Abstract
Mozambique, a nation that boasts the longest coastline in Sub-Saharan Africa, has long weathered encounters with the global economy, from Muslim traders to Portuguese colonists. The resultant cultures are incredibly diverse and complex. What ethnodoxology “best practices” will both preserve the present culture and promote Christ? This article outlines some of the unique challenges and surprising results of a recent songwriting workshop among the Makhuwa-Nahara people in northern Mozambique, suggests strategies for future workshops, and explores missiological implications for such efforts in Muslim contexts.
Keywords
Great excitement filled the small room as a participant grabbed a djembe (drum) and began to sing. “Wafiare, wafiare, orera . . . [As iron sharpens iron, sharpening one another is good, even though it’s hard].” Suddenly, several men stood to their feet and began to dance together, mimicking the motion of sharpening knives with their forearm against another’s forearm. The joy in the room was palpable—evident in their smiles and enthusiasm. The ceiling of creativity had been lifted as participants engaged in the music-making process.
This scene describes a moment from the first day of a recent songwriting workshop among the Makhuwa-Nahara, an unreached people group in northern Mozambique. In this region, which is dominated by Islam, the workshop facilitators were tasked with two objectives: (1) teaching about music as a valid means of worship expression and (2) teaching the participants how to create indigenous hymnody. Our goal was to encourage the newly emerging church in contextual worship and in witness to its neighbors. As the song stated, we were there to “sharpen” the new believers, as well as to hone the songwriting workshop method and to refine mission strategies among Muslims. This article outlines some of the unique contextual challenges and surprising results of this workshop, suggests strategies for future workshops, and explores missiological implications in Muslim contexts. The outcomes of the workshop clearly demonstrate the value of applied ethnomusicology in mission strategy.
Contextual challenges
Named by UNESCO in 1983 as a Cultural Heritage site, Mozambique Island is a remarkable island and ancient town, a natural stopping-point for Arabic traders along the Indian Ocean for centuries. Its renown as a boat-building center was already established by the time Vasco da Gama first visited the island in 1499.
Twelve Makhuwa-Nahara men from three different locations convened on this island on February 25, 2019, to be part of a songwriting workshop. Ranging in age from eighteen to fifty-eight and with a variety of occupations, five or six were illiterate, and all but one were nonmusicians. Most were followers of Isa (Jesus). There were numerous contextual challenges leading up to the workshop that the facilitators needed to consider, including matrilineal social organization, Muslim religious background, and orally preferential communication.
Matrilineal social organization
The Makhuwa people are the largest unreached ethnic group in Mozambique, predominantly located in the north of the country. Makhuwans speak at least six distinct dialects. (See table 1.) According to Joshua Project, the various subgroups are considered “unreached,” the majority practicing forms of animism and folk Islam.
Makhuwa Dialects.
Source: Data gathered from Joshua Project, https://joshuaproject.net/countries/MZ (accessed June 26, 2019).
Among the Makhuwa-Nahara, only about 1,000 (0.02 percent) are professing Christians. The word “Nahara” means coastal, and the primary occupation is fishing. Early comments made by the Portuguese about the Makhuwa in the sixteenth century stressed the simplicity of their social organization and material culture. In this context, “Not only was control over agriculture and its produce vested in the senior women of the village but inheritance of land and property rights stayed within the mother’s clan, passing to children of the mother’s older brother,” 1 demonstrating a matrilineal descent system and a strong matriarchal tradition.
This unique organizational system and the resultant lack of political cohesion among the Makhuwa allowed coastal Swahili Muslims to create urban communities and, later, the Portuguese to establish an overrule. A missionary commenting on the unique mixture of Makhuwa culture and Islamic influences stated: “Makhuwa people in general are matrilineal, but the Nahara are a hybrid of matrilineal and patrilineal because of the Swahili-Islamic influence. . . . It is men who have political and formal religious leadership positions in Naharan society [because it is a Muslim culture]. Men dominate women in many ways. Women though, do dominate the African traditional religion sphere and find an audience though Tofu groups” (interview, April 16, 2019).
