The Ties that Bind? Cultural Christianity

And lectures just keep on coming… Professor Waruta spoke with us today about the history of the Church in Africa, particularly that of Kenya. He spoke of three waves of Christianity to hit Africa. The first five centuries saw the religion spread all along the North African coast, creating a wealth of knowledge and discussion. However, there was much in-fighting over who held onto the purest Christian faith, and the rampant spread of Islam proved no match for a divided belief system. Our professor brought up an interesting point with regards to Constantine, since for the very first time the persecuted faith was now married to authority and later became the persecuting faith. Whose truth are we serving when we persecute others? Certainly not God’s.

The second wave of Christianity coincided with the European Age of Discovery, yet these missions never transferred the faith to the people for two reasons: they never attempted to learn the language of the people, and later many were complicit in the slave trade. The third wave, dubbed Modern Missions, only really took off when converted freed slaves (both from America and in Kenya, from Arab traders) began to share the Gospel. The unwanted children and outcasts of society were the next to become believers en masse, since the missionaries took them in as their own. As they educated and taught them English, they (unknowingly?) prepared them for when the colonials would leave and instate these educated ones in their stead. The great reversal in power, from the least to the greatest, seems to be abused as the persecuted now became the persecutors, using governmental powers for their own ends.

Traditionally, many Africans admire strength in the sense of health, wealth and offspring. If one is weak and does not possess these things, then there is a reason, or as a Christian, a blockage to God’s blessing. I suppose some Scripture reflects the strength of God (Ezek. 34:16, Isa. 35:3, Heb. 12:12-3), although I hadn’t thought of it in this way before. The professor argued that poor persons are intimidated to come into the massive church structures in the city since they do not share in the wealth and prosperity of most of its members, and the message presented is often of the "Prosperity" Gospel. He also seemed to question the rural community churches, wondering if they were coming to service for spiritual healing or for the medicines and other necessities provided by the church. I myself can testify to the faith of the Kenyans I’ve already met- they truly believe in the Lord and yearn to serve God and others each and every day. The professor concluded that Africans should connect to their historical spirituality in order to form a new Christian spirituality that is their own and does not reflect possible colonial values left over from the foreign missionaries. Ideologies are birthed from previous ideologies, not thin air, and we must be grounded in our past in order to live in the present and proceed to the future.

All of these thoughts are quite simple and somewhat blunt, and they do not convey all of the complexities hidden within the broader issues. I’m left with these questions: So what is our cultural baggage we bring to our faith? Where do we draw the line on sacraments/beliefs? Where does the cultural meet the religion, traditional rites personal faith? What can/will be compromised? Is there such a thing as true (pure) Christianity, or rather a continuing, dynamic growth? Should we be leaving a small room for God to work in our lives, or subject our entire faith to be moved by God? Does being a Christian mean believing in the way we see our faith, or others? With few answers, I turn to God, the Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer of my faith.