Christmas in Africa is family time
12/19/2003 News media contact: Linda Green · (615) 742-5470 · Nashville, Tenn A UMNS Feature
By Linda Green*
When students at Africa University in Zimbabwe return to
their homes for Christmas break, they will celebrate the birth of Christ
in distinctly African ways.
Christmas celebrations vary from
family to family or from tribe to tribe, says Gitagno Dolorosa Duncan of
Tanzania. However, the psychology major notes that regardless of
traditions, being with family at Christmas is the most important aspect
of the season.
Tanzania is a multicultural country populated by
tribes that, in addition to observing international Christian practices,
also celebrate other traditions during this season. For example, Duncan
says, some Tanzanians who worship trees go to the mountains to make
their sacrifices.
"Most of the people do their traditional
practices during Christmas time because it's the only time when all of
them are meeting together," she says.
While most people think of
Dec. 25 as the time when Jesus was born in Bethlehem, people in the
Congo regard it as a time when he is born in their hearts, says Bishop
Nkulu Ntanda Ntambo. He leads the United Methodist Church's North
Katanga Area and is the newly elected chancellor of Africa University in
Mutare, Zimbabwe.
Christmas is a "spiritual occasion that focuses on prayer, praise and the Bible," Ntambo adds.
In
his country, the traditional Christmas feast consists of chicken or
goat, he says. The meal frequently includes dancing and singing. "People
just enjoy (celebrating) the birth of the son of God," he says.
Zimbabwe
students report that the one thing absent from the family celebration
is sadza, the daily staple of the Zimbabwean meal. Rice is served
instead.
As elsewhere in the world, Christmas is a merry time
when presents are exchanged, Duncan says, "but there is more to it as a
family."
# # #
*Green is a news writer for United Methodist News Service.
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