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In this Lavender Lunch Ọyasùúrù Ifáwárìnwa, an Iyanifa (an initiated IFA priest), discusses understandings of sexuality, gender, and play in Ifá, a Yoruba religion. Drawing upon the ancient and vibrant proverbs, poems, and stories of the Ifá tradition, Ọyasùúrù Ifáwárìnwa will explore some of the ways in which gender, sexuality, and play interact in this ancient, rich, and living religious tradition.
Ọyasùúrù Ifáwárìnwa
Ọyasùúrù Ifáwárìnwa is currently an MDiv student at Pacific School of Religion and an IFÁ/Òrìṣà Religion Diploma candidate at IFÁ University in Alexandria, Virginia. With undergraduate degrees in education and psychology from Cleveland State University, Ọyasùúrù Ifáwárìnwa also earned the JD degree from Cleveland-Marshall College of Law and is a member of the Ohio Bar.
An At-Large Delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 2008, Ọyasùúrù Ifáwárìnwa has worked for a variety of organizations over the years, including the Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund; the Ohio Civil Rights Commission; the Cleveland Tenants Organization; and the Center for Constitutional Rights; and the NAACP.
Ọyasùúrù Ifáwárìnwa is an out lesbian, spouse, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother who has written for many publications, including The Advocate; The Berkeley Journal of Religion and Theology; The Counselor; and The Journal of Gender and the Law.
SUGGESTED READING
- Drewal, Margaret Thompson. Yoruba Ritual: Performers, Play, Agency (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1992): 172-190. Click HERE for this reading.
Ifa diviner’s skirt. Yoruba male artist. Nigeria: 19th-20th-century. Princeton University Museum of Art:1998-735. Bequest of John B. Elliott, Class of 1951. In Public Domain.