The Church in Africa
We get a lot of questions from people in Africa, and it didn’t take long in this job before I realized there was a cultural difference that kept me from understanding exactly how to answer. Recently I became aware of a documentary on churches in Ghana and Zimbabwe called African Christianity Rising. Several churches, from Roman Catholic to independent Zion, are profiled, and the leadership interviewed. The video is quite limited, though. For instance, we don’t find out what the churches preach about salvation or tithing. Still, there are some interesting things in here that may help when you get questions from Africa.
Deliverance Ministries
Every, every, every church, from Roman Catholic to independent Zion, has a deliverance ministry. It’s a given. There is too much demonic activity and possession to ignore.
Many churches straight-up say that any issue with relationships, jobs, poverty, health, fertility—anything—is caused by evil spirits that must be cast out. This is usually done with fervent prayer, laying on of hands, tongues, and being slain in the spirit. Jesus is praised as the deliverer who will take away every hardship. But how the deliverance ministry is used and viewed depends on the background experiences of the individual:
A 19-year old woman came to a pastor, saying that her family members said she couldn’t find work because malicious family spirits were plaguing her. The pastor said it had nothing to do with spirits—the economy was difficult for everyone. But when he took her to the prayer ministry team, they prayed as if she had a demon. When she left, she said she felt better just knowing someone cared enough to pray for her.
A young woman who had been estranged from her mother since she was 11 was going through pre-marital counseling. When the pastor found out about her relationship with her mother, he invited her to a session. The mother was convinced the girl had a spirit of hostility against her. The young woman thought she was just mad because her mom forced her to live with her father. The pastor agreed with the young woman. They did reconcile; the young woman talked about how God taught her forgiveness.
A rural church was well-known for its deliverance ministry, but they were quite practical about it. If someone came with a physical ailment, church leadership sent them to a doctor. Before prayer, each petitioner was interviewed; questions included what the problem was, when it started, and if the petitioner had seen a witch doctor. Prayer, as in many churches, was very vigorous, and often ended with the petitioner sprawled on the ground.
It would appear that deliverance ministries attract people who need help to the church. Prayer warriors pray away the evil spirits and encourage the petitioner to stay to hear the Bible and often receive practical help from the church.
I can’t say how many exorcisms are legitimate (at least one in the video certainly seemed to be!) and how many are some form of ecstatic experience. We don’t have enough knowledge to say whether a particular ministry is seeing legitimate healings, but we’d do well to point people to the gospel at every turn. Just because the room is swept out, doesn’t mean it can’t be filled again.
African Theology
Perhaps because demonic activity is so rampant and because so many parishioners’ initial experience with the church is for help with practical needs that demons influence, there is a strange syncretic element to many of the churches. The Catholic bishop saw no difference between ancestor adoration and praying to the saints. The Zionist prophetess/healer was nearly indistinguishable from the witch doctor, except she claimed her power came from the God of the Bible and she didn’t sacrifice a chicken. A rural pastor was invited to pray over the regional king’s counsel—shortly before the counsel poured out drink offerings for the local spirits. People are well aware that evil spirits cause harm, but they don’t necessarily see the difference between having the local witch kill a chicken and having the local church pray.
From an article about Catholic Archbishop Peter Sarpong:
Rt. Rev. Dr, Peter Kwasi Sarpong, has said the absence of libation prayer at recent state functions was a “great injustice” to Ghanaians who believe in libation as a form of prayer.
Expressing regret about the veiled explanations given by some state officials to the absence of libation at national functions in recent times, Archbishop Sarpong said our leaders needed to rethink their decision because it could have serious spiritual repercussions on the nation.
Speaking to the DAILY GRAPHIC in Kumasi, Rt. Rev. Dr Sarpong said libation was a national heritage that could hardly be discarded, stressing that the gods and ancestors could get angry at the nation “if we continue to ban libation at national gatherings.”
“Why should we think Christianity and Islam are superior to traditional worship?” he asked.
Repentance—sincere and complete—is pushed in some churches. Sometimes publically—as through a microphone to a crowd of several hundred—and sometimes to the church leader who is ministering. Repentance is often assisted by prophets who bring up what the repentant may have missed.
