Why the chameleon?
The chameleon in many African cultures is an
ambivalent animal. Here in Zambia it is often
feared. Some people think it transmits leprosy.
In some church songs it is held in disdain for
failing to show its true colour. It walks forward
and backward at the same time. In some
Zambian myths the chameleon does not lay
eggs like other reptiles, but becomes pregnant
like human beings. The chameleon avoids our
neat categories. It is different.
The chameleon is avoided in Zambia. But it is
not killed. There are ancient stories about the
sacredness of the chameleon, which we find all
over Africa. A Chewa myth tells us that God had
untrusted the chameleon with the message of
life for human beings, while the gecko was sent
out with the message of death. God sent out
the chameleon first, and only after some time
released the gecko. Still the gecko won the
race and since then bad news travels faster
than the good news. Human beings remain
marked by death more than they are marked by
life. The chameleon came too late.
But is it really too late to listen to the
chameleon? FENZA brings the chameleon into
sight: the ambivalent issues of our cultures &
religions, issues which many avoid or even
fear. Like the chameleon much of African
religion has been despised and ignored. Still it
comes back deep down, because its message
of life has not yet been fully heard. African
religion comes back in ever different colours,
adapted to different times and seasons and
backgrounds.
But also other cultures and other religions can
look as strange to us as the chameleon. What
do Christians really know about Islam? The
chameleon does not fit in any of our categories
and reminds us to move beyond our ready
made answers and concepts. We believe that
this strange chameleon brings a message of
life to us if we but tame it.
The chameleon in many African cultures is an
ambivalent animal. Here in Zambia it is often
feared. Some people think it transmits leprosy.
In some church songs it is held in disdain for
failing to show its true colour. It walks forward
and backward at the same time. In some
Zambian myths the chameleon does not lay
eggs like other reptiles, but becomes pregnant
like human beings. The chameleon avoids our
neat categories. It is different.
The chameleon is avoided in Zambia. But it is
not killed. There are ancient stories about the
sacredness of the chameleon, which we find all
over Africa. A Chewa myth tells us that God had
untrusted the chameleon with the message of
life for human beings, while the gecko was sent
out with the message of death. God sent out
the chameleon first, and only after some time
released the gecko. Still the gecko won the
race and since then bad news travels faster
than the good news. Human beings remain
marked by death more than they are marked by
life. The chameleon came too late.
But is it really too late to listen to the
chameleon? FENZA brings the chameleon into
sight: the ambivalent issues of our cultures &
religions, issues which many avoid or even
fear. Like the chameleon much of African
religion has been despised and ignored. Still it
comes back deep down, because its message
of life has not yet been fully heard. African
religion comes back in ever different colours,
adapted to different times and seasons and
backgrounds.
But also other cultures and other religions can
look as strange to us as the chameleon. What
do Christians really know about Islam? The
chameleon does not fit in any of our categories
and reminds us to move beyond our ready
made answers and concepts. We believe that
this strange chameleon brings a message of
life to us if we but tame it.
