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The Alternatives
Practical theology is trying to reach out to the people to make them understand God’s love for them through the creation story. What is the role of Christian morals in believers who feel that when God created the world everything was very good, according to Genesis 2:31 (including man)? Is the baby complete or not? Since it is believed traditionally that strength is being put in a child by additional sperms smeared on a baby, these are beliefs which make things happen according to what one believes. Some people, especially in the cities, have not been taught how to perform these rituals and their children are fine. But there are also a large number of young married couples who are still performing these rituals because they have been taught by their grandmothers and Aunties.
Postmodernism nurtures an awareness of such voices and stimulates a sensitivity towards various forms of otherness, created by factors such as economic interests, moral uprightness, social prejudice, institutional differentiation, and so on.(Rossouw 1995:57).
THE RITUAL OF KUTHA MSINKHU (PUBERTY)
Among the Chewa people the initiation ceremony ends by a ritual to end the puberty (kutha cinamwali). Breugel (2001:25) points out that on the last day the girl’s head is shaved. That night her husband, if she is married, comes to thehouse. The namkungwi (instructor) will see that they are well instructed and that night her husband must have sexual relations with her. He imparts his strength to her and she becomes strong again. The single act of intercourse at the end of her seclusion would not cause a pregnancy for her, according to their way of thinking. If the girl is not yet married or if her husband is away, another young man is chosen to act as her husband on the last night of her seclusion. The parents of the girl bring a whole cooked chicken which will be eaten by this young man so as to give him strength. The young man is called hyena (fisi) because he comes secretly. Such a young man will be given some money by the girl’s parents. According to Jackson (2002:135), such initiation rites are found in Malawi and also among the Krobo culture in Ghana, who call it dipo (Mtingiza 1990:15).
KUKUNA OR KUKHALA MUKHONDE (PULLING LABIA MANOLA)
This is a cultural practice which prepares the girls at the age of 6 to12 years to stretch the inner lips (labia manola) of the vagina for future sexual pleasure of their husbands. It is painful to stretch labia manola everyday for one to two months so that they can measure 4cm long. These are for the husband to play with as part of romance before having sex. Young girls are not taught why they are doing that but they have to endure the pain. Grandmothers encourage all the girls to do it after sunset using the black medicine in the corridors of their grandmother’s homes. If a girl does not do it when she is young she will be forced or urged to do it before going to the husband. This becomes more painful to do when you are an adult.
Some women said there is nothing wrong with this cultural practice, so long as the man touches the genitals and both of you feel good. One of the Christian Counselors commented, at one of the girl’s kitchen party, that, “when the inner lips are long, they keep dirt, or if one has STI’s she feels itchy and hot.” Also since they are for man’s pleasure, most women do not feel good to be touched.
We should presume a husband should be able to ask the wife if she likes to be touched or not. This may cause pain and friction since the inner parts are soft.
This may also cause some bruises which may be an exit or entry point for the HIV and AIDS virus. It was suggested that it is something which brings pain to the one and pleasure to the other, then it is better to do without it so that joy may be maintained Mudawi (1997:12-20).
