Church vs traditional customs

The ELCIN institution has been, and by a very large proportion, the number one perpetrator of cultural genocide among the Aawambo people of Namibia. Never mind our cultural appropriation from western films and pop culture over the last half-decade, in the grand scheme of things – no man wearing sagging pants, or “hang gat”, as it is popularly known, has eroded our culture the way ELCIN has systematically caused destruction of our traditions, values and other elements that make us the Aawambo people. This is also true, for our brotherly neighbours in the two Kavango regions who have also been subjugated by the same historical prejudices of this institution.Being the honourable thing to do, I acknowledge the benefits that ELCIN brought to its constituents and the immeasurable impact it has had on many lives, but let that not be the reason why we should look at ELCIN with rose-tinted glasses. What is the cost of the cultural genocide that this institution has inflicted on its constituents? Should we demand reparations for all the lost values we now consider as pagan and unchristian but were once the bedrock of our society? As outrageous as it sounds, I ask that with all the seriousness of a black child deprived off his culture and tradition.Today, ELCIN were out to attack another of our long-standing traditions, the Olufuko Ceremony, claiming that it is paganistic. Is our existence as black people paganistic? Our very own being and way of live has been questioned and deemed immoral since the first missionaries set foot on our lands, those very missionaries who were the precursors, and in principle the bedrock foundation of ELCIN. Thus said, it comes by no surprise that the ELCIN leadership’s line of thinking is no different to that of the “colonialism enablers” Carl Hugo Hahn, Nakambale and many other missionaries who also saw our cultures as backwards and therefore paganistic.What we have at hand is an ELCIN which is, and has been, a colossal cultural and traditional barrier, melancholically pruning its people from their culture and traditions over the years. What we need today, in ELCIN, are Revolutionary Leaders – revolutionary in thought and revolutionary in spirit. Firstly, to be revolutionary in thought is to leave behind the colonial thinking of its “The Church vs Pagan African Traditions.” To be Revolutionary in Thought is to find applicable means that will allow for the co-existence of our African cultures with your church. To be Revolutionary in Thought is to reform your aging Anti-African-Tradition institution. Secondly, to be Revolutionary in Spirit is to align yourselves with the needs of your constituents, and right now, your constituents have a longing for their lost culture, which ELCIN effectively helped sweep under the carpet. To be Revolutionary in Spirit is to realize that the young demography in urban settings are distancing themselves from ELCIN, running to Pentecostal and Reformed Churches; you should be finding means to win their souls back instead of propagating hate of black tradition.The moral superiority complex with which ELCIN walks about in the northern regions of Namibia needs to be antagonised with the ferocity it deserves. The unipolar thought and way of life that White and Christian domination brought to our ancestors should not be trickled into this generation of free-thinkers. Our Founding Father, His Excellence Dr Sam Nujoma, with all the wisdom and foresight, rightfully saw the cultural deficit among Namibia’s “non-ideological” generation of born-frees and thus called for the re-initiation the Olufuko Ceremony. ELCIN is nowhere close to being the moral compass that our community elders like the founding father and many other tatekulus and meekulus are, ELCIN does not wield a Godly ordained code-of-conduct by which we should live by. Why live by a code of conduct that strips us off our culture and attempts to eradicate our traditional heritage?One of my favourite authors, the Nobel Laureate in Literature recipient, Albert Camus, wrote, “Without culture, and the relative freedom it implies, society, even when perfect, is a jungle.” Think about that? Culture is everything to a people, and while ELCIN is trying to convert us into the perfect society, we are going through a cultural devolution, going back to cultural nothingness, turning us into animals of the jungle. Is that what you want? I for one don’t, I love my culture, I love what my elders represented, and I will continue fighting for the great spirits of our ancestors to be kept alive.Because we leave in a much more liberal world, I would welcome suggestions from those who deem this festival as archaic and needless. How do I put it, how do we make it more “palatable” for you, the critics, because it is here to stay? Do you prefer it continues in a clandestine fashion with no public display or do we use thing huge celebratory event as a fertile platform to put more emphasis and build solid campaigns around reproductive rights?

Church vs traditional customs

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-01

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Church vs traditional customs

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-01

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