TY - THES A1 - Ikwuagwu, Onwumere A. T1 - INITIATION IN AFRICAN TRADITIONAL RELIGION : a systematic symbolic analysis, with special reference to aspects of Igbo Religion in Nigeria N2 - From the history of the Church, we gather that one of the most major tests that confronted the early Christian community was whether everyone who wanted to become a Christian also of necessity had to become a Jew as a pre-requisite for entrance into the new community of believers. The issue at stake is whether one qualifies to be a Christian through adherence to the Jewish identity, which centres on circumcision and the observance of the Mosaic legal code. The crisis resulted to the convocation of the Jerusalem Council (cf. Acts 15), which tasked itself with the definition of the Christian identity. The Council bases its definition of Christian identity, separable from adherence to the Jewish cultural practice (a form of cultural imperialism), solely on election by God in Jesus Christ. Moreover, the event of the Pentecost in Jerusalem demonstrated what the nature of the spreading of the message of this new community of believers in Jesus Christ should be: that people from other cultures, “Parthians, Medes and Elamites; people from Mesopotamia, Judaea and Capadocia, Ponthus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylis, Egypt and the parts of Libya around Cyrene; as well as visitors from Rome, Jews and Proselytes alike, Cretans and Arabs” (Acts 2: 9-11), could understand the message that Peter communicated to them through the force of the breath of the risen Jesus in their own mother tongue, without first becoming Jews. Against the background of this crucial point in the history of the early Church and in consideration of the Second Vatican Council, this dissertation seeks to address the problem of identity, unity and diversity in the Christian religion with special reference to Africa. It proposes that the traditional African Rites of Initiation that mark the transition from one stage of life to the other and therefore the existential and essential transformation of the individual and group offer with their rich symbolisms a very fertile ground for dialogue with the Christian religion. It views the various Rites of Initiation (from birth and ritual circumcision over puberty and adult to marriage and funeral rites) as vital and immutable seminal points in the life of the individual African and his/her society at large. These Rites that express in various ways the African holistic view and conception of life and reality are, in terms of their religious symbolism, meaning and function, analogous to their Christian counterparts (such as baptism, confirmation, Eucharist, ordination, marriage) and can as a result be conveniently accepted or at least incorporated even if in modified forms as authentic African initiation rites for African Christians. Without being syncretistic, such an incorporation and modification at one and the same time recognizes and respects the cultural identity of the African and marks his/her transformation and acceptance of his/her new identity, modelled on Christ. In this way, the African Christian will be enabled to live, articulate and express his/her faith within his/her own historical-cultural milieu. On the whole, the presentation is predictive and prescriptive with regard to what the relationship and dialogue between Christianity and the African Traditional Religion should be or should not be. It is an honest effort to make the Christian message relevant to the African in his/her own perceptual and conceptual world-view. This task remains a steady challenge to African Christians who want to maintain at one and the same time and at the same level their African identity and their Christian calling. The balancing and reconciling of these two identities in a correlating rather than confrontational manner remains a task for the Church of today and tomorrow. The dissertation is a foundational contribution to building up and sharpening consciousness for this problem. KW - Afrika KW - Naturreligion KW - Initiation KW - Christentum KW - Ibo KW - Initiation KW - Afrika KW - Afrikanische Traditionellle Religion KW - Symbolik KW - Igbo KW - Nigeria KW - Christentum KW - Sakrament KW - Inkulturation KW - Initiation KW - Africa KW - African Traditional Religion KW - symbolism KW - Igbo KW - Nigeria KW - Christianity KW - Sacrament KW - Inculturation Y1 - 2006 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-20008 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Ebner, Katharina A1 - Ostheimer, Jochen A1 - Sautermeister, Jochen T1 - The role of religious beliefs for the acceptance of xenotransplantation. Exploring dimensions of xenotransplantation in the field of hospital chaplaincy JF - Xenotransplantation N2 - Background The Changsha Communiqué (2008) calls for a greater account to be taken of the ethical aspects of xenotransplantation as well as of public perception. This also applies to the field of hospital chaplaincy. So far, there has been no empirical exploration of the assessment and acceptance of xenotransplantation by pastoral workers in German‐speaking countries. In view of the prospect of clinical trials, in‐depth research is both sensible and necessary, since both xeno‐ and allotransplantation can have far‐reaching consequences for patients, their relatives, and the social environment. In addition to the tasks of health monitoring, questions of the individual handling with and integration of a xenotransplant must also be considered. They can affect one's own identity and self‐image and thus also affect religious dimensions. Hence, they make a comprehensive range of accompaniment necessary. Methods This paper presents the first explorative results of a Dialogue Board with Christian, Jewish, and Muslim hospital chaplains. It explores pastoral challenges of xenotransplantation for the German‐speaking countries, in particular (a) self‐image and tasks of hospital pastoral care, (b) religious aspects of transplantation, and (c) religious aspects of xenotransplantation as anticipated by the hospital pastors. Results Depending on their religious background, hospital chaplains see different pastoral challenges when xenotransplantation reaches clinical stage. In particular, the effects on the identity and religious self‐image of those affected must be taken into account. Three desiderata or recommendations for action emerged from the Dialogue Board: (a) initial, advanced and further training for hospital pastoral workers, (b) contact points for patients, and (c) interreligious cooperation and a joint statement. All participants of the Dialogue Board emphasized the chances of xenotransplantation and expressed their hope that xenogenic transplants could save patients or improve the quality of their life substantially. Conclusions Xenotransplantation can affect the identity work of patients and relatives also in religious terms. In order to provide better pastoral and psychosocial support for these persons within the framework of the hospital, it is important to reflect on such challenges at an early stage and to develop concepts for pastoral further training and pastoral care in xenotransplantation. KW - Christianity KW - Dialogue Board KW - hospital chaplaincy KW - Islam KW - Judaism KW - pastoral care KW - theology KW - xenotransplantation Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-214114 VL - 27 IS - 4 ER -