The social cohesion of the matrilineal descent groups at the village level continues to remain remarkably durable. Women are still the cultural protectors and mediators of traditional folk religious practices. Yet, “women are dependent on others to provide for themselves and their children. Therefore, to become a follower [of Isa] means to lose income, shelter, and security” (missionary host, interview, April 9, 2019). A Muslim husband would likely divorce his wife were she to convert, and then she may be ostracized by her family of origin, losing her inheritance and possibly even her children. Excluded from the formal religious structure of Islam and resistant to the high cost of conversion to Christianity, women are concerned mainly with meeting the needs of daily life.
When asked why there were not female Nahara believers, one participant explained, “Women hold our culture. We [men] are not valued. We don’t protect the Nahara ways. It is not a threat for us” (fieldnotes, March 1, 2019). Like the ready reception of mission efforts among the Dalits, or “untouchables,” in India, more missional progress to date has been seen among Makhuwa males. Missionaries who have seen the most success with Makhuwa women are those who are providing for women’s needs, such as midwifery or natural medicine using herbal remedies found locally.
Muslim religious background
Islam in Mozambique has a history that goes back to at least the tenth century. The records show that the region was known and frequented by Muslim travelers and traders. In fact, according to tradition, the name “Mozambique” is derived from Musa bin Biq, the name and title of an early sultan on Mozambique Island. The Indian Ocean was a Muslim sea, and the religious influence was felt wherever Indian and Arab traders landed. Swahili words for chief, subchief, and trader were adopted, along with Islamic practices such as circumcision, speaking Arabic, and dressing in Muslim-style clothes.
During the Portuguese colonial period, Muslims suffered constant persecution, in part a kind of retaliation for the centuries of Muslim occupation of Portugal. Despite persecution, Islam’s influence continued to spread, particularly in the north. Reasons for the growing Islamization were varied and complex but undoubtedly related to the increased prestige of associating with Islam and its representatives along the coast. One of the noticeable influences of Islam was that traditional chiefs learned to read and write.
Syncretism can be found in the practices of Muslims in Mozambique. Many observe a type of folk Islam, continuing traditional initiation rites and practicing preparation rituals by offering prayers and pouring libations on the ground to please the ancestors. Muslims in search of good luck, healing, and solutions to problems consult curandeiros (traditional healers), some of whom are themselves nominal Muslims.
Coming into this religious context, which views music as haram (forbidden), the facilitators had to carefully consider how to introduce music as a means of worship without prescribing a particular form or style. Up until the workshop, the corporate worship experiences of Muslim-background believers (MBBs) consisted of testimonies, prayer, and oral Bible stories. They had almost no songs with which to express their newfound faith in Isa. As one missionary host stated: “Our guys have no expression or understanding of what musical worship means. It can be very tricky, and easy for them to confuse a style of worship music with worship itself. As the expert, whatever you do or say will be deemed the right practice, posture, words—and they will copy it. I have already seen it with the raising of hands, the Catholic sign of the cross, overuse of the word ‘Amen,’ and Gloria ao Deus (Glory to God). This we hope to avoid” (interview, February 18, 2019).
Notwithstanding the risks of introducing a foreign music style, the participants had joined a singing faith and were from a musical culture. Sensing that the participants needed another means of worship to sustain their faith, the host missionaries asked the facilitators not only to teach a method of songwriting but also to teach about worship in a way that allowed the participants to discover their own expressions of worship through song.
Orally preferential communication
Half of the participants could not read or write, and all were orally preferential learners and communicators. Therefore, the challenge was to conduct the workshop in a manner conducive to effective oral communication and creation. Knowing that the Bible is a respected holy book, we read aloud from the Bible at many points along the way in both Portuguese and Makhuwa. The Makhuwa translation was not Makhuwa-Nahara, however, and as the struggle to read it became apparent, we quickly switched to reading Portuguese and oral translation directly into Makhuwa-Nahara.
