Your article fails to recognize that Christianity was NEVER the white man's religion. African traditional religions have been washed away, and especially with Christianity, they are viewed as pagan and heathen in nature. Perhaps you never heard of the "Slaves Bible" where the scriptures that told of God's love for all mankind and scriptures that forbade slavery were eliminated for the White slave masters greed and rationalization. For many, Christianity is an answer for all their queries. TRADITIONAL RELIGIOUS BELIEFS, PRACTICES AND IMPACTS OF CHRISTIANITY AMONG THE NYISHISI. Christianity has an economic, religious and political roll in most places it has influenced and Africa is no exception. The early European missionaries brought Christianity to Africa and the religion was embraced by Africans. Christianity was embraced and spread rapidly in Africa because of factors inherent in its culture, such as African religiosity and the sense of being celebratory of life, which both go with communal existence. Before the arrival of Christianity, Islam and the other foreign religions, people were afraid to take other people's wives. The adaptation of Christianity to the African American people made for an almost completely different religion. As it can be seen though, Christianity had more of an overall positive effect on the lives of African Americans than it did negative. Their conversion and adaptation to Christianity held many positive and negative effects for the African Americans. The African Americans were forced to leave behind their traditions, religions, and culture. Asalways, I appreciate the comments and alternative perspective. Christianity points fingers to the beliefs of the Igbo culture. Every aspect of it cannot be described as original. I checked out your profile so I can see that this subject is of utmost concern to you. Christianity has to address this traditional religious holism/organism and its pantheistic tendencies. Saint Mark's first convert in Alexandria was Anianus, a shoemaker who later was consecrated a bishop and became Patriarch of Alexandria after Saint Mark's martyrdom. Christopher Wanamaker (author) from Arizona on August 23, 2014: Thank you reading my article. A classificatory system which attempts to distinguish the principal responses It toyed with the slaves’ hope of freedom and made them believe that if they worked well, and were obedient, that they would be rewarded in the afterlife. The African American slaves adapted the Christian religion to fit their needs; they blended old cultural elements with new Christian ideals. It seems Christianity has done the most in affecting the conscience of the black person in Africa. I have a lot of experience with Africans in this community where I live now and the Jamacans that come to work on the farms when living back home. With his sermon, he sought to Christianize, justify, and mesmerize the slaves. New York: Oxford University Press, 1978. Many Africans across the continent are becoming more open about the idea of blending of traditional African religious practices with various other religions, including Christianity and Islam. Hence, it cannot be avoided in the interaction between Christianity and African Traditional Religion. (Raboteau, 222) It was the religion of the people around the slaves that enabled them to witness the many positive and negative sides of Christianity at this time. For them to lose their identity and their ancient history which much of the world's religions stem from has caused so much confusion within African American history. Traditional African cultural practices paved the way for foreign way of doing things as Africans became fully ‘westernised’. This bitter conflict has led to wanton destruction of 23-28, 216-219, 322-328. The initiation of a Christian driven slave trade was a very detrimental blow to African culture; thus having a negative effect on the development of African Americans. Many Christians hold that Christianity was brought to Egypt by the Apostle Saint Mark in the early part of the first century AD. ‘Christianity and the African traditional religion(s): The postcolonial round of engagement’, Verbum et Ecclesia 32(1), Art. Many were told that it was their duty to be a slave and that if they complied, they would be granted the rite of passage into heaven. These papyri are written in the Coptic script and are older than even the oldest Greek copies of the Bible ordered by Constantine in AD 312. 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