Prophecy and Experience: The Dynamics of Nuer Religious Thought in Post-Independence South Sudan

抄録

This article examines how the Nuer people in post-independence South Sudan reinterpret their experiences through past prophecies or kuɔth (divinity), which supports the power of prophecies. The Nuer prophecies, which have been handed down through the generations, are deeply related to the ways that Nuer people cope with new situations such as civil war, development assistance, and national independence. Although most Nuer, including elders, do not know all prophecies, they are told among people based on their personal interests. By referring to two anthropologists, Evans-Pritchard and Lienhardt, this paper explores how the Nuer find their own experiences in the prophecies, focusing on three types of case studies: narratives of prophecy fulfillment; practices where a “church” worships a prophet; and a new prophet that emerged during the 2011 conflicts. These cases show that prophecies which come true and prophets are always judged by people finding an “active subject” (such as kuɔth, Deng, or their ancestors) around themselves or in specific events. Moreover, people who discuss the prophecies by scrutinizing their experiences in relation to active subjects and configurations of experiences start to realize a new realm of being, which can provide them with a way of shaping their own reality.