SELECTED ASPECTS IN AFRICAN RELIGIOUS HERITAGE

African concept of God, Spirits and Ancestors

Attributes of God as understood by African people

African concept of spirits

Types of spirits

African concept of God, Spirits and Ancestors

a)  God

• All African communities believe in a supreme being who is the origin and sustainer of all things.
• He is the creator of the universe and all that it contains.
• All Africans agree that nobody has ever seen God.

Attributes of God as understood by African people

• God is the creator of the universe and everything in it.
• God is a provider.  He provides and sustains his creation.
• God is merciful.  He removes suffering from communities.
• God is all powerful / omnipotent.  He has power over all creation and controls nature.
• God is holy/ pure seen from the nature of sacrifices and the purity of the people involved in sacrificing.
• God is all-knowing /omniscient.  He knows and sees everything e.g. Zulu of South Africa refer to him as the “wise one”. 
• God is everywhere/ omnipresent in the universe e.g. when a person is on a journey, members of the family ask God to be with the person.
• God is immanent because he is not limited to space and time.  He is both very far and very near. 
• God is transcendent.  He is beyond human description/beyond human comprehension and cannot be limited.
• God is self-existent.  He exists on his own and existed before creation.  He continues to exist.
• God is a spirit.  He has no physical form and is invisible.
  • God is everlasting/eternal. He is immortal and lives for ever.
  • God is good. He is not evil and did not create evil.

(b) African concept of spirits

• They are invisible beings second in Seniority in the hierarchy of beings.          
• Some spirits are believed to have been created by God as spirits/ divinities.
• Others are spirits of people who died long ago and are no longer remembered by the living.
• Spirits are subordinate to God and depend on him for survival.
• God uses them to perform certain things such as causing floods and lightening.
• They can be reborn among the living.

Types of spirits

TYPES OF SPIRITS

​A. SKY AND NATURE SPIRITS

They are o​f two types

1. Spirits of the sky

• They are associated with the sun, moon, stars, thunder and lightning.

2. Spirits of nature

• ​​Are associated with natural phenomena such as hills, mountains, rocks, forests, lakes, rivers, animals and insects.
• They are believed to control the force of nature
• Some may be manipulated by human being for good or evil purposes.

B. The human spirits

• They are of two categories

(a) Ghost spirits

• Belonging to those who died long ago and whose names cannot be remembered.

(b) Ancestral spirits/ living dead

• These are dead people whose identities are still alive in the memories of people

C. The divinities

• Communities in Africa e.g. the Ashanti of Ghana believe in a category of spirits between God and the spirits.
• They are believed to have been created by God.

D. The ancestors

• They are founders of African clans and tribes.
• They are people who died and whose names and identities are still remembered by their relative
• As spirits, they are concerned with the people’s welfare and are close to them.
• They speak the language of human beings when they appear to them in dreams or visions.
• They participate in the activities of the living relatives.

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