Traditional funeral dance performed outside a Catholic cathedral, which is being built in Bolgatanga, north Ghana. (Photo: Dr Anna Niedźwiedź)

The majority of Ghanaians are Christians and their religious rituals reflect the specificity of the African continent. This has been indicated by the recent field research conducted by Dr Anna Niedźwiedź from the Institute of Ethnology and Cultural Anthropology of the Jagiellonian University Faculty of History. As she remarks, "Dancing at a funeral, or a Holy Mass accompanied with drums are a common sight in Ghana."

Dr Niedźwiedź spent nine months in Ghana, where, during the years 2009-2013, she carried out research on the Catholic community in this country, aimed at capturing the transformations in the area of religious beliefs related to wider social changes in the entire West African region.   

The researcher is especially interested in the everyday life of Ghanaian people and the way in which it is shaped by religion. She also wants to explore how the individual experiences are linked to large-scale social changes and global processes that influence African societies.

The employed method of participant observation enabled the scholar to immerse herself in the local community. At the very beginning of her stay in Ghana, she was asked to join dances at a funeral, which initially made her feel uneasy. It took her some time to grasp the meaning of the lavish and passionate funeral rituals, and the profound wisdom they represent.

According to Dr Niedźwiedź, the religious life of Ghanaians combines traditional African symbols, beliefs and rituals with Christian dogmas.

 "In the region where I conducted my research many elderly people are either illiterate or read very poorly. Hence, they learn the Bible by heart and recite selected passages. Body language is very important here. This makes gestures, dance and sound play a very important role in religious ceremonies," Dr Niedźwiedź says, adding that, due to this phenomenon, a typical Sunday Mass in Ghana often takes as long as three hours.

Although the research was primarily focused on Ghanaian Catholics, it also involved conversations with members of other religious groups as well as participation in their rituals and ceremonies. The north part of Ghana is dominated by Muslims. The "traditional religion" represented by local priests and priestesses is also present throughout the country.

At the beginning of her stay in Ghana, Dr Niedźwiedź had to face many obstacles and difficulties related to her unfamiliarity with certain features of the local culture. For instance, she was once detained for entering a sanctuary, where woman and strangers are forbidden to go and had to pay a large fine. Other challenges included harsh climate, unfamiliar diet and, last but not least, physical fatigue.

Dr Anna Niedźwiedź plans to continue her research. Her next project is going to focus on the position of women and young people in contemporary Ghanaian Catholicism.

The research project during the years 2010-2012 was partially funded from the grant of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education and the National Science Centre.

(PAP Nauka w Polsce)