Tuesday, July 31, 2018

Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Esu Elegbara: Change, Chance, Uncertainty in Yoruba Mythology by Ayọdele Ogundipe - Publication of a Long Awaited Work in Yoruba Studies and the Trickster Motif in World Mythology

superbly put Ken.

i particularly like this - 'i would say, take the "myth" the "theology" and build on it, not so much through a belief system, but rather a system that enables us to see the world through the vision they provide.'

in my spiritual practice i have used both the myths of  established religions and the myths created by imaginative writers,  as in j.r.r. tolkien's silmarilion and i have had rich experiences with both kinds.


thanks

toyin 





On Tue, 31 Jul 2018 at 12:40, Harrow, Kenneth <harrow@msu.edu> wrote:

hi toyin,

so, i suppose one could say, it's just a myth, meaning you don't have to believe it, whereas for theology, you have to believe or not believe it, and to disparage it you'd say, it's just a myth. that issue was crucial for christian studies years ago when bultmann and others tried to invent a term like myth that still admitted of the respect in claiming that christ existed, that the events described in the evangelical writings described something real etc. we could say for any tradition, like my jewish one, that the encounters with god and moses or the israelites could also be real in some quasi-truthful reading.


my own view, in answer to your comment, is that there is no difference between myth and belief or theology, as you describe it, in the sense that both are grounded in ways we make sense of things, of the world, of narratives, etc. the need to establish reality and truth is a universal human need, and weakness, that we read through the lens of such narratives we construct about the past--or even the present, as seen in the continuing construction of "divinely" inspired figures as prophets, serignes, and so on. i am actually not disparaging this creation of figures like Ahmadou Bamba. one of my favorite authors who evokes that figure is Alan Roberts whose book onthe profit is nothing short of amazing. i would say, take the "myth" the "theology" and build on it, not so much through a belief system, but rather a system that enables us to see the world through the vision they provide.


[it goes without saying that when "theology" insists on its way as the only way we open the door to monstrous acts, like those committed by fundamentalists of ALL stripes, without exception, from Sri Lankan buddhists to brooklyn ultra-orthodox jewish sects, to christian evangelicals and muslim djihadists. Before praising theology and belief you have to be able to condemn these abhorrent extensions of it and account for them. and i include eurocentric beliefs that extended to colonial discourses and their aftermath in this same world-construction of extremist monstrosities. if we don't figure out what the need for belief generates, we won't really understand the positive and negative sides of belief]

sorry for the length of the ratiocinations

ken


From: usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com <usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com> on behalf of Oluwatoyin Vincent Adepoju <toyin.adepoju@gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, July 31, 2018 1:35:25 AM
To: usaafricadialogue
Cc: tvoluade@gmail.com; Yoruba Affairs
Subject: Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Esu Elegbara: Change, Chance, Uncertainty in Yoruba Mythology by Ayọdele Ogundipe - Publication of a Long Awaited Work in Yoruba Studies and the Trickster Motif in World Mythology
 
One would need to red the text to see how she interprets those terms and their interrelationships.

Mythology becomes theology, in my view, when the mythology is part of a belief system and religious practice.

But, can't one describe a belief system as mythology, which religions often are,  without necessarily addressing it as theology?

thanks

toyin

toyin



On Tue, 31 Jul 2018 at 02:24, Emeagwali, Gloria (History) <emeagwali@ccsu.edu> wrote:



Professor Gloria Emeagwali
Professor of History
History Department
Central Connecticut State University
1615 Stanley Street
 
New Britain. CT 06050
www.africahistory.net
Gloria Emeagwali's Documentaries on
Africa and the African Diaspora
8608322815  Phone
8608322804 Fax



From: usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com <usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com> on behalf of Oluwatoyin Vincent Adepoju <toyin.adepoju@gmail.com>
Sent: Monday, July 30, 2018 10:26 AM
To: usaafricadialogue; tvoluade@gmail.com; Yoruba Affairs
Subject: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Esu Elegbara: Change, Chance, Uncertainty in Yoruba Mythology by Ayọdele Ogundipe - Publication of a Long Awaited Work in Yoruba Studies and the Trickster Motif in World Mythology
 

                                                                Kwara State University Press

' Esu is arguably the least understood of all the numerous deities in Yoruba pantheon, despite his being venerated by the devotees as the Yoruba gatekeeper god, messenger of the deities, and close associate and errand boy of Ifa, god of divination; one who brings both fear and joy to his devotees, because he brings both blessings and trouble to them. Ayodele Ogundipe's objective in this insightful book has been to provide a better understanding of the ubiquitous deity in Yoruba pantheon, an objective which is brilliantly achieved. The author's extensive fieldwork involved close interactions with the leaders and votaries of the Esu cult, particularly in two major Yoruba cities where the cult traditions are kept alive. The author also extends the coverage to Esu traditional worship in the Yoruba Diaspora, particularly in Dahomey, now Benin Republic and Brazil. Several praise poems in the original Yoruba language, aptly translated into English by the author, as well as several mythological stories about the deity, told by the worshippers and reliable informants, form part of this work. The author, Professor Ayodele Ogundipe, currently teaches in the Department of Sociology, Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State'.

Is  Prof. Ayodele Ogundipe  speaking about theology or mythology? Are these two concepts synonymous and  interchangeable in this text?

GE

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