The African Roots of Abrahamic Religions

 

Re-centering Africa in the History of Monotheism

Introduction: Reclaiming a Silenced Geography

Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—collectively known as the Abrahamic religions—are commonly narrated as products of the “Middle East” or the “Near East,” implicitly detached from Africa. This framing obscures a fundamental historical reality: Africa was not peripheral to the emergence of Abrahamic traditions—it was central.

From ancient Egypt (Kemet) and Nubia to Ethiopia (Aksum), North Africa, and the Horn of Africa, African societies shaped the theology, cosmology, institutions, and survival of Abrahamic faiths. The marginalization of Africa in religious historiography is not accidental but reflects colonial-era intellectual biases that systematically removed Africa from the story of civilization.

As theologian John S. Mbiti asserts:

“Christianity is not a foreign religion in Africa; it is as old as Christianity itself.”
— Mbiti, African Religions and Philosophy

This essay examines the African foundations—historical, theological, cultural, and institutional—of the Abrahamic religions.

Ancient Egypt (Kemet) and the Foundations of Monotheistic Thought

Long before the emergence of biblical Israel, ancient Egypt articulated complex theological ideas that profoundly influenced later Abrahamic concepts, including divine unity, moral law, judgment, and afterlife.

The Amarna Revolution under Pharaoh Akhenaten (14th century BCE) introduced a radical form of monotheism centered on Aten. While not identical to later monotheisms, it established the possibility of a singular, universal divine principle.

Egyptologist Jan Assmann notes:

“The idea of a universal god, transcending locality and ethnicity, was first formulated with clarity in ancient Egypt.”
— Assmann, Moses the Egyptian

Core concepts such as Ma’at (cosmic order, justice, truth) closely resemble later biblical emphases on divine law and moral accountability.

Assmann further argues:

“Biblical monotheism did not emerge in a vacuum but was shaped in dialogue with Egyptian religious thought.”

Moses, Egypt, and the African Setting of Exodus

The foundational narrative of Judaism—the Exodus—is explicitly set in Africa. Moses is raised in the Egyptian royal court, educated in Egyptian knowledge systems, and confronts Pharaoh using Egyptian religious symbolism.

The Hebrew Bible itself acknowledges this influence. Acts 7:22 states:

“Moses was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians.”

Biblical scholar Thomas Römer emphasizes:

“The figure of Moses cannot be understood outside the Egyptian cultural and religious world in which the Exodus tradition was formed.”
— Römer, The Invention of God

Thus, Judaism’s formative moment is inseparable from Africa—not merely as backdrop, but as intellectual environment.

Ethiopia, Judaism, and the Solomonic Tradition

Ethiopia represents one of the most enduring intersections between Africa and Abrahamic religion. The Beta Israel (Ethiopian Jews) preserve ancient Judaic traditions that predate many European Jewish communities.

The Ethiopian national epic, the Kebra Nagast, narrates a Solomonic lineage linking King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba—herself an African ruler.

Historian Steven Kaplan writes:

“Ethiopian Judaism developed independently, shaped by local African cultures while preserving ancient Israelite traditions.”
— Kaplan, The Beta Israel

Ethiopia challenges the notion that Judaism was confined to the Levant or Europe, revealing Africa as a co-creator of Jewish religious history.

Africa and the Birth of Christianity

Christianity took root in Africa earlier and more deeply than in most of Europe. Egypt, Nubia, and Ethiopia were among the earliest Christian civilizations.

Egypt and Early Christian Theology

Alexandria became one of Christianity’s most important intellectual centers. African theologians such as Origen, Clement of Alexandria, Athanasius, and Tertullian shaped core doctrines, including the Trinity and Christology.

Church historian Henry Chadwick observes:

“African Christianity was intellectually formative, not derivative.”
— Chadwick, The Early Church

Athanasius of Alexandria was instrumental in defining orthodox Christian belief at the Council of Nicaea (325 CE).

