Christian Identity And Justice In A Globalized World From A Southern African Perspective

What does the globalized world that we live in mean for our Christian identity and for our struggle for social justice? That is the central question that is addressed in this book from a wide array of angles by members of the Association of Theological Institutions of Southern and Central Africa (ATISCA) and Justo Mwale Theological University College (Lusaka, Zambia). "This book is about the struggle for social justice in relation to the self-understanding of Christians from Southern and East Africa in a globalizing world. Among other concerns, it brings out the connection between theology and disability where disability is reflected as an issue that calls for self-identity and self-re-definition. This book is an important resource on contextualisation of theology and it is worthy reading" Dr. Samuel Kabue, Executive Director of the World Council of Churches network EDAN. "In a work long overdue theologians and other researchers in Christianity investigate, discuss and critique the influence of globalization on Christian identity in Southern Africa and its consequences in the struggle for justice. Despite all talk about a 'global village', the voices of Christians from Southern Africa are hardly ever heard. This book represents an important change in this respect. The book has been well edited by Hermen Kroesbergen and it is a must read for all theologians and ministers who want to reflect on our shifting identifies. " Christian Literature Fund

The aim of this book is to provide a way to do justice to an African language of faith. In systematic theology, anthropology and philosophy of religion, similar debates about how to interpret an African language of faith are ongoing. Trying to avoid the ‘othering’ discourses of past generations, scholars are careful to take seriously what people in Africa say without portraying people’s beliefs as weird or backward. Yet, in their desperate attempts to avoid othering, these theologians, anthropologists and philosophers often painfully misconstrue the language of faith in Africa. Understanding the language of faith in Southern Africa is not an easy task. How should we take seriously the form of language that often seems so strange and different? I argue that, after African inculturation theology and black liberation theology, a better way to make sense of being a Christian in Southern Africa is to pay close attention to people’s language of faith. The way in which people speak of the spirit world or powers in Africa appears strange to outsiders, and the sense of community and the holistic worldview differentiates the African way of life from its Euro-American counterparts. When proper attention is paid to the use of concepts like spirit world, power, community and holism, language of faith in Southern Africa is neither as strange as it may seem, nor as romantic. By investigating these distinguishing concepts that colour language of faith in Southern Africa, this book contributes to future projects of both fellow theologians who try to construct a contemporary African theology and those who are interested in theology in Africa given the well-known southward shift of the centre of gravity of Christianity.

In Prophecy today: reflections from a Southern African context, a group of theologians and scholars of religion from Zambia and South Africa reflects upon these questions. Anthropologists, Biblical scholars, practical theologians and others shine their light on what prophecy can mean today in this context. This book aims at stimulating a continuing Southern African discourse on this very interesting and relevant aspect of Christianity in our region. The book consists of 15 different articles by well-known scholars and has been ably compiled and edited by Dr Hermen Kroesbergen, lecturer in Systematic Theology and Philosophy of Religion at Justo Mwale University, Lusaka, Zambia.

This volume reveals how religion interfaces with inequality in different African contexts. Some contributors undertake detailed analyses of how religion creates (and justifies) different forms of inequality that holds back individuals, groups and communities across the continent from flourishing, while others show how religion can also mitigate inequality in Africa. Topics addressed include gender inequality, economic inequality, disability, ageism and religious homophobia. Specifically focusing on the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goal 10 to reduce inequality within and among countries, this book highlights the extent to which Africa's 'notoriously religious' identity needs to be taken into account in discourses on development.

Believers from a variety of faith communities were asked to assess how the Covid pandemic has affected their faith. The anthology collects their responses to key questions, such as: · How does your faith explain why such events occur? · How has it affected your religious practices? · What changes has it necessitated? · What differences might we expect once the pandemic is over? · What have we learned from it? Two exponents of each major religion and a number of minority faiths comment on these issues, combined with a concluding essay by the editors assessing the overall impact of the pandemic on religion worldwide. Faiths explored include Jewish, Christian, Islamic, Hindu, Buddhist, Shinto, Sikh Baha'i, Jain, African Traditional Religion, Zoroastrian, Unitarian, Jehovah's Witnesses and Christian Science.

Religious Dimensions of Conspiracy Theories contributes to the study of conspiracy culture by analysing the religious and esoteric dimensions of conspiracy theories. The book examines both historical and contemporary examples to explore transnational and transhistorical continuities between religious doctrines, eschatologies, and conspiracy theories. It draws on a broad range of disciplinary insights from historians, sociologists, anthropologists, and religious studies scholars. The book has a global focus and features case studies from North America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and Africa. This book will be of great interest to researchers of conspiracy theories, esotericism, extremism, and religion

In this book, it is argued that narratives about Satanism, which have become popular in the Christian context of Zambia from the 1990s onwards, make cultural sense because of their links to traditional African notions as well as contemporary Christian theologies. These narratives also resonate with unease regarding the cultural change, which is connected by Zambians to modernity. Narratives about Satanism further make personal sense to their narrators, the pastors who provide a platform for them, and their audiences. These arguments contribute to the academic study of religion in Africa, in particular of African Christianity and of witchcraft-related phenomena, as well as to the global study of discourses on Satanism and other conspiracy theories. All of these disciplines are related to the topic of Satanism in Zambia, but the phenomenon itself has not been discussed at length, which makes the existing academic literature incomplete and inadequate. The comprehensive focus on the case of narratives about Satanism in Zambia offers new insights and enhances current theoretical reflection. The research presented in this book is original, carried out during fieldwork spanning from 2012 to 2017 in Zambia and literature study in the years after that. Methodologically, the research is based on participant observation in churches in which testimonies of ex-Satanists were presented, as well as participation in the Fingers of Thomas, a Roman Catholic group which investigates rumours about Satanism. Furthermore, it is based on interviews with pastors and students of theology active in the deliverance ministry from Pentecostal as well as mainline churches and also on interviews with people who have had experiences of Satanism. Finally, the research is based on an analysis of collected testimonies of ex-Satanists as they were presented in these interviews, in churches, on radio programmes, in newspapers and in other sources.

This ground-breaking book contains contributions from 12 different religious traditions: Hinduism, African Traditional Religion, Judaism, Jainism, Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, Shintoism, Christianity, Islam, Sikhism, Unitarianism and Bahá'í. Interfaith worship and prayer can be complex, but this book demonstrates that in a world of many cultures and religions, there is an urgent need for religions to come together with trust and communication, especially when there is a crisis. Full of insights and examples of practice, the book demonstrates how religions can be a powerful means of unity and compassion. The book opposes the 'clash of civilisations' model as a way of interpreting the world and promotes peace, hope, and the possibility of cooperation. Religious believers can be sincere and committed to their own faith, while recognising the need to stand firmly together with members of other religious traditions.