Cultural Anthropology: Azande and Christian Beliefs Comparison

This essay delves into the cultural anthropology of magic, focusing on the Azande people of North Central Africa and their beliefs regarding witchcraft, oracles, and magic, as documented by Edward E. Evans-Pritchard. It contrasts these beliefs with the Christian understanding of magic, highlighting the negative connotations associated with witchcraft and the role of the devil in both perspectives. The essay examines how the Azande attribute both minor and major misfortunes to witchcraft, viewing it as an integral part of their lives, while also acknowledging the influence of external factors. Furthermore, the essay explores the historical context of witchcraft beliefs in Europe, particularly the persecution of women, and draws parallels between the two cultures' shared belief in the existence and impact of the devil in magical practices, while also highlighting the differences in their approaches. References include works by Evans-Pritchard, Carlo Ginzburg, Paul Mirecki, Kyle Sanders, and Morgan L. Stringer.

Running head: CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY
CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY
Name of the Student
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Author Note

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Can the Christian understanding of magic help us better understand
Azande magical practices and beliefs?
The Christian saw magic in a negative light. Magic was an accepted part and
practiceby the tradition of Christianity. There have been many references about witchcraft in
the Bible and it has been seen that the practices were condemned by the Protestants. People
towards the end of the middle age and at the dawn of the modern period believed in
witchcraft and it had become very popular during that time. The Christians view witchcraft as
an obstructive and a negative force. People believed that magic and witchcraft caused
material damage to the society. Christians however allowed magic in order to benefit the
society and during this time the Christians caught hold of two women who were practicing
white magic which is known as magic for the betterment and for selfless deeds. According to
the theory that has been put forward by the churches all kinds of magic that are practiced
cannot be done alone without the help of the devil (Mirecki). They believed that in order to
practice any magic or witchcraft the magician has to take the help of the devil even if he or
she does not want it.However during the 5th and 6th century people who were a part of the
church started practicing magic in order to witness and predict the future on the demand of
people however if anyone practiced this who outside the premise of the church or people who
did not belong from the church would be condemned. Despite of people being condemned
because of the practice of witchcraft and magic, magic was still being practiced in the society
back then. The Christians believed that even if people are practicing magic and witchcraft for
a good deed but to obtain this also the magician had to take the help of the devil (Sanders).
Zande is the plural form of Azande. Azande were ethnic groups who belonged from
North Central Africa. The people found witchcraft and magic to be a normal phenomenon
unlike other people and the Christians who found it supernatural. In the lives of Zande

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witchcraft played a vital role where they believed that all the misfortune that the men faced in
the society was because of the witchcraft and that belonged to the society (Evans-Pritchard).
Zande believe that witchcraft is the reason of every petty as well as big problem in the society
which they have accepted as the find it very ordinary. The Zande do not think logically and
rationally and believe that small things like a craftsman unable to make a proper pot and
making a cracked pot and a man stumping his toe on stumps is the result of the practice of
witchcraft rather than thinking that it could be because of their sheer carelessness or some
situations that they did not apprehend before (Evans-Pritchard). Zande however
acknowledged the fact that the witchcraft is not the sole reason for the misfortunes and the
unfortunate events that occur in the society. If a man is killed in the battleground because of
some object like a spear the Zande consider the spear to be the main object of death however
they align this death with witchcraft and consider witchcraft to be the second spear that
caused the death. They believe that everything in their society and in their world has a
connection to witchcraft.
The presence of witchcraft in the society was also believed by the modern Europeans
just like Zande. These people believed that the witches in their society were the women who
practiced witchcraft because of social changes and certain religious tensions that impacted
them negatively which took away their rights in the society (Ginzburg). Here women were
considered to be people who did not have faith in comparison to the men and this denying of
the faith had become a theme of witchcraft where it was stated that women worshipped the
devil over god (Stringer).
Christian beliefs and the beliefs of Zande were similar in terms of witchcraft bringing
misfortune and being a negative aspect in the society because of the presence of the devil.
However the Christians did believe in the practice of witchcraft but did not believe in it
blindly like the Zande where every small situation was blamed on witchcraft however the

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understanding of the Christians of magic does a give a brief understanding about the beliefs
of Zande as they both believed the existence and the role of the devil in magic and in the
witchcraft however does not give a full and clear understanding about their beliefs.

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Reference
Evans-Pritchard, Edward E. Witchcraft, oracles and magic among the Azande. Vol. 12.
London: Oxford, 1937.
Ginzburg, Carlo. The Night Battles: witchcraft and agrarian cults in the sixteenth and
seventeenth centuries. JHU Press, 2013.
Mirecki, Paul, ed. Magic and ritual in the ancient world. Brill, 2001.
Sanders, Kyle. "Perks Of Perkins: Understanding Where Magic And Religion Meet For An
Early Modern English Theologian." (2018).
Stringer, Morgan L. A War on Women? The Malleus Maleficarum and the Witch-Hunts in
Early Modern Europe. Diss. The University of Mississippi, 2015.