Although different societies in Africa celebrate marriage differently given the diversity of belief systems, it can be generally stated that marriage manifests a union of love, joy and great intimacy. THE PLACE OF TRADITIONAL MARRIAGE IN AFRICAN CULTURE, Marriage not wedding was the real miracle. What is interesting is that, even though Christianity is a religion that has been associated with equality and freedoms of every human soul, the status of women in relation to polygamy in the apostolic sects have topped the debate. Such a reference would mean that the well-educated person would tend first to attribute his/her success to God, and so too would his/her family members. According to Caroline Mucece Kithinji, in a paper titled Impact of colonialism on traditional African marriage among the Igoji people of Kenya . When it comes to marriage, South Africa has various tribes and cultures which have very colourful traditional ceremonies. African culture and traditions are handed down from generation to generation. With the popularity of Christianity throughout Zimbabwe in mind, the article uses 1 Corinthians 7:4 (The wifes body does not belong to her alone but also to her husband) as the text that can be used for the liberation and empowerment of all women in the face of HIV and AIDS. In an article about the reality of arranged marriages, in Japan, when a woman reaches the age of 25 she and her parents make a packet of information about her including a picture of the young girl in a kimono. The findings have then been generalized to the rest of the U.S. population (Bean, Crane, & . 3 (3), 14 35. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Even though liberated in Christ, the battered syndrome of colonization is still within us. Although different societies in Africa celebrate marriage differently given the diversity of belief systems, it can be generally stated that marriage manifests a union of love, joy and great intimacy. by J. Kgler / R. Gabaitse / J. Stiebert), Marriage and family life in Zimbabwean culture. Itcertainly places emphasis on sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with others so they can come to know Him and receive Him as personal Savior, go on to experience Him as Lord of their life, and go even further to know Christ as the essence of their Life (see John 1:12; Colossians 2:6-7; Galatians 2:20; Philippians 3:8-10). Same sex marriages are happening everywhere around the world and it has received a significant boost in numbers since the landmark ruling given in Obergefell v. Hodges which made it legal in the 50 states across the United States of America. Some go further to find out whether the intended couples parents are married and still living together; not ruling our class distinction. We missed a balanced understanding of the contradictions that this ambiguity presented. It argues that not only does gender based violence risk the health and wellbeing of the married couple, children and the society, but also its continuous 'coexistence' with marriage threatens the realization of the essential properties of marriage (unity and indissolubility). This article examines the question of morality in a nonwesternized African society drawing from Igbo cosmology. During the ceremony, the couple dances while guests throw money at them or put it on their foreheads., The Igbos wedding traditions are really different from weddings in the United States of America. A value is that quality of a thing thought of as being more or less desirable, useful, estimable and important. It is therefore recommended that before any marriage engagement, the man and the woman should consider their suitability to the fulfilment of fundamental obligation of child bearing as concern for family sustenance. This is not to say that indigenous African spirituality represents a form of theocracy or religious totalitarianism not at all. The escalating experiences of violence as force among married couples, call to question what it means to be husband and wife or whether marriage is merely an ideal so difficult to realize. It is found that there are many differences between the two of these cultures. It must be noted that the African society loves to have children. There are consequences on those who breached this norm. Once the wedding day comes, it is usually held at the brides compound. Changes in family structures reflect the enduring tensions between traditional, Christian/religious and modern values and structures. 681 Koyiit zyiit / The Meaning of Marriage According to University Students: A Phenomenological Study adjustment to each other and relationship satisfaction. "West Africa family systems were severely repressed throughout the New World (Guttmann, 1976)". of marriage and divorce in contemporary Igbo society. Africa culture is all about the ethnic groups family traditions, the literature, art and music shows the religion along with the social paths of their culture. ABSTRACT. I always knew that marriage was between a man and a woman. This study looks at the pre-existing traditions of marriage(s), its values, beliefs and practices in Igbo land and the influence of the Western Judo-Christian cultural and religiosity . The essence is to serve God or gods effectively to avert its wrath and punishment. DEATH RITES IN AFRICAN TRADITIONAL SOCIETY (A.T.S) In some communities, the corpse is washed using water and herbal medicine in order to preserve and send it clean to the spirit world. They believe that the dead will need those things in the spirit . Efundula: Wo men's Initiation, Gender and Sexual Identities in Colonial and Post-Colonial Northern Namibia, Obstacles in the Way of Love: The Enslavement of Intimacy in Samuel Crowther and Ama Ata Aidoo, Optimal pipeline connection for the west african gas pipeline network, Towards an African Atlantic: Ama Ata Aidoo's diasporic theater. The Jewish practice is akin to African traditional marriage rites. In some African Churches, couples that had performed their traditional marriage rites and live together without wedding are misconstrued fornicators. The Igbos wedding traditions might be different from the United States wedding traditions, but some of their traditions should take and put them into our wedding traditions., Marriage is a personal accomplishment for me. Though these networks may not continue in their traditional form, extended family relationships are still very close and important to one's life. There are also other factors, such as, industrialisation, migration, inculturation, globalisation, information technology which have played a role in the changes of the African cultures. Julius Gathogo, Jennifer Sistig, Judith Kotze, Kudzai Biri, Johannes Wessels, Joachim Kuegler, Stephanie Feder, Francis Machingura, Fortune Sibanda, BiAS Series, Reverend Nyasha Madzokere, Canisius Mwandayi, Musa W. Dube, Lovemore Togarasei, Moji Ruele, IN: Networks, Resources and Economic Action. 