CHAPTER 1
1. A BIG BLACK LEAKING POT
1.1 INTRODUCTION
1.2 THE PRESENT SCENARIO OF HIV AND AIDS
1.3 MODES OF TRANSMISSION
1.4 RISK FACTORS REGARDING HIV TRANSMISSIONS
1.5 THE OPPRESSION OF WOMEN
1.6 THE RESEACH TOPIC
1.7 RESEARCH ALREADY DONE
1.8 GUIDING RESEARCH QUESTION
1.9 RESEARCH AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
1.10 RESEARCH PARADIGM
1.11 RESEARCH DESIGN
1.12 METHODOLOGY
1.13 THE LIMITATION
1.14 WOMEN’S MIND SET
1.15 THE TRADITIONAL AFRICAN WORLD VIEW
1.16 THE MORAL AND ETHICAL DILEMMA OF HIV AND AIDS
1.17 THE CONSENT
1.18 CONFIDENTIALITY AND ANONYMITY
1.19 THE RESEARCH CHALLENGES
1.20 FINDING THE RIGHT PATH
1.21 DATA INTERPRETATION
1.22 WAY OF HOPE
1.23 DEFINITION OF KEY WORDS
1.24 LAYOUT OF CHAPTERS
CHAPTER 2
2.1 INTRODUCTION
2.2 THE DEFINITION OF CULTURE
2.3 THE RESEARCH PROCESS
2.4 CULTURAL PRACTICES WHICH CONTRIBUTE TO THE SPREAD OF HIV AND AIDS60
2.5 PUBERTY IN THE DIFFERENT CULTURES OF ZAMBIA
2.6 MARRIAGES IN THE DIFFERENT CULTURES OF ZAMBIA
2.7 DEATHS IN THE DIFFERENT CULTURES OF ZAMBIA
2.8 BIBLICAL DOCTRINE OF DEATH
2.9 GOOD PRACTICES OF CULTURE WHICH HINDERS THE SPREAD OF HIV/AIDS
2.10 SUMMARY
CHAPTER THREE
THE INTERPRETATION OF THE BIG BLACK LEAKING POT
3.1 INTRODUCTION
3.2 PARTICIPANT FOCUS GROUPS
3.3 FIRST FOCUS GROUP DISCUSSION
3.4 FOCUS GROUP DATA
3.5 INTERPRETATION OF THE RESULTS ABOUT HIV AND AIDS
3.6 THE FIRST FOCUS GROUP DISCUSSIONS ON CULTURAL PRACTICES
3.7 SUB-GROUP CULTURAL PRACTICE DISCUSSION DATA
3.8 STORY-TELLING OF VICTIMS OF CULTURAL PRACTICES.
3.9 SECOND FOCUS GROUP DATA ON CULTURAL PRACTICES
3.10 INTERPRETATION OF CULTURAL PRACTICES AND STORIES NARRATED
3.11 DOING THEOLOGY AMONG THE OPPRESSED
3.12 SUMMARY
CHAPTER 4
GENDER AND CULTURAL PRACTICES
4.1 INTRODUCTION
4.2 DEFINITION
4.3 WOMEN IN SOLIDARITY
4.4 GENDER DISCRIPTION AT THE PLACE OF WORK
4.5 GENDER AND EARLY MARRIAGES
4.6 GENDER AND SEXUALITY
4.7 GENDER AND CULTURAL ISSUES
4.8 AIDS, SEXUALITY AND GENDER IN AFRICA
4.9 WOMEN IN THE MINISTRY OF JESUS
4.10 PAUL’S MINISTRY WITH WOMEN
4.11 EMPOWERING WOMEN
4.12 SUMMARY
CHAPTER 5
RITES OF PASSAGE A THEOLOGICAL REFLECTION
5.1 INTRODUCTION
5.2. AFRICAN VIEW OF GOD
5.3 AFRICAN VIEW OF SIN AND ITS ORIGIN
5.4 AFRICAN CAUSES OF SICKNESS AND HEALING
5.5 CHRISTIAN’S VIEW OF SICKNESS AND HEALING
5.6 CHRISTIAN VIEW OF GOD
5.7 RITES OF PASSAGE
5.9 THE DEMAND FOR PHYSICAL AND SPIRITUAL CLEANSING
5.10. CHRIST ORDER FOR RITE OF PASSAGE
5.11 THE MOTIVATION FACTORS WHICH PROPEL A PERSON TO DO THESE CULTURAL PRACTICES.
5.12 EVIL AGAINIST GOOD
5.14 A THEOLOGICAL INTERPRETATION ON RITES OF PASSAGE
5.13 THE ROLE OF THE CHURCH IN ADDRESSING CULTURAL PRACTICES
5.14 THE GENERAL CONCLUSION OF THE RESEARCH STUDY
BIBLIOGRAPHY
