THE FUNCTIONS OF SACRIFICE

To punish a wrongdoer To gain power through sorcery To dedicate some object or place to the jinas Functions of sacrifice in Supyire society not found in Israel Seeking Yahweh for future blessing, or for protection against evil, or for wisdom when confronted with a problem is part and parcel of Israelite religion, and the subject matter of many recorded prayers. However it is not a function of sacrifice, for the concept of a supernatural being responding to a request because he has benefited materially from the sacrifices offered to him is alien to Israelite religion see above, p.95. The following practices found among the Supyire are specifically forbidden to the Israelites in the Pentateuch: 1 Divination Lev 19:26, Deut 18:10, for it is based on the conviction that impersonal fate determines all that happens rather than Yahweh the sovereign God. 304 2 Consulting the spirits of the dead Deut 18:11. This too militates against acknowledging the sovereignty of Yahweh. 3 Magic or sorcery in which the magician tries to compel a divinity or occult forces to work for him Lev 19:26. This contrasts with the humble walk of the believer with his God, characterised by prayer and submission. 4 Punishing wrongdoers, while not expressly prohibited, is seen as the prerogative of Yahweh who says, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay” Deut 32:35. Functions of sacrifice in Israel not found in Supyire society The Supyire do not perform sacrifices to purify themselves or their property from the effects of sin, as they do not share the Levitical concept of sin in terms of it having a polluting effect. 304 Hartley, Leviticus, p.320. Functions common to Israelite and Supyire sacrifice Homage, reconciliation, consecration, reparation and fulfilment of a vow are functions of sacrifice common to both societies. 1 Homage The Israelite year was punctuated by a number of festivals appointed by Yahweh and outlined several times in the Pentateuch Exod 23:14-17; 34:18-26; Lev 23; Num 28-29; Deut 16:1-17. There are a number of similarities between these and the Supyire village festival. They are both community celebrations, when typically no work is done. Sacrifices are offered as gifts in homage to Yahweh for having intervened on behalf of the Israelite people in the past and for providing for their ongoing needs. Similarly, Supyire villages offer homage to the jinas who have helped establish their village and who provide for continuing harvests. As we have seen, the ymlv was a celebration in the presence of Yahweh and during the festival of shelters Israel was commanded to “rejoice before the LORD for seven days” Lev 23:40. In Fassoumana, a village in the north of Supyire territory, the annual festival is called P ›ri. 305 Diarra writes, “It is a festival which seeks to honour the ancestors, invoke the jinas and the sacred forests, to offer sacrifices, to repent: in short to seek the p ›r›mi from the jinas … all activities except commerce come to a halt. It is a time for ‘sacred rest’ … joy, abundance, brotherhood, reunion and reconciliation.” 306 Despite the similarities in the theme of celebration, there are differences of emphases that should be pointed out. For the Israelites the personality and attributes of Yahweh are much more to the fore. It is Yahweh who is the centre of attention, and specific miraculous acts he has performed in the past are brought to mind. The Supyire jinas and ancestors are much more shadowy characters. For a start, there are many of them; there is not one who is in focus for the whole festival week as is the case in e.g. Lev 23:40. Instead, sacrifices will be made to different groups on different days of the festival. They are not named in the prayers, and their actions are recalled, if at all, only in very general terms. The exploits of a living hero are more likely to be recited than those deeds now forgotten in the mists of time. 305 Diarra states that P ›ri is derived from p›r›mi , which means “happiness”: see Diarra, Le Pori, Une Fête Traditionelle en Milieu Senoufo, p.24. 306 Diarra, Le Pori, Une Fête Traditionelle en Milieu Senoufo, p.24 my translation. 2 Reconciliation Both in Israel and in Supyire worldviews, an important function of sacrifice is to restore broken relationships. The relationship between Yahweh and his people was broken by their sin; a holy God cannot dwell in the presence of sin , and God’s wrath was averted by means of sacrifice. For the Supyire, ancestors who for some reason have been offended will take out their anger against the living, and their anger can be appeased by sacrifice. 3 Dedication Tools, musical instruments or a market may be dedicated to a jina by way of a sacrifice. Exod 29:35-36 shows that the tafj has a role to play in the dedication of priests and of the altar in the service of Yahweh. 4 Reparation When Yahweh’s name or property consecrated to him has been violated, there is the need for a reparation offering to restore it to its proper position. This has some parallels with the need in Supyire society to repair the land when it has been spoilt, as the land is seen as something apart and having a special relationship with kile. 5 Fulfilment of a vow When a prayer has been executed, the Supyire will usually be quick to fulfil any vow that they have made in connection with the prayer, for fear of reprisals. The Israelites, too, were expected to fulfil vows to Yahweh: “If you make a vow to the LORD your God, do not be slow to pay for it, for the LORD your God will certainly demand it of you, and you will be guilty of sin” Deut 23:21.

6.2 DIFFERENT IDEAS OF SACRIFICE

We shall now compare and contrast the concepts that under-pin the practices of sacrifice in Israelite and Supyire culture. Similarities : The following ideas are found in both worldviews: 1 A sacrifice may be given individually or communally. In the case of Israel, many sacrifices were offered on behalf of the whole nation, while in Supyire the largest group represented would be an extended family or a village. 2 The presentation of the sacrifice is made through an intermediary. Yahweh designated Aaron and his descendants to be consecrated as his priests for the nation, to represent him to the people and the people to him. Among the Supyire, the suitability to fill an intermediary role in a family is determined by one’s position in relationship with that family. Typically the eldest male fills the role, as he is closest to joining the ancestors. 3 Sacrificing animals is expected to be costly to the person making the offering. In neither society is a wild animal an acceptable sacrifice. Only domestic animals that have been cared for and fed by the individual or his family qualify. The offerer is, in a way, giving of himself. In the procedures for several of the Levitical sacrifices, it is stated that the beast should be unblemished. 4 The life of the animal is substituted for that of the individual. This concept, which is central to substitutionary atonement at the heart of the Old Testament sacrifice, is also found on the periphery of Supyire thought. Erstwhile sacrifice of human life has now been replaced by animal sacrifice see above p.31. 307 5 There are certain dangers involved in dealing with the supernatural realm. As noted above, the Supyire exhibit a certain wariness in relation to supernatural powers see p.53. In Leviticus, those who are ritually unclean are not permitted contact with the holy. For example “if anyone who is unclean eats any of the meat of the fellowship offering belonging to the LORD, that person must be cut off from the people” Lev 7:20. So, for the Israelites, it was important to keep meticulously the instructions Yahweh had given them in relation to sacrifices. The Supyire seek to protect themselves from the potential dangers as best as possible. One old man sacrificing to the ants seen as messengers of the earth gods in order to have good rains, had his fetish with him, in order to keep away any evil that might threaten him by touching the sacrifice. 307 A folk story shows that the idea of substitution is not totally foreign to Senufo culture. In the story, a family suffering from famine cultivated a new field, but as payment to the jinas who occupied the field they had to give a sacrifice which turned out to be a boy. The boy was tied up, but at the last moment the jinas released him and allowed a sheep and a goat to be sacrificed in his place. The story was recounted in 1983 by Yaandurugo, a griot in Burkina Faso who speaks Sicite, whose language and culture is closer to Supyire than any other in the Senufo family.