The Clash and Continuity of Interpretation of Redemptive Suffering Between African Religions and Christianity

Theologians of African origin consider Christianity as indigenous to Africa. They affirm continuity between African indigenous religion and Christianity. This essay explores how traditional African understanding of humans, ancestors, deities and God, and the complex fluid traditions and histories of African peoples contribute to a renewed interpretation of the suffering of Jesus Christ, the Healer, for the good of Africa and the world. First, attention is drawn to figures of “redemptive suffering” in African traditional religions: persons endowed with, possessing or being possessed by, “spirit” that empowers them to function for the good or health of the society and individuals. Second, the essay highlights the way spiritual and religious power operates in African Christian communities and the conflicting interpretations and evaluations of this reality. The meshing of indigenous with Christian elements enables African Christians to reinvent the discourse on redemptive suffering in contemporary Christianity.