303-325. Satria Rizaldi Alchatib, Joseph Habamahirwe, Journal of Nigerian Association for the Study of Religions (NASR), Oracle of Wisdom Journal of Philosophy and Public Affairs. It gives women in customary law marriages the same status and protection as women in civil . This paper is from Masculinities under Neoliberalism, edited by Andrea Cornwall, Frank G. Karioris & Nancy Lindisfarne, pp 165-182. My parents were together for 15 years before they divorced but before the split I was able to witness the idea of a family. ."); Talking Points on Traditional Marriage, CONCERNED WOMEN This means that GBV is not exclusive to any gender. While a single lesson plan cannot fully explore the variety and complexity of African life, in this lesson students can gain insight into the lives of some black women in Sub-Saharan Africa by adopting a perspective that is in part traditional, based on the arts of African village life, and in part. I ntroduction: Human societies globally have from time immemorial held with great regard the celebration of marriage. family is linked to the broader community. Cambridge Development Initiative. Anyone can have a wedding but only God can create a marriage. You can download the paper by clicking the button above. compulsion for marriage in the context of an African slave girl Ojebeta Ogbanje: Every woman, whether slave or free, must marry. Each covenant has a senior partner and God appointed the man. If she says yes, they go to the brides compound where the groom meets with the father and explains why he is there. They tend to forget the traditional teachings for the marriage, or think they are The Igbo have a marriage system that straddles the line of old traditions, types, and new trends to the Igbo structure., Marriage is an important step in the life of nearly every human on earth. Academia.edu no longer supports Internet Explorer. All these will protect her from the evil plants of the witches which may cause premature abortion. It is important to state that child bearing is fundamental to African marriage as it was the major crisis that brought this one to failure. Beyond the Quest for Historical Jesus in African Christianity: Albert Nolan, Jacques Dupuis and the Universality of Christ's saving work, Polygamy in the Bible With Implications for Seventh-day Adventist Missiology, BiAS 22: The Bible and Gender troubles in Africa (ed. The African marriage is an integral part of the whole African culture and was a rite of passage for every mature The thrust of this paper is therefore to rekindle in couples marital values; establish how they control human sexuality and therefore affect the family. This is neither biblical nor African custom but an aftermath of religion, colonization and perhaps misapplication of the scripture. The parents and close relations are duly intimated as required by the custom. The point is that this Marriage ceremonies throughout Africa vary greatly depending on the faith of the individuals. Generally, marriage meaning the institution regulating sex, reproduction, and family life, is a route into classical philosophical issues such as the good and the scope of individual choice, as well as itself raising distinctive philosophical questions. In an African customary marriage, there is an arrangement between families where lobolo (bride wealth) was seen as a token of gratitude for the upbringing of the daughter, as well as a step to. The Development of Cultural Unity In sub-Saharan Africa no overarching great tradition developed Sub-Saharan Africa is a vast territory of many small traditions. Historians know very little about the prehistory of these many small traditions and their peoples African cultures are highly diverse There is an estimated 2000 The bride and the groom marry for further lineage of the groom's family. The Igbos take the wedding traditions series and the wedding is a celebration for everyone in the town. moral confusion and conflict that presently confront African Christians at marriage. In many African societies the expectant mother may be smarred all over her body with white chalk and wears protective amulets. Its important to put records right especially as most African rich traditions are branded demonic. This portrayal of men and women does not end in the public sphere but is also found in the private sphere where men decide what is good for their partners in relation to safe sex. Different cultures have different rituals and beliefs about marriage. In this forum the man publicly ask for the woman hand in marriage. Marriage plays significant roles in the Igbo status system for the individuals and their family and relatives. The Process of Marriage in African Societies: A Multiple Indicator Approach Created Date: 20160811045033Z African society, on the other hand, does not emphasize individual looks and lust as the primary motivation for marriage, but rather the basic focus is on building families and communities. Family, Gender Roles, and Marriage in the Ancient Near East and the Greco-Roman World, BiAS Series, Joachim Kuegler, Rosinah Gabaitse, Blessing Nyahuma, Mark S Aidoo, Mavis Muguti, Menard Musendekwa, daniel nii aboagye aryeh, PhD, Kudzai Biri, Francis Machingura, Josiah Ucheawaji, Journal of Nigerian Association for the Study of Religions (NASR), Making Tradition: A Historical Perspective on Gender in Namibia, Putting them in their place:respectable and