Prior to the workshop, the Old Testament Joseph story (Gen. 37–50) was chosen as the text for composing music. Yosufo (Joseph) is a familiar and respected character in Islam, and each participant was familiar with the biblical account. Four MP3 tracks of Oral Bible Stories in Makhuwa-Nahara that had been proof-checked by teams from the Summer Institute of Linguistics were used:
Dreams and betrayal of Joseph (Gen. 37) Potiphar’s wife and prison (Gen. 39) Dreams in prison and Pharaoh’s dreams (Gen. 40–41) Joseph’s reconciliation with his brothers (Gen. 42–47; 50:19–21).
We also used a whiteboard to track discussions and song-texts. However, these notes were always more for the benefit of the missionary hosts and workshop facilitators, constantly reinforced by oral discussions and feedback to clarify that a general understanding was achieved.
What happened?
Considering the various contextual challenges, the facilitators organized a schedule for the workshop that followed the chosen method. Each day had a similar pattern:
Devotions Recalling songs begun on the previous day Bible study following the story of Joseph Small group time to create songs Sharing songs.
The approach taken was one of intentional flexibility and sensitivity to the Spirit’s leading. The following section details the workshop progression, immediate results, and ongoing impact based on follow-up interviews with missionary hosts.
Workshop progression
Day 1 commenced with introductions. As this was the first time for many of the men to meet one another, ample time was given for personal presentations. The facilitators then led a time of devotion, reflecting on Psalm 40:1–3 and Psalm 96:1–3. As all participants were from a Muslim background, the biblical precedence of musical worship needed to be established and affirmed prior to composing.
Participants were next encouraged to sing familiar songs from their culture. This exercise served as a warm-up to facilitate recall of their own musical style, as well as to affirm their traditional musical culture, which had largely been suppressed by Islamic influences. As they sang these songs together, participants that had been silent thus far began to dance and clap. This reaction signaled to the facilitators that composing could begin.
The first day was unique in that significant time was given to the teaching of the method: “how” to create songs. The facilitators led the group through an exercise of identifying significant themes from the Joseph text, choosing keywords out of these themes, and creating phrases that incorporated the key words. As participants shared their phrases, the group consistently collaborated to ensure the words remained faithful to the biblical text and meaningful in their cultural context.
Suddenly, the lone musician in the group grabbed a djembe and announced that he had a song to share. He repeated the lyrics, and the remaining participants joined in singing, clapping, and dancing. The first song of the workshop had been birthed, creating a sense of excitement and affirming that creating music was achievable through this process. A rudimentary smart-phone recording captured the song to aid memory.
On the second day we divided the participants into three small groups, as they were now familiar with the composing method. To encourage equity and unity, each group had representatives from each region. They were tasked with creating songs from the first day’s phrases. The spoken text gave rise to the melodies and rhythms—the words generated the songs. After an hour it was time to share the songs. Two more songs were birthed, and some time was spent on the development of these songs. The latter part of the second day was spent on the next section of the Joseph story. Following the pattern of the first day, main ideas from the passage were turned into key phrases, and songs were created around these phrases.
The participants were reminded to capture any inspiration to share with the group on the following day. The men were left with this encouragement: “Remember where we were yesterday, and now we have three songs—incredible! Keep believing! Jesus is helping us to go further. This is the Lord’s work. He is looking for people who are ready. We are saying: ‘We are here and ready’” (workshop facilitator, fieldnotes, February 26, 2019).
The third day followed a similar pattern. Devotion time focused on the faithfulness of God, with participants testifying about God’s goodness in their lives. Songs that had been created but not yet shared from the previous day were sung: three new songs. After the third section of the Bible study of Joseph, the groups again met to create songs based on the day’s passage. The song-sharing process was communal and organic as all participants contributed in theologizing and composing. Participants sharpened one another’s view of God and creative expressions in order to clearly communicate the biblical message to others.
