ABSTRACT Spiritual and divine authorities play a prominent role in mobilizing armed violence. This article provides a micro-history of a contemporary Nuer prophetess (guan kuoth) in South Sudan who mobilized hundreds of armed men including in support of current anti-government rebellions. The article grapples with apparent paradoxes in her approach to kume (a broadly defined notion of government) and customary law. This prophetess rejects logics of authority associated with the kume. At the same time, she champions the continuity of the language and imaginaries of customary authority that are deeply associated with government registers of authority in this context. The article argues that at the heart of the prophetess’s approach is her attempt to overturn historic government initiatives that separated the political and religious nature of institutions, and to assert that governance without government is possible. Previous attempts to govern without the divine have interrupted the customary law’s ability to offer healing including from the spiritual and physical dangers of killing. Her ability to mobilize people to arms is partly based on political claims to reconstitute the divine authority behind the customary law.

中文翻译：

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政治，先知和武装动员：南苏丹冲突中关于权力登记册的竞争和连续性

摘要精神和神圣权威在动员武装暴力方面发挥着重要作用。这篇文章提供了南苏丹当代努尔先知（guan kuoth）的微观历史，努尔先知动员了数百名武装人员，包括支持目前的反政府叛乱。这篇文章在她对久米（广义的政府概念）和习惯法的处理方法中存在明显的悖论。先知拒绝了与久米有关的权威逻辑。同时，她主张在这种情况下与政府权力登记簿密切相关的习惯授权的语言和虚构的连续性。这篇文章认为，先知的方法的核心是她试图推翻历史性的，将机构的政治和宗教性质分开的政府举措，并断言没有政府的治理是可能的。先前没有神的统治的尝试中断了习惯法提供医治的能力，包括杀戮的精神和身体危险。她动员人民武装的能力部分基于政治主张，以重建习惯法背后的神圣权威。