African Christian spirituality

Abstract

Abstract provided by author:

African Christians need to develop their Christianity in a way that is original to them, in ways which they understand and which are true to their cultural context. All Christians, including those in Africa, are in need of spirituality in this world. Spirituality will come easier to them when it is brought, no longer in strange clothes, but in ways that are familiar to them. Everything which the Christian does should be effective in bringing spirituality to Christians, and such spirituality that leads to salvation should be developed in an acceptable way for the people to whom it is brought

Christian spirituality will be defined in this study and its work examined from an African perspective. The influence of African spirituality in Christian communities and societies will be looked at. Since African peoples and their cultures see in almost every event or activity a spiritual meaning, it is probable to imply that their every understanding of spiritual matters are always permeated and sustained by the practical, lived experiences. The study will thus closely look into the dimensions of African Christian spirituality with reference to ritual, lived experiences, ethics, doctrine, myth and art

An attempt will be made to address Christian spirituality as original to African understanding of spirituality. Africans will have to see themselves as fully Christians. The problematic issue of the co-existence of Christianity and African religions will be addressed. Issues relevant to culture, tradition and history of the African which contribute to the development of Christian spirituality will be taken into consideration. In addition, the study will attempt to help Namibian Christians to appreciate in their culture the role and importance their inherent traditional spirituality played which they were made to doubt since the introduction and grounding of Christianity

The research intends to show that African people regard traditional cultural values and religious practices as of utter importance, and how these values and practices ground their spirituality. We shall show that such values and practices should not be regarded as strange to Christianity, but be considered as having sufficient space and room within Christianity. Consequently, new methods and approaches should be developed to make the believers aware of African Christian Spirituality from a Namibian perspective

This study will also try to answer questions like: Can spirituality be defined? How should it be defined? When defining Christian spirituality, which characterization will be termed pre-modern, modern or post-modern? Is there a typical or a normative spirituality?

The thesis serves as a limited introductory literature and resource about African Christian Spirituality from a Namibian perspective. It is in no way a comprehensive study on African Christian Spirituality. It is against this background that published books on the study will be read and structured and unstructured interviews conducted, to collect more information about African Christian Spirituality from known theologians, church leaders and members

Firstly, we intend to consult works by writers on this topic, especially writers on African Christian spirituality. Secondly, we intend to Interview at least twelve (12) people, that is one Church leader or theologian and two laity from the following denominations or religions: Evangelical Lutheran Church, Seventh Day Adventist Church, African Initiated Church, and African Traditional religionists in seeking more and diverse information on this topic. All these interviews will be done in both Afrikaans and English, and if need be, translated in some Namibian languages. Since the aim of this project is to determine what people already know about spirituality, we shall use both structured and unstructured interviews. Unstructured interviews will be done mainly among the church members. The interviews will be done in the Khomas, Omusati and Caprivi Regions in Namibia