Monasticism: An African Invention

Christian monasticism—often associated with Europe—originated in Egyptian deserts among African ascetics such as Anthony the Great and Pachomius.

Philip Jenkins notes:

“The monastic tradition that reshaped Christianity worldwide began in Africa.”
— Jenkins, The Lost History of Christianity

European Christianity absorbed African spiritual disciplines that became foundational to Christian practice.

Ethiopia and Christianity as State Religion

Ethiopia (Aksum) adopted Christianity in the 4th century CE—before most of Europe. Ethiopian Christianity preserved ancient biblical canons, languages (Ge’ez), and theological traditions often excluded from Western Christianity.

Lamin Sanneh emphasizes:

“African Christianity is not a late arrival but an original witness to the Christian faith.”
— Sanneh, Whose Religion Is Christianity?

Africa and the Early History of Islam

Islam’s earliest history is inseparable from Africa. When early Muslims faced persecution in Mecca, they sought refuge in Aksum (Ethiopia)—an event known as the First Hijra.

The Prophet Muhammad reportedly said:

“Leave the Abyssinians alone so long as they leave you alone.”

Historian Hugh Kennedy explains:

“Africa provided Islam with its first sanctuary and protection.”
— Kennedy, The Great Arab Conquests

Islam spread peacefully across North and East Africa through trade, scholarship, and cultural exchange long before military expansion.

African Islamic Scholarship and Civilization

African centers such as Timbuktu, Gao, Cairo, and Fez became hubs of Islamic learning. Scholars like Ahmad Baba, Ibn Khaldun, and Al-Suyuti—many of African origin—shaped Islamic jurisprudence, historiography, and theology.

Ibn Khaldun famously acknowledged Africa’s intellectual vitality:

“The lands of the Sudan possess civilization and learning.”
— Ibn Khaldun, Muqaddimah

 

Colonial Erasure and the Whitening of Sacred History

European colonialism systematically recast Abrahamic religions as non-African, aligning them with Europe and racialized notions of civilization.

Theologian Kwame Bediako critiques this distortion:

“Christianity was de-Africanized in order to Europeanize it.”
— Bediako, Christianity in Africa

Biblical iconography, theology, and church authority were reshaped to marginalize African contributions.

Restoring Africa to Sacred History

Africa is not a footnote in the story of Abrahamic religions—it is foundational. From Egyptian theology and Ethiopian Judaism to African Christianity and Islamic refuge, Africa shaped monotheism at its deepest levels.

To acknowledge Africa’s role is not ideological revisionism—it is historical correction.

As scholar Ali Mazrui concludes:

“Africa has been both a cradle and a custodian of world religions.”
— Mazrui, The Africans

Restoring Africa to religious history restores historical truth—and challenges narratives that separate faith from the continent that helped birth it.

References

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Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1997.

Assmann, Jan.
The Search for God in Ancient Egypt.
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Bediako, Kwame.
Christianity in Africa: The Renewal of a Non-Western Religion.
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Chadwick, Henry.
The Early Church.
London: Penguin Books, 1993.

Jenkins, Philip.
The Lost History of Christianity: The Thousand-Year Golden Age of the Church in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.
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Kaplan, Steven.
The Beta Israel (Falasha) in Ethiopia: From Earliest Times to the Twentieth Century.
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Kennedy, Hugh.
The Great Arab Conquests: How the Spread of Islam Changed the World We Live In.
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Mbiti, John S.
African Religions and Philosophy.
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Mazrui, Ali A.
The Africans: A Triple Heritage.
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Römer, Thomas.
The Invention of God.
Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2015.

Sanneh, Lamin.
Whose Religion Is Christianity? The Gospel Beyond the West.
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The Holy Bible.
New Revised Standard Version (NRSV).
New York: National Council of Churches, 1989.

Ibn Khaldun.
The Muqaddimah.
Translated by Franz Rosenthal.
Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1967.