Uncovering Covert Syncretic Holy Water among ANPCs in South Africa
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
The scholarly contextualization is very clear. I kept waiting for an in-depth discussion of actual teachings and practices related to holy water--but the paper ended right when it was getting to what seemed to me the opportunity to make an original contribution. This is almost all contextualization. What I want to see is a deep dive into the primary sources. My second major observation is that despite claims at neutral analysis the paper seems very much to be theologically motivated. There is a lot of evaluative language: covert, arbitrary, uncritical, tricked, secretly central, unsuspecting recipient/believer, exploit African believers through religion, conveniently start, supposedly holy water, unwittingly, unwary eye, secretly rooted--the author clearly has a negative personal opinion, and this gets in the way of the analysis. Finally, there is a brief mention of Catholic holy water, but the author does not seem to fully grasp how central sacramental uses of holy water have been in global Catholicism (as well as global pentecostal/charismatic Christianity)--this isn't especially African or South African--or maybe it is but the paper doesn't actually get into very many primary source examples that show what exactly is different about African claims--or provide evidence that African Christians are more uncritical or deceived than others.
The writing is a little stilted/passive, but it is generally clear.
Author Response
Section explaining the difference and trajectory of covert syncretism is included:
As outlined above, much work has been done on the concept or manifestation of syncretism, but it remains characterized by inherent complexities that prevent its full understanding. Perhaps what complicates it is the fact that it encompasses multiple dimensions and practices that make it difficult to understand. Accordingly, any exploration of syncretistic practices, regardless of the complexity involved, usually begins with the obvious (overt syncretism) and then moves on to what remains hidden, or what might be termed covert syncretism. In other words, overt syncretism is the premise that enables the discovery of covert syncretistic practices, which subsequently evolve into overt syncretism.
Reviewer 2 Report
One other source on this important resource: The Theological Responses to the Socio-Economic Activities that Undermine Water as a Resource by Resane on HTS/Theological Studies
1. What is the main question addressed by the research? The utilization and the importance of water in the syncretic ANPC religion 2. Do you consider the topic original or relevant in the field? Does it address a specific gap in the field? The topic is relevant as some research on ANPC is an ongoing process. African New Pentecostalism is a new characteristic of Pentecostalism in the Global South 3. What does it add to the subject area compared with other published material? The element of syncretism and the method of using holy water in this new Pentecostal phenomenon. 4. What specific improvements should the authors consider regarding the methodology? What further controls should be considered? The concept of abundance of water in African world view. Is 'holy' water having any connection with 'supernatural' power believed to exist in the water e.g. mami water? 5. Are the conclusions consistent with the evidence and arguments presented and do they address the main question posed? The conclusion is straight to the point and it is consistent with the internal argument of the research. 6. Are the references appropriate? The references are appropriate and are mostly the latest in the field. 7. Please include any additional comments on the tables and figures. No tables and figures to comment on
Author Response
Section describing covert syncretism in details is included.
The mere fact that there is a practice called syncretism does much to support the apparent existence of what may be termed overt syncretism. Although syncretism has been introduced above, it remains necessary at this point to describe or define somewhat fully what exactly is meant by overt syncretism as the precursor of covert syncretism. Overt syncretism refers to a process in which syncretic practices, or the intermingling of religious beliefs as it were, occurs in an explicit or blatantly recognizable fashion. In other words, particularly in the context or domain of religion, open syncretism openly acknowledges the reality of intermingling beliefs or practices, to the point where a distinct hybrid system has emerged. This is often characterized, among other things, by the visible or easily recognizable presence of different religious symbols and the visible performance of different religious rituals within a single religious framework. However, as discussed below, in contrast to overt syncretistic practices, covert syncretism is extremely complex as it tends to be characterized by intense abstruseness.
Covert syncretism refers to a case where syncretic practices or beliefs are intentionally or unintentionally, as it were, hidden from perceptible scrutiny. In most cases, the driving factors behind covert syncretism are either the intentional preservation or unintentional maintenance of indigenous cultural beliefs or practices that find inaudible expression in mainstream belief practices. In other words, the integration of different beliefs or covert syncretic belief practices, so to speak, are obscured either intentionally or unintentionally. On the one hand, when concealment of such practices is intended, knowledge of their presence is strictly limited to an individual, a select few, or a secret group. In a hypothetical scenario involving a church founded by an individual, they would then choose to either solemnly keep the secrecy of such a practice to themselves or share it with an intimate partner. In another hypothetical scenario involving a cult or closed group, secrecy is then revealed to the select few who have proven themselves worthy or have shown unwavering loyalty to a group's founders. However, when the concealment of such practices is unintentional, the intermingling of belief practice is effective but remains imperceptible to the practitioner, be it the initiator or the follower. Covert syncretism, then, is either a carefully guarded or an entirely unknown blending of religious beliefs and practices which are not openly revealed to outsiders or at times understood by its practitioners. Such blended beliefs or practices therefore become a subculture, working discreetly towards maintaining a unique identity and intentionally or unintentionally remaining hidden from scrutiny.
