Africa Study Bible Sampler - Flipbook - Page 91
90
1964 in what is now the Democratic Republic
of the Congo.
Wave Four: Indigenous Movements,
Pentecostalism, and Post-Independence
The shape of missions changed in 1884–1885
with the Berlin Conference in Germany. At this
meeting, European powers partitioned Africa for
colonization and trade. France was given certain
countries, and King Leopold II of Belgium was
given the Congo, for instance. Europeans justified
their imperialism as being a part of a civilizing
mission to an Africa that they perceived as still
in bondage to the dark past. Africa answered the
challenge of colonialism through the voice of new
prophets like William Wadé Harris of Liberia and
members of the Organization of African Instituted Churches (African initiated churches—AICs)
throughout the continent. These AICs took the
names of Zionist in Southern Africa, Aladura
in West Africa, and Roho movements in Kenya.
When independence dawned in 1960, Christianity
below the Sahara was no longer merely a European import. Christianity in Africa now included
many churches with an African understanding of
Christianity and African ways of worship.
Many of the newly elected presidents of independent African nations had graduated from
missionary schools and were affiliated with
specific Christian denominations. But in spite
of these connections, many ruled in a way that
promoted themselves as saviours of their countries. Many new nations took control of missionary schools, hospitals, and social agencies in the
1960s. Then in the 1970s and 1980s, they staggered under the weight of the obligations they
had taken on. In many cases, African governments that were once critical of the church asked
churches for help in education, medicine, and
nation building. For instance, Ghana’s first president, Kwame Nkrumah, a product of missionary
education, described his movement of political
independence as an alternative to Christianity.
He summarized his thinking by saying, “Seek
first the political kingdom, and all things will be
added unto you.” But his regime disintegrated in
a coup in 1966. Similar upheavals happened to a
number of other African nations. Coup leaders
eventually gave way to multiparty politics. By
the early 1990s, new nations had a new desire
to work with the church.
By the 1990s, charismatic Christianity had
transformed the face of many Christian traditions in Africa. Some new Pentecostal churches
began preaching a message of healing and power.
This message captured not only the poor and
disenchanted but also the young, upwardly mobile urban professional class in Africa’s growing
cities. Today, most Christians in Africa have been
touched in some way by Pentecostal methods
and teaching.
Two significant trends in Christianity in
Africa since independence are first, the emergence of a large African theological fraternity
composed of both Catholics and Protestants
and, second, a new missionary zeal on the part
of the African church. This second trend has
seen African Christians move around the world
in migration and mission. In the early years of
the twenty-first century, the largest church in
England was led by a Nigerian missionary pastor. Similarly, in Kiev, Ukraine, Europe’s largest
church was shepherded by a Nigerian. Churches
like Ghana’s Church of Pentecost and Nigeria’s
Redeemed Christian Church of God have established centres all over the world in a trend
sometimes described as reverse mission. This
new era of African missions is still in its infancy,
but it promises that the story of Christianity in
Africa, begun in a quiet corner of Alexandria,
Egypt in the first century, is now a global movement changing the world.
Points to Remember
• Christianity in Africa dates to the first generation of the church. Any attempt to label Christianity
as a “white man’s” or European religion should be rejected.
• Africans played a crucial role in establishing the doctrines and theology of the early church.
We should stand on their shoulders in the way we seriously study the Bible.
• Praise God for his work across Africa. His Spirit has moved in many different ways: through
African leaders, through foreign missionaries, and through various political movements. We
should rejoice in our diversity and unite around the core doctrines of our shared faith.
• The powerful African church is coming to maturity in the twenty-first century. We should claim
our Christian identity and mission with both boldness and humility—boldness in proclaiming our vibrant faith to the world, and humility in learning from others and working to build
churches on biblical teaching and excellence and integrity in organization and leadership.