"Geesi dhereb kuma jiro"

Monday, May 3, 2010

Why Africans Are Religious

A new study conducted by the Washington based Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life says that Africans are among the most religious people on earth. The study titled Tension and Tolerance: Islam and Christianity in Sub-Saharan Africa was based on more than 25,000 interviews conducted in more than 60 languages in 19 countries. According to the study at least half of all Christians in Sub-Saharan Africa believe Jesus will return in their lifetime. One in three Muslims in the region expect to see the re-establishment of the caliphate-Islamic golden age- before they die. At least three out of 10 people across much of Africa said they have experienced divine healing, seen the devil being driven out of a person or received a direct revelation from God. About a quarter believe that sacrifices to ancestors can protect them from bad things happening. Sizeable percentages believe in charms and amulets. Many consult traditional religious healers, and sizable minorities keep animal skins and skills in their homes.

The study found that in many countries across the continent roughly nine in 10 people say religion is very important in their lives.

Do these findings surprise anyone? Surely they shouldn’t. Unless the person is not familiar with the situation in Africa.

These findings do not surprise me at all. I am an African. I was born in Africa. I live and work in Africa. I am non religious though I was born into a religious home. I attended religious schools. I had a typical (African) religious upbringing. I do not believe that Jesus will return again. I do not think that the Biblical Jesus existed and even if he did, I think he’s gone and gone forever. I can’t see the world coming under an Islamic caliphate except what we have been experiencing since September 11, 2001. I have never experienced divine healing and I don’t think those who claim to have experienced it are honest to themselves. I have not seen a devil being driven out of any person except some self induced hysteria by some Pentecostal con artists. I have not received any revelation from God except may be one day some godly people would claim that their god revealed this piece to me. I don’t believe that sacrifice to the ancestors will protect people from harm. Otherwise the ancestors would be alive today. I think charms and amulets are useless and consulting traditional healers and clerics is a waste of time.

The reasons why Africans are the most religious people in the world are not far fetched. Africans go through religious indoctrination from cradle to the grave. Africans are not allowed by family, society and the state to think, reason or live outside the religious box. In Africa religion is by force not by choice. Religion is by compulsion and not according to one’s conscience. Africans are brought up to believe that there is NO alternative to religion. When in fact there is. So in Africa, it is either you are religious or you are nobody-you are not a human being, you are nothing. There is too much social and political pressure on Africans to be religious and to remain religious. The social, political and sometimes economic price of leaving religion, renouncing religion or criticizing religion is so high.

So Africans are religious wily nilly. Africans profess all sorts of religious crap even when they know it is all nonsense.

At home, religious indoctrination is the first form of orientation an African child receives. At a very early and impressionable age, infants are taught to recite meaningless syllables called prayers. Children are brainwashed by parents with various religious and spiritual myths. Their minds are infused with all sorts of religious dogmas. Parents ensure that children are brought up in their faith- the faith of the family and the faith of their fathers. Children are taught to believe and follow, and not to question religious teachings even when there is every reason to do so. Some of the findings of the Pew Forum constitute the ‘sacred’ teachings which African kids receive and are told not to challenge, examine, criticize or renounce. African children are brought up to believe them and to swallow them hook , line and sinker. Not to question one’s family religion is seen as virtuous and as a mark of a good child. This religious tradition is upheld and handed down unchallenged from one generation to another in Africa.

The religious brainwashing continues in schools. Most African colleges are religious indoctrination centres. Western missionaries and Arab jihadists brought formal education(the model widely used today) to the continent. They established schools to win converts and recruit new members, not really to educate Africans. So schools in Africa are covert churches and mosques. Education is faith based. And this religious tradition is still upheld in most schools across the continent. Some of the findings of the study are what African pupils are taught everyday in schools. They constitute what African students recite and memorize as part of their compulsory morning devotions.

Pupils at one Islamic primary school near my house in Ibadan sing this song everyday as part of their morning devotion.

We are soldiers. We are soldiers.

Fighting for Islam. Fighting for Islam

In the name of Allah, we shall conquer, we shall conquer


Every morning these children are made to recite that they are Muslim children ; that they believe in Allah and Mohammed as his messenger. What do you expect from these children as adults after going through this religious drilling and being brainwashed with these superstitious messages? Do you think they will ever grow to say that religion-in this case Islam is not important in their lives? As in their homes, African students are taught to blindly accept the so called divine revelations without questions. They are induced to try and have some encounter with God or to have some spiritual experience as a manifestation of faith or piety. Children and youths are made to believe that professing articles of faith is a mark of a good student. And that education is not complete without religion or belief in God. So why should anybody be surprised that most Africans attach so much importance to religion.

