Violence | Wild Religion: Tracking the Sacred in South Africa | California Scholarship Online (2024)

Violence | Wild Religion: Tracking the Sacred in South Africa | California Scholarship Online (1) Wild Religion: Tracking the Sacred in South Africa

David Chidester

Published:

2012

Online ISBN:

9780520951570

Print ISBN:

9780520273078

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David Chidester

David Chidester

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Pages

51–72

  • Published:

    April 2012

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Chidester, David, 'Violence', Wild Religion: Tracking the Sacred in South Africa (Oakland, CA, 2012; online edn, California Scholarship Online, 22 Sept. 2016), https://doi.org/10.1525/california/9780520273078.003.0003, accessed 1 July 2024.

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Abstract

This chapter argues that South African religions appear in sacred symbols, myths, and rituals animating violence. It showcases the study of journalist Jonny Steinberg, who investigated the symbols, myths, and rituals of prison gangs in the Western Cape, South Africa. The “religion” of the prison gangs follows “Nongoloza, the God of South African prisoners;” it is informed by a powerful mythical narrative, which recalls both Homeric epics and Talmudic ethics, representing both a heroic journey and a way of life; and it is animated by religious ritual, including “ancient norms of initiation,” sacrificial killing, and ceremonial regalia worn only in the prisoners' imaginations.

Keywords: South African religion, Jonny Steinberg, prison gangs, Nongoloza, South African prisoners

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Religion

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