Day 4 was the last day for songwriting. As the final section of Joseph’s story was in focus, the facilitators led a devotion on confession and forgiveness based on Psalm 51. The Spirit’s presence was manifest as participants prayed together. The musician of the group began to sing a new song, crying out to God to “clean our hearts” (fieldnotes, February 28, 2019). Participants joined in a profound moment of worship through sung confession.
Two groups were assigned the written text of Genesis 50:19–20 (“Do not fear. . . . What you meant for evil, God meant for good”) as lyrics for songs, while the third group continued to develop an epic song form relating the entire Joseph story. A brief encouragement was given to the participants to continue to practice and prepare their songs, as the next day we were recording.
The final day of the workshop was reserved for capturing and celebrating the fruit of the workshop. Great excitement filled the atmosphere as participants arrived. The room and recording equipment were arranged in order to capture sound without being intimidating. As the day progressed, anxious nerves turned into visible enjoyment, as participants became more comfortable with the equipment and the process. Each group prayed prior to recording, continually refocusing on the source of our musical inspiration and the purpose for the songs. Because of the illiteracy of many of the participants, lyrics had to be memorized. For this reason, some songs took many takes before a satisfactory recording was made. Two additional songs written prior to the workshop were also recorded. After many hours, all the songs had been captured: thirteen in total.
Immediate results
It was certainly a time to celebrate, and the host missionaries joined in to recount all that God had done in the past week. The participants reflected on what they had learned. God is glorified through music. Even though they are not skilled musicians, they now can create music whenever they study the Scriptures. Participants were grateful to meet other Nahara brothers who follow Isa. “I didn’t know there were so many of us!” exclaimed one participant (fieldnotes, March 1, 2019). Recognizing that these songs are just the beginning, they reminded each other that God has a plan for the Nahara people. The Makhuwa-Nahara songwriting workshop launched musical expressions of Nahara worship within this emerging church. Participants left the workshop eager to use these new songs to communicate with their neighbors the joy of following Isa.
Ongoing impact
Two weeks after the workshop, the facilitators conducted interviews with the host missionaries to determine the ongoing impact of the workshop among the participants. Notable results were observed in three primary areas: worship, discipleship, and witness.
The workshop was instrumental in empowering and encouraging the use of music as worship. “There’s a resurgence in their hearts to sing. And that’s a by-product from the workshop” (missionary host, interview, March 12, 2019). Another host commented, “The workshop launched their desire to write new songs. . . . They are dreaming about new worship songs. They were greatly encouraged in their faith. I believe that worship is flowing, and it will only get stronger” (interview, March 22, 2019). The participants moved from having no concept of musical worship to embracing music as a valid form of faith expression.
In addition to worship, the workshop has impacted the spiritual growth of the participants. The songs are being sung at palestras (Bible studies) and are being used to teach the story of Joseph to others. The musician of the group continues to write more worship songs as he matures in his faith. Spiritual growth is also evident in the relationships built during the workshop. “The camaraderie and unity of the participants was a by-product of the times in worship,” notes one host (interview, March 12, 2019). As the participants continue to experience persecution as a result of their decision to follow Isa, they are encouraged through their community of Nahara brothers, knowing they are not alone.
Finally, the songs created at the workshop have fueled greater witness among the Makhuwa-Nahara. Sharing songs has become a natural method of evangelism in the participants’ communities; playing the recordings on their cell phones or singing as they work. A missionary host explained how one participant, a professing Muslim, attended the workshop because he loves to sing. Since the workshop however, this individual has asked for a Bible, comes to palestra with his Bible, and brings other new people along. Further research is needed to determine the long-term impact of the workshop. Initial results, however, demonstrate a clear effect on worship, discipleship, and witness among the participants.
