasade Awolalu J. Sacrifice in the Religion of the Yoruba.
Ibadan : University of Ibadan, 1970
Week 12
Ritual specialists-Priests, Priestesses, Sorcerers
Movie- Love in the Sahel [on Rites of Passage in Sahelian West Africa]
Week 13
Women in African ReligionsReadings “Tswana Religion and Women” in Chapter 16 of Traditional Religions and Culture in
Botswana, “Flower in The Garden: The Role Of Women in African Religion” By JS Mbiti in
African Traditional Religions in Contemporary Society by Olupona Ed. “The Role of Women in
African Religion and Among the Yoruba” by Omoyajawo in African Traditional Religions in
Contemporary Society, by Olupona, “Women in African Religions” by Rosalind Hackett, in
Religion and Women by Arvind Sharma ( ed)
Week 14. African Islam /African Christianity and expressions of Indigenous religions in
Modern Times
Readings: Chapters 13, 14, and 16 of African Spirituality: Forms Meanings and Expressions.
Chapter 7 and 8 of African Religions: Symbol, Ritual, and Community.[Movie- Africa’s
Triple Heritage] by Ali Mazuri. Chapters 3, 4, 14 of African Traditional Religions in
Contemporary Society. Introduction of Modernity and its Malcontents.
Chapter 1 of Magical Interpretations, Material Realities.
Week 15. Extensions of African Religions to the Caribbean, Latin America and the USA,
Murphy, Joseph. Working the Spirit: Ceremonies of the African Diaspora.
“Vodou in Haiti and South-Florida” Guest lecture by Mambo Ingrid Mambo of Halouba
Hounfo and Botanica, in Little Haiti, Miami
Guest Lukumi in Miami Lecture by Oba Pichardo of the Church of Babalu Aye in Hialieh,
Miami