The word sacrifice is defined as the act of giving up one thing for another; destruction or surrender of something valued or desired for the sake of a higher object or more pressing claim. This word can also used to describe selfless good deeds for others or a short-term loss in return for a greater gain. While the word sacrifice often implies ritual killing, it also implies the offering of cereal food, fruits, artifacts, clothing or liquids. It can also be use for doing without something or giving something up.

The offering of sacrifices is common in most religious practices. Anything of value may be a sacrifice, up to and including the lives of animals or people. Generally, the more valuable the sacrifice, the more effectual it is thought to be, but the more difficult it is to make. Back in Bible times during the sacrificial dispensation, you could know a lot about what was happening in people’s lives by observing what sacrifices they brought to the temple.

The concept of sacrifices is somewhat confused in Islam. Though many Islamic scholars say Islam condemns offering of sacrifices, yet sacrifices remain routine and widespread in the worship of Allah. In Arabic, qurbani is the general term used for Islamic animal sacrifice, and dhabiha is the specific term used for ritual sacrifice during the Islamic festival of sacrifice, Eid al-Adha. Animals such as sheep, goats, camels or cows may be sacrificed. Most Islamic festivities I have witnessed have ended with an animal sacrifice. For example, at the end of Ramadan each year, a ram is sacrificed. There is also the Tabaski, a yearly Islamic feast where Muslims the world over remember Abraham’s sacrifice on Mount Moriah, which they believe was the offering of Ishmael, not Isaac. Every father in every family must buy a sheep, goat, camel or a cow to sacrifice.

Our Susu people group is primarily animist. Animism runs through every fiber of their culture. They believe many ghosts, spirits and gods inhabit their world and that witches have the power to transform into harmful animals. Today, the Susu syncretize Animism with any other religion they practice.

For animist Muslims, sacrifice is a means to manipulate Allah. If you were to walk through the neighborhoods in our little town in Guinea in the early morning, you would see many sacrifices, usually at road intersections, though you might at first think they are just random garbage. If you see broken eggs or cut-open green papayas, it means someone has found out in a dream or from a charlatan that people are conspiring against them. An old shoe and/or a piece of clothing is a sacrifice to prevent a sickness predicted by a dream or a charlatan. Candy, sugar cubes or anything sweet mixed with grain is a sacrifice to bring luck or favor.

These are just a few of the sacrifices people leave by the roads in Guinea, and each has a different meaning. Though I grew up in this worldview, I still don’t know the meanings of all the sacrifices. I have watched my grandmother offer these sacrifices, and I even offered them myself before coming to Christ.

As we make disciples of the Susu people of Guinea, we must teach them that Jehovah cannot be manipulated. He takes no pleasure in our sacrifices, only in our love and obedience. When we give our hearts to Him, we have nothing to fear. The psalmist says, “The Lord is the light of my salvation. Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for thou art with me” (Ps. 27:1; 23:4). He has promised to be with us always if we trust in Him as a child trusts his father. There is no need for ritual sacrifices.

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