The Sunday Mail
Sekuru Friday Chisanyu
In Africa, there was no constructive dialogue between practitioners of the African religion and practitioners of other religions.
If anything, several attempts by Christians and missionaries were made to destroy the African religion.
They viewed African religion and its medicines as witchcraft and black magic.
In their opinion, African religion encouraged people to worship their ancestors instead of God.
Their best way forward was to destroy the African religion and its culture so that they could build theirs. They never put effort to apply academics into African traditional religion. After that they transplanted a Christian faith with all its European cultural background, imagery and orientation.
They never considered a dialogue with community leaders and the practitioners of the African religion as the custodians of land and its natural resources, including medicinal plants.
The introduction of literacy, clothing, secured shelters, treatments, fast and effective modes of transport and communication made it easier and helped African people to understand the culture of western medicine better.
On the other hand western culture changed so many things for African people. Some lost their land and cultural values because of the creation of secured lands and industries.
Later, colonial administrators insisted that African shrines or places of worships were to be destroyed, spirit mediums and religious leaders were to be ignored as well as their religious services and use of traditional medicine for prevention and treatment of different types of diseases.
Christians were discouraged to visit African traditional healers. Zimbabweans were told that participating in any traditional rituals of a religious nature was a sin. The belief in witchcraft was aimed at destroying the African religion and culture completely.
However, not all worship places were destroyed, some are still existing and being used. The authority of the ancestors and traditional medicine has survived to this day; they continued to conduct religious services. The detail of their ritual practice has remained consistent in a very remarkable way with some areas.
There are traditional pharmacologists who facilitates the identification of different types of problems and the relevant medicinal plants. These are spirits and spirit mediums.
Today western medicine and culture are widely spread and being used together with African medicines and culture.
There is a huge collaboration between western and African culture because they all contribute to the well being of human life.
Many Zimbabweans who become Christians have maintained dual membership. They do not ignore African religion.
Some believe in witchcraft or even attempt to practice it when they consult traditional healers. The African religion can therefore facilitate inter-religious dialogue among Africans and people of other religions.
Ancestors occupy a central passion in African religion because of their ownership of land and natural resources. Ownership of land forms the main link between politics, religion and spirituality in Zimbabwe. In Zimbabwe each territory belongs to the ancestors that is, the early settlers. Besides leadership, these ancestors control the prevention and treatment of diseases, the rainfall and fertility of the land as well as conservation of bio diversity for ecological balance as living organisms are inter-depended on each other.
A lot of problems and diseases cannot be scientifically diagnosed or treated yet they are easily treated by the traditional medical practitioners.
All ancestors and all Zimbabweans are interested in the welfare of their descendants; they are also interested in good governance, social order and stability. Ultimate dominion over the whole world is in the hands of God through ancestors.
God is for everyone.
◆ Sekuru Friday Chisanyu is the founder of Zimbabwe National Practitioners Association.
