CATHOLIC MISSIONS IN THE TOWN OF SODO: A STUDY OF ACTIVITES OF MISSIONS AND LOCAL CONVERTES

Abstract Attempts have been made to study various socio-economic, cultural and religious aspects of the Wolaitta people by local and expatriate scholars. However there are no detail studies on when and how Catholic mission entered in the area and influenced societal life. Therefore, this work attempts to examine thoroughly about the Historical developments of Catholicism among Wolaitta and changes that occurred on the overall life of the people following the arrival and expansion of Catholicism. Using qualitative paradigm, the study was conducted employing two methods of collecting and analyzing historical sources. Interview was the basic method employed to obtain data from for this research complemented by observation. Informants consulted were elders, and religious men (catechists, abbas, and pastors) possessing deep knowledge on the issue. Published and unpublished materials like (articles, thesis, dissertation, journals and books) and etc…. have been utilized. They have been obtained from Addis Ababa University’s IES and Hawassa and Wolaitta Soddo University. The dearth and lack of archival sources was a great challenge in the reconstruction of this thesis. However, this thesis attempts to document the arrival of Catholicism, its expansion and the process of conversion of the people. Catholic missionary expanded in the area by giving the multi-purpose social service, employing the strategy of donation and preaching. Accordingly, low economic status, active involvement of missionaries in evangelization, government policies like military recruitment and villegization led to mass conversion of the people; mainly the young generation. The mass conversion overflowed indigenous belief system and sacraments are performed by Catholics on the basis of Christian orientation. Therefore, the indigenous culture is highly eroded in many aspects. In general, it is possible to see the impact of Catholicism on the Wolaitta people in two ways. In one way it brought a negative impact which became a factor for the decline of Indigenous culture of the Wolaitta people while, the positive impacts were closely linked with avoiding harmful practices through traditional religion and in fulfilling modern public services such as education, health care, and soon for the society.