AFRICAN RELIGION, FROM EDEN TO THE AMERICAS

Caer Hallundbaek speaks with Yvonne Chireau, a professor in the Department of Religion at Swarthmore College. A prolific writer, Chireau is the author of 'Black Magic: African American Religion and the Conjuring Tradition.' With a Ph.D. in religious studies from Princeton University, her work focuses on African based religions like Vodou, and the development of African American religion in America. Topics in this informative and engaging hour include: Pre-Colonial religion in Africa; original components of religion, including song, drumming, ritual; the importance of the myth of origin; the role of ancestors and divine beings; the perception of and connection to nature; openness between this world and the spirit realm; the slave religions; Vodou in Haiti; overlapping layers of African, European, naturalistic and Christian beliefs; yearning for a return to the Garden; magic and conjuring; the post-slavery era growth of Pentecostalism; and much more. For more information, visit Yvonne at: http://www.swarthmore.edu/x8163.xml