Fragments of Bone: Neo-African Religions in a New World

by Patrick Bellegarde-Smith (Editor)

In  Fragments of Bone , thirteen essayists discuss African religions as forms of resistance and survival in the face of Western cultural hegemony and imperialism. The collection presents scholars working outside of the Western tradition with backgrounds in a variety of disciplines, genders, and nationalities. These experts draw on research, fieldwork, personal interviews, and spiritual introspection to support a provocative that fragments of ancestral traditions are fluidly interwoven into New World African religions as creolized rituals, symbolic systems, and cultural identities.  Osei-Mensah Aborampah, Niyi Afolabi, Patrick Bellegarde-Smith, Randy P. Conner, T. J. Desch-Obi, Ina Johanna Fandrich, Kean Gibson, Marilyn Houlberg, Nancy B. Mikelsons, Roberto Nodal, Rafael Ocasio, Miguel "Willie" Ramos, and Denise Ferreira da Silva

Genres: Religion

280 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

Reviews

[Shomeret · Rating 4 out of 5]

I learned so much from this book that there wouldn't be enough space in this text box for my review. My comments in my hard copy book journal are eight and a half pages long. So I will summarize.

I learned the most from the article on the Comfa religion of Guyana because I had no previous knowledge of it. I'd like to know more. Their syncretic approach to their ceremonies is fascinating.

I would like to know about Kumina in Jamaica which was only mentioned in the article about Akan practices in Ghana and Jamaica.

I was interested in the article about the theology of sacrifice in Santeria which also included the requirements for becoming a diviner in that tradition. This was very enlightening.

The article on Espiritismo in Cuba explained the differences between Espiritismo and Santeria. I would have liked to have seen a comparison to Espiritismo practices in Brazil where Spiritism is also very popular.