ENNOBLING THE CULTURES
We always say that culture is dynamic yet our cultures have remained in the essence our ancestors instituted them except perhaps in the social aspects, which indeed have been deterioration rather than improvement. The social aspects now outweigh and overshadow the intent of the cultures that no one now could say the volitions behind instituting them.
As a people develop and mature in understanding God and His Will, it's cultures should improve and become more beautiful. God's Will is expressed in nature and is immutable and adamantine. It is called the natural laws. Man must be simple, unassuming and humble to be able to mature in the sense willed by God.
Cultures are instituted in the volitions of a people and sustained by the people as they mature. The beauty of a people lies in it's own culture, which must be developed in adaptation to it's Soil, the climate and the race. Not by adopting foreign culture.
An instituted culture becomes tradition if it transfers from generation to generation. If the generations continue to improve in their spiritual maturity, their tradition will continue to improve along. That is where the dynamism lies.
Over generations, especially in Africa, the cultures remained the same in their essence. This could be attributed to lack of progress in the people's search for God and His Will. Stagnation leading to selfishness brought in the existence of many religions and differing believes resulting to differences in the recognition of God and His Will. This lack of progress arose from the failure of the peoples to see the messages of God brought to them respectively in their spiritual infancy as step that will lead to the next higher level till the highest level. The messages would have formed one single flight of steps leading to the recognition of God and worship of Him through the deed. But instead each people stagnated in the message it received, distorted it and made it religion by introducing dogmas and doctrines that do not accord with the Will of God, and through them lure converts.
So now, within a people you can find adherents of Religion of origin (Traditional religion) which indeed has deteriorated to worship of idols woven with devilish volitions, Buddhism, Zorastranism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, etc.
In the communities in Nigeria we have mainly adherents to Traditional religion, Christianity and Islam. And in each there are sects. The volitions can no longer be the same in this setting.
Since cultures are instituted in the volitions of a people, every culture has a power centre in the beyond. Now that there are confusion of believes, the power centres are weakened and as a result improvement become difficult.
There are some cultures that transcend religious believes. These cultures concern the human spirits and their ascent if properly conducted. They are Thanksgiving, Marriage and Funeral.
Words spoken in the conduct of these cultures attract blessings to the recipients and the participants. The wishes of the participants are focused on the recipients and from there rise upwards & draw down blessings to everyone.
Whereas Thanksgiving and Marriage are concerned with those still in body of flesh and blood (the so called living), Funeral is concerned with one who has just left the body of flesh and blood, and so must be conducted in line with the believe and wishes of the departed person while he was in the flesh.
There are cultures that are specific and peculiar to various religions. These often bring conflicts within a community in their observations. For instance in Ideani community Traditional religion, we have 'Kamanu, Ufie-jioku, Uzo-iyi, Udo, Obiaja, Idemili' each connected to a deity of the community and celebrated. Similar cultures are found in the Traditional religion of other communities. Ozo caste or similar castes connected to some deities of the communities exist. In other religions such as Christianity, we have Christmas, Easter, Pentecost, etc connected with the life of the bringer of the teaching the Christians hold supreme. There is also Knighthood caste connected with the saints of the church. In Islam we have Id-el- of various purposes connected with the life of the bringer of the teaching the Moslems hold supreme. They also have castes. So is it in Buddhism, Zorastranism, Judaism, etc.
The entrance of many religions and their varying believes weakened the practice of the festive cultures of Traditional religion origin and limited it to those still in the believe of the animistic beings as gods and those who just wish to maintain the believes of the ancestors.
Most religions within many communities encourage members to be part of Traditional religious believes and to join the 'Ozo' caste system or similar castes systems. This implies mixing old wine with new wine which is bound to make the taste sour. It is the same effect as pouring new wine into an old wine skin i.e. breakage.
For everything to become new as demanded for the Kingdom of God on earth, all these festive cultures must be corrected till discarded as the human spirits attain highest maturity leaving as it's only festivals the Outpouring of Power by the Holy Spirit, the Purity of Womanhood and the Purifying Star.
Everything that was once part of Traditional believes will be placed in archive.
Edmund MEZUE
