
<h1>Africana Spirituality -
The Quest for Unity, Diversity, &amp; Common Ground</h1>
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<p>Social, political, and economic pressures continue to provide an
impetus for cohesion and dissolution within Africana contexts</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Quest for cultural universals and particularities is an ongoing and
- at times - contentious process</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>The religious realm is a site within which the search for elements
that unify and separate peoples of African descent can productively
take place</p>
</li>
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<p>Meaningful contributions to this academic enterprise can be made by
scholars, public intellectuals, and people of good will</p>
</li>
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<p>While adherence to one or more traditions within the spectrum of
Africana spiritualities is not requisite, an abiding respect for it
is</p>
</li>
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<p>Familiarity with Africana spirituality is one means of gaining an
appreciation for the diversity that obtains in the religious faith and
praxis of the world’s various cultures</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>It also casts light on the hidden diversity that often exists
within any single faith or cultural tradition</p>
</li></ul>
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<h3>Africana Faith and Life at
the University of Notre Dame&nbsp;</h3>
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<p style="text-align: left;">Creation of an Africana Studies
Department ensures that faith and other aspects of African Diasporan
life are part of the larger conversation about the nature of God, self.
society, and nature fundamental to a Catholic liberal arts
education</p>
</li>
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<p style="text-align: left;">African and African American cosmologies,
theologies, and liturgical practices - Catholic and other - figure
prominently in the larger ecology of Africana spiritualities
globally</p>
</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">
<p>An education that is both Catholic and liberal must expose students
to the dynamics that generate culturally distinct faith traditions -
particularly those found in Africa and the African Diaspora - given the
Christian gospel's enduring message of hope and the challenges of 21st
century life</p>
</li></ul>
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">Africana Spirituality &amp;</h3>
<h3 style="text-align: center;">the American Landscape</h3>
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<p>This class is an invitation to do further study - both academic and
experiential - on Africana
spirituality in North America</p>
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<p>Race, religion, and politics have been, and likely will remain,
pivotal issues in American life</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>A flourishing American democracy requires an informed populace
knowledgeable, tolerant, and appreciative of its diverse religious
landscape</p>
</li></ul>
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">&nbsp;Africana Faith --<br /></h3>
<h3 style="text-align: center;">Global Implications</h3>
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<li>
<p>Increased familiarity with the world’s religious landscape is
essential for the creation of a just and sustainable global
community</p>
</li></ul>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Discovery of points where Africana and other global faith
traditions intersect can lead to the reduction of tensions caused by
competing religious claims and the formation of inclusive and nurturing
communities</p>
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