Critique of the method
The song-writing workshop method used was developed and described by Roberta King in A Time to Sing. 2 As the facilitators had limited prior exposure to the music culture and no knowledge of the participants’ language, we needed to rely on the host missionaries and participants to ensure that the resultant songs were both faithful to the biblical story and culturally relevant—that is, that they were both Christian and Makhuwa-Naharan. We needed a method that could be quickly and easily transmitted in an oral context among new believers and nonmusicians. Having seen the method effectively used in similar contexts for similar purposes, the facilitators had confidence that the method would yield results.
Numerous factors contributed to the success of the workshop, including especially the work of the Holy Spirit. A large part of our preparations prior to and during the workshop were prayers for the Spirit’s guidance and creativity. While no one can take credit for the Spirit’s work, we all can cooperate. Other confounding variables—an “insider” facilitator, a musical participant, and active involvement of resident missionaries—positively impacted the results. 3
One facilitator was Makhuwan. While he spent half of his life away from the Makhuwan context, his ready acceptance by the participants as “one of us” gained him relational and cultural capital vital to the creative process. He was surprised at the level of connection he felt, stating, “This deeply touches me. I am finding myself in their expressions. I left the North fifteen years ago to live in Beira, but Makhuwa dirt is still on my roots” (interview, February 26, 2019). There were many key points throughout the workshop where his emic knowledge enabled him to engage all the participants, to graciously critique and correct both participants and missionary hosts, and to effectively guide the group while composing and recording. His insider status allowed him to sharpen others in a unique way.
Another contributing factor to the success of the workshop was the missionary hosts’ acumen in the Makhuwa-Nahara dialect and communal oral storytelling. Each day as the texts were listened to, the host would facilitate a discussion, asking culturally relevant questions that prompted reflection and group theologizing. As the stories were turned into songs, the host constantly checked the lyrics, asking the participants to clarify or change the lyrics if they were not biblically accurate. This was also a process of sharpening.
For example, on the second day, there was a long discussion about Joseph’s dreams. A participant suggested the following lyrics: “God gave Joseph dreams that destroyed his family.” Though the dreams Joseph had were from God and the resultant sibling jealousy did lead to incredible pain and loss, the host was concerned that the song would communicate more generally that God’s dreams destroy families. He therefore guided the participants to modify the lyrics until they faithfully portrayed the biblical account. This level of cross-checking for cultural and biblical accuracy was possible only because of the involvement of missionary hosts.
Additionally, the relational capital established between the missionary hosts and participants, built up by years of ministry in context, was invaluable to the success of the workshop. The missionaries’ knowledge of the participants—their musical ability, spiritual maturity, and availability—set the stage for a successful workshop that seamlessly meshed with the existing culture and relational networks. Hosts diligently prepared the participants, facilitated preworkshop discussions that “primed the musical pump,” chose a well-known text for songwriting, and bathed the workshop in prayer prior to and during the experience.
The workshop facilitators then leveraged these relationships and knowledge for maximum impact during the workshop. One host commented, “I can’t believe how much they’re willing to talk to you. It’s like pulling teeth to get them to participate in palestras!” (fieldnotes, February 25, 2019). Perhaps as outsiders who would leave after the workshop, our presence was nonthreatening. However, the positive impact of the missionaries’ contributions before and after the workshop must be acknowledged.
Finally, because the participants were men, and therefore not cultural guardians of Naharan traditions, they appeared open to creating something new. A key participant was the lone musician, a tufo 4 drummer, who played for Estrela Vermelha, a prominent tufo dance troupe. Although he is male, he has insider access to a cultural art-form typically closed to men. Therefore, as he came alongside the groups as they were working on creating new songs, the results were Makhuwan. The participants frequently commented, “This song is very tufo!” (fieldnotes, February 25, 28; March 1, 2019). The new songs created felt familiar because they were composed using a local genre, naturally flowing from the experiences and training of the musical participant. His input not only complemented the efforts of the nonmusical participants but also assured a greater long-term viability of the songs in the newly formed corpus of Naharan Christian music.
