The Religions and Philosophy Section of the Institute researches into, and teaches the dynamics of indigenous religious cultures and philosophies in Africa. It looks at how these religions affect the society and how they are affected by the society. It studies religious change focusing on the emergence of foreign religions such as Islam and Christianity and their modes of spread and appropriation in Africa. The section studies how Islam and mainstream Christianity and its offshoots, namely the New Religious Movements (African Independent Churches, Pentecostal and Charismatic churches) impact on the indigenous religions and cultures and vice versa, delineating as well the conflicts and co-existence of religions and cultures in contemporary Africa.
The section also examines religion and philosophy in relation to issues such as culture, development, politics, gender, ethics, health, healing and medicine. As a multidisciplinary section, its approaches reflect the expertise of its faculty, namely sociological, anthropological, philosophical and theological.
Some of the courses currently offered in the section for postgraduate students include:
- African Traditional Religion, Islam and Christianity in Africa,
- Foundations of African Thought and Religion and Politics in Africa.
The section is also involved in the teaching of some courses at the undergraduate level including:
- Culture and Development, African Popular Culture: Traditional Festivals and Funeral Ceremonies and
- Philosophy in African Cultures.
Research Fellows at the section currently are Rev. Dr. Grace Sintim Adasi, Dr. Genevieve Nrenzah, Dr. Stephen Acheampong and Dr. Chika Mba. Currently, fellows are working on various research projects.
The Religions and Philosophy section always looks forward to welcoming prospective students and collaborators both locally and internationally.