The Saints of African Independent Churches in Namibia : Empirical Research from Korean Missionary Perpective by Park J
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The saints of African independent churches in Namibia : empirical research from Korean missionary perpective By Park J. Submitted in fulfilment of the requirement for the degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY In the Faculty of Theology Department: Science of Religion and Missiology UNIVERSITY OF PRETORIA South Africa 2014 Supervisor: Dr T. Kgatla © University of Pretoria ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I acknowledge that this thesis would not have been completed without the people who guided and challenged me with their sincere heart. Foremost I wish to thank my supervisor, Professor Thias Kgatla, who has been guiding me to complete this thesis with his precious comments and unchangeable endurance. I would like to thank my Korean Professor Seung-Chul Hwang and his wife, J. S. Hwang. Their advice and heartfelt prayers have been continually encouraging me to complete this work. I wish to thank Dr. Jae-Bohg Lee and Chang-Bum Park for their motivations. It became the ignition point for my thesis and fostering me to go forward. I also wish to express my gratitude to the leaders of the AICs in Namibia, who have welcomed me to their churches as a member and friend of their church. Especially the only Archbishop of St. John’s Apostolic Faith Mission in Namibia and Southern Africa, P.K.D.U. Tjijombo, and A.T. Pura, Archbishop of St. Joel Apostolic Healing Mission Church of Africa, they have enabled me really feel at home in Namibia. Otherwise, this thesis would not have been possible to finish. I would like to thank Julius T. Tjiueza, the chairperson of the Namibian Traditional Healers Association (NTHA), and G. Katambo, a fomer member of NTHA, for their precious support. Although they are really busy, they nevertheless allocated their trust and time for me and instructed me in the healing rituals and methods of Africa. I, hereby, would like to say sorry for my first supervisor, Professor P.J. van der Merwe, who is late lamented now, that I was unable to finish my thesis while he was still on campus. I will never forget his kindness, patience, and the smile, which all encouraged me. I give thanks for him what he had influenced to me. I © University of Pretoria I wish to thank Sandra Duncan and Suzanne Jacobs for reading my thesis with me and giving me great comments. It helps a lot to polish my thesis. I thank my fellow Korean missionaries in Namibia, J.H. Park, C.D. Kim and their families, for their generosity of spirit on my frequent absences from ongoing missions in Namibia. I also thank all of my family members, including the family members in South Korea, their labour of love and contribution, supporting me and my family life always to be a Christian missionary in Namibia. Especially the ceaseless prayer of my parents, Moon-Soo Park, and Tae Soon Jeon, is truly invaluable. I would never forget it. I thank my wife, Han-Jin Lee, and my lovely children what they have done during the course of my work. Especially my wife has fully devoted herself to comforting me throughout my work. I really thank her for that, because, without that I would never ever be able to finish it. Last, but not the least, I give all my thanks to the Triune God almighty who is only worthy to be glorified by all creatures. JIN HO PARK October 2014 Pretoria II © University of Pretoria ABSTRACT The history of African Independent Churches (AICs) in Southern Africa goes back for more than a hundred years. They have proliferated geographically and demographically in Africa more than the mainline churches could ever have imagined. They have grown to be as widespread and as influential as the African mainline churches. The reason for this growth is that the AICs are the churches of African indigenous people. They are launched by Africans from a background of an African traditional and cultural frame of reference. The most significant reason is that the founders of these churches are not Westerners, but Africans. Western missionaries find it difficult to understand the AICs from their perspective. Thus the Western churches describe the AICs as sectarian, separatist, syncretist, nativitist, and so on. Nevertheless, some scholars are attempting to view the AICs in positive ways. The fact that these two different churches have never acknowledged each other as true churches is a big challenge for Christian missions in Namibia. Each group has been viewing and judging the other party through suspicious eyes from their own perspective, each dri ving the other to block the channel of reconciliation before the presence of God. With the aim of solving this problem, this thesis attempts to answer the following questions about the AICs in Namibia: • What