This religionizing continues in politics and in the state houses across Africa. State power is used to endorse, promote and privilege religion. In Africa, prayer, piety and politics go together. Religion and politics mix. States are not separate from churches and mosques. So there is very high political pressure on individuals to be religious-and to remain religious and faithful even when they are not convinced of the religious teachings or would prefer to be faithless. Many African countries have adopted a religion or some religions as state or official religions. For instance in Morocco, the King is not only the president of the country, but also the commander of the faithful. So every Moroccan is under political pressure to be a faithful – an Islamic faithful, particularly a Sunni Islamic faithful. The president of Gambia, Yahya Jammeh is addressed as Dr, Alhaji, Sheikh ….. among others. Some years ago he added to the list of his presidential duties praying for the citizens and trying to heal the sick including those who have HIV/AIDS using some verses in the Koran. In the self-styled Islamic republics, anyone who is not a Muslim cannot be president. Is there any special value being a Muslim adds to the post of the president? None. In Gambia, the government erected magnificent mosques in all public schools in the country. Meanwhile these are schools without good classroom blocks, no libraries or laboratories.

In Africa, politicians have made it look as if to be a good citizen one must be religious or expressly pious. African politicians have made it seem as if theocracy, not democracy is the best form of government. And that the Bible and the Koran are the best constitutions. In fact the Bible and the Koran are the best constitution no country ever had. African politicians strive to ensure that state legislations are based on these‘holy books’ and that any policy, program or proposal that is not in line with the sacred texts are thrown out. Another reason why there is high level of piety in Africa is because most Africans do not think for themselves. They allow clerics to think for them. Africans consult their priests, bishops, sheikhs, marabous, traditional medicine men and women whenever they have problems or when they want to embark on a major project. And they accept whatever they give them including charms like holy water, olive oil as solutions and remedies. They do whatever they recommend they do including carrying out ritual killing and sacrifice.

Lastly Africans are deeply religious due to lack of human rights particularly religious freedom in Africa. This may sound like a contradiction. But it is not. Some may argue that the high religiosity in Africa should be due to ‘too much religious freedom’. No, it is not so. Rather it is due to no guarantee of religious freedom, no protection of freedom of conscience. Africans do not enjoy or exercise their freedom of religion or belief. Africans are denied with impunity this basic human right by state and non state actors. Africans are forced to be religious or to remain religious. That is why they are ‘too religious’. The mechanisms to protect and defend the full human rights of those who change their religion or renounce or criticize religious beliefs or those who do not profess any religion at all are weak and non existent. Religious believers and non believers are not equal before the law. Many Africans are religious because they don’t want to be in the minority. They don’t want to renounce what the majority upholds. They don’t want to denounce what the state or society reveres. Many Africans are religious because they just want to play along.

Africans are among the most religious people on earth due to failure of family upbringing, failure of human rights and the rule of law, failure of educational system, social and political pressure and bad governance. Africans are religious because they cannot but be religious.

Leo Igwe
Kampala, Uganda

18 comments:

  1. Africa (to be precise Horn of Africa) is the birthplace of HUMANS, therefore it is the birthplace of religion (to be precise ISLAAM). Evidence shows that when humans migrated from africa they were already BELIEVERS.

    What has been happening to Africa, it is what you MENTALLY COLONIZED bloggers are so obviously demonstrating (like clones): ABUSED, LOST, DISCONNECTED. It is kept in that condition today by the same savage, self-hating poeple, in search of supremecy.

    Worst still, every word you write is copied (word for word) from those very self-hating colonizers, taking in that process their very image (uprooted and self-hating).

    Shame isn't it, that you take their image of anti-islam, while ISLAM's roots is in AFRICA, it may be finilized in ARABIA, but it began in HORN OF AFRICA. The prove can be read through THE INTIMATE CLOSSNESS that their languages (CUSHITIC and SEMETIC) share, SOOMAALI and ARABIC being two key languages.

    RE-focus your mind to the root problem. Ans STOP being SLAVES to your HATERS, so volunterally.

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  2. This guy named "Tuke" must be kidding because he is muslim and he believes the scientific theory of human evolution which teaches people are from apes. If you are muslim you should not say the birthplace of humans is east africa because your quran teaches you that humans are the children of Adan and Hawo. Science teaches us that the birth place of humans is the horn of Africa and we are from apes. The oldest human fossils were found in horn of africa(Ethiopia). These days muslims are so desperate to prove that quran is true by trying to use the teaching of science while also rejecting other science facts. Does he still believe that there is a roof above us called sky and the earth was created before the roof above us called "sky". Muslims must feel stupid when they compare the quran to science. Perhaps he believes that Adan and Hawo were thrown from the sky by Allah to Horn of africa. Maybe he believes that Charles Darwin was Israeli and his theory of evolution was copied from the quran expect the apes part. LOL

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  3. LOL!

