Berkley Center

Even more surprisingly, when I respond that yes, I am a Catholic Christian, I receive a number of suggestions on how to enhance my religious practice: you should be going to church every Sunday, attending daily Mass more often, reading the Bible, saying the rosary, and fasting longer.

I was discussing this phenomenon with a Ghanaian friend, and he suggested that perhaps people were being more direct because I am an American. Many Ghanaians believe that America is not a religious nation. The idea of individuals not identifying with a religion is highly unusual. As a result, many Ghanaians will try to make sure that you’re a Christian, or that you convert if you aren’t one already.

Religiosity is a deep-seated social norm in Ghana. The overtness of the country’s piety has made me reflect on the disparities that exist between Ghana and the United States when it comes to religious expression.

From God’s Gift Shop Bar to Praise the Lord Electronics Shop, religious reminders are everywhere. When religious norms are so openly expressed, one might question whether these are truly faith-based practices, or simply cultural rituals that find their manifestation in religious language. Have followers found their own faith, or have they simply acquiesced to the predominant lifestyle, the fashion of faith?

The element of show in Ghanaian religious practice contributes to this question. Sunday mornings witness a sea of women and men dressed their very best as they make their way to church. Several Ghanaians have actually told me that it can be awkward if you’re caught in public on Sunday morning and it’s obvious that you’re not going to or coming from church.

The means of tithing within churches reinforces the openness of Ghanaians’ religious piety. The Mass I attend here has processions to the front of the church in which congregates make monetary donations, whereas the Masses I go to in the United States typically use a donation basket that can be discretely denied as it’s passed around the pews.

After Mass one day, a student told me about the church’s desperate need for funds, but she also mentioned that the public ceremonial offerings deter some people from attending. She suggested that the pressure to give is even more extreme in other churches, where a public announcement is made each time an individual person donates money.

Religious expression is made manifest in people’s dress, the names of the shops, financial practices, daily routines, common lingo, and various other aspects of everyday Ghanaian life: it’s simply the way things are. Coming from an urban area on the east coast of the United States, I was originally somewhat skeptical of the charismatic Christianity that I’ve witnessed here.

At the same, however, faith is a delicate element of one’s character that ought not be assessed superficially. I have experienced an overflow of the “Christian spirit” of generosity in Ghana. Perhaps I should reevaluate my intuitions, because many Ghanaians are as deeply committed to their faith internally as they are externally.

Maybe the excessive political correctness with which American society approaches questions of faith has diminished people’s ability to display outward shows of religiosity. While America’s religious environment is shaped by a norm of private devotion, Ghana’s is driven by one of charismatic expression: I believe that this is something to be equally admired.