Moving from confounding variables that contributed to the success of the workshop, limitations of the method must also be addressed. As mentioned previously, the workshop facilitators were, in a sense, “flying blind.” They had no Nahara language ability and limited cultural knowledge, and their relational capital was borrowed from the missionary hosts. Ongoing cultivation and creation of new songs lie in the hands of the participants and resident missionaries. The male participants are not cultural guardians, and the question remains how widespread the impact of this workshop will be.
Lessons learned from the trenches—praxis makes perfect
We reflect here on the missiological practice of ethnodoxology, namely, the focus of using music and the arts in mission. What could be recommended for future workshops? And what are the implications of encouraging the development of indigenous hymnody, particularly in a Muslim context like this one, where musical worship is nonexistent?
Variables that positively contributed to the workshop results included an “insider” facilitator, a musical participant, and active involvement of resident missionaries. While these variables are not required for King’s songwriting workshop method to function, we believe that each factor was crucial to the success of the Nahara workshop. None of these aspects are overtly mentioned in A Time to Sing, yet they are implied.
Additionally, this songwriting method seems most effective in a context where music culture is highly participatory and communal, rather than performative. As Mozambicans value music as “ours,” this songwriting strategy worked well among the Makhuwa-Nahara. However, when working in a highly professionalized musical context, a different approach may be needed. We recommend that ethnomusicologists seeking to conduct this type of workshop in a participatory music-culture within a limited time frame proactively develop a facilitating team that has an “insider,” invite musical participants, and engage resident missionaries in order to enhance and extend workshop effectiveness.
Prior to the workshop, another missionary working among Makhuwan Muslims was invited to participate. He prayerfully declined, concerned about introducing a foreign form of worship. He also wondered how Muslims’ negative associations with music would impact the believers in their community. This concern raises an important question about contextualization and music in a Muslim context.
Introducing music as a form of worship among MBBs is a risk. However, failing to teach about a form of expression that is a key component and command of biblical faith is also risky. As MBBs begin to follow Isa, they are joining a community with a long tradition of expressing faith through song. Furthermore, the Makhuwan traditional culture is highly musical, something that the Muslim faith has suppressed for generations. One career missionary commented, “It was so wonderful to see them singing. I’ve never seen them so joyful before. It’s such a serious culture, and Islam is all about following rules—duty and submission” (interview, February 25, 2019). Another mentioned, “Hearing the Makhuwans sing, it was like meeting them for the first time” (interview, March 1, 2019). We contend that, while worship music may not be part of the Muslim tradition, it is part of what it means to be Makhuwan and a follower of Isa.
One could argue that singing one’s faith may create barriers for evangelism and lead to greater persecution because of associations with a foreign religion. While increased persecution may or may not occur, early results of this workshop demonstrate that singing is a viable communication vehicle among the Makhuwa-Nahara. So far, the songs have led to an increased exposure to biblical stories among Muslim neighbors. Makhuwans, though Muslim, are orally preferential communicators, which means that “theology needs to be expressed and communicated through song rooted in Scripture” (missionary host, interview, March 12, 2019). Perhaps these new Scripture songs, sung in a tufo style, will finally reach the hearts of Makhuwan women and lead others to join these participants in following Isa.
Conclusion
As the workshop participants continue to sharpen one another by singing new songs with increasing purpose and courage, beginning evidences of Psalm 40:3 can be observed:
He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the
Though the need remains for further work in musical arts and worship in the community, the workshop was a strong beginning in facilitating and encouraging indigenous hymnody among the Makhuwa-Nahara people. May we continue to sharpen one another as we engage MBBs through ethnodoxology “best practices” that not only preserve present cultural realities but also promote Christ.
Footnotes
Funding
The authors received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Notes
Author biographies