Religious Functionaries (Priests, Kings, Medicine Men, Diviners and Oracles) In Africa

There are many religious functionaries in African Religion. These include authorities and specialists in various aspects of African life; like priest, king, medicine men and diviners. Broadly speaking, their roles fall into two broad categories, mediators and mediums. A mediator could be roughly defined as a go-between, one who mediates between God and man. In this context, he is a human being, who because of his office, training and skill, or his personal qualities plays the role of a go-between in man’s relationships with the spiritual world. Mediums on the other hand are persons (or objects) whom a deity or spirit uses to communicate his message or benefits on people. In the African scene, mediators are usually priests, kings and medicine-men. Mediums are diviners, spirit mediums and prophets. The roles of these religious functionaries are not mutually exclusive. A priest can also be a diviner or medicine-man, and vice versa. We will illustrate each of these functions with examples drawn from some African societies.