Differences Between Christianity And Yoruba

As we’ve seen so far this semester, there is no good way to categorize all religions and the same could be said for the way those religions spread. Christianity and Yoruba are two great religions to study, as the way they spread, much like the religions themselves, could not be more different. Christianity started within the Jewish community, as a rouge group who believed in the teachings of Jesus Christ. Eventually it formed into a new religion with the help of the Apostle Paul spreading the word. In 312 c.e., the Roman Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity, shortly thereafter declaring it the official religion of the Roman Empire. This act gave the religion a sense of legitimacy, they went from suppressed, to suppressor. A core tenant in …show more content…
While Muslims view the pilgrimage to Mecca as a pillar of their religion and Jewish people view Jerusalem as their rightful home, neither followers of Yoruba or Jesus have such a holy land. By the nature of slavery, practitioners of Yoruba were forced to conceal their faith. New, creative ways were conceived to disguise religion from their owners, such as marrying Yoruba to the religion of their new homes, namely Catholicism. As Christianity is big on imagery of their Saints, practitioners of Yoruba disguised their Orisha’s behind the imagery of various Saints. This way they appeared to be worshipping in the vein of Christianity, while still in fact praising Ogun, Oya and various others (p 125, A Global Religion). They also took to drumming, dancing and other less conspicuous ways of worshiping their various gods. During this period, Yoruba’s elasticity proved vital to its survival. With the end of slavery on to the modern day, Yoruba is still viewed as a primitive religion due to its practices of sacrifice, faith healing, possessions and frankly, other people’s