One particular section of this week’s reading that I found especially interesting was Chapter One of Sernett’s “African American Religious History”. In this chapter, Olaudah Equiano discusses the Ibo religion. He often makes references to Judaism, pointing out similarities between these two religions. He mentions that they both practice circumcision and had similar feasts and offerings. They also choose names for their children in the same way. They have  washing and purification ceremonies on the same occasions. He states that the Ibo government is similar to the government of primitive Israelites in that they are both run by the society’s chiefs, judges, and elders.  He even cites a man who traced African lineage back to Afer and Afra, who were descendants of Abraham and his wife. One possible reason Equiano does this could be that he wishes to point out similarities between two religions that are not usually thought about as being compatible. When thinking about African American religions, one does not immediately associate a religion such as Ibo with Judaism. By drawing these parallels, Equiano de-alienates these religions that the reader may be less familiar with. He also subtly points out that every religion has some sort of connection with every other religion, whether it be Christianity and Judaism celebrating the same God, or Judaism and Ibo holding some of the same religious practices.

While both readings were very interesting I really wanted to talk on some points of “The African Diaspora.” One thing I wish “The African Diaspora” had gone more in depth on was slaves from the Islamic faith. The chapter went into detail about interactions between Christianity and African traditions in America but aside from a few mentions didn’t give much information on the interactions between white Christians and black Muslims. One thing I found very interesting was the fact that escaped slaves continued to practice Catholicism even when they found black communities. I would have expected that once they escaped they would have wanted to be rid of the religion of the people who had oppressed them though I suppose Catholicism may have been so ingrained in these communities by this point it may have been hard to separate from it.

Dr. Francis Le Jau’s account of the conversion of the African-American slaves of Goose Creek parish might, to some modern white Christians, ring as evidence of Christianity’s tendency towards good. Clearly Le Jau does argue that there are “sensible and honest Negroe Slaves”(Sernett 27). Indiana University’s summary of The Carolina Chronicle of Dr. Francis LeJau, 1706–1717 even calls Le Jau a “keen and fair-minded man”. Furthermore, he even advocates for better treatment of slaves, saying that “[slaveowners’] Neglect is an habitual state of sin” (Sernett 31). Are these not the words of a man resentful of the treatment of his fellow man? Is white Puritanism independent of the sins of racism propagated by Euro-Americans at the time? Hardly.

The fact of the matter is that Le Jau does not see these slaves as humans. He even confides that he “[has] thought it most convenient not to urge too far that Indians and Negroes shou’d be indifferently admitted to learn to read” (Sernett 28). His sympathy toward the African-Americans in his parish is only that- pity. His benign neglect of the slaves’ plight of slavery, as Ralph Ellison says in the introduction to Invisible Man, “[translates] ‘Keep those Negroes running- but in their same old place’”. He feigns interest, concern. But in the end, Le Jau’s concerns are about as useful as the neglect shown by the slaveowners- misplaced and misleading. Sure, he will give the slaves hope of personhood- but in the end they must remember that they are still slaves.

The reading that interested me the most this week was “African Religions in Colonial Jamaica” and more specifically, the author’s take on Obei and how it affected the people who believed in it. Edwards makes it extremely obvious that he believes that Obi-men/women were just very good at spooking people, to the point of murder. “The oldest and most crafty are those who usually attract the greatest devotion and confidence; those whose hoary heads, and somewhat peculiarly harsh and forbidding in their aspect, together with a skill in plants of the medicinal and poisonous species, have qualified them for the exercise of this art” (pg 21). The idea seems to be that every black person in Jamaica was so thoroughly convinced of the skill of the Obi-men that their own minds caused them to fall ill in some sort of horrific placebo effect, mostly because of a combination of “they look creepy,” “they’re good at plants,” and extremely firm religious belief.

What interests me about this is that I believe you could make the same argument for just about any religion/spirituality. Christians believe in miracles because of their firm religious beliefs, and from an outsiders perspective, miracles might generally occur due to chance, coincidence, or placebo effect. Wiccan magic can very clearly be seen to be placebo from an outsider’s perspective, although since most magic tends to be of the “trying to gain self-confidence” variety, this isn’t really a problem, as they can still say that the magic worked, much like obi.

To me, what it boils down to is that any religion that believes in a supernatural ability to change ordinary circumstances could easily be perceived as placebo– but it could just as easily be real and interconnected with the same ideals of the other religions that do the same. This doesn’t really have a moral, I just think it’s cool.

I found things interesting in this reading. When I think about religion in African American society, I automatically think of Christianity. It intrigued me to see how before Africans were brought to America through slavery, their religions were so diverse and full of things that are not found in traditional Christianity, such as speaking to the ancestors and believing in reincarnation. The reading also changed my idea of cults from being completed negative to indifferent. Santeria is actually making a pretty big comeback in Cuba. It has even been named “Cuba’s New Favorite Religion,” even though it is not new. Here is a link to an article about how Santeria has emerged from Cuba’s shadows: https://news.vice.com/article/santeria-is-cubas-new-favorite-religion

While reading the three articles I enjoyed the two books because of stories behind each chapter. In the book Through the Storm, Through the Night by Paul Harvey, I love how it explains the story behind the people of Africa and their religious backgrounds. When reading the chapter is angered me to read about how the Europeans treated the Africans and how they were seen as barbaric. Just because people do not practice their faith in the same way as you does not mean you could strip them from their culture. While the white people would take the Africans off their country I felt as if they were entitled to have these human beings. These people have souls, feelings, culture, and history. By taking them off their homeland showed they had no care in the world about how the Africans were being affected. I was very upset on how white people took them and treated them like dirt. No being should be treated in such a disgusting way like of my ancestors were treated.

