A Plea for Vengeance in Psalm 35: 1-3 and its Reflections in African (Yoruba) Indigenous Churches
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Date
2024
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Verbum et Ecclesia
Abstract
Psalm 35 is one of the most popular, widely read and used Psalm among the African Indigenous Churches (Yoruba) in Nigeria. This study investigates why and how Psalm 35: 1-3 is used as a plea for vengeance among the Yoruba Christians in African Indigenous Churches in Nigeria. The study explores how the plea for vengeance is understood and expressed in the African traditional context. African Biblical Hermeneutics with the view of providing a useful lens to reread biblical text in African context was adopted for the study. It was discovered that as early as the third century Christian era the book of Psalms was used in the liturgy of the church. The notion of vengeance as found in Psalm 35:1-3 is a recurrent theme in African Indigenous Churches in Nigeria. This Psalm is used among the Yoruba Christians in African indigenous Churches as a plea for divine intervention against their enemies. Through a synthesis of biblical and traditional African sources, this paper demonstrates how the plea for vengeance in this is expressed in the cultural practices and beliefs of African Indigenous Churches. The plea for vengeance in this Psalm is a reflection of African Indigenous Churches’ understanding of key social issues such as justice, relationships between individuals and groups, and the need to maintain social integrity. Psalm 35 is usually read, sung, memorized, inscribed in parchment, chanted by African Christians and non-Christian as expression of faith in God to intervene in the issues confronting them as he did for the Psalmist.