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Deceiving the spirit: engaging with the Holy Spirit in Catholic Uganda

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 March 2019

Liz Ravalde
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Abstract

During ethnographic fieldwork among lay Catholics in eastern Uganda, informants occasionally turned to deception in their dealings with God and the Holy Spirit; in doing so, they appeared to reject the Christian notion of divine omnipotence and omniscience. Based on ethnography conducted in a sub-county I call Buluya, this article tries to explain how such attempts are deemed possible and plausible. My argument is made up of two main strands. First, I argue that, in an indeterminate social landscape in which no one can ever fully ‘know’ (ngeo) another person, many interpersonal relationships in Buluya are firmly grounded in practical efforts to gain better jobs, more money, education and greater security. I show how deception is a normal and morally neutral aspect of these relationships, as each party strives to protect what they have, and to improve their prospects. Second, I draw on ethnographic and historical data to suggest that the Holy Spirit has entered into the local cosmology in Buluya as a powerful yet limited being, dependent to some extent on the guidance of its human mediators. Finally, I bring these two strands together to suggest that, when the Holy Spirit is conceived of as a limited being (it, too, does not fully know people), relationships with it that take place through a human mediator can also be legitimately characterized by deception, without risking the work of the Holy Spirit.

Résumé

Lors de travaux ethnographiques menés auprès de catholiques laïcs dans l'Est de l'Ouganda, il est arrivé que des informateurs aient recours à la tromperie dans leurs rapports avec Dieu et le Saint-Esprit ; ce faisant, ils semblaient rejeter la notion chrétienne d'omnipotence et d'omniscience divines. Basé sur une ethnographie menée dans un sous-district que l'auteur appelle Buluya, cet article tente d'expliquer comment ces tentatives sont jugées possibles et plausibles. L'argumentation est double. L'auteur soutient d'abord que, dans un paysage social indéterminé dans lequel personne ne peut « connaître » (ngeo) parfaitement une autre personne, de nombreuses relations interpersonnelles à Buluya sont fermement fondées sur des efforts pratiques d'obtenir un meilleur emploi, plus d'argent, une éducation et plus de sécurité. L'auteur montre en quoi la tromperie est un aspect normal et moralement neutre de ces relations, chacune des parties cherchant à protéger ce qu'elle a et à améliorer ses perspectives. Ensuite, l'auteur s'appuie sur des données ethnographiques et historiques pour suggérer que le Saint-Esprit est entré dans la cosmologie locale à Buluya en tant qu’être puissant bien que limité, selon, dans une large mesure, l'orientation donnée par ses médiateurs humains. Enfin, l'auteur rassemble ces deux aspects pour suggérer que, lorsque le Saint-Esprit se conçoit comme un être limité (lui non plus ne connaît personne parfaitement), les rapports avec ce dernier à travers un médiateur humain peuvent également se caractériser légitimement par la tromperie, sans compromettre l’œuvre du Saint-Esprit.

Type
Medicine, care and mediation
Information
Africa , Volume 89 , Issue 1 , February 2019 , pp. 147 - 164
Copyright
Copyright © International African Institute 2019 

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