I am personally expressing this in my capacity as a soldier and now an officer in leadership in The Salvation Army Southern Africa Territory. Ancestral worship is probably one of the most controversial issues facing the Church in South Africa today. The Salvation Army across the Southern Africa Territory is not exempt from this confusion. There is a lack of agreement on what it is and how the church should respond to this issue. Informed by the positional statement formulated based on The Salvation Army doctrines, I will attempt to clarify what ancestral worship is to me, particularly within the South African context, influenced by my experience in northern KZN. Then, I will look at the Biblical and practical responses that should be carried out by all Salvationists today.
Ancestor worship can be simply defined as the veneration and respect shown to the dead in many cultures and societies in South Africa. It is one of human history’s oldest and most basic religious beliefs. The belief is that the Supreme Being is the connection between people and their environment. Ancestor worship and belief is an extension of a belief in and respect for elders. Followers of traditional African religion believe that ancestors maintain a spiritual connection with their living relatives. In a church culture, and to make it even more acceptable, it has been developed into the belief that our ancestors connect us with God.
all our arguments must be based on Biblical truths
Firstly, all our arguments must be based on Biblical truths. I believe this will make sense if our conviction as Salvationists is honestly founded on the Holy Scriptures. The first and most crucial doctrine of The Salvation Army states, “We believe that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments were given by inspiration of God, and that they only constitute the Divine rule of Christian faith and practice.” Here we have a clear statement on what should guide our lives: our faith and practice (living out our faith) should primarily be directed by the written Word of God.
where there is conflict between Scripture and culture, the Salvationist must choose to follow the direction of Scripture.
When ancestral worship is discussed, our hiding and defensive point in our context is often, “My Culture.” Culture is simply defined as the ideas, customs, and social behavior of a particular people or society. I fully agree that culture, while an important aspect of our lives, is not to be the primary director of our lives; Scripture is. It follows, then, that where there is conflict between Scripture and culture, the Salvationist must choose to follow the direction of Scripture. In your new life in Christ, the practices that are aligned with Scripture should be retained, while those that are contrary to the Word of God should be changed or discarded.
There is a bit of compromise evident in the church hiding behind the word “culture.” This has been normalized and become acceptable behaviour while violating Christian standards. The idea of aligning or mixing Christianity with ancestral worship is problematic. In The Salvation Army, there has been a long-overdue argument about wearing isiphandla (goat’s skin) and other similar symbols aligned with ancestral worship with the uniform as something normal. This should not create unhealthy arguments in each Corps. Individual soldiers are responsible for their own salvation. This, and any other ungodly behaviours portrayed and practiced by soldiers, demands us to have an active and consistent discipleship programme. We need to be intentional about conducting educational soldiers’ meetings to discuss and simplify the Biblical stances that The Salvation Army follows. These create a platform to go through MASIC Discussion Papers like this one on Ancestral Worship. Our big mistake as spiritual leaders (Officers and Local Officers) is addressing or rebuking the act when it appears, causing people to become arrogant and defensive, resulting in a baseless debate that is not constructive.
make the values of the Kingdom of God, not the values of the world, the standard for their lives.
The Articles of War, also known as the Soldier’s Covenant, are the promises made when becoming a soldier in The Salvation Army. A soldier is a Christian who is committed to the mission of The Salvation Army and has undertaken a specific covenant (or promise) regarding their lifestyle and beliefs. There are many promises soldiers undergo. In this regard, I will reference just three. All soldiers promised that they would make the values of the Kingdom of God, not the values of the world, the standard for their lives. They promised to maintain Christian ideals in all their relationships with others and to be true to the principles and practices of The Salvation Army, loyal to its leaders, and to show the spirit of Salvationism whether in times of popularity or persecution. By normalizing our conviction based on cultural acceptance, our promise to God as Salvationists has been violated and distorted.
The Salvation Army’s second doctrine states: “We believe there is only one God, who is infinitely perfect, the Creator, Preserver, and Governor of all things, and who is the only proper object of religious worship.” Here, worship relates to religious worship (the idea that something is divine). The problem for the Salvationist is when we give something or someone other than God a divine attribute. For example, if we respect the wishes of someone more than we respect the commands of God, or if we think an object or person can bring us happiness, peace, or something that only God can give, then we are giving religious worship to that object or person. If we treat the ancestors with more reverence or respect than God, or if we look to our ancestors to provide us with something that only God can give, we have a conflict with sound Biblical teaching.
In my concluding comments, my fellow Salvationists, I would love to remind you that in Exodus 20:3 and Deuteronomy 5:7, the first commandment reminds us that everything in the Torah flows from the love we have for God, which is a response to the love He has for us. “You shall have no other gods before Me. You shall not make for yourself any idol, or any likeness (form, manifestation) of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth [as an object to worship].” This is clear and cannot be argued or entertained by us as Salvationists at all. The misleading ideas that treat ancestors as mediators between God and humankind are unfounded. Ancestors do not possess the power to mediate salvation. “For there is [only] one God, and [only] one Mediator between God and mankind, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom [a substitutionary sacrifice to atone] for all, the testimony given at the right and proper time” (1 Timothy 2:5-6).
Satan has always sought to displace God, and he uses lies about worshiping other gods and even ancestors to try to lead people away from the truth of God’s existence. Ancestor worship is wrong because it goes against God’s specific warnings about such worship, and it seeks to replace Jesus Christ as the Divine Mediator between God and mankind.
The Salvation Army’s International Positional Statement on Ancestral Worship can be found at: https://s3.amazonaws.com/cache.salvationarmy.org/9c488be5-2068-4284-a958-1026ba23ead1_English+Ancestral+Worship+IPS.pdf
Powerful insights contained in this article. Thank you so much brother.
Its my pleasure
Thank you Major Buthelezi! It’s encouraging to read a a clear, honest, Biblical presentation from someone much more familiar with African customs than I am. God bless you!
Thank you Major Graham
Thank Major, it is great to have honest hard conversations on this matter. It is hard for many to accept, it’s hard teaching that some challenge as unAfrican, well done for putting it plainly.