unrespectable women in Zimbabwean gender struggles, VIOLATION AND ABUSE OF WOMENS HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE CUSTOMARY PRACTICE OF KUZVARIRA" AMONG THE NDAU PEOPLE OF MOZAMBIQUE, ALook AT THE STRUGGLE OF ZIMBABWEAN MARRIED WOMEN REGARDING SAFE SEX, Sex Work as a test case for African feminism, Harmonise Zimbabwe's marriage laws before changing marriage certificates, 'Let them come to me!' To maintain some family identity, parents named their children after themselves or other relatives or sometimes gave them African names., It is said that the Africa culture stands out more than any other culture In the World. Whether the bride and groom fall in love or someone makes the match, meeting involves It was a white bodyEastern European-looking like the stereotypewith a white bra and G-string. I also knew that all cultures had similar rules of engagement when it came to marriage practices. At marriage, every African Christian couple, especially in mission-founded churches, is confronted with three worlds the world of the traditional culture to which most parents of marrying-age children belong; the world of the civil or This marriage ceremony is only for a monogamous union and any polygamous relations are forbidden. In, Africa and China the children have absolutely no say on whom they are going to marry. - Single Women, Tradition, and the Bible in Zimbabwe (by Kudzai BIRI, with a foreword by Joachim Kgler), The loudness of the Unsaid: Proverbs in selected African drama, Not a boy, not a child": A qualitative study on young people's views on childbearing in Uganda, Isukha Traditional Marriage Processes and Rituals in Pre-Colonial Kenya. 3. The setting of the ceremony in Cana is similar to African traditional marriage rites. Each has their own unique ritual of how they go about a wedding ceremony. In a traditional family the parents contracted the marriage. Although, I myself practice monogamy, as it is tradition in my culture and that of what is expected by me, my community, and my family., There are not original or principle ceremony since it all differs depending on the what clans and from community to community. If accepted, vows are made and covenant entered. Marriage in South Africa Wikipedia, Marriage in African Traditional Society UK Essays If one may ask, would a European [or an American] subject himself to African traditional marriage rites after he has wedded? Today, the assumption is that all people, men and women, understand the urgent need to openly discuss and negotiate the need for safe sex, whichever way necessary, for the preservation of life and the integrity of families. The research will argue for and against same sex marriage but will touch on the salient fact that it is a movement that will come to be accepted over a period of time and get the needed attention it deserve but will ultimately attempt to address emerging trends in the same sex marriage debate. . In African tradition, marriage was done after someone had gone through the adolescent stage where different The different forms of marriage included musengabere, kuzvarira, kutema ugariri, kuganha, kutizisa or kutizira, chimutsamapfiwa, kugara or kugarwa nhaka, matengana gudo and kukumbira, among others. Its no surprised therefore that wedding is usually conducted after the couple had performed their traditional rites. network. The history of marriage customs in Africa are, interestingly, based on practices that other cultures around the world have historically practiced. New York: World Youth Alliance Press, 2018, Beyond the Quest for Historical Jesus in African Christianity: Albert Nolan, Jacques Dupuis and the Universality of Christ's saving work, Marriage and Meaningful Existence: A Philosophic Response to the Polemics on Marriage, RELIGION, MARRIAGE AND FAMILY VALUES IN AFRICA: ISSUES, CHALLENGES AND PROSPECTS, The Challenge of Infertility to the Christian Marriage in Some African Societies: A Plea for an Ethical Response In The Light Of Donum Vitae, Religion Mariage and Family Values in Africa, Lessons from Scripture for Maasai Christianity, Lessons from Maasai Culture for the Global Church, UNDERSTANDING SAME SEX MARRIAGE AND ITS ETHICAL IMPLICATIONS ON AFRICAN VALUE SYSTEM: A CRITICAL STUDY OF THE NIGERIAN SOCIETY, Promoting Chastity in Marriage through Marital Counseling In The Light Of Amoris Laetitia, The Blame of Infertility in Families amongst the Ikwerre People of Rivers State, Wife Battery: A Divine Command from the Garden of Eden or a Gene Disorder in Men? This paper focuses on gender based violence to argue that not only does gender based violence in marriages risk the health and wellbeing of the couple, children and the society, but also threatens the realization of the essential properties of marriage. 3. It's an honor due to them that recycles to the couple when they become parent. It was the marriage ceremony that attracted people to the place. The union of marriage is so strong that two become one flesh. In Zimbabwe, the "family" traditionally refers to an expansive. Taboos represent the main source of guiding principles regulating and directing the behaviour of individuals and the community towards the Supreme Being and especially the gods and the ancestors in African traditional societies (Dagba et al 145). Philosophers have also disputed the underlying moral and legal rationales for the structure of marriage, with implications for questions such as the content of its moral obligations and the legal recognition of same-sex marriage. For example, if the culture, values private property, it will have laws that forbid theft of property. When she dies, there will be nobody of her own immediate blood to remember Instead, the women are told to go to court. Despite this manifestation, marriage has been very often exposed to incidences of violence. The Igbos people are located in the southeastern part of Nigeria. Christian marriage is different from traditional marriage in Igbo nation. 2 pages, 557 words. Enjoy!Marriage is something that is highly valued in the Xhosa culture. Research is revealing trends that Americans are . 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