The influence of Maragoli traditional death rituals on Pentecostal assemblies of GOD practices in Vihiga County, Kenya

Abstract

Death rituals are a global phenomenon. Africans in general and the Maragoli in particular engage in death rituals to process & express grief. The coming of the Pentecostal Assemblies of God (PAG) church disrupted and dismissed these rituals as Pagan and heathen, and aimed to revolutionize the Maragoli community to observe strict Christian processes during death and burial ceremonies. Most of theserituals have howeverremained persistent despite conversion of the Maragoli people to Christianity. This study aimed at finding out how these rituals have interacted with those of the PAG and subsequently the influence since there are differences in the Christian and traditional African world views. Available scholarly writings have given a general overview of these rituals without elaborate exposition of the same in specific African communities and how they have co-existed with Christianity or influenced each other. This study gave attention to Maragoli PAG Christians, to establish the nature, meaning and implications of their death rituals and practices, their conversion to Christianity notwithstanding. The objectives of the study were to; determine the nature and significance of traditional death rituals among the Maragoli people; establish the teachings and practices of the PAG regarding death and their significance; evaluate the fusion of traditional African religion in the death rituals of the Maragoli PAG Christians. The study was guided by the “Ritual Theory” propounded by Catherine bell (1992). The study used a descriptive research design that elicited both qualitative and quantitative data. It was carried out in Vihiga and Sabatia sub-counties of Vihiga County, Kenya. The study population comprised of 356 pastors of PAG church, 356 women directors and 12 cultural elders. Widows, widowers and orphans also took part in the study. 10% of the pastors (36), women directors (36), were randomly sampled for the study using the lottery method. Twelve (12) cultural elders were purposively sampled for the study. 8 widows, 8 widowers and 8 orphans were sampled using snowball technique. The PAG church and the Maragoli community formed the unit of analysis. Interview schedules, questionnaires, discussion and observation guides were used to collect primary data. Secondary data was collected from published books, unpublished articles, journals, periodicals websites and local dailies. Thematic, content and Narrative analysis were used to analyze qualitative data. SPSS was used in analysis of quantitative data. The information was synthesized and presented descriptively. The study revealed that death rituals of the Maragoli persist because they align with cultural values of the community and coexist with church practices. Deeply ingrained cultural rituals donot get replaced but are rather re-interpreted within a Christian framework. Most of these rituals have infiltrated and influenced the practices of Maragoli PAG Christians who continue to practice a brand of Christianity heavily influenced by aspects of African traditional religion. The study recommends pursuit of a culturally contextualized pastoral care by the clergy and development of an Intercultural Religious Education and Theology curriculum for bible/theological schools.