Religion as a colonial and architectural heritage
In the middle of a traffic circle in the capital, Windhoek, stands the Christ Church, an architectural witness to a colonial era when Namibia was ruled by Germany. Extremely well preserved, the church catches the eye with its red bricks, stone walls and nice rounded white outlines around the windows. It is distinguished by its architecture at the crossroads of Gothic and Art Nouveau styles. If you venture inside, you will see stained glass windows decorated with flowers and geometric patterns in the Jugendstil style, an artistic movement equivalent in Germany to Art Nouveau, a modern art that brings together all the disciplines of the late 19th century. at the time, this Windhoek church was built as a tribute to the German victims who died during the conflicts of the early 20th century between the Germans and the Herero and Nama communities. Although the church is presented as a symbol of peace, we only find the names of the German victims on the bronze memorial plaques. However, the Herero and Nama populations suffered tens of thousands of victims between 1904 and 1908. This tragedy is now recognized as the first genocide of the 20th century. But when the bells of this church are rung, let us remember that on one of them is engraved in bronze: "Friede auf Erden", translated as "Peace on Earth".
Lutheran cities
In the south of Namibia, we arrive in the oldest town in South West Africa known as Lüderitz. Built by German merchants in the past, its Evangelical Lutheran church still stands in the center of the town, like the effigy of the town. A little further up the coast, the small town of Swakopmund, with its well-preserved colonial architecture, is also a Protestant town with a Lutheran church.
Deeply rooted traditional beliefs
Traditional beliefs are sometimes a natural addition to the Christian faith. These beliefs are less recognized and "quantified," but are nevertheless well established. It is estimated that about 20 percent of Namibians remain very faithful to traditional beliefs, which would place animism second only to Christianity. Thus, traditional ceremonies derived from ancestral African mythologies are still very common and have been practiced by a significant portion of the population from generation to generation for thousands of years, especially by the Herero or Himba. Herero, Himba and San are animists. They believe in the spirits that animate the living, the objects or the elements of nature. In Himba villages, the inhabitants are very proud to show where the "sacred fire" is located, a place of worship protected by the fire keeper. The sacred fire plays a central role as it allows communication with the dead and the ancestors. It must never be extinguished, or this would break the relationship between the dead and the living, maintained spiritually by the flames.
