Religion & Community
Choose characteristics for each spiritual theme, then see how it connects with beliefs and practices of 17th-century Eastern Algonquian, West Central African, and English (Anglican) religions.
Worldview
Good actions lead to good outcomes (and vice versa).
An afterlife is guaranteed to all except those who are extremely wicked.
Conforming to religious doctrine is expected, and those who do are rewarded in the afterlife.
Religious Leadership
Religious leaders give advice and predictions, and help with healing. They also locate people who have the intention to harm others.
Religious leaders oversee sacred spaces, and influence community operations, and moral codes.
Religious leaders are highly respected, give advice to political leaders, and are heavily involved in physical and spiritual healing.
Sacred Spaces
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A sacred building hosts the majority of worship where people will meet and pray with religious leaders daily or weekly.
Most daily worship and prayer occurs at the sacred burial sites of ancestors.
Everywhere is sacred in its own way. In private temples, religious leaders and rulers have rituals and communicate with deities.
Rituals
Rituals are part of people’s daily routine, and most activities are infused with respect and reverence for the mystical.
Prayers are part of daily life, and communities regularly attend worship together, where ceremonies incorporate rituals and sacred items.
Offerings and prayers are part of daily life, and charms imbued with a force connecting all worldly beings are kept close.
Passing of Knowledge and Beliefs
Religious leaders pass down knowledge and can communicate with ancestors.
Belief systems and rituals are passed down orally.
Religious practice is guided by a single holy text.
quiz results
Your choices most aligned with:
Algonquian
African
England
English colonization forced religions to shift and change over time. The English attempted to assimilate Eastern Algonquian peoples and convert them to Christianity. The Powhatan and other tribal groups resisted assimilation but at times incorporated elements of Christianity into their own religious practices.
In areas of West Central Africa colonized by the Portuguese, elements of traditional religion and Christianity mixed. Kongolese ancestral shrines became associated with Christian saints, and the word ‘holy’ became synonymous with nkisi (the force that connects all beings and souls). Some Eastern Algonquian and West Central African leaders adopted Christianity for strategic military and political reasons.
reflection
Did you make any personal connections with the cultural ideologies presented here? How can religion(s) bring communities together through both their shared characteristics and their differences? How has religion evolved to fit the changing needs of your community?