Imani Rituals: Nurturing African Spiritual Heritage -- A Conversation with the Authors

Name: Imani Rituals: Nurturing African Spiritual Heritage -- A Conversation with the Authors
Start: 2025-10-15T19:30:00-04:00
Location: 184 S. Candler St. , Decatur, GA, United States, Georgia 30030

Schedule

Wed, 15 Oct, 2025 at 07:30 pm

UTC-04:00

Location

184 S. Candler St. , Decatur, GA, United States, Georgia 30030 | Decatur, GA

This event takes place in person at Charis and on Zoom. This event is free, but registration is required for virtual attendance. Register to attend virtually at the link above. Please read the in-person event guidelines at the bottom of this page to be sure you can participate in the event.
Charis welcomes authors Ayanna Kafi, Dr. Anthony Stringer & Rev. Duncan E. Teague for a discussion of their book Imani Rituals: Nurturing African Spiritual Heritage, a powerful and necessary collection of rituals centering the African American experience and the African Diaspora.
As American society becomes increasingly diverse, people are seeking spiritual inspiration from an expanding array of sources. Unitarian Universalist congregations must be culturally pluralistic to become a religious home to all who cross their threshold. Imani (Swahili for faith) Rituals centers the African American experience and the African Diaspora as the inspiration for rituals to enrich religious and spiritual life for Unitarian Universalists and other liberal denominations.
Intended for individual, family, congregational, and community use, the practices in this book offer a creative and contemporary approach to rituals that are grounded in heritage and tradition, creating connection with ancestors and ancient wisdom while responding to the present moment. The rituals include individual practices to promote transcendence, healing, and acceptance; family rituals that honor elders; and community rituals that honor holidays and promote action for social justice, among many others.
About the Authors
Ayanna Kafi is a neurodivergent, nonbinary, Black woman living in suburban Atlanta. This lifelong UU has taken a winding spiritual path through BIPOC UUism, Earth centered traditions, yogic philosophy, and African diasporic spirituality. On this journey they have been honored to teach preschool, serve as a DRE, the President of DRUUMM, and UUA staff in the office of LGBTQ and Multicultural Ministries. They’re currently enjoying life as a Starr King seminarian and cohabiting in their “dream cottage in the woods” with their partner, young adult, and dog.
Dr. Anthony Stringer is Professor Emeritus at Emory University and a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and the National Academy of Neuropsychology. His award-winning research and teaching have taken him to Ghana, South Africa, and Rwanda. He served as lay minister of the Thurman Hamer Ellington UU congregation that centered the African American experience, creating contemporary rituals grounded in African spirituality.
Rev. Duncan E. Teague is lead minister and founder of the Abundant LUUv Congregation in Atlanta. He is an out, Black, gay man recognized by Georgia legislators for his decades of HIV/AIDS research, education and advocacy. He currently serves as vice-president of the UU Ministers Association. He has worked in global HIV research at Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University. Rev. Teague and his husband/longtime companion of more than thirty years, live in Decatur, Georgia.
Abundant LUUv is a Unitarian Universalism Congregation where you can bring your whole self: your full identity, your questioning mind, your expansive heart. Together, they create a force more powerful than one person or one belief system. As Unitarian Universalists, they do not have to check our personal background and beliefs at the door: they join together on a journey that honors everywhere we’ve been before.
Their beliefs are diverse and inclusive. They have no shared creed. Their shared covenant (seven Principles) supports “the free and responsible search for truth and meaning.” Though Unitarianism and Universalism were both liberal Christian traditions, this responsible search has led Abundant LUUv to embrace diverse teachings from Eastern and Western religions and philosophies.
The event is free and open to all people, but we encourage and appreciate a donation of $5-20 in support of the work of Charis Circle, our programming non-profit. Donate on Crowdcast or via our website: www.chariscircle.org/donate or in person at the event.
Charis Books is a fully wheelchair accessible space with on site van accessible parking, two ramps, and additional overflow accessible parking nearby. Additional accessibility information can be found on the Accessibility page of our website.
In-person event guidelines:
- All attendees must wear a face mask during the event.
- We will begin seating people at 7:00 PM ET.
- This event will be live-streamed via Zoom. Register to attend virtually at the link above.
- As a reminder: If you are not feeling well, please do not come to the event.
If you have any questions regarding these guidelines or to request specific accessibility accommodations, please contact [email protected] or call the store at 404-524-0304.
Please contact us at [email protected] or 404-524-0304 if you would like ASL interpretation at this event. If you would like to watch the event with live AI captions, follow these instructions to turn them on - https://support.zoom.com/hc/en/article?id=zm_kb&sysparm_article=KB0059762. If you have other accessibility needs or if you are someone who has skills in making digital events more accessible please don't hesitate to reach out to [email protected].
By attending our event, whether in person or virtually, you agree to our Code of Conduct: Our event seeks to provide a harassment-free experience for everyone, regardless of gender, gender identity and expression, age, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, ethnicity, religion (or lack thereof), class, or technology choices. We do not tolerate harassment in any form. Unsolicited sexual language and imagery are not appropriate. Anyone violating these rules will be expelled from this event and all future events at the discretion of the organizers. Please report all harassment to Charis staff immediately or email [email protected].