Monday, May 1, 2023

It is the 1st of May 2023 Welcome to the Christian History Almanac brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org, I’m Dan van Voorhis.

 

A happy Monday and a happy season 5 here on the Christian History Almanac— I’ve said before- halfway through the first year, I thought I might get two years. After four years, I’m pretty sure I could do this for 10. We will see.

Got a question from Rob in Mandeville- he knew what he was doing when he made reference to being a Clippers fan- he wrote, “I'm getting to the point that I'm certain the Clipper Curse is an act of judgment by God and as fans we need to repent.” If my repentance miraculously heals the knees of PG and Kawhi- count me in. We could’ve won it all this year.

Writing from Mandeville- Louisiana, I presume- home of John Stirrat, multi-instrumentalist and original member of the band Wilco, one of my favorite bands. And Louisiana, in general, seems to have some of the best cuisines in America, southern, French… ooh la la.  

Ok- Rob asks about recently reading “The Next Christendom by Philip Jenkins. He mentioned that the African church grew from 10 million in the year 1900 to 360 million in 2000. This is a super modern question, and it may be hard to trace, but what are some of the other theological trends and developments that have come out of Africa.”

So- first, Philip Jenkins is great that’s a good book, The Next Christendom, and so too is the recently mentioned “How Africa Shaped the Christian Mind: Rediscovering the Western seedbed of Western Christianity” by Thomas Oden. It’s really good. And Oden argues that Christianity is as central to African history as European and Western.

Now- “African” is a difficult term in some ways- as difficult as the silly notion of “continents”. How many are there? It’s arbitrary. But, we have a giant land mass-  located on all four hemispheres- divided by a giant desert- connected by the Nile.

We know there was a church there as early as there was a church. We know that Ethiopian Christians have long kept their own traditions being divided from their northern African and European brothers and sisters. Alexandria in Egypt was a church that the gospel writer Mark helped develop and the African Christians in the early years of the church- from Antony to Athanasius to Augustine of Hippo. So, Rob- the study of African Christianity is as old as any branch of the global church.

But, like all places, we need to look at the context for the changing ideas and works coming from any location. The Middle Ages saw much of Northern Egypt controlled by Muslim kingdoms and armies. Sub-Saharan and west coast Africa saw the slave trade devastate it for centuries. From the 1700s on, it would also be the colonization of Africa- largely sub-saharan and tropical that saw the influx not only of industry but missionaries. This is well-trod territory on this show- the problem of a perceived marriage between empire and the Gospel. Empire allows for things to move quickly- but often with the sword as its modern equivalent.

There are no easy answers- but I hope we’ve highlighted in this show some characters who have gone selfless and given of themselves to bring the gospel and other things necessary. Now- in the shadow of all of this, we have two major streams in modern African Christian thought.

The first is Black Theology- this is parallel to the “Liberation Theology” we talked about last Monday in South America. It comes from those places, like South Africa, where Black bodies and voices were not centered appropriately, and these people were often crushed under the wheel of progress. And so, this theology says, “What good is it for you to tell me my sins are forgiven, and I am free if I’m not actually free.” It can veer into partisan political positions but wants to balance the here and now with the hereafter.

A second 20th and 21st-century movement in African Christianity is called “African Theology”- this is attempting to find what African cultural identity markers are parallel to or cohesive with Christianity. Just as it might be common to see Plato or Aristotle as non-Christian but to prepare a culture for ideals like the “eternal logos,” what might African culture supply to the larger theological project that could be embraced and explained by our African brothers and sisters? Like all theologies, they will run the gamut of expressions- but these particular theologies- Black and African give you a sense (along with what we might consider charismatic and enthusiastic worship) give us a good picture- albeit for an entire continent.

Thanks, Rob- you can send me your questions at danv@1517.org.

 

The last word for today- Psalm 100- again from the Scottish Metrical Psalter:

1  All people that on earth do dwell,

       Sing to the Lord with cheerful voice.

 2  Him serve with mirth, his praise forth tell,

       Come ye before him and rejoice.

 

 3  Know that the Lord is God indeed;

       Without our aid he did us make:

    We are his flock, he doth us feed,

       And for his sheep he doth us take.

 

 4  O enter then his gates with praise,

       Approach with joy his courts unto:

    Praise, laud, and bless his name always,

       For it is seemly so to do.

 

 5  For why? the Lord our God is good,

       His mercy is for ever sure;

    His truth at all times firmly stood,

       And shall from age to age endure.

 

This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 1st of May 2023, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org.

The show is produced by a man about whom it’s gonna take a lot to drag him away from you/There's nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do/ He blesses the rain down in Africa and is Christopher Gillespie.

The show is written and read by a man who knows he has to do what's right/As sure as Kilimanjaro rises like Olympus above the Serengeti- I’m Dan van Voorhis.

You can catch us here every day- and remember that the rumors of grace, forgiveness, and the redemption of all things are true…. Everything is going to be ok.