Originally, They come from Burkina Faso and before that, Mali. They migrated into Benin sometime in the past thousand years. Their tribal languages are similar, part of the same Niger-Congo language family. Who are these people? They are the Anufo, Berba, Gourmantche, Niende/Mbèlime, Natemba and Bulba—the six tribes Fidel and I will begin working among in the near future.
These tribes live in an area of northern Benin centered around a triangle of three towns interspersed with small villages. None of these tribes are yet reached. None of the tribe members are Adventist Christians, and there is no other outreach work among them.
These tribes are mostly animistic, worshiping a sun god through the mediation of fetishes and ancestral spirits—demons in disguise. When people want something, they make sacrifices to ancestors or fetishes who take their request to the sun god. Also, these demons frequently demand sacrifices for themselves.
When bad things start happening to a family, they go to a spirit medium. He taps a stick on the ground to invite spirits to speak through him and tell the family what to do. Maybe a deceased great-great grandfather is feeling neglected and wants a sacrifice so he can “eat meat.” In tribal beliefs, dead relatives can be very demanding and often drive their families into poverty. Satan has these poor people so firmly under his control that they know no other option but to obey, or he will bring even more evil upon them. The details of this belief system vary for each of the six tribes, but they all suffer equally under demonic bondage. These people need to know about the one true God who is far stronger than their fetishes and ancestral spirits.
When Fidel and I married, we both felt God calling us to move 50 km north of the Otammari Project and start a new work for these unreached tribes. Please join us in praying for these people and for the start of our new project. Also prayerfully consider joining us financially in this new adventure with God.
