But, do followers of Jesus hear the cry?
This month in the theology reading group we discussed My Faith as an African, by Jean-Marc Ela. It was largely written while the author was working as a Catholic priest amongst the Kirdi people in northern Cameroon. It was published in French in 1983 and translated into English in 1985. Ela was particularly concerned about the poverty, hunger, and suffering of the village communities that he was ministering too.
Here, I focus on some broad questions that are raised by my reading of the book, as a WWW (Wealthy White Westerner).
Is Jesus relevant to every context?
Ela and I would both answer yes. But, Ela argues that the Catholic church was not relevant to his context. The everyday life of his congregants was one of a daily struggle for existence, exacerbated by external oppressive forces. The dogmas, catechisms, liturgies, and rituals of the Catholic church were not relevant. They were entrenched in Western culture and thought, and ancient traditions that are alien to Africans. Furthermore, by aligning itself with the powerful and presenting a gospel that focuses on the afterlife, the church is complicit in the oppression of the poor.
Although Ela writes from a Catholic perspective and experience, many African Protestants would agree with his perspective.
Yet, Jesus is a liberator. He identified with the poor, with social outcasts. He suffered with them in his crucifixion and death. Thus, the church needs to change.
Universality vs particularity
This dialectic tension is embodied in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He claims to be the Saviour and King of the whole world and for all time. The Gospel is for all cultures, languages, and ethnicities. Yet, there is the scandal of particularity. God chose a specific people, the Israelites, at a specific time, to reveal Himself, and to use as an instrument to bless all nations. Furthermore, Jesus was a particular man in a particular place, at a particular time. The New Testament writers wrestle with how the church is to express itself in a new cultural context, such as Gentiles across Asia minor. The struggle to balance universality and particularity, and to relate the Gospel to local culture has continued in two thousand years of church history. Ela was at the forefront of that struggle in his own context.
Abstract vs concrete
Western Christianity, both Catholic and Protestant, has delighted in and endlessly divided over abstractions, from the precise wordings of creeds about the nature of the Trinity or the Eucharist, to endless theological -ologies: soteriology, eschatology, ecclesiology, ... The outcomes of these intellectual debates have debatable relevance to concrete situations in everyday life or church life.
There is no connection between these abstractions and the everyday life of an African from a village or a slum.
What about Jesus? His life and teaching was rather earthy. Much of his ministry concerned eating and drinking with people, particularly those on the margins. He did not present abstract doctrines but told stories. His teaching and life were integrated.
Sacred vs secular
Valuing church traditions and abstractions imported from the West at the expense of engaging with local realities is an example of the sacred-secular divide. It values the spiritual and the eternal, liturgy, sacraments, over non-Church activities including temporal and material concerns.
Jesus was certainly concerned about peoples spiritual needs and their eternal destiny. But, Jesus was also concerned with the material needs of the people he encountered, healing and providing food. Furthermore, he urged his followers to provide clothing, food, shelter, hospitality, even just a cup of water, to those in need.
What is the meaning of the Incarnation?
John 1 states that "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us." Emmanuel means "God is with us."
Ela says the church thinks that "The Word became a text." A text is not of much use to illiterate peasants. In contrast, the church, as the Body of Christ, Jesus, the living Word can be present, concrete, empathetic, in solidarity, and relevant to African communities.
What are African realities?
Ela uses the term "African realities" repeatedly. There are many dimensions to this, including the following. Villagers traditionally survived with subsistence farming, growing crops such as millet. They now go hungry as they are forced to grow cash crops such as rice for external markets. The main beneficiaries are multinational companies and African urban elites. Disease and death flourish with access to Western medicine reserved for the urban elites. They are the only people with access to schools and hospitals started by churches to help the poor.
Poverty and suffering have been compounded by the massive migration of people from villages to urban centres, where they now suffer in slums.
Post-independence politics is dominated by corrupt autocracies who use violence to maintain power. Colonialism [oppression by Western rulers] has been replaced with neo-colonialism, the exploitation and oppression of Africans and their land by multinational corporations and national governments.
African traditional religion has been misinterpreted and demonised by Westerners. Rituals that honour ancestors are not idolatry. What about witchcraft? People resort to it due to the irrelevance and the impotence of the church on matters of everyday existence.
What are possible ways forward?
Ela advocates community development. This involves conscientisation, self-determination, and agency. There are similarities to the basic ecclesial communities in Latin America, whose practices were influenced by the ideas of Pablo Freire, author of Pedagogy of the Oppressed.
What is African culture?
Too many people think of African culture in terms of the traditional culture that existed prior to colonisation. That assumes culture is static, rather than dynamic. Ela points out that African culture today is a rapidly changing hybrid, being a mix of traditional and Western culture. This hybrid culture increases alienation and a crisis of identity because of the internal contradictions and unpredictability of such a hybrid.
Ela considers it a mistake to advocate a return to the past traditional culture. This is both impossible and undesirable. Furthermore, many attempts at inculturation, contextualisation, or indigenisation in theology and liturgy are superficial. They merely consist of incorporating traditional songs or dress into worship. Ela sees this as a tool of oppression as it sidesteps the more substantial challenges of the church having a theology, practice, and communities that engage with current African realities.
Are African realities different now?
The book was written almost forty years ago. My limited understanding is that many of the issues discussed in the book are just as relevant today. Perhaps some of the problems are even worse.
How is the book relevant to Western Christians?
Yes. A large fraction of Christians now live in Africa. Westerners need to know their reality, be in solidarity with them, and learn from them. Furthermore, engagement with different cultures and contexts can force us to reflect on our own culture and context and be more self-aware of our own limitations and challenges.
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