A pastoral perspective of Vimbuza ritual among people suffering from mental illness in the Rumphi district of northern Malawi

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dc.contributor.advisorThesnaar, C. H.en_ZA
dc.contributor.advisorVähäkangas, Mikaen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorKamanga, Chrispine Nthezemuen_ZA
dc.contributor.otherStellenbosch University. Faculty of Theology. Dept. of Practical Theology and Missiology.en_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2024-02-21T11:31:41Z
dc.date.accessioned2024-04-26T13:14:49Z
dc.date.available2024-02-21T11:31:41Z
dc.date.available2024-04-26T13:14:49Z
dc.date.issued2024-03
dc.descriptionThesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2024.en_ZA
dc.description.abstractENGLISH ABSTRACT: The study explores a pastoral perspective of Vimbuza ritual performance among people suffering from mental illness in the district of Rumphi of northern of Malawi. Through the teaching of the mainstream churches on inculturation and the theorisation of Dialogical Intergenerational Pastoral Process (DIPP) of Nagy, the study considers the Pastoral Care ministry of the church as an important institution to provide a direction among people involved in the performance of Vimbuza ritual as a therapy for mental illness. This is against a background of ostracising people involved in Vimbuza cultural practice by the church, colonial masters, and the hospital. It is understood that the cosmology of the Tumbuka people, their cultural upbringing, and their conceptualisation of mental illness influences their health seeking behaviour. Methodologically, this is an empirical qualitative study which involved interviews and focus group discussions with selected Vimbuza ritual practitioners, relatives or guardians of mentally ill people and the patients themselves. The study uses the DIPP theory not only to navigate, understand and appreciate the attitudes, values, norms, and beliefs of the Tumbuka people who engage in the practise of Vimbuza but also to suggest church’s reasonable pr oposals that will provide resolutions from the perspective of Pastoral Care. The chapters are structured around the proposed Richard Osmer’s tasks of practical theology. Chapter one introduces the study and makes a huge claim that the people of Rumphi resort to Vimbuza ritual practice as a remedy to their mental problems. The claim is based on a backdrop of their cosmological understanding of mental illness that it is an “African religious” disease requiring a religious approach. Chapter two discusses Vimbuza as a cultural performance with different aspects: a sickness, an entertainment, a form of healing and a medium of morality which has survived antagonism from the church and state machinery. Chapter three examines the empirical data which indicate that hospital-based care for mentally ill people does not meet all the needs of the Tumbuka people under study. The discussion in chapter four reveals the histories of relations among the patients and ritual performers, cyclic nature of mental illness, community involvement in the performance of Vimbuza ritual, flexibility of payment and the confusion brought by the white person among the people practicing Vimbuza ritual in Rumphi. In the final analysis, Chapter four claims that Vimbuza ritual performance remains a big pulling factor among people with mental illness in Rumphi district and will continue to influence the lives of people. Chapter five normatively suggest a pastoral perspective of Vimbuza ritual among people with mental illness. The chapter uses the core concepts of DIPP to discuss themes and findings of this study. Pragmatically, Chapter six recommends that the Pastoral Care ministry of the church should take a postcolonial ecumenical approach to engage with Vimbuza ritual practitioners to achieve sustainable mental health healing, an integration of prayer in the treatment of mental illness, psychoeducation, integration of traditional medicine into healthcare system, collaboration and TCM policy formulation, adaptation, and ratification.en_ZA