It was upsetting to read the stories in African American Religious History by Milton C. Sernett because people had cultures, religions, and spirits were strong when they were in their homeland. It was difficult for the Africans to adjust to the New World because they did not know where they were. The story that disgusted me the most was how the next generations would use their Christian faith to help them get out of slavery. The now African Americans would use scriptures as evidence on why there should be free but the white people did not want to hear it. African and African Americans were tired of being treated terribly that some would try to kill their owners in order to be free. It is sickening to read about what my ancestors had to go through and I am sorry. I am sorry that you could not stay in African like you wanted. I am sorry that there were people too lazy to do their own work. I am sorry that you were tortured, hung, raped, burned, and had your spirits broken. I am sorry for all that you went through but, I also thank you. Thank you for fighting back, standing up for what you knew was right in your hearts. I thank you for being strong and for giving the next generations after you a better future. It is because of you that my family and I are here today free like you dreamt about. Thank you for all that has been done. I am proud to say that because of you, we are all better off. Thank you for everything if it wasn’t for you America would not be as it is today. Thank you for starting the fight; we will use your strength and spirits to guide us as we fight ours.

While reading this week, the following quote from Raboteau’s “The African Diaspora” (1978) stood out to me.

“Adaptability, based upon respect for spiritual power wherever it originated, accounted for openness of African religions to syncretism with other religious traditions and for the continuity of a distinctly African religious consciousness” (Raboteau 4-5).

I believe this quote will hold considerable weight throughout the semester as our class examines and analyzes the various African American religions. What struck me as most important was the description of respect for spiritual power as a common thread among African religions. The presented concept of religious acceptance, and adaptable respect to power, demonstrates a higher level of civilization despite European claims to white racial superiority (and therefore, authority over races deemed inferior).

One of the most interesting things that I read this week was the records that were the accounts of Francis Le Jau. It was interesting to read because in some ways he would he would go and try to understand both sides of how slavery and religion were dependent upon each other. One of the weirdest things to grasps in my mind was how some slaves had come over to plantations already having some fundamental aspects of Christianity prior coming to the States because of the Spanish who had come to European lands beforehand. It struck me as odd that Native Americans had to go through  similar situation. Despite what the history books record, there were Native Americans that converted of their own free will. It just surprised me to learn this because we are very much taught the “white-person” perspective in school. Jeu struggles himself with feeling for the African Americans he works to convert and that he has,” Seen very Severe Judgments.” (Sernett, 32). Slave owners had a tendency to dismiss whatever religious grounds African Americans/Native Americans had already had for themselves.

Anyway, there are my random thoughts for the day.

In African Religions in Colonial Jamaica, I was shocked to find out that the slaves from the Caribbeans and South America were more religious than the slaves from the American south. I always thought that the slaves from the south were high on the religious scale. I was also shocked to find out that the Jamaican slaves participated in practices and beliefs associated with witchcraft. Until recently, I believed that it was the Haitians that dealt with witchcraft. I feel stupid for not knowing this. I thought it was funny for the white people to be mocking the black slaves for being superstitious, when they put up scarecrows to keep the crows away from the garden.

In Harvey’s work, there is a section that speaks on Yoruba, which is a tribe in western Nigeria. The tribe spoke in tongues to appease various deities. This makes me wonder whether the modern-day practice of speaking in tongues was derived from this Nigerian practice. I watched videos on YouTube of native Yoruba tribesmen speaking in tongues, and it is verbatim how Christians now speak in tongue. The Yoruba language could be mistaken for tongues; it’s that close in style. In my opinion, the only logical reasoning behind the similarities is that the Yoruba tribe’s practice was spread during slavery.

A video of Yoruba tribesmen speaking: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYHmDRpFgCI

Additionally, the work includes the idea of fetishes being a major part of African religions. Gods used their powers to manipulate material fetishes. Africans used their fetishes to ward off evil. Fetishes, now, have a negative connotation. Currently, if you have a fetish, you are deemed as a nymphomaniac or have a psychological problem. Also, fetishes are viewed as being demonic in many current practices of Christianity. Accordingly, based on Christian beliefs, having a fetish is the devil’s way of interfering in your life. I find it interesting how fetishes made a 360 switch, and I wonder how people who originated from the African ideas handled it. Was the discrimination of fetishes sudden or did it gradually happen over time due to the expansion of psychological knowledge?

DISCLAIMER: All of the assumptions I made were based on the fact that Harvey’s work is the history of African American Christianity. My focus was geared towards comparing modern-day Christianity, within my level of knowledge and exposure, to the African traditions that were written, in hopes of creating a Venn Diagram type of post.