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Periodical article Periodical article Leiden University catalogue Leiden University catalogue WorldCat catalogue WorldCat
Title:Competition and Integration in the Religious History of Northwestern Zimbabwe
Authors:Alexander, JocelynISNI
Ranger, Terence O.ISNI
Year:1998
Periodical:Journal of Religion in Africa
Volume:28
Issue:1
Pages:3-31
Language:English
Geographic term:Zimbabwe
Subjects:Christianity
African religions
rainmaking
Religion and Witchcraft
Peoples of Africa (Ethnic Groups)
History and Exploration
External link:https://www.jstor.org/stable/1581825
Abstract:The northwestern part of Zimbabwe is virtually virgin territory as far as religious history is concerned, whether this be mission history, or that of the independent churches, or of spirit mediums and rain shrines. It was an inhospitable area to which people came at a relatively late date, as was the case for instance of the Ndebele-speakers who were resettled there after the 1893 war, and to which the missions came very much later. Missionaries initially had little interest in 'pagan' populations scattered through inaccessible forest. The present authors are attempting to redress the situation and are working in the districts of Nkayi and Lupane to record the religious history of the area. One of the most interesting features is the persistence of African religion in the form of the Nevana rain cult, which has become thoroughly integrated into the Chireya paramountcy. Both Christianity and the Nevana rain cult have interacted with the dramatic changes which have transformed the northwest in the last fifty years. Today they continue their complex dialectic with each other, with society, and with the State. Each has made its own contribution to the debate about the drought and the legitimacy of the State. Whereas as of late the Christians have become more positive, the Nevana medium still expresses the doubts of a region which has suffered greatly from misgovernment, change, and violence. Notes, ref.
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