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Towards a Dialogical and Diaconal Church

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Towards a Dialogical and Diaconal Church Chapter Nine Towards a dialogical and diaconal church In the previous chapter we argued that interreligious dialogue couldn’t work without integral development. We summarised and reflected on Samuel Kibicho’s statement that the missions of evangelisation and good neighbourly love were already exercised in African Indigenous Religions. We also saw that the fruits of the Spirit are the criterion of the authenticity of religions, both in Christian- ity and Islam. The Christian theologian, Samuel Kibicho, refers to Matthew 7:16: “By their fruits you shall known them”. His Muslim colleague, Farid Esack, refers to Sura 5:48: “Strive in competition for good deeds” (section 6.1). All these insights provide an empirical, pragmatic foundation for a theory of interreligious relations. In this chapter we elaborate on the relation between dialogue and diaconal work, the African image of the church as the family of God, and pilgrimage as a root metaphor for interreligious relations. 9.1 Interreligious dialogue and social ministry In his Jesus and the witchdoctor Alward Shorter (1985: 133) narrates a conver- sation between a Chinese doctor and an African patient in a Tanzanian hos- pital. The doctor was working in the context of a Chinese programme for medical development cooperation. One day he gave a patient medicine. The patient replied, “Thanks be to God.” The doctor, a communist, replied: “I do not believe in God.” The patient then said: “In that case you may keep your medicine.” As noted in the introduction to chapter two, most Africans do not distinguish between objects and subjects, body and soul. All things have soul. Thus the spiritual and the material domains are interwoven. They deal in wholeness and ‘integral’ liberation, liberation of body and soul. From social mission to integral mission Christian mission in the 19th and 20th centuries was very different from 15th and 16th century mission. The evangelisation of Latin America in those early centuries consisted primarily in an initiation into the mysteries of the Christian faith. It was religious mission focused on the sacraments. In the 19th and 20th centuries mission was conducted in the wake of the European revolutions 198 Chapter Nine (Malishi 1987: 103–107). The industrial revolution in England fired optimism about development and progress. From the point of view of Christianity it was a mixed blessing. On the one hand there was growing materialism, on the other greater affluence meant that philanthropists could afford to give generously to the church and its mission. The French revolution established the ideals of freedom, equality and brotherhood. Again the impact on the church was ambiguous. On the one hand the French revolution caused growing secularisa- tion, on the other there was a religious revival, evidenced by the flowering of pietism and Methodism, and a humanitarian movement. Founders of mission- ary congregations like Francis Libermann and Charles Lavigery first pro- moted the welfare of slaves and later their emancipation (Burke 1998; Kollman 2005). Nineteenth and 20th century mission was equated with modernisation and development. It was a ‘mission of good works’. During those years European churches were having a running battle with Marxism, which took root among working class people. The Catholic church responded by formulating its social teaching. The popes, especially Leo XIII, promoted the globalisation of Catholic social teaching. Hence the 19th and 20th centuries saw the emergence of ‘social mission’. Even today, when Africans show visitors ‘the mission’ (an anachronistic term but still widely used), the visitors will see a church, hos- pital, school and community hall all in one compound together. Maybe this is another reason why interreligious dialogue does not feature prominently in Africa. In Asia mission was dominated by dialogue with Confucian and Daoist philosophers. In Africa it meant building hospitals and schools and offering the people all kinds of social services. Being converted was almost identical with learning to read and write and receiving an education. At present this one-sided approach is making way for a more balanced view. There is a shift from social mission to integral mission. Holiness and wholeness In section 6.1 we considered the influence of American fundamentalism in Africa (Gifford 1996). To understand its impact we need to draw a broader pic- ture. North American Protestantism was the faith of the Pilgrim Fathers and Puritans, inspired by John Calvin. Among other things Calvin taught justifica- tion by faith alone and predestination. In reaction to Calvinism John Wesley, one of the founders of Methodism, stressed human agency. Grace transforms human beings and enables them to attain perfection in this life. This gave rise to the holiness movement, which seeks to foster perfection through special techniques applied at revival meetings. The holiness movement highlighted the social dimension of the gospel. Science and technology were seen as God-given means to establish God’s kingdom on earth and hasten the.
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