The cultural practice of ancestor beliefs in the village of Taung, North West Province, South Africa : in light of the missio Dei

Abstract

The principal objective of this study is to contribute towards a solution to the missiological challenge posed by the cultural practice of ancestor beliefs in the village of Taung, in light of the mission Dei. This study focuses and/or sheds light on the subject of ancestral beliefs by means of a literature study as well as empirical research. In terms of the empirical research, the respondents were church leaders and ordinary residents of Taung who were selected at random and requested to complete a questionnaire seeking to establish if the cultural practice of ancestral beliefs in their area pose a missiological challenge . Though the community embraced Christianity in the 19th century, ancestral beliefs are still prevalent. As Amanze (2003:43) has observed, it may be that many Christians, especially members of the African Independent Churches, live a strange life of one-foot rooted in the African traditional beliefs with the other in Christian beliefs and practices. The study provides a detailed explanation and/or clarification of the concepts of ancestor beliefs. Since time immemorial God has revealed Himself to humanity and continues to welcome everybody, without exception , to participate in the missio Dei or to partake in His mission of reconciling Himself to humanity. Given that 1 Timothy 2:5 says "for there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus", the question is: Where does this place ancestors and ancestral beliefs? This study seeks to contribute towards addressing the missiological challenge in the village of Taung that emanates from the cultural practice of ancestral beliefs in light of the missio Dei.