Profiles: Religions

INTRODUCTION

There are a myriad of religons in Africa. Over the centuries these religions have been affected by migrations of peoples, arrival of new religions, or by conquest.

The major religons of Africa today are Islam, Christianity, and some indigenous religions. The most ancient religion in Africa is that of the Egyptians. The Egyptians believed in a complex spiritual world and their great monuments stand as evidence of this. The ancient Egyptians stressed the importance of immortality, and life after death.

There are numerous indigenous religions in Africa. These religions are usually worship of the ancestors or the general belief that the spiritual and material world are one.

Christianity first arrived in Egypt . The ancient Coptic Church has had a tie with the Christian world for centuries. Soon after the conversion of the Coptic Church Ethiopia became a Christian state. The Ethiopian Orthodox isolated in the highlands has deep roots.

Islam had a great affect on Africa especially North Africa that is a deeply islamized region. Islam spread from Egypt across north africa, into East Africa and also in parts of West Africa.