Women of Reverence would like to thank Maureen Le Roux for her book Review.
Ancestral worship is seen by many Black people as the fabric of the African people. It is seen as part of culture. The deceased are viewed as part of the living and the sacred connection to God. When a woman is said to have “a calling” in African traditional religion she is seen as one who is blessed to have a direct access to the ancestors — something that many who believe in the practice view in high regard.
When one who has been given this sacred gift goes and abandons it, she is frowned upon and such an act is seen as betraying her people; betraying her family and rejecting her calling.
In her book Called Out, Mpho Thulo shares how, in her childhood, she suffered from many sicknesses that could not be diagnosed; her experiences as a trainee inyanga, (traditional healer also known as Isangoma or umprofeti) and how God miraculously delivered her and gave her new freedom in Christ.
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Tell us about yourself
I am a wife to Kenny to Le Roux for 40 years this year, a mom to two adult sons Justin and Timothy and a grandmother to Cody who is 21 months and then to twins coming in April.
We are part of Venture Church in Johannesburg and in 2020 due to the Covid-19 restrictions, I launched an online ministry on Biblical Dream Interpretation (To view this site click here.), to help others understand their dreams and how to interpret their dreams for themselves.
In my spare time I love scrapbooking, movies, books and new experiences.
What drew you to read this book.
Definitely the title! “Called Out – from Divination to Divine Encounter” hints at destiny in our lives and I love anything to do with Destiny and spiritual encounters we have along the way!
What impact did this book have
It surprised me when I began reading it and discovered it was the author’s testimony on how she was set free from an ancestral worship culture and ‘calling’ to be a traditional healer. I wondered what this has to do with me - a white woman - but as I followed her journey, I was profoundly impacted by the little nuggets of truth scattered throughout the book to help the reader in their own journey to knowing Jesus and His plan for their lives.
Mpho Thulo succeeds in opening the curtains to a belief system so prevalent on our continent of Africa, that is shrouded in mysticism and deception and presented as ‘truth’ to its many followers. What you discover in the pages of this book is an “amazing story of redemption and freedom from the bondage of ancestral worship, coupled with God’s amazing goodness and grace” to quote Titch Wild – Link FM manager and Radio Show Host in his recommendation for the book.
In a paragraph what is the main point
This book is about freedom we can have in Jesus Christ through choices we make. There is no power stronger than Jesus and the testimony of the author of how she was able to walk away from her traditions and pressure from her family and friends to become a traditional healer, illustrates the grace and love of a God who pursued her and drew her into a life HE had originally planned for her. In this, she gives the reader a hope that they too can find freedom from the strongholds of their traditions. In the words of the Mpho Thulo “God has placed a calling in every soul”.
It tells the story of the struggles she went through to find freedom and how God directed her every step of the way, revealing the truth of His Word. “My roots surpass the natural realm and have its foundation in God” is one of the truths she discovered in Jeremiah 1v5 that helped her turn her back on her tradition and embrace her calling outside of her culture or ethnicity.
Who would benefit from it
Not only those who find themselves in the same position as Mpho Thulo, being drawn into a tradition that pulls them away from God and His Word, but also those who are dependent on their ancestors for guidance. Those folks who say they are Christians but still seek the counsel of the apaphantsi (ancestors who are believed to be mediators between the person and God) or the abogogo (passed relatives dead spirits believed to be spiritual mediators) need to read this book to discover what it does to their relationship with Jesus and the spiritual death it exposes them to.
Mpho Thulo refutes the traditions and ancestral worship with the Word of God throughout the book and ends with a solid Bible study for those who have come out into freedom and need to establish themselves on the truth of the Word.
Star Rating
