School of Theology

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Browsing School of Theology by Author "Amunwanuba Nwadiice, Emmanuel"

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    The Symbolism of Oji among the Igbo People Of Nigeria
    (Tangaza University College, 2001-02) Amunwanuba Nwadiice, Emmanuel
    Knowing your roots/culture is not a phrase that will upset us in any way nor should it be an abuse. Rather it is a reminder for us to think in order to know what we are and the values we have as Africans. As African Christians, we are faced with two world views, that of Africa and that of Christianity. This remains a challenge to us African Christians. The only thing that can help us is to know the cultures so as to be able to integrate and harmonize the values of the two world-views. Accordingly, the Church in its reflection has coined words or terms such as Adaptation, Indigenization and Inculturation which will help it understand or better articulate its teachings and doctrines.These terms include "adaptation," "indigenization"and " inculturation." "Adaptation" simply means making the message of the gospel suit the culture of the local people. Thus it attempts to select certain rites and customs, purifying them and inserting them within Christian rituals where there is any apparent similarity. The term "indigenization" referred to the same process but underlines or emphasizes the necessity of promoting indigenous church ministers in every locality. Vatican II stressed reformulation of the Christian doctrine in the thought and language understood by contemporary persons. Soon after the council the term incarnation of the Christian message" came into general use. It is a very expressive term and theologically sound. It means that as Christ himself chose to become a human being in order to save humanity, Christianity has no alterative but to do the same in every culture and time in order to continue the salvation brought by Christ. The word "inculturation" expresses that same reality while underlining the importance of cultures as the instrument and the means for realizing the incarnation process ofthe Christian religion. The new term, interculturation, has been developed in the recent past to stress the interdependence of cultures for mutual enrichment. In this work we want to examine how the Eucharist can be inculturated into the Igbo culture by looking at the Kola-nut and its significance for the Igbo people. Inculturation means the honest and serious attempt to make Christ and his message of salvation ever more understood by peoples of every culture, locality and time. It means the reformulation of Christian life and doctrines into the very thought-patterns of each people. It is the conviction that Christ and his Good News are ever dynamic and challenging to all times and cultures as they become better understood and lived by each people. In a way, it is the continuous endeavor to make Christianity truly "feel at home" in the cultures of each people'. Inculturation has a deeper significance which can be understood from the consideration of its necessity. Waliggo says that," The durability of Christian faith in Africa will not depend on its network of schools and parishes, hospitals and other institutions. Economic strength and even political support will not guarantee its future. The permanence of Christianity will stand or fall on the question whether it has become truly African: whether African have made Christian ideas part of their own thinking, whether Africans feel that the Christian vision of life fulfils their needs, whether the Christian world view has become part of truly African aspiration"? It is only when the question or concern have been addressed and when Africans feel that Christian ideas do not fulfill their needs and thinking, that inculturation of Christian values and symbols and ideas become very pertinent. It is also within this context that we start to ask whether the African values and symbols we have can adequately have the same impact as the Christian values and symbols we want to inculturate. In other words, we need to ask whether an Africa value or symbol such as "Oft ," ( Kola-nut ) which is the focus of our discussion, has the same impact as the Eucharist. A question of this kind, has a double answer. On the one hand we might answer in the affirmative because Eucharist is a communion for Christians and oji is a communion for the Igbo people, hence they see themselves as one whenever they break and celebrate of! (kola-nut) together, which is what is expressed when we partake the Eucharist and in doing so identify ourselves as one with Christ. On the other hand we might answer negatively because "Oft" kola-nut is a fruit of a tree but symbolically used by the Igbo and how can you compare oji with the Eucharist, which is the body of Christ? However, we are dealing with symbolism, since signs and symbols point to the reality and signify what they symbolize. In a sense, oji is a symbol of communion, life, peace and unity. We can see in it an analogy to what Eucharist is for Christians.