dc.description.abstractAFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die studie ondersoek 'n pastorale perspektief op die uitvoering van Vimbuza-rituele onder mense wat aan geestesongesteldheid ly in Malawi. Deur ondersoek van die hoofstroomkerke se onderrig oor inkulturasie en teoretisering van Dialogical Intergenerational Pastoral Process (DIPP) van Nagy, beskou die studie die Pastorale Sorgbediening van die kerk as 'n belangrike instelling om rigting te gee aan mense wat betrokke is by die uitvoering van Vimbuza-rituele as 'n terapie vir geestesongesteldheid. Dit is teen 'n agtergrond van verstotin g van mense watbetrokke is by Vimbuza kulturele praktyk, deur die kerk, koloniale meesters en die plaaslike hospitaal. Die studie verstaan dat die kosmologie van die Tumbuka-mense, hul kulturele opvoeding en hul konseptualisering van geestesongesteldheid, hul gesondhe idsoekende gedrag beïnvloed. Metodologies is dit 'n empiriese kwalitatiewe studie wat onderhoude en fokusgroepbesprekings met geselekteerde Vimbuza-rituele praktisyns, familielede of voogde van mense met geestesongesteldhede, en die pasiënte self, behels het. Die studie gebruik die DIPP-teorie om die houdings, waardes, norme en oortuigings van die Tumbuka-mense wat betrokke is by die praktyk van Vimbuza, te navigeer, te verstaan en te waardeer, asook om billike voorstelle te bied wat deur die kerk gemaak kan word wat oplossings vanuit die perspektief van Pastorale Sorg sal bied. Die hoofstukke is gestruktureer rondom Richard Osmer se voorgestelde take van Praktiese Teologie. Hoofstuk een lei die studie in en maak 'n groot aanspraak dat die mense van Rumphi hul wend tot Vimbuza-rituele praktyke as 'n oplossing vir hul geestelike probleme. Die bewering is gebaseer op 'n agtergrond van hul kosmologiese begrip van geestesongesteldheid dat dit 'n “Afrika-godsdienstige” siekte is wat 'n godsdienstige benadering vereis. Hoofstuk twee bespreek Vimbuza as 'n kulturele optrede met verskillende aspekte: 'n siekte, 'n vermaaklikheid, 'n vorm van genesing en 'n medium van moraliteit, wat teenstand van die kerk en staatsmasjinerie oorleef het. Hoofstuk drie ondersoek die empiriese data wat daarop dui dat hospitaalgebaseerde sorg vir geestesversteurde mense nie aan al die behoeftes van die Tumbuka-mense wat bestudeer is, voldoen nie. Die bespreking in hoofstuk vier onthul die geskiedenis van verhoudings tussen die pasiënte en rituele uitvoerders, die sikliese aard van geestesongesteldheid, gemeenskapsbetrokkenheid by die uitvoering van Vimbuza-rituele, buigsaamheid van betaling, en die verwarring wat deur die wit persoon gebring word onder diemense wat Vimbuza-rituele beoefen in Rumphi. Hoofstuk vier beweer dat die uitvoering van Vimbuza-rituele 'n groot trekpleister bly vir mense met geestesongesteldheid in die Rumphi-distrik en sal voortgaan om die lewens van mense te beïnvloed. Hoofstuk vyf stel normatief 'n pastorale perspektief van Vimbuza-rituele onder mense met geestesongesteldheid voor. Die hoofstuk gebruik die kernbegrippe van DIPP om temas en bevindinge van hierdie studie te bespreek. Hoofstuk ses beveel pragmaties aan: dat die Pastorale Sorg-bediening van die kerk 'n postkoloniale ekumeniese benadering moet volg om met Vimbuza-rituele praktisyns te skakel om volhoubare geestesgesondheidsgenesing te bewerkstellig; integrasie van gebed in die behandeling van geestesongesteldheid; psigo-opvoeding; integrasie van tradisionele medisyne in die gesondheidsorgstelsel; samewerking; en TCM-beleid-formulering, -aanpassing en -bekragtiging.af_ZA
dc.description.versionDoctoralen_ZA
dc.format.extentxxi, 339 pages : illustrations (some color)
dc.identifier.urihttps://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/130318
dc.language.isoen en_ZA
dc.publisherStellenbosch : Stellenbosch Universityen_ZA
dc.rights.holderStellenbosch Universityen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshPeople with disabilitiesen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshMental illness -- Africaen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshTumbuka (African people)en_ZA
dc.subject.lcshUCTDen_ZA
dc.titleA pastoral perspective of Vimbuza ritual among people suffering from mental illness in the Rumphi district of northern Malawien_ZA
dc.typeThesisen_ZA
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