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The Mystery of God in Situations of Suffering: Toward the Universality of Christ and a Reconstruction of African Identity

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The Mystery of God in Situations of Suffering: Toward the Universality of Christ and a Reconstruction of African Identity Loyola University Chicago Loyola eCommons Dissertations Theses and Dissertations 2012 The Mystery of God in Situations of Suffering: Toward the Universality of Christ and a Reconstruction of African Identity Leocretia L. Muganda Loyola University Chicago Follow this and additional works at: https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss Part of the Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons Recommended Citation Muganda, Leocretia L., "The Mystery of God in Situations of Suffering: Toward the Universality of Christ and a Reconstruction of African Identity" (2012). Dissertations. 416. https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss/416 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses and Dissertations at Loyola eCommons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Loyola eCommons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License. Copyright © 2012 Leocretia L. Muganda LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO THE MYSTERY OF GOD IN SITUATIONS OF SUFFERING: TOWARD THE UNIVERSALITY OF CHRIST AND A RECONSTRUCTION OF AFRICAN IDENTITY A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL IN CANDIDACY FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY PROGRAM IN CONSTRUCTIVE THEOLOGY BY LEOCRETIA L. MUGANDA CHICAGO, ILLINOIS DECEMBER 2012 Copyright by Leocretia L. Muganda, 2012 All rights reserved ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This dissertation holds the intimate memories of many people to whom I owe gratitude. The list is long and I can’t mention every one of them on this page, but I cherish each one’s contribution toward the completion of my dissertation. I now take this opportunity to mention a few outstanding names of those who provided a remarkable supportive contribution to my dissertation. Special thanks to my Dissertation Director, Dr. Susan Ross, who worked with me tirelessly to get my dissertation completed. She patiently provided vision, encouragement, advice, and constructive criticism necessary for me to write effectively and professionally. I appreciate her time and attention to my work even during her busy teaching schedule. To my Committee Members, Dr. Jon Nilson, Dr. LaReine-Marie Mosely, and Dr. Andrew Gallwitz for accepting to be on the board and for their guidance, helpful comments, and approval of my work. Special thanks to my colleague, Ms. Mary Moorman-Dorsey, for her encouragement and financial support which gave me peace of mind during my writing. To her I owe heartfelt appreciation. My deepest gratitude goes to my dear friend, Ms. Joan Diamond, for her unlimited support during my writing. I could not have completed my work without her friendly presence, helpful suggestions, editorial work, and financial support. To the Theology Department faculty and staff for their guidance and education, this gave me skills and tools for my future profession as a theologian. My special appreciation goes to Dