Religious Experience: The Perspective of African Traditional Religion

Johnson Uchenna Ozioko

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.12

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Religious Experience: The Perspective of African Traditional Religion

Johnson Uchenna Ozioko

Published in International Journal of Philosophy (Volume 9, Issue 4)

Received: 5 October 2021 Accepted: 22 October 2021 Published: 30 October 2021

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Abstract

The question of religious experience constitutes one of the most topical issues in contemporary philosophical reflections on religion. The multiplicity and diversity of beliefs and religious phenomena have rendered any attempt at arriving at a consensus on the meaning of spiritual experience and on what experiences legitimately fall within its purview an arduous task. This essay explores the nature of religious experience in African Traditional Religion. The African finds himself in a sacred universe where he is inextricably immersed in a network of relationships. He constantly relates with spiritual, animate, and inanimate beings which overtly or covertly affect his life and well-being in the world. Since each being in the hierarchy has some religious significance, his spiritual experience may broadly be construed in terms of the experience he makes of all these beings, which together make up his sacred universe. In the more strict sense, it is the religious subject’s experience of the spiritual beings in his religious world, and this takes multiple dimensions. Beginning with a clarification of the meaning of African Traditional Religion, the essay presents theAfrican traditional religious pantheon, enunciates what constitutes spiritual experience in African Traditional Religion, its understanding, and its multifaceted expressions.

Published in	International Journal of Philosophy (Volume 9, Issue 4)
DOI	10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.12
Page(s)	186-192
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Africa, Religion, God, Ancestors, Spirits, Divinities, Experience