Reviewer 3 Report
The text is built around a problematic thesis - the distinction between overt and covert syncretism (particularly in the African Neo-Pentecostal Churches of South Africa). One expects a reasoned analysis that brings together concepts and empirical evidence, but the author does not convincingly provide either one or the other. As regards the latter, references to case studies are few, confined to a few lines. Similarly, when the author tries to conceptually explain the difference between covert and overt syncretism, one is left unsatisfied with the arguments put forward. Indigenous African religions have not been explanted by the Catholic missions and then by the Reformed churches. They have been repressed, but not eradicated. Cults such as the one linked to the spirits or water deities have resisted, often hidden behind the sacred vestments of Catholic saints, as studies of anthropology and sociology of religions have amply documented for the African-American religions (from umbanda to candomblé and voodoo). The border, in this case between overt and covert syncretism, is very blurred. Also in the case of a part of the Neo-Pentecostal Churches (not only in Africa but also in Latin America and Asia), some pastors or ministries of these churches, while condemning, as Catholic missionaries once did, the cults of the orixas (including those linked to the many mythical figures of the snake-woman), reproduce in the deliverance sessions from evil spirits - the work of Satan - the symbolic scheme proper to the ceremonies of trance and de-possession's dance of the religions of spirits. Can we define all this as a form of covert syncretism? Isn't this perhaps a communicative technique that a charismatic leader adopts to accredit his/her religious enterprise as the best, the most competitive in a super crowded market of churches and similar leaders?
As regards the case of water, it is a transversal symbol of many religions: from the Mami Wata (Ymanja in Afro-American religions) to the Holy water in so-called Abrahamic religions (and about the mutual relationship or active communication between Indigenous and the monotheistic hegemonic religions). The classic text of modern anthropology, Dieu d'eau by Marcel Griaule (1948), helps to understand that the very notion of syncretism is a weak concept: it reflects the gaze of the winner but does not cross that of the defeated. And the vanquished can pretend to have submitted to the religion of the victors or can appropriate the liturgical or ritual form of the latter to continue to speak (and make the ancestral divinities speak). Therefore, the difference between overt syncretism and hidden syncretism appears even weaker: it will be so for those who have the power to define the symbolic boundaries of a religious belief, but I'm not sure it is for those who practice (without asking themselves too many doctrinal or theological questions).
It is understood that the author tackles the theme as a theologian and not as a sociologist or anthropologist. However, a reflection on the contributions given respectively by the Akrofi-Christaller Institute founded by the theologian Kwame Bediako in Ghana or by the Nigerian theologian Ogbu Kalu (see his African Pentecostalism, 2008) could be more useful in approaching the notion of syncretism in a critical perspective.
Author Response
Section on ANPC's Holy Water Claims is included as follows:
ANPC’s Holy Water Claims
Claims of holy water among the ANPCs have not only garnered multitudes of supporters and public attention, but have even resulted in sustaining injuries or even deaths in some cases. This has happened in a variety of ways, such as in cases where believers have been baptized on dangerous riverbanks or attempted to get holy water during a stampede, either suffering injuries or dying. In the latter part of 2022 on December 3, about fourteen worshipers of the Johane Masowe Churchin South Africa died after being swept away by a flash flood while attending a riverside service in Johannesburg’s Jukskei River near the Alexandra Township (Canterberry 2022). Reports of this tragic incident, or what should have been a holy baptism, suggest the gathering involving about 33 worshipers took place despite warnings from local authorities against gathering there. According to Sibeko (2022), the Jukskei River, which flows through many townships including Alexandra in eastern Johannesburg, has become known for attracting a range of congregations who meet frequently to perform church rituals such as purification and baptism (Sibeko 2022). While preference of riverside baptism is not unique to Africans, for many African Christians including this group this body of water holds a deep cultural and spiritual significance. This is because riverbanks such as the Jukskei River are not only home to Christian baptismal rites or religious groups, but also traditional groups who explicitly believe in its ancestral importance. This can be observed in the statement issued by the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) saying: ‘As Africans, our faith and spiritual beliefs are entrenched in our DNA. The churches, rivers, mountains and oceans have always been our places of refuge when we seek spiritual guidance’ (Zindondo 2022). In other words, riverbanks like these are are considered sacred places that facilitate the connection between the living and their ancestors, and so it is very likely that this element is secretly ingrained in the minds of those performing baptisms.
