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Divination in 1 Samuel 28 and Beyond: an African Study in the Politics of Translation

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University of Denver Digital Commons @ DU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Graduate Studies 1-1-2010 Divination in 1 Samuel 28 and Beyond: An African Study in the Politics of Translation J.Kabamba Kiboko University of Denver Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd Part of the Biblical Studies Commons, and the Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons Recommended Citation Kiboko, J.Kabamba, "Divination in 1 Samuel 28 and Beyond: An African Study in the Politics of Translation" (2010). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 846. https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd/846 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Studies at Digital Commons @ DU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ DU. For more information, please contact [email protected],[email protected]. DIVINATION IN 1 SAMUEL 28 AND BEYOND: AN AFRICAN STUDY IN THE POLITICS OF TRANSLATION __________ A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of The University of Denver and the Iliff School of Theology Joint PhD Program __________ In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy __________ by J. Kabamba Kiboko March 2010 Advisor: Dr. Gregory A. Robbins © Copyright by J. Kabamba Kiboko 2010 All Rights Reserved Author: J. Kabamba Kiboko Title: DIVINATION IN 1 SAMUEL 28 AND BEYOND: AN AFRICAN STUDY IN THE POLITICS OF TRANSLATION Advisor: Dr. Gregory A. Robbins Degree Date: March 2010 ABSTRACT This dissertation examines the language of divination in the HB, particularly in 1 Samuel 28:3-27—the oft-called “Witch of Endor” passage. My thesis is that much of the vocabulary of divination in this passage and beyond has been mistranslated in authorized English and other translations used in Africa and in scholarly writings. I argue that the woman of Endor is not a witch, which is a label that has a long negative social history and has often led to violence against those so labeled. The woman of Endor is, rather, a diviner, much like other ancient Near Eastern and modern African diviners. She resists an inner-biblical conquest theology and a monologic authoritarian view of divination to assist King Saul by various means, including invoking the spirit of a departed person, Samuel. I suggest that the violence done to the woman of Endor through such mistranslation stems from ideological forces that have been in ascendancy during such periods of translation. These ideological forces have attempted to exert an extra-biblical monologic authoritarian view of divination in the HB in order to serve their own Christian, imperial-colonial, and misogynist interests, all of which have been particularly problematic in the African missionary context. Translators steeped in such ideology, whether consciously or unconsciously, mistranslated what is fundamentally a heteroglossic, polyvalent, dialogic text that seeks to undermine any authoritarian voices in regard to divination. ii To demonstrate my thesis, I carry out a Hebrew word-study shaped by the theories of Mikhail M. Bakhtin regarding the utterance, heteroglossia, and dialogism in order to understand the designative, connotative, emotive, and associative meanings of the many divinatory terms in the Hebrew Bible. I then examine 1 Samuel 28 and a number of prior translations thereof, using the ideological framework of African- feminist-postcolonial biblical interpreters and translation theories to uncover the hidden ideology or transcript of these translations. Finally, using African contextual / cultural hermeneutics and cross-cultural translation theory, I offer new English, French, and Kisanga translations of this passage that are both faithful to the original text and more appropriate to an inculturated-liberation African Christian hermeneutic, theology, and praxis. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This dissertation would not have been possible were it not for the support, guidance, and encouragement of many. I am grateful to the faculties and staffs of the University of Denver and the Iliff School of Theology for the valuable support that led to the completion of this dissertation. I am indebted to my dissertation chair, Dr. Gregory A. Robbins for his expertise and his acceptance while hearing an unfamiliar voice reading this biblical narrative. I also appreciate the contributions of my dissertation committee, Drs. George E. Tinker, Allison Schofield, and Leo Perdue. I am grateful to Ms. Katie Fisher of Taylor Library who always mailed me books in speedy fashion. Friends, colleagues, church, and family also supported me faithfully through the project’s end. Among my many faithful friends and colleagues, I thank particularly Dr. F. Rachel Magdalene for her constant academic pruning of me, and Rev. Dr. Charles and Patricia Mehaffey for being our angels. I am indebted to them in more ways than they can know. Further, without the support of the United Methodist Church, I never would have made it this far. I am especially thankful to Bishop Katembo Kainda of the Southern Congo /Zambia Episcopal Area for believing in me. My family has been a strong support system. As I am vision impaired, my husband, Kalamba Kilumba, and my children, Dyese K. Kilumba and Tasha Pendergast-Kiboko, read to me, typed for me, and traveled many highways to acquire research materials for me. To my brothers and their families, I say thank you. Finally, to my late parents, thank you for teaching me about endurance. Thank you, Father, for asking me to get a Ph.D. and to be the first female in our village to do so. I did it, Father, as God is always faithful and able! To my late parents and to God, this dissertation is dedicated. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Prologue: A Man-Woman from the Disanga Reads the Bible from a Post- Colonial Place 1 Chapter One: Introduction: Translating Divination and Crossing the Disanga of Life and the Beyond 36 Exploring the Terrain of the Project 40 The Textual Streams of the Project 68 The Methodological Transports of the Project 71 The Riches to be Gained from the Project 82 Charting the Course of the Project 83 Chapter Two: Cross-Dressing Method: Translation at the Disanga of Theory 85 A Brief Introduction to Biblical Translation Theory, Methods, and Goals 86 Understanding the Hebrew Text through a Bakhtinian Word Study 94 Unmasking Ideology in Translation through Ideological Criticism 115 Making an African Feminist Translation through African Contextual / Cultural Hermeneutics and Cross-Cultural Translation Theory 125 Chapter Three: Locating a Path through the Jungle of Divination: Divination, Witchcraft, and Ideology in the Ancient Near East, Europe, and Africa 134 Divination and Witchcraft in the Ancient Near East 135 Magic, Divination, and Witchcraft in Christian Europe 187 Divination and Witchcraft in the Context of the Basanga Way of Life 203 Chapter Four: Crossing the Disanga of Life and Beyond in the Hebrew Bible: A Bakhtinian Word Study of the Language of Divination 224 Part I 232 The Rituals: #$)b wtbw‐wnb ryb(m 232 The Diviners: Mymsq Msq, Nnw(m, #$xnm, P#$km, and rbx rbx 239 The Thaumaturgic Procedures: Mytmh‐l) #$rd and yn(dyw bw) l)# 288 Part II 290 The Intermediaries: bw), bw)‐tl(b t#$), and Myhl) 290 v Part III 316 A Bonus: Mkx and Its Function 316 A Bakhtinan Summary 322 Chapter Five: The Literary Context: Reading 1 Samuel 28 through a Feminist Musanga Contextual / Cultural Lens 327 Chapter Six: 1 Samuel 28 at the Disanga: Three Inculturated-Liberation Translations for the African Church 367 An English Translation 367 A French Translation 367 A Kisanga Translation 367 Chapter Seven: Meeting at the Disanga of Divination: Conclusions and Implications 373 Epilogue: Lessons Learned at the Disanga 382 Bibliography 388 Appendix A: A Catalogue of bw) and Related Vocabulary of Divination in the Hebrew Bible, KJV, RSV, and NRSV A-1 1. bw) and yn(dy A-1 1.1. bw) and yn(dy in the Torah A-1 1.2. bw) and yn(dy in the Prophetic Material A-2 1.3. bw) in the Prophetic Material A-5 1.4. bw) and yn(dy in the Writings A-6 1.5 bw) in the Writings A-6 2. Msq A-7 2.1 Msq in the Torah A-7 2.2 Msq in the Prophetic Material A-8 2.3 Msq in the Writings A-16 3. #$xn A-16 3.1 #$xn in the Torah A-16 3.2 #$xn in the Prophetic Material A-18 3.3 #$xn in the Writings A-19 4. Nnw(m A-20 4.1 Nnw(m in the Torah A-20 4.2 Nnw(m in Prophetic Material A-21 5. P#$k A-22 5.1 P#$$k in the Torah A-22 vi 5.2 P#$$k in the Prophetic Material A-23 5.3 P#$k in the Writings A-26 6. #$)b wtbw‐wnb ryb(m A-26 6.1 #$)b wtbw‐wnb ryb(m in the Torah A-27 6.2 #$)b wtbw‐wnb ryb(m in the Prophetic Material A-27 7. rbx rbx A-28 7.1 rbx rbx in the Torah A-28 7.2 rbx rbx in the Prophetic Material A-28 7.3 rbx rbx in the Writings A-29 8. yn(dyw bw) l)#$ A-29 8.1 yn(dyw bw) l)#$ in the Hebrew Bible A-29 9. Mytmh‐l) #$rd A-30 9.1 Mytmh‐l) #$rd in the Hebrew Bible A-30 10. Mkx A-30 10.1. Mkx in the Torah A-30 10.2 Mkx in the Prophetic Material A-31 10.3 Mkx in the Writings A-34 Appendix B: An English Translation of the LSG and English and French Translations of the Kisanga B-1 1.
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