References

[1]	Ugwu, C. O. T. (2002³), Man and His Religion. In a Contemporary Society, Nsukka: Chuka Educational Publishers, p. 48.
[2]	Salatiello, G. (2008), L’esperienza e grazia. L’esperienza religiosa tra filosofia e teologia (Experience and Grace: Religious Experience among Philosophy and Theology), Napoli: Chirico.
[3]	Heidegger, M. (2018⁴), In cammino verso il linguaggio [In Journey towards Language] (edited by A. Carocciolo), Milano: Ugo Mursia Editore, p. 127.
[4]	Onah, G. I. (2011. Retrieved 12^th Feb. 2021), “The Meaning of Peace in African Traditional Religion and Culture” (2011), https://www.afrikaworld.net/afrel/goddionah.htm.
[5]	Nkafu Nkemkia, M. (1996), “La teoria dell’argomentazione nella vitalogia africana” (The Theory of Argumentation in African Vitology), in Il cannonicchiale, p. 263.
[6]	William, J. (1902), The Varieties of Religious Experience: A Study in Human Nature, Being the Gifford Lectures on Natural Religion Delivered at Edinburgh in 1901–1902, London: Longmans, Green & Co.
[7]	Aguti, A. (2013), Filosofia della religione. Storia, temi, problemi (Philosophy of Religion: History, Themes and Problems), Brescia: Editrice La Scuola, p. 118.
[8]	Diop, C. A. (1960), L’unitéculturelle de l’Afrique noire (The Cultural Unity of Black Africa), Paris: Présenceafricaine; Diop, C. A. (2000⁴), Nations nègreset culture. De l’antiquiténègreégyptienne aux problèmesculturelles de l’Afrique Noire aujourd’hui (Negro Nations and Culture: From Ancient Egyptian Negro to the Cultural Problems of Black Africa Today, I et II, Paris: Présenceafricaine; Obenga, T. (1973), L’Afriquedansl’antiquité. Egyptepharaonique – Afrique noire (Africa in Antiquity: Pharaonic Egypt – Black Africa), Paris: Présenceafricaine.
[9]	Ozioko, J. U. (2014), “African Spiritual Heritage and the Church’s Universal Mission”, in D. Scaiola, Percorsi di spiritualità. La missione nel mondo di oggi, Città del Vaticano: Urbaniana University Press, p. 54.
[10]	Mbiti, J. S. (1969), African Religions and Philosophy, London: Heinemann, p. 1.
[11]	Ozioko, J. U. (2014), “African Spiritual Heritage and the Church’s Universal Mission”, p. 55.
[12]	Idowu, B. (1973), African Traditional Religion: A Definition, London: S. C. M., p. 104.
[13]	Ikenga-Metuh, E. (1987), Comparative Studies of African Traditional Religion, Onitsha: IMICO Publishers, pp. 19-20.
[14]	Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (1993), “Pastoral Attention to Traditional Religions”, Letter of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue to the Presidents of Episcopal Conferencesin Asia, the Americas and Oceania, Città del Vaticano, 23 November 1993, p. 2.
[15]	Awolalu, J. O. (1975), “What is African Traditional Religion”, in Studies in Comparative Religion 9, p. 1.
[16]	See Ikenga-Metuh, E. (1987), Comparative Studies of African Traditional Religion, pp. 19-20.
[17]	Olupona, J. K. (2014), African Religions, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. xxiv.
[18]	Mbiti, J. S. (1969), African Religions and Philosophy, London: Heinemann, p. 262.
[19]	See Onwubiko, O. A. (1991), African Thought, Religion and Culture, Enugu: SNAAP Press, p. 3.
[20]	Ikenga-Metuh, E. (1981), God and Man in African Religion, London: Geoffrey Chapman.
[21]	Olupona, J. K., African Religions, p. 32.
[22]	Mulagu, V. (1973), La religion traditionelle des bantu et leur vision du monde (Traditional Religion of the Bantu and Their Vision of the World), Kinshasa: Presses Universitaires du Zaire, pp. 121-127.
[23]	Ikwuagwu, O. A. (2007), Initiation in African Traditional Religion: A systematic symbolic analysis With special reference to aspects of Igbo religion in Nigeria, Würzburg: Echter, p. 30.
[24]	Bimwenyi Kweshi, O. (1981), Discours Théologique négro-africain. Probleme des fondaments (Nergo-African Theological Discourse: Problem of Foundations), Paris: Présence Africaine.
[25]	See Ozioko, J. U. (2018), “Dire Dio nella Religione Tradizionale Africana” (Saying God in African Traditional Religion), in D. Scaiola, Dire Dio oggi. Tra religioni e culture, Città del Vaticano: Urbaniana University Press, 95-107.
[26]	Arinze, F. (1970), Sacrifice in Ibo Religion, Ibadan: Ibadan University Press, p. 10.
[27]	Achebe, C. (1958), Things Fall Apart, London: William Heinemann Ltd, p. 40.
[28]	Achebe, C. (1958), Things Fall Apart, London: William Heinemann Ltd, p. 22.
[29]	Olupona, J. K. (2014), African Religions, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 42.
[30]	Olupona, J. K. (2014), African Religions, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 28.
[31]	Arinze, F., Sacrifice in Ibo Religion, p. 18.
[32]	Sanon, A. T. – Luneau, R. (1982), Enraciner l’Evangile. Initiations africainesetpédagogie de la foi (Enrooting the Gospel: African Initiations and Pedagogy of the Faith), Paris: Cerf, p. 85.
[33]	Olupona, J. K. (2014), African Religions, pp. 56-57.

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Johnson Uchenna Ozioko. (2021). Religious Experience: The Perspective of African Traditional Religion. International Journal of Philosophy, 9(4), 186-192. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.12

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Johnson Uchenna Ozioko. Religious Experience: The Perspective of African Traditional Religion. Int. J. Philos. 2021, 9(4), 186-192. doi: 10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.12

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Johnson Uchenna Ozioko. Religious Experience: The Perspective of African Traditional Religion. Int J Philos. 2021;9(4):186-192. doi: 10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.12

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@article{10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.12,
  author = {Johnson Uchenna Ozioko},
  title = {Religious Experience: The Perspective of African Traditional Religion},
  journal = {International Journal of Philosophy},
  volume = {9},
  number = {4},
  pages = {186-192},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.12},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.12},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijp.20210904.12},
  abstract = {The question of religious experience constitutes one of the most topical issues in contemporary philosophical reflections on religion. The multiplicity and diversity of beliefs and religious phenomena have rendered any attempt at arriving at a consensus on the meaning of spiritual experience and on what experiences legitimately fall within its purview an arduous task. This essay explores the nature of religious experience in African Traditional Religion. The African finds himself in a sacred universe where he is inextricably immersed in a network of relationships. He constantly relates with spiritual, animate, and inanimate beings which overtly or covertly affect his life and well-being in the world. Since each being in the hierarchy has some religious significance, his spiritual experience may broadly be construed in terms of the experience he makes of all these beings, which together make up his sacred universe. In the more strict sense, it is the religious subject’s experience of the spiritual beings in his religious world, and this takes multiple dimensions. Beginning with a clarification of the meaning of African Traditional Religion, the essay presents theAfrican traditional religious pantheon, enunciates what constitutes spiritual experience in African Traditional Religion, its understanding, and its multifaceted expressions.},
 year = {2021}
}

