Nnadiebube Journal of Religion, Culture and Society

The Challenges of Inculturation in Churches: Divination as an Example. Divination over the time has been the medium through which Igbo forefathers discovered the unknown, predicted the future and fathomed the minds of the unseen. But with the arrival of the church, it became an illusion and with the aggressive activities of the Pentecostal prophets, the future was very bleak. With this clear problem, this study was embarked upon to highlight the past functionality and causes of divination with the view to documenting everything about it for posterity as the elders are fast dying out. Inculturation is the term that Theologians have used in recent decades to denote a process of engagement between the Christian culture and a particular culture. Inculturation is also the adaptation of the way church teachings are presented. The purpose of this study was to highlight and take an in-depth look at the functions and causes of divination. The study would be of immense value to historians, anthropologists, sociologists, students, and teachers of Igbo culture. The research adopted survey research method. The population of the study was made up of 200 old and literate men and women. Old people were interviewed to identify the position of divination in the past while the young people were interviewed to highlight functions and causes of divination in the present day. Instrument for data collection included oral interview and observation. To assist in recording information from respondents, tape recorder and camera were used. To widen the researcher’s horizon, related literatures were reviewed. Data collected were arranged, analyzed and interpreted. Some findings which surface included: (i) Divination was found in every Igbo culture and churches, but practiced in various ways (ii) Christians used prophecy and dream in place of divination. In the end, the study was rounded off with summary, recommendation and suggestions.

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