People believe in different doctrines, values, and beliefs that certain religious and traditional practices contain. These beliefs and practices significantly influence how an individual responds to some aspects of life, challenges, and an individual’s general lifestyle (Upenieks and Schieman, 189). In African societies, it is believed that traditions have been part and parcel of their lifestyle since the beginning of humanity. However, with the interactions with other communities, African-Americans have managed to incorporate other beliefs and faith in their culture and traditions.
African-Americans have had their identity bound by spirituality, a mixture of western religious practices, Christianity, and traces of African traditions. It has affected how they run their education, economics, social life, and politics. Many of them have resorted to using formulas and remedies from their traditional beliefs when faced with a problem or challenges in life. They also have faith in divinity and divine powers. They believe in the power of prayers and the authority of supernatural beings like God in Christianity and Allah for Muslims.
The book Hoodoo in America by Zora Neale Hurtson presents a perfect example that depicts an actual life situation that befell our close family friend. The lady was in an estranged marriage for a long time because of his unfaithful husband. In her bid to make her husband come home, she used the hoodoo doctor’s prescription of using nine pink candles (Levy, 227). The instructions were writing down the name of her husband on a paper for each candle. Then, she was supposed to put each paper beneath each candle and call out his name three times at the seventh, ninth, and eleventh hour of the day. Despite not having the outcome she hoped for, she had faith that the hoodoo practice and her prayers to God would work the magic for her and make her husband always come home to her.
Works Cited
Levy, Valerie. “Hoodoo and Voodoo in Zora Neale Hurston’s Gothic Stories and Folktales.” Palgrave Gothic, 2021, pp. 215–32, Web.
Upenieks, Laura, and Scott Schieman. “The Belief in Divine Control and the Mental Health Effects of Stressful Life Events: A Study of Education-Based Contingencies.” Review of Religious Research, vol. 63, no. 2, 2020, pp. 183–215, Web.