ACLARS insights

 I have been spending time at the ACLARS (African Consortium for Law and Religion Studies) conference in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe this week. There are some amazing perspectives and ideas that I have learned about and come to understand. 

For example, Molly told us about the terrible effects of Colonization that have gone on for years. When I talked to her at dinner, we had a conversation regarding my observations that the falls have been here for many hundreds of years, but when Livingstone came along and "discovered" them, they became known as Victoria Falls. In fact there is a big statue of Livingstone where they show that he came in November of 1855 at the beginning of the trail along the falls. That is no time at all in the history of Africa's ancient age and civilizations. (And pretty presumptuous of the English to be the ones to 'discover' something that has been with other people for hundreds of years) Maybe a little like Columbus discovering the Americas when people already lived there.

Molly told me the real name though I cannot pronounce or remember it. She told me it was problematic to change names and places back to before the British and French "settled" Africa. The poorest parts of the community around the falls depend on tourists for their livelihoods. It would have ramifications to change back again to the former name. In fact those people's who once lived and used the falls have been displaced by many others. 

It is like when a ship sinks into the sea and slams onto the bottom of the sea. It will displace and destroy what used to be there. But after years, life grows around it and makes a habitat for other species. 

Though in Africa the colonization has created a poorer and less hospitable place over the long run.

Molly Manyonganise and I at ACLARS

Another class I attended brought up the fact that religion is not taught by religious leaders as much as it was in earlier days. Tic Tok, instagram, Facebook and many other social media markets have a much bigger role in the morals and attitudes than the traditional age and wisdom, or leader roles of 30 or 40 years ago (personal computers were invented in the 80's, the breeding ground for social media to grow).

The first presenter told us about sangomas (Highly respected healer among the Zulu people of South Africa. A sangoma (diagnoses, prescribes, and often performs the rituals to heal a person) and how the spirituality and religion or elder leaders are now in conflict with the miraculous stories and those taking advantage of poverty and who is looking for answers. Where is the influence for spiritual answers and truth coming from. She asked who is the puppet master?

The next presenter (a friend I met in Kenya two years ago) made her point with a story about a rapper who dressed as a muslim leader and videoed his rap song in front of a mosque. It created an uproar. 

And the fallout showed how impressions on social media could be louder than those religious leaders he was slamming. 

The rapper has a bigger following now than he did before.

This was so very insightful for me as I suddenly understood where some of my children were coming from and why they have the views they do. I did not grow up like they did and they all have a much broader and larger fields to draw information from - I was aware of this previously, but now my awareness is acute. 

Thanks to Lee-Shae Scharnick-Udemans from South Africa who made this point clear and understandable to me. I am so glad that I came today to her class.

Jeffrey and I with Lee-Shae