The syncretic nature of African Christianity isn’t seen as compromise. It’s seen as expressing worship of God in a way that makes cultural sense to Africa. Modern Christianity was brought to Africa by Europeans and European-influenced missionaries from the west. African Christianity is seen as rejecting European culture, not rejecting Christian practices. In fact, African Christian leaders believe western Christian leaders could learn more about worshiping God if they came to Africa and experienced it first-hand. Cultural influences include music, deliverance, and charismatic practices such as tongues.
From the death announcement of theologian Kwame Bediako:
He fostered the development of a genuinely African theology (distinct from the Black liberation theology that developed in South Africa). Bediako used the models of Justin Martyr and Clement of Alexandria to argue that just as they used the Greco-Roman cultural categories of their time to contextualize the Gospel and create a Christian identity, so should African Christians use their own cultural heritage in forming their Christian identity.
I have nothing to say about music in worship. We do, however, need to join with the sound African church in directing people away from pagan rites and rituals, even if they are candy-coated in politically correct or “Christian” terms. We also need to emphasize that only Christ can protect us from evil spirits. The blood of a chicken has no power.
First Fruit Offering
The video didn’t mention one of the most common issues I see from our questioners—first fruits. In fact, the only mention of giving to the church was during a business-persons group meeting, where the pastor encouraged members to pay their dues so the money could be available for those whose businesses were struggling. This pastor was barely paid, and his family survived on his wife’s salary. At the same time, another pastor was shown several times explaining how his church building needed to be expanded to accommodate 4000 worshipers. Another pastor leads an organization well-known for philanthropic ventures such as boys’ hostels, clean water, and schools, often paid for through first fruit offerings.
It may be that first fruits are another syncretic element; both the celebration and name of Kwanzaa is based on the first fruits offering. The original ceremony is still practiced in southern Africa, and involves the king tasting the first of the harvest in December and January. The honor of tasting goes down through the king’s court to local chiefs, and eventually to the farmer and his family. Looking online, it appears African churches teach different things about the first fruit offering; some discourage it, some accept it but don’t teach it, and some expect it.
From a friend who was an MK in Africa:
A good question and my response, from what I observed is that it is part of the mixture of “first-fruits” from a Biblical standpoint and how that was mixed into the people’s understanding of what it means to be a Christian. There are usually two harvest times in Congo; one in early summer and the second in late fall. The biggest one would be in early summer and typically, people would bring, not en masse, but as they had harvested, a big basket full of corn. This corn would either be sold and the money used for the church’s expenses or, it would be given to the pastor who, not being of that village, would often have a smaller garden or one more distant.
I don’t believe, at least in the rural areas, that it had or has anything to do with mega-church health and wealth ideas. As about 97% of the population are subsistence farmers you can see how the Israelite tradition of a festival of first fruits would fit right in. Interestingly enough, the church that we served in Arthur, IA, an Evangelical Free Church, also had a fall festival at which offerings would be made and these, based on farm income, would produce large amounts of money. Other churches in the rural area would also have these same types of offerings-festivals.
This doesn’t address a common issue I’ve seen in questions, wherein someone wants to know if they have to pay their entire year’s tithe in January. Churches that demand such are unbiblical and probably preach the prosperity gospel. It will be a challenge, however, discussing the issue with a questioner who is convicted to give.
Prosperity Gospel
The video did not appear to cover any blatant prosperity gospel churches. There was no mention that you would remain sick and poor if you didn’t have enough faith. Poverty and illness was seen as normal (whether circumstantial or spirit-induced), and the church was there to support those who struggled in any aspect of their lives.
But the prosperity gospel is alive and well in Africa, and internet articles identify one of the interviewed pastors as a prosperity gospel proponent. In the video, he was adamant that the gospel covered every aspect of a believer’s life. This belief directly ties into traditional African spiritualism which saturates all of life. It’s also influenced by the fact that in many areas, TBN is one of the few TV channels broadcast in Africa.
From a video on the prosperity gospel in Africa:
We seek life and prosperity.
We seek long life, business prosperity, love within the lineage.
Drive the evil one far beyond.
-Traditional African libation
The prosperity gospel brings hope to situations that have been without for a very long time. It also brings wrong expectations of God and a materialism that Africa would have been better to leave in the west. We should join with the African ministers who point out that Jesus promises contentment for those who seek Him, not wealth. And encourage people to seek out employment and training resources in their neighborhoods—even if those resources are provided by prosperity gospel-preaching organizations.
Conclusion
This is a very brief, barely-educated look at African Christianity. I hope it helps as you answer questions from Africa.
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