Identify any (but not the Shembe Church) African Traditional Religious group in the African continent or the Caribbean Islands/ South American where Afro cultural religion might exist. Provide a brief overview of this ATR group. Provide a brief history of the group and important cultural ideas and practices. Would you define this group as a social movement? Motivate your answer. and provide references.
One African Traditional Religious group that is prominent in the Caribbean Islands is the Haitian Vodou. Vodou is a syncretic religion that combines elements of African religions brought over by enslaved Africans, Catholicism, and Indigenous American beliefs.
Vodou has its roots in West African religions such as Yoruba and Fon, as well as influences from Native American spirituality. It is practiced primarily in Haiti but has also spread to other parts of the Caribbean and the United States.
In Vodou, practitioners believe in a supreme creator known as Bondye, as well as a pantheon of spirits called lwa who serve as intermediaries between humans and the divine. Rituals involve drumming, dancing, chanting, and offerings to the lwa.
Vodou is not typically classified as a social movement, as it is primarily a spiritual and cultural practice rather than a political or social movement seeking specific changes in society. However, Vodou has played a role in resistance and cultural preservation in the face of colonialism and cultural oppression.
References:
1. Brown, Karen McCarthy. "Mama Lola: A Vodou Priestess in Brooklyn." University of California Press, 2001.
2. Filan, Kenaz. "The Haitian Vodou Handbook: Protocols for Riding with the Lwa." Destiny Books, 2006.
3. Sökefeld, M. "Collective Representations of Haitian Vodou: Ritual performance and media discourse." Social Anthropology, vol. 14, no. 2, pp. 107–124, 2006.