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TY  - JOUR
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AU  - Johnson Uchenna Ozioko
Y1  - 2021/10/30
PY  - 2021
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.12
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JO  - International Journal of Philosophy
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Author Information

Johnson Uchenna Ozioko

Faculty of Philosophy, Pontifical Urbaniana University, Rome, Italy

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APA Style

Johnson Uchenna Ozioko. (2021). Religious Experience: The Perspective of African Traditional Religion. International Journal of Philosophy, 9(4), 186-192. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.12

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ACS Style

Johnson Uchenna Ozioko. Religious Experience: The Perspective of African Traditional Religion. Int. J. Philos. 2021, 9(4), 186-192. doi: 10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.12

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AMA Style

Johnson Uchenna Ozioko. Religious Experience: The Perspective of African Traditional Religion. Int J Philos. 2021;9(4):186-192. doi: 10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.12

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@article{10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.12,
  author = {Johnson Uchenna Ozioko},
  title = {Religious Experience: The Perspective of African Traditional Religion},
  journal = {International Journal of Philosophy},
  volume = {9},
  number = {4},
  pages = {186-192},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.12},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.12},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijp.20210904.12},
  abstract = {The question of religious experience constitutes one of the most topical issues in contemporary philosophical reflections on religion. The multiplicity and diversity of beliefs and religious phenomena have rendered any attempt at arriving at a consensus on the meaning of spiritual experience and on what experiences legitimately fall within its purview an arduous task. This essay explores the nature of religious experience in African Traditional Religion. The African finds himself in a sacred universe where he is inextricably immersed in a network of relationships. He constantly relates with spiritual, animate, and inanimate beings which overtly or covertly affect his life and well-being in the world. Since each being in the hierarchy has some religious significance, his spiritual experience may broadly be construed in terms of the experience he makes of all these beings, which together make up his sacred universe. In the more strict sense, it is the religious subject’s experience of the spiritual beings in his religious world, and this takes multiple dimensions. Beginning with a clarification of the meaning of African Traditional Religion, the essay presents theAfrican traditional religious pantheon, enunciates what constitutes spiritual experience in African Traditional Religion, its understanding, and its multifaceted expressions.},
 year = {2021}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Religious Experience: The Perspective of African Traditional Religion
AU  - Johnson Uchenna Ozioko
Y1  - 2021/10/30
PY  - 2021
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.12
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.12
T2  - International Journal of Philosophy
JF  - International Journal of Philosophy
JO  - International Journal of Philosophy
SP  - 186
EP  - 192
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2330-7455
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.12
AB  - The question of religious experience constitutes one of the most topical issues in contemporary philosophical reflections on religion. The multiplicity and diversity of beliefs and religious phenomena have rendered any attempt at arriving at a consensus on the meaning of spiritual experience and on what experiences legitimately fall within its purview an arduous task. This essay explores the nature of religious experience in African Traditional Religion. The African finds himself in a sacred universe where he is inextricably immersed in a network of relationships. He constantly relates with spiritual, animate, and inanimate beings which overtly or covertly affect his life and well-being in the world. Since each being in the hierarchy has some religious significance, his spiritual experience may broadly be construed in terms of the experience he makes of all these beings, which together make up his sacred universe. In the more strict sense, it is the religious subject’s experience of the spiritual beings in his religious world, and this takes multiple dimensions. Beginning with a clarification of the meaning of African Traditional Religion, the essay presents theAfrican traditional religious pantheon, enunciates what constitutes spiritual experience in African Traditional Religion, its understanding, and its multifaceted expressions.
VL  - 9
IS  - 4
ER  -

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