Towards an Inculturated Death and Burial Rite of Passage: an Analysis of the Roman Catholic Burial Liturgical Rite and Traditional Shona Death and Burial Rituals

The main thrust of the argument is that Christianity can be inculturated and one way of doing so is to look at the rites of passage. The research focuses on the Death and Burial Rites of passage as they are practiced by the traditional Shona man and/or woman. The researcher contends that Christianity especially as practiced in the Catholic Church can be inculturated. It is possible to contextualise without compromising the kernel of the Christian faith. The inspiration to do so is derived from the urgings of Vatican Council II Documents that deal with the Sacred Liturgy. To not inculturate could be equated to sin. We all live inescapably within a particular cultural framework that shapes our way of thinking and also the way we act. A proper understanding of our Shona context will reveal that there are various symbols and rituals that are good in themselves and can in turn be used as we effectively communicate the Gospel minus the Western vestiges of a culture foreign to a Catholic who wants to remain truly African and truly Shona. The good practices of the traditional Shona people can justifiably find their way into the Liturgy and this is what this book intends to reveal.