    Mr Xoree; if that's the ONLY problem then I think I need medication! Just look at his first paragraph, and I am afraid to read the rest.

    "Africa (to be precise Horn of Africa) is the birthplace of HUMANS, therefore it is the birthplace of religion (to be precise ISLAAM). Evidence shows that when humans migrated from africa they were already BELIEVERS." - DAMN that's retarded!

    He actually thinks humans are only about 1400 years old, since, according to him, they're basically as old as Islam is. :-)

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  4. In a previous post I'd mentioned that Islam rapes the mind and paralysis critical thinking. Who knew Muslims would produce the evidence so fast?:)

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  5. Tuke said "Shame isn't it, that you take their image of anti-islam, while ISLAM's roots is in AFRICA, it may be finilized in ARABIA, but it began in HORN OF AFRICA. The prove can be read through THE INTIMATE CLOSSNESS that their languages (CUSHITIC and SEMETIC) share, SOOMAALI and ARABIC being two key languages."


    What a weak argument! Somali is a key african language? Do you know that less than 15 million people speak Somali?. Did you forget the most spoken African native language is Swahili and not Somali? This guy is practicing bad science like the quran. So do also think Somalis are arabs because they are muslim and they don't look like other Bantu Africans? I think this is his next argument to prove that islam always existed. Ma waxaad u maleysaa in labada go' oo cad cad oo xajga laga xirto in ay tahay darka hidaha iyo dhaqanka?

    Do you believe Allah made the stars to decorate the sky like the quran teaches? LOL
    Did you know that the sun is a star?

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  6. Did you know the most spoken African language is not cushitic or Semitic? And it is Swahili?

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  7. None of that matters to him. Facts schmacts!

    The only that matters to him is that Islam is the greatest thing since it's conception. :)

    And that Islam so great that it's as old as the human race and that the human race consists of Muslims and that Islam is so great that we're probably too weak to even realize it, with our feeble minds and all. That is the bottom line! Who cares about stupid facts? :)

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  8. Mohamed Cudhi May 8 at 11:33am

    "islaam ka oo ladiido sharaf maha akhirkana halka udanbaysa waa lagaran ruux illahay ku casiyaay,,marka galadu yaanay jarkaa turin."

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  9. waryaada maxaad heeysaan somali ethiest kkkkkk
    xaqiiqdii kali kuma tihiin ethiestnimada, waxaan aamisanahay soomaalida inta ay maskaxdooda fayowdahay xiyaa sheekhyada masaajidada ka nacnacleeya ee jiniga qaba inay og yihiin nabiga carabta ee maxamed la yiraahdo waxa uu wado inay quraafaadka yihiin.

    aniga shaqsiyan waxaan ahay eithist in the closed, sababtoo ah waa arin aad u dhib baddan inaad waxaad aamisan tahay aad si xur ah banaanka u soo dhigto qaasatan bulshada soomalida ee wali ku nool the Neanderthal stage Caqli ahaan.

    aniga masaajidka markaan rabo waa tagaa waana foor foorsadaa, heesta carabiga la yiraahdo alxamdulilaah rabi caalamiina araxmaani. ayaan akhriyaa, xaqiiqdii waxaa tukadaa kaliya becouse of group pression kaliya, laakiin waxaan hubaa ilaahan afka carabiga kaliya fahma ee beenloowga ah iyo maxamed caraboow inaysan wax horumar ah ay baniaadamka ku soo kordhineyn.

    waxaana aamisanahay diinta islaamka oo ah diin aad u da´yar ee jirta kaliya 1400 sano, tusaale diinta kiristaanka markii ay jirtey 1400 sano dadkii markaa noolaa haddii qofka laga shakiyo wax lidi ku ah jiritaanka ilaaheey ama xitaa yiraahda dhulka ma fidsana waxaa loo dili jirey si ka xun al shabaab sida ay dadka u dilaan, qofka isagoo nool ayaa la gubi jirey.

    marka diintan da'da yar ee islaamka waan hubaa next 600 years waa markii ay jirsato 2000 oo sano inay dadka waqtigaa noolaan doona ay ku qosli doonaan maxamed waalane wixii uu qorey ee ahaa quraanka iyo axadiista iyo sheeko baraleeyda tirada baddan leh ee maanta meelaha ay la taagan yihiin.

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  10. LOL!

