Christianity in Kenya
Christianity, in a wide variety of forms, accounts for the majority of practicing Kenyans. This Christian population can be divided into two groups: Protestants and Catholics. Not to mention the various "sub-groups" that make them up: Evangelicals, Anglicans, Lutherans, Baptists, Seventh-day Adventists, Quakers, Presbyterians, Methodists and Roman Catholics, to name but a few...
Christianity took root in Kenya via the religious groups and movements that existed in Western Europe and America. African Christians thus inherited the various structures and traditions imported from these churches. The various evangelical groups sought to manufacture perfect Anglicans, Lutherans, Baptists, Seventh Day Adventists, Quakers, Presbyterians, Methodists, Roman Catholics, etc., rather than seeking to make disciples of Jesus Christ out of their followers.
To win followers, these groups engaged in verbal propaganda and sometimes even physical violence. Missionaries were more concerned with field evangelization than with meeting and dialoguing with African religions and philosophies. In Kenya, as just about everywhere else in Africa, Christianity is confronted with the multiplicity of instituted African churches, autonomous or separatist churches. These are small groups that have broken away from the missionary churches and cut themselves off from each other. In addition, Euro-American missionary control over African converts suggested that Africans should remain under political and ecclesiastical tutelage. African converts therefore sought to found their own churches, free from missionary domination and paternalism, and to integrate Christianity into African religiosity. Africans were greatly affected by religious, socio-cultural and political changes. African churches therefore sought to build places where Africans could feel at home, and renew the bonds of traditional solidarity. The emphasis of these churches is on revelation and healing, on the action of the Holy Spirit in individuals and communities.
Islam in Kenya
Islam, which is predominantly Sunni (80% of Muslims in Kenya), represents around 10% of the population and is almost exclusively concentrated on the east coast, where almost a third of all Kenyans are Muslims. The Shiite minority is more strongly represented by people originally from India and Pakistan. Although they represent an insignificant proportion of the population, one Shiite movement is nevertheless very influential in Kenya: the Ismailis, followers of Aga Khan, who see Islam in a liberal light (in terms of both morals and economics).
Most Muslims in Kenya practice a moderate version of Islam. Today, however, Wahhabi fundamentalists are playing an increasingly important role, notably by opening numerous Koranic schools (financed by Saudi Arabia).
Unlike Christianity, Islam has adapted its religious beliefs and practices to African religions where there are similarities: for example, the concept of a single universal God; spiritual beings including angels, djinns and demons; divination and magic practices. In fact, Islamic practice encourages the use of good magic. The recurrent terrorist attacks perpetrated by the Somali Shebabs since 2008 have led to a certain mistrust of Kenyans of Somali origin and Muslims in general, despite the government's efforts to combat religious extremism.
African traditional religions
Kenyans also practice one of the traditional religions known as animism. These include the Maasai, Samburu, Pokot and Turkana. We can't talk about religion in Africa without mentioning social organization, and therefore the relationship between young and old, the relationship with nature, the relationship between the sexes, the perception of illness, the acceptance of death and so on. All aspects of African social life are regulated by religion. In the absence of written religious texts comparable to the Bible or Koran, the bearers of religious tradition are generally the oldest members of the community, who pass on their knowledge orally, most often in the form of tales and proverbs.
All the religions discussed here are based on belief in a single God, whom the history of religions defines as the Supreme Being. This God-Creator is more or less identical in all African religions: after creating the world, this God loses interest in it and rarely intervenes in human affairs. He is the guarantor of the established order of things, but takes no active part in it, and has no concern for humanity. The Supreme Being is rarely the object of veneration or worship. For example, Ngai, the god of the Kikuyu people, is said to have retired to the summit of Mount Kenya, where he takes no active part in the vicissitudes of his creatures. However, the Kikuyu always turn their faces towards the mountain when they pray, as a mark of respect. The Creator-God is both good and evil: the people fear him because his rare actions can be violent, but they are also grateful for his generosity. The Supreme Being is the most important figure in a whole series of spiritual beings who act as mediators between the Supreme Being and human beings.
The role of the spirits
In African religions, the various spirits are often more important than the Supreme Being, who is perceived as too distant. It is to these spirits that the people turn to formulate their requests. For these religions, there are two kinds of spirits: those of non-human origin and those who, having once been human, have become "ancestral spirits". Spirits of non-human origin are often related to natural places, such as woodland or sea spirits. For the Luo, one of the closest and most active spirits is the lake spirit. This is explained by the proximity of Lake Victoria, on whose shores the Luo have long lived. Nature spirits do not have well-defined personalities. They are the guardians of the territory in which a given population lives, and with whom they establish complex social relationships. Other spirits are identified with natural phenomena, such as the spirit of thunder, the spirit of wind, the spirit of storm, rain and so on.
All these spiritual entities, which some experts define as "secondary divinities", can be good or bad, or even ambivalent in nature. In some cases, they are friendly and well-disposed towards humans, in others they can be hostile. Some rarely intervene, others are omnipresent in daily life. Some travel a lot, others are sedentary. Each of these entities occupies a well-defined place on a hierarchical scale, and their relationships with each other and with humans are codified according to this hierarchical position.
In the case of these religions, certain spirits come into contact with humans, resulting in states of trance or possession. Sometimes, entire families of spirits periodically take possession of a person and dictate his or her actions for the good of the clan or the entire community. Ancestors naturally belong to the second category of spirits. As death does not automatically transform a relative into an ancestor, precise rites are necessary. In a way, they accompany the deceased into the afterlife, helping them to assume a new spiritual essence. These rites include "double funerals": in this case, it is expected that, for a certain period of time, the spirit of the deceased will be ill-disposed towards the living, until a second funeral, with a whole series of offerings and collective prayers, reconciles him with his family.
In all African societies, the ties between the living and the dead are very strong: the dead must always be respected and appeased with offerings of various kinds. They maintain a firm hold on the family structure, and we fear provoking their wrath. The ancestors represent the most immediate link between the living and the spiritual world, and are able to guarantee the prosperity, health and fertility of their descendants. In Kenya, the social structure of the Kikuyu reflects the world of their ancestors, whom they call Ngoma, including the "Ngoma cia aciari", or immediate ancestors.
The community link
The African religious spirit has always been totally centered on the community, both in its origin and in its finality. African religions do not convert foreigners. They are not preached by one group to another. An individual has to be born into a specific African ethnic group to be able to live the traditional religion of that group. This is why religion takes on different forms according to its different ethnic roots.
It has a very strong hold on daily life. Even if they have converted to Christianity or Islam, they do not abandon their traditional religion. It continues to accompany them for generations and centuries. Giving its members a sense of security and forming an essential part of the life of the ethnic group, it governs all of life, from birth to death.
Traditional African religions have no written doctrines, but are passed down from generation to generation through oral tradition, religious activities, ceremonies, festivals, rituals, proverbs, words of wisdom, myths and experiences.
Hinduism
It represents a tiny proportion of the Kenyan population, but there are some lovely temples in Mombasa, Nairobi and Eldoret. Some are quite imposing. They are generally dedicated to Vishnu, and some belong to the Swaminarayan sect. But there are so many Hindu movements that it's hard to name them all.