Althoug there is no doubt that claims to holy water are often made on the basis of consecration by spiritual practitioners, some of them believe in the power of the oceans or the primordial element of a flowing river. Therefore, it is likely that they would prefer to fetch the water personally from such places before consecration and distribution. In other words, to the extent that some ANPC ministers believe that water from certain natural springs or bodies of water has inherently spiritual properties (Nelson 2020), they can either themselves or appoint agents to fetch that water and subsequently distribute it as holy water. Case in point is the founder of Prophetic Healing and Deliveance (PHD), the prophet Walter Magaya (Mahohoma 2017:1-11), who in 2012 not only claimed to have performed a miracle of walking on water, but also retrieved it and later distributed it as new anointing water. As quoted in Chaya (2017), the prophet Walter Magaya claimed that this was inspired by Revelation 22:1-2, where John records how the angel showed him the river that contained the water of life (Chaya 2017). This is easily achieved among Africans by convincing believers that spiritual practitioners like Temitope Balogun Joshua (aka TB Joshua 1963 - 2021) of The Synagogue, Church Of All Nations (SCOAN) (walked on water like Jesus Christ (Edom 2022). So when such leaders distribute or sell bottled holy water, it is safe to expect that African believers would do anything to obtain such anointed water. In 2013, when TB Joshua announced a special service in Ghana that would provide free holy water, a stampede ensued, killing about four people and injuring many more trying to obtain anointed water (Menzie 2013). Incidents like this no doubt occur in other regions of the world, but they often occur in African countries where belief in holy water involves the interplay of traditional and Christian beliefs. Just as some ANPC ministers naturally appreciate the sacredness of water derived from natural bodies of water, their African devotees would be inclined to readily accept claims of sacred water, especially if they believe it came from natural bodies of water such as rivers. The primary driving force in this context is the covert syncretic belief that the source of this sacred water is connected in one way or another to African water deities. In other words, while the claim that water is consecrated by the spiritual leader attracts adherents, it becomes even more appealing when it is associated with, or originated from, bodies of water traditionally thought to harbor African spirits.
Round 2
Reviewer 1 Report
Respond to the original review.
N/A
Author Response
- Pages 10-11 has a section covering an in-depth discussion of actual teachings and practices related to holy water
- To the extent that the reviewer rightly say its an evaluative language, it seeks to indicate not only negative but positive assessment of what is here called Covert syncretic practices. that being said however, the following have been changed accordingly: exploit to harness, supposedly, Unwittingly to inadvertently, unwary to incautious, secretly to surreptitiously ........ The author hopes these changes sufficiently toned down the negative impression
- Catholic holy water: in page 8 clarity is provided in the following fashion: Catholicism, holy water is used for a variety of sacramental purposes, some of which include blessing people, blessing objects, and sometimes even exorcism. During the actual baptism, water, usually blessed by the priest or deacon, is poured over the person's head. Traditionally, blessed water is contained in a font at the entrance so that Catholics, either entering or exiting, can dip their fingers and make a sign of the cross, either to commemorate baptism or as a symbol of purification. This water is also often used symbolically to bless objects such as rosaries, crucifixes, statues, and other items, depending on accession. Since this water is also said to have a purifying or protective effect, it is sometimes used symbolically during the exorcism rite, especially when evil spirits are suspected, so to speak. Without going into detail about the use of holy water in the context of Catholicism, it is safe to say that this use has been the framework for the use of holy water in most traditional churches for years. In other words, the sacramental use of holy water as observed in Catholic circles represents the conventional use to which most traditional churches have very often adhered or practiced.
Reviewer 3 Report
The author revised the text, clarifying the difference between overt and covert syncretism. Furthermore, the author added new arguments and more detailed examples to support the article's central thesis. The only reserve concerns the bibliographic references: on the dialectical relationship between charismatic practices in African Neo-Pentecostalism and Christian theology (of the historical Churches) I suggest mentioning at least Ogbu Kalu and Kwame Bediako, as I did in the first reading of the text.
Author Response
1. the following as added in page 9:
As is certainly the case with most ANPCs, Kalu (2003) is correct in stating that any close examination of Pentecostalism or its growth in Africa points in one way or another to a multidirectional and sometimes evasive religious identities (Kalu 2003, p.87). As a result, far too often, or at least as scholars such as Badiako (2000) have observed, those who analyze Pentecostal accounts in Africa use opposing lenses to portray African Pentecostalism against mainstream or established Christian denominations, so to speak. His precise words in this regard are: ‘much academic analysis tends to press the evidence into something of a dualistic dialectic that sets African pentecostalism and its socio-political effects against 'mainline' churches which then appear to be ineffectu’ (Badiako 2000, p.311-312).