[b] Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi Ojaja II,
has cautioned people to stop misrepresenting
the importance of festivals and dieties
celebrated in the ancient city of Ile-Ife and all
parts of Africa.
Speaking at the 2016 celebration of Oranfe
the god of fire in Ile Ife, Osun state yesterday
Oct. 26th, the Ooni said that some of the
dieties being worshiped in Africa have their
roots in holy books like the Bible and Quran.
He lamented that many people failed to
promote the positive aspects of the yoruba
and African festivals due to slavish mentality
and over-Westernization. According to him,
no human being can survive without what the
dieties represent.
"Our people really need to be enlightened. A
lot of these festivals have been
misconstrued, misrepresented and demonized
as if we are idol worshippers. We are not idol
worshippers. We are rather believers in
nature. I am not saying the commandments
of God should not be adhered to, but we
must know that all these dieties are
messengers of God. They represent nature.
Nothing can be done without nature
regardless of our religion be it Islam or
Christianity or even traditional. We only
honour nature because we are all integra
part of it, and not worship idols. Some of the
dieties we worship have roots in the holy
books. We are also following the instructions
of God needed for the sustenance of mankind
as everybody, including powerful leaders rely
on nature to survive." Ooni Ogunwusi said[/b]