I Hereby Declare That This Dissertation Is Entirely My Own Work and Is No Way a Reproduction Either in Part Or Full
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DISSERTATION TOPIC NYJIJMD (GOD) IN GA TRADITION AND CHRISTIAN MISSION: AN EXPLORATION OF THE HISTORICAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE RELIGIOUS TRADITION OF THE GA OF SOUTH EASTERN GHANA AND BIBLE TRANSLATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR GA CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY. By Solomon Nii-Mensah Adjei A dissertation presented to the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa in partial fulfilment of the requirement for the award of the Master of Theology Degree in African Christianity. February 2006. Natal, Pietermaritzburg. DECLARATION I hereby declare that this Dissertation is entirely my own work and is no way a reproduction either in part or full. I wish to state also that this work has not been submitted to any university for the award of degree. Solomon Nii-Mensah Adjei February 2006. As supervIsor, I have agreed that this dissertation be submitted for examination. Professor Kwame Bediako (Supervisor) 11 DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated to my dear wife, Naa Oyoe and our lovely daughter, Naa Dromo in gratitude for their sacrifice, steadfast love and support that enabled me complete this work. m ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I express my sincere gratitude to the Akrofi-Christaller Institute of Theology, Mission and Culture, especially the Executive Director, Reverend Professor Kwame Bediako, who created the opportunity for me to pursue this programme and the Presbyterian Church, USA which awarded me a scholarship, and to the Presbyterian Church of Ghana for granting me a paid leave of absence. Further appreciation goes to the Reverend Philip Tetteh Laryea. He spent a lot of time with me during my difficult moments, serving as an auxiliary supervisor. He also made his personal library available to me, where I got access to a wealth of archival material without which this work would not have been completed. My gratitude is further expressed to Reverend Professor Kwame Bediako, who also placed his library at my disposal and supervised my work. His gracious critique contributed immensely in shaping the final product. I also acknowledge other friends whose efforts have contributed to the success of this work: Miss Korklu Laryea, the Deputy Librarian at Akrofi-Christaller Institute gave me assistance during my research in the library, Mr D. J. Drah of the Geography Department, University of Ghana, Legon made available to me a suitable map to illustrate the area of study, and Mr Kwame Amebley scanned all the photographs into the work. Miss Angela Addy of Akrofi-Christaller Institute gave me invaluable editorial guidance. I am also grateful to Mr Vincent Okunnor for editing the Ga translations. Further acknowledgement goes to the staff of Balme Library and Institute of African Studies Library, of the University of Ghana, Legon, for making their facilities available to me. I also owe a debt of gratitude to my colleagues whose contributions during lectures and group discussions helped me shape and clarify my subject. My final word of appreciation goes to the entire staff of the Akrofi-Christaller Institute for the countless assistance they gave me. IV ABSTRACT IN ENGLISH In recent times, there are some indications which suggest an attempt to relegate the traditional or pre-Christian notion of Nyorjmo to the background in the face of recent Christian expansion within the Ga community. This may be observed basically in two forms. First is the attitude and thinking which attempt to separate Nyorjmo, who is considered a holy God, totally from the creation, considered unholy. This view suggests that Nyorjmo is holy and therefore his name cannot be attached to any aspect of the creation which is considered corrupted with sin and evil. In this regard, a distinction is thus made between Nyorjmo, the Supreme Being, and nyorjmo, rain. A new word nugbo,1 literally 'water stranger' or 'foreign water' has therefore emerged and is now being used for rain by some Ga. Secondly, there is the assumption, especially among some Ga Christians, that hitherto, the Ga did not know about God and that it was Christianity and the proclamation of the Christian message that introduced the knowledge of God into the Ga religious culture. These views are, however, contrary to the thoughts of the traditional Ga. The pre- Christian notion of Nyoymo is that of a Supreme Being, who is not far removed from creation but deeply involved in its daily activities. Thus one finds the name of Nyorjmo attached to some elements within the creation, as the configurations of Nyoymo2 indicate. Again, contrary to the views held by some Ga Christians, oral and early written sources indicate that the notion of Nyorjmo was well established within the Ga religious and social life before the coming of Christianity. However, one realises that with the influence of Christianity and Bible translation, the concept Nyorjmo has expanded and assumed a new meaning to become the Christian God of the Bible, 'the Father of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.' 