    " aniga masaajidka markaan rabo waa tagaa waana foor foorsadaa, heesta carabiga la yiraahdo alxamdulilaah rabi caalamiina araxmaani. ayaan akhriyaa, xaqiiqdii waxaa tukadaa kaliya becouse of group pression kaliya, laakiin waxaan hubaa ilaahan afka carabiga kaliya fahma ee beenloowga ah iyo maxamed caraboow inaysan wax horumar ah ay baniaadamka ku soo kordhineyn.

    waxaana aamisanahay diinta islaamka oo ah diin aad u da´yar ee jirta kaliya 1400 sano, tusaale diinta kiristaanka markii ay jirtey 1400 sano dadkii markaa noolaa haddii qofka laga shakiyo wax lidi ku ah jiritaanka ilaaheey ama xitaa yiraahda dhulka ma fidsana waxaa loo dili jirey si ka xun al shabaab sida ay dadka u dilaan, qofka isagoo nool ayaa la gubi jirey.

    marka diintan da'da yar ee islaamka waan hubaa next 600 years waa markii ay jirsato 2000 oo sano inay dadka waqtigaa noolaan doona ay ku qosli doonaan maxamed waalane wixii uu qorey ee ahaa quraanka iyo axadiista iyo sheeko baraleeyda tirada baddan leh ee maanta meelaha ay la taagan yihiin."

    Waa sheeko qosol miiran waan run. lol

    Mahadsanid, aad iyo aad!

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  11. Islam is the most pathologically narcissistic ideology that humans have ever invented.
    It is self-obsessed to the point of total autism, and muslims seem to be unendurably humiliated and offended by the existence of anything other than islam itself.

    Muslims are also offended to the point of blind rage even by the merest physical trace or relic of there ever having been anything, anywhere, other than islam.Conceit describes the tendency of muslims who are people of overbearing arrogance.
    'What they had not attained they supposed they had attained, what they had not understood they supposed they had understood'.

    Far from being born in a clear light of history, islam is in its origins, just as shady and approximate as those pre islamic texts from which it stole.
    Islam makes immense claims for itself, invokes prostrate submissions or surrender as a maxim to its adherants,
    and demands deference and respect from non believers into the bargain.
    There is nothing - absolutely nothing - in its teachings that can even begin to justify such unbridled arrogance and presumption.

    Sir Winston Churchill once said this.
    "How dreadful are the curses of Islam!
    Besides the fanatical frenzy, there is a death wish.
    The evil effects are everywhere and insecurity exist wherever muslims live.
    In Islamic law every woman must belong to a man as his absolute property.
    There will be slavery until Islam dies.
    All Muslims know how to die and no stronger backward force exists in the world.
    If true wisdom is not sheltered, science and civilisation will fall.

    In all human activity, arrogance is an impediment to growth.
    History teaches that arrogance is the beginning of decline for all god based religions."
    This is the way that islam will perish - its castle of arrogance will be destroyed from within by its own followers.

    Peace to all.....

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  12. Waad ku mahadsantahay qoraalaha sameeyey homepagekan :)

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  13. kkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk "aniga masaajidka markaan rabo waa tagaa waana foor foorsadaa, heesta carabiga la yiraahdo alxamdulilaah rabi caalamiina araxmaani. ayaan akhriyaa" <--- qosol.com, waa xaaladaan ku jiro oo kale, waa cajiib iney heeso ay fahmeynin ku heesan maalinkaste(walina 5 jeer)lol :)

    Anyways, I am Somali and a closet atheist too, it's nice to know there are other Somalis out there who freed themself from the evil Arabic cult called Islam. I have only been atheist for a couple of months though and I am still wearing the woman degrading uniform called Hijab because I don't want to upset my religious mum. I am planing to move to another country not because I'll get killed or beaten if I take the scarf off but because my mum will blame herself for being a bad parent and be worried about what would happen to me after death so I'll save her from that by moving and then be simply who I am:). I really hate to do this but again I dont want to hurt my mum's feelings. Waxaan rabey in aad idin suaalo if u guys have any idea of any Somali atheist community out there? Fadlan ii soo jawaaba if u know of any:)

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  14. It is sad that you have to uproot yourself from your home and get exiled to a foreign land to satisfy your mum. It shows that you are not selfish but a caring human. BTW, how do you feel your father would react if you come out?

    You are not alone sister. I am, like you, still in the closet. I started questioning the existence of all-knowing, powerful god several years ago. I stopped praying or fasting in Ramadan. Religion & God don't make me any sense any more.

    I am wondering, where you are going to settle so you mum wouldn't know your change of faith! Good luck.

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  15. hi, anonymous #4

    i understand your predicament completely. i am sick and tired of this religion and want to dump it for good, but it doesn't help that my mother is also a religious nut that has been completely and permanently brainwashed by this death cult. i keep it secret for the same reasons you mentioned. to answer your question, where do you want to move? you can contact me ac.power3000@gmail.com

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  16. why is approval required? let people speak their minds.

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  17. geeldoon
    The old-fashioned stories called religion in which Moses is the actor is losing ground. More and more people are converting to atheism. Fanatics are trying desperately to keep the sick dying faith alive by means of terrorism, the final step to survive.

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