Anthony Pinn: Varieties of African-American Religious Experience
Summarizing or responding critically to Anthony Pinn’s Varieties of African-American Religious Experience is a difficult task. Pinn covers the religions traditions of Vodou, Yoruba/ Santeria, the Nation of Islam and humanism in less than 200 pages. His book spans centuries of history and travels across large stretches of geography.
I’ll restrict my critical comments to his final chapter, “How do we talk about religion?” and save that for another post. As well, I won’t try to retell the history of the movements Pinn discusses. I’d suggest you pick up his book to get that. What I will do, briefly, in this post is to describe the ethical stance of the four groups, according to the author.
Vodou is a system which tries to minimize pain and strengthen survivors through rituals which tap into sparks of divinity, or lwas. The focus is upon rectifying the balance of the cosmos, which can become upset by human actions. Good and evil are both part of life, and one is not to be eliminated at the expense of the other.
Santeria & Yoruba are similar to vodou in their understanding of cosmic balance. There is no such thing as “evil” when properly understood–the world just “is.” These traditions focus upon our interaction with the natural environment. Orisas are neutral energy forces that humans can tap into–but we must recognize that the cosmos itself is impersonal, not siding with or against humanity.
The Nation of Islam is inspired by the Qu’ran, but due to the influence of its leader, Fard Muhammad, has a different cosmology. Allah, or God, determines what is good or evil (as in Islam), and he is sovereign. Fard Muhammad is understood to be God, and to participate in the suffering of his (black) people. However, the original source of suffering is the Caucasian race, created by Yakub, and evil scientist. They are evil, but could be redeemed if they submit to Fard Muhammad as their God. Any suffering that the so-called “Asiatic blacks” undergo is primarily due to moving away from the truth of Islam, not because of original sin or other causes.
Humanism, whether as part of the Unitarian Universalist Association, the Ethical Society, or found in black nationalist or communist movements, is nontheistic. Some humanists are explicitly atheistic, some may be religious, but humanism focuses upon human accountability, not the role of God/s. Suffering is the result of improper human actions, and it is not redemptive or pedagogical.
Through the history of these groups, Pinn exposes his reader to criticisms of the black Christian church as well as the oppression of white people. Not all of the groups are intrinsically opposed to whites (as in the Nation of Islam), and they had varying degrees of interaction with the black Christians. Humanist African Americans, for example, criticized the black church for being unnecessary–taking pride in having great faith is nonsensical, since that faith wouldn’t be required if there was no history of slavery. Both the oppressor (white slave owners) and the response of the downtrodden (black Christians) are subject to criticism.
Personally, I found the history of the Nation of Islam intriguing, as I’ve just finished reading Middlesex, which tells a partially fictionalized version of the Nation’s beginnings in Detroit.
Next: Pinn’s discussion of religious discourse.