1 E. T. A. Abbey, Kedzi Afo Yordan (Gbele Ke Yarafeemo), (Accra: Bureau of Ghana Languages, 1968), p 37. 2 Johanness Zimmermann, A Grammatical Sketch of the Akra - or Ga -Language and some Specimen of it from the mouth of the Natives, (Stuttgert: J. F. Steinkopf, 1858), pp 243-244. See also M. E. Kropp Dakubu, 'Linguistic Pre-History and Historical Reconstruction: the Ga-Adangme Migrations' in Transaction of the Historical Society of Ghana, Vol. XIII (i), (Legon, June 1972), p 119. V This research attempts to investigate the 'development' of Nyorjmo as a religious concept from its pre-Christian usage to the present. It looks at how Nyorjmo was recognised in the traditional religious life. This is done by analysing the general historical and religious backgrounds of the Ga people, focusing on key elements within the social, political, economic and religious settings. The work further assesses the impact of Christian influence on Ga culture, especially in the area of Bible translation, and also observes how the concept has gained a new meaning as a result of this engagement. The researcher concludes by exploring some of the implications raised in the work and attempts some suggestions on how Ga Christian theology may be developed to address these concerns. VI ABSTRACT IN GA (MOTHER TONGUE) WOLO L£ MLI SANE KUKU Ye bei nee amli ni Kristojamo ebahe shi ni loolo le aabo moderj ni agbe Kristojamo ashwa ye Ga shikpoji ano le, tamo noni hie miihe akpa boni wonuo wiemo 'Nyonmo' le shishi wohaa ye wo blema shihile mli aloo dani Kristojamo le bashe bie. Enejeo kpofann ye gbei srotoi enyo ano. Klerjklen le, tamo noni ye wo nifeemoi ke wo susumoi amli le wokaa ake woten Nyonmo he nfoniri ko. Noji ake wonaa ake eye Kronkron ni nohewo le esda ni ake egbei bataa adeboo noko he kwraa ejaake nofeeno ni yoo je le mli le kpa ye he ni ehe ewo muji ke esha. Enehewo le mei komei taoo ni amegbla Nyonmo ni ji Tse Ofe le ke nyonmo ni neo le ten. Arjoo nyonmo ni neo le ake nugbo.1 Emli jalemo ji nu ni ebato gbo. Nugbo nee ji gbei ni nmenerjmene le Gamei komei ketseo nyonmo ni neo nee. No ni ji enyo le, Ga Kristofoi komei susuo ake Gamei lee Nyonmo ye blema bei le amli. Ene le eji sane ni naa wa ni yoo ahuntoo. Ye neke mei nee asusumo naa le, Kristojamo ke Nyonmo wiemo le gbee ke shwamo le ji noni ha Gamei na le ake Nyonmo ko ye, ye amejamo ke shihile mli. Shi moy neke susumo nee, jee Ga shikweebii asusumo ni. Eke noni amele ye Nyonmo he kpda gbee kwraa. Anokwale le ji ake beni Kristojamo ba ko Ga shikpon le no beebe le, Gamei le Nyonmo ake Ofe ni eta adeboo fee no, ni asan ejieo eheshi ye adeboo nibii komei ke Gamei anifeemo nii ke ame daa gbi shihile mli. Ene hewo je ni woyoseo ake Gamei ke Nyonmo gbei le ebata adeboo mli nibii komei ahe le.2 Asan jwerjmo nee ni kristofoi komei yoo ye Nyonmo he le jee ja keke ni ejda, shi moy ye Gamei awiemo ke woji ni anmlafee amli le, ejeo kpo fanrj ake Gamei le Nyonmo ye ame jamo ke jen shihile fee mli dani Kristojamo ba. 1 E. T. A. Abbey, Kedzi Afo Yordan (Gbele Ke Yarafeemo), (Accra: Bureau of Ghana Languages, 1968), p 37. 2 Johanness Zimmermann, A Grammatical Sketch of the Akra - or Ga -Language and some Specimen of it from the mouth of the Natives, (Stuttgert: J. F. Steinkopf, 1858), pp 243-244. See also M. E. Kropp Dakubu, 'Linguistic Pre-History and Historical Reconstruction: the Ga-Adangme Migrations' in Transaction of the Historical Society of Ghana, Vol. XIII (i), (Legon, June 1972), p 119. Vll Shi ksle, woyoseo hu ake Kristojamo ke IJmals Kronkron shishitsoomo eye ebua ni else shishinumo ni Gamei yoo ye Nyonmo he le mli: agbene Gamsi naa Nyonmo ake Kristofoi aNyonmo, moni IJmale Kronkron yeo ehe odase ake eji wo Nuntso ke Yiwalaherelo Yesu Kristo Tse le. Oti ni yoo mi ninmaa nss mli ji ake magbls shi ni matao boni Gamei naa Nyonmo ye ame jamo ke ams shihils mli amshaa, ksjs blema, dani Kristojamo ba ks agbene tsakemoi srotoi ni eba ksje nakai bei le amli aahuu kebashi nmsns. Boni afee ni mi nine ashe oti nss he Is, mitao Gamsi ayino saji ks ams blema shihils amli, ni titri Is mikws ame jen shihils, mankuramo, nitsumoi, jarayeli ke jamoi fee aks meni abaanye akaseys nibii nee amli. Nokome hu ni mifee ye nikasemo nee mliji ake, mikws shishinumo hee ni Gamsi ena ye Nyonmo he, titri Is kstso IJmals Kronkron le shishitsoomo no, ks agbene boni Kristojamo hu etsake ams ashihils eha, ketso IJmale Kronkron Is kanemo no.