Humanist

It is fascinating how the modern day Christian God is referred to in Ateso as Edeke.

This is because, before Christianity arrived in Teso, among the Iteso, the fifty largest first nation of Uganda, Edeke was the god of calamity.

Edeke was dreaded and when things went wrong, it was the norm that Edeke was propitiated.

“If sickness fell on a family, if rinderpest killed the cattle or drought withered the crops, Edeke was angry and must be propitiated.”

J. C. D. Lawrance in his book “The Iteso”

So, I wonder when Iteso Christians worship the Christian God as Edeke, do they have a different connotation for the Christian God that they now call Edeke, different from the original Edeke?

Do they think of Edeke as the God of love, for example, as opposed to the original Edeke, the god of calamity who needs appeasing?

Do they think of the Christian God as the almighty who will quiet and reign in the restless spirits of Iteso ancestors without there being the need to propitiate the Iteso Edeke original? Do they really?

In the past, among Iteso rituals to appease the spirits of our ancestors, included offerings such as:

“Food and beer are often placed near the graves of dead relatives. The offerings and celebrations at the memorial ceremonies (asuban) are designed to keep on good terms with the spirit of the deceased, which in some manner might cause harm… The spirit of important men may last for many months or years and must be propitiated at several memorial ceremonies.”

J. C. D. Lawrance in his book “The Iteso”

Due especially to Christianity, it has become the norm in Teso to do one asuban for the deceased; and moreover done in such a manner that exogenous Christian rituals dominate.

I think that time is neigh for us Iteso to better reconnect with our roots.