Enshrining the Message: A Comparative Study of the Translatability of Islam and Christianity through Two West African Pilgrimage Traditions

Abstract

This dissertation undertakes a comparative assessment of the translatability of Islam and Christianity in Senegal by studying two pilgrimages, one Muslim, the other Catholic. The Muslim pilgrimage practice under consideration is the Grand Magal of Touba, the annual festival of the Murid Brotherhood, which takes place every year on 18 Safar. The Catholic pilgrimage practice studied here is the Marian pilgrimage to Notre Dame de la Délivrande in Poponguine, which takes place every year on Pentecost Monday. Three main features of these pilgrimages are assessed, namely, narrative, sacred space, and ritual. The dissertation shows that these pilgrimages foster the enshrinement of Islam and Christianity in Senegal, and their comparison brings to the fore similarities and differences that offer lessons germane to the understanding of the processes through which Islam and Christianity have become “African religions.”