Sociology and Anthropology 3(4): 240-250, 2015 http://www.hrpub.org DOI: 10.13189/sa.2015.030405 The Cultural View of the Luo People of Western (Kenya) on Widow Care and the Biblical Approach 1,* 2 3 Miruka Philip , Nathan Joshua , Jack Obongo 1Department of Theology, Faculty of Arts and Science, Great Lakes University of Kisumu,(GLUK), Kenya 2Department of Biblical Studies, African International University, Kenya 3Department of Theology/Sociology, Faculty of Arts and Science, Great Lakes University of Kisumu,(GLUK), Kenya Copyright © 2015 Horizon Research Publishing All rights reserved. Abstract Widow Care plays a central role in the luo where her husband’s family is located. Among the Luo culture, this is because marriage was treated with a lot of people inheritance and residence are also centered on the respect and therefore whenever one’s spouse died then the male lineage and so men are the major decision makers and cultural norms and procedures of widow care was launched. controllers of wealth and power. Therefore, upon marriage If the woman whose husband has died was married legally husbands and families give bride wealth for the reproductive according to the Luo Cultural norms whereby the bride- capabilities of women. This makes marriage to be considered price was paid to her parents then, she is accepted within the actualized when the woman relocates to a geographical place family of the deceased husband and if she was not, then she of residence which is agreeable to the man. Ayayo asserts, “it might be forced to return to her parent’s home. Some of these is therefore a common saying in the luo [sic] that marriages cultural norms have been misused in the past years whereby is not a mutual affair: the man marries the woman and the the context of widow care has been misunderstood. In woman gets married to the man in reference to the idea of several occasions widows have been exploited and their lives relocation of the woman”1. Virtually all power lies in the threatened by deadly diseases such as HIV infections in the hands of the elderly males. This confirms the power of name of Widow Care. Wife Inheritance which was a culture in terms of marriage among the Luo people. In custom practiced by the luo people of western Kenya in the circumstances when death of a spouse occurs, an name of widow care dictates that "if a man dies, one of his investigation is launched to confirm if the two were indeed brothers or close relatives inherits his widow and must meet properly married. The use of bride wealth in marriage is a all of her marital requirements. It is for these reasons why the common practice in the Luo community. However, it is not study was conducted to help bring proper understanding of only among the Luo where levirate was practiced but it was Widow Care among the luo people. Widows are also also found in other communities in Africa. Ojwang affirms, confronted with various challenges which include: Burden of “It is noteworthy that most patrilineal communities in Africa raising their children, economic exploitation, and denial of practice or used to practice levirate”2. These communities rights to remarry men of their choice, fear of include: Igbo people of southeastern Nigeria, Somali excommunication and lack of mutual respect. The study communities, Maragoli of western Kenya and Dinka of south conducted among the evangelical five churches and its Sudan. The social aspect of the cultural practice of widow is environs in central lake region-Kisumu County which approached from the biblical point of view and this does not revealed that many Luo Widows are still in a state of mean that the present stand of the old tradition of luo practice dilemma as to whether to continue with the traditional should be abolished. The purpose is however to call the luo practice of widow Care or to abandon it completely. The women to be autonomous in terms of making constructive bible clearly outlines how widow Care should be practiced. decision for their well-being in the community. Both the Old Testament and the New Testament confirms how widow care Keywords Cultural, Mutual, Dilemma, Launched can be practiced in line with the scripture. 2. Rationale of the Study 1. Introduction Widowhood practices are closely tied to cultural and traditional beliefs about death, ghosts, inheritance, feminine Luo culture is patrilineal in the sense that life is centered roles, family structure and family relationship. The on the male lineage. Upon marriage, a woman moves to overpowering belief in the ability of the ghost of a dead Sociology and Anthropology 3(4): 240-250, 2015 241 person to come back to dispute and haunt all kinds of things descriptive survey. Kombo affirms that, “research design is and relatives has reinforced and perpetuated the age-old an arrangement or conditions for collection and analysis of practices of widowhood in western Kenya. Sossou argues, data in a manner that aims to combine relevance with the “The belief that death brings corruption and the dead still purpose”5. The survey was used to collect information from have contact with the living, especially their closest partners the respondents by interviewing through structured in life, is one of the reasons used for subjecting widows to questionnaires, oral interviews and through unstructured inhuman and humiliating customary practices”3. The questionnaires, observations and focused group discussions. satisfactory completion of these ceremonies, rituals and The information were collected from the respondents on the practices is therefore believed to help restore the balance and challenges facing widows, negative and positive effects of security which death had sought to overthrow. The people the cultural practice of widow care, the value of the practice due to superstitious beliefs, rationalize these practices with to the luo-community, church involvement in supporting the argument that they perform important functions such as widows, church response to the cultural practice and how giving the widows protection from their powerful deceased best the practice can done without interfering with the husband with the intention of exploiting them and bringing widows. down their self-esteem in the society. Ntozi asserts, “Through ter (culturally sanctioned remarriage), as a Luo Sampling Techniques cultural practice, a male relative of the deceased takes over The purposive sampling was used because the study the guardianship of the deceased’s family including the wife, targeted specific group of people such as the traditional and so that the deceased’s inherited property stays in the family”4. Christian luo-widows, elders in the church and traditional The study therefore is not to abolish the present and the old luo-elders and Pastors from the church. The widows were tradition of the luo-practice of widow care but to identify purposively interviewed because they were directly affected. some of the amicable ways by which widow care can be The survey showed that there were a total of fifty (50) practiced without interfering with the well-being and family Christian widows in the five (5) studied evangelical churches, structure of the widow. this is because each of the five churches had at least ten (10). The traditional elders and widows were purposively interviewed because it was believed that they have an 3. Study Objectives in-depth understanding of the luo-cultural practice of widow care. The Christian elders were interviewed for they had the To find out the Luo Cultural practices on widow care and concept of what the bible say about the practice and finally establish the biblical teachings on the practice. the Pastor were purposively sample (5) because they fully understand the bible teachings on widow care. Out of fifty (50) Christian widows only twenty-five (25) were sampled 4. Methodology for interview this equivalent to fifty percent (50%). The widows in the welfare Association were seventy (70) out of Study population this forty (40) were sampled for interview and this was The five (5) evangelical churches studied had a population equivalent to fifty-seven percent (57%). The traditional of approximately five hundred (500) members, the widows widows were twenty (20) all of them were interviewed this from three widows welfare Association in the area were sixty total to one-hundred percent (100%). Out of fifty elders in (70) and the widows from the surrounding vicinity were the church only twenty-five (25) were sampled this is twenty (20) whereas the traditional elders who were not equivalent to fifty percent (50%). Fifteen traditional elders attached to any church were fifteen (15). The respondents (15) were all sampled for the interview this was converted to involved in the study were traditional luo-widows who a hundred percent (100%). Five (5) medical practitioners strongly support the cultural practice of widow care, widows from the heath-care centres and clinics were sampled for and elders within the church and traditional luo-elders who interview because they considered instrumental in advising support the cultural practice and the five medical-health the widows on how to practice good sexual behavior when workers (officers) from the region. they are confronted by beliefs and rituals that pertains to the cultural practice of widow care. The overall sample size of Study Area the total respondents sampled for the interview were The study was conducted in central lake region in Kisumu one-hundred and twenty (125). County, this is one of the areas where the practice is predominant and that many of the evangelical churches and a Data Collection and Analysis number of widows associations are available. The region The study developed from the population from three consists of over twenty churches and ten (10) widow’s widow’s welfare association, medical-health workers welfare Association and few health-care centres and clinics.