are the reasons that the AICs in Namibia have been seceded from mission churches? • What are the activities in civil society in which the AICs in Namibia are currently involved? • Do the AICs engage in any activities which go against the Word of God? • What causes other churches to be suspicious of the AICs? • What level of enculturation is inherent to the AICs in Namibia? In other words, what is the relationship between the liturgies of the AIC and African traditional religion and African culture? • What makes the AICs in Namibia regard themselves as a church? III © University of Pretoria • Would it be possible for the AICs and the mainline churches in Namibia to cooperate in Christian missionary work? • What is a possible Korean missionary perspective on this particular situation? This will be dealt throughout this thesis from a Korean missionary missional perspective. IV © University of Pretoria KEY WORDS • African culture • African Independent Churches (AICs) • AIC rituals • African Traditional Religion (ATR) • Healing in AICs • Herero • Namibia AICs • Namibia Christian mission • Christian mission strategy • Korean missionary perspective V © University of Pretoria ABBREVIATIONS 1. Common abbreviations C century ch(s) chapter(s) et al. et alii, and others ed(s). editor(s), edited by E.g.(e.g.) exempli gratia, for example i.e. id est, that is n.d. no date NT New Testament OT Old Testament per si itself transl. translated by, translation v(s). verse(s) 2. Abbreviations from reference works AFM Apostolic Faith Mission AIC African Independent Church AICANA African Independent Church Association in Namibia AMEC African Methodist Episcopal Church VI © University of Pretoria ATR African Traditional Religion BM Basel Mission BMS Barman Missionary Society CCACZ Christian Catholic Apostolic Church in Zion CCCZ Christian Catholic Church In Zion CCN Church Council of Namibia CCCZ Christian Catholic Church In Zion DRC Dutch Reformed Church ECN Electoral Commission of Namibia ECSA Ethiopian Church of South Africa EMS Elberfeld Missionary Society ESV English Standard Version LMS London Missionary Society MIC Mission-Initiated Church NACAPA Namibian Christian Apostles and Prophet Association NANASO Namibia Network of AIDS Service Organisation NTAH Namibia Traditional Healers Association PUC Protestant Unity Church (Oruuano Church) NTC Namibia Traditional Council RMC Rhenish Mission Church RMS Rhenish Missionary Society SAVE Scripture Audio Visual Education VII © University of Pretoria SDPCSK Sam-Dong Presbyterian Church in South Korea SJAFMN St. John’s Apostolic Faith Mission in Namibia SJAFMSA St. John’s Apostolic Faith Mission of South Africa SJAHMCA St. Joel Healing Mission Church in Africa SJAMC St. John Apostolic Mission Church SSAMC St. Sthphanus Apostol Mission Church SPAFM St. Phillip Apostolic Faith Mission SSSPHMC St. Stephanus St. Phillip’s Healing Mission Church SWAPO South West Africa Peoples Organisation UNIA Universal Negro Improvement Association WMCSA Wesleyan Methodist church of South Africa ZACSA Zion Apostolic Church of South Africa ZAFM Zion Apostolic Faith Mission ZCC Zion Christian Church 3. Abbreviations for Bible Books Old Testament Gn Ex Lv Nm Dt Jos Jdg Rt 1 Sm 2 Sm 1 Ki 2 Ki 1 Chr 2 Chr Ezr Neh Es Job Ps Pr Ec Can Is Jr Lm Ezk Dn Hs VIII © University of Pretoria Jl Am Ob Jnh Mi Nah Hab Zph Hg Zch Ml New Testament Mt Mk Lk Jn Ac Rm 1 Cor 2 Cor Gl Eph Phlp Col I Th 2 Th 1 Tm 2 Tm Tt Phlm Heb Ja 2 Pt 2 Pt 1 Jn 2 Jn 3 Jn Jude Rv IX © University of Pretoria TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................ 1 1.1 PROBLEM ..................................................................................................... 1 1.2 AIMS OF THE RESEARCH ................................................................................ 2 1.3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ........................................................................... 3 1.4 INTERPRETATION ........................................................................................... 5 1.5 OUTLINE OF THE RESEARCH .......................................................................... 5 1.5.1 CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................ 5 1.5.2 CHAPTER 2. THE HISTORY OF NAMIBIA’S AICS ............................................. 6 1.5.3 CHAPTER 3. RITUALS OF THE NAMIBIAN AICS AND THEOLOGICAL ANALYSIS .... 6 1.5.4 CHAPTER 4. THE AICS IN NAMIBIA AND THE HERERO CULTURE ..................... 6 1.5.5 CHAPTER 5. THE AICS IN NAMIBIA AND CHRISTIAN MISSION .......................... 7 1.5.6 CHAPTER 6: KOREAN MISSIONARY MISSIONAL PERSPECTIVE .......................... 8 1.5.7 CHAPTER 7: CONCLUSION AND WAY FORWARD ............................................. 8 CHAPTER 2. A BRIEF HISTORY OF NAMIBIA’S AICs ............................... 10 2.1 INTRODUCTION: THE AICS IN SOUTH