The Mask of Anarchy: the destruction of Liberia and the religious dimension of an African civil war.(Review) (book review)

STEPHEN ELLIS, The Mask of Anarchy: the destruction of Liberia and the religious dimension of an African civil war. London: Hurst, 1999, 350 pp., ISBN 1 85065 401 8 (hard covers), ISBN 1 85065 417 4 (paperback).

Thought and talk of the devil seem to be on the increase in Africa--rumours and accusations of devil worship, in some instances--and it may be timely to try to situate these developments. The singular devil was an import to Africa, coming with the world religions of Islam and Christianity, part of the spiritual ensemble in either case. Malicious spirits of the village, the ...

Read the rest of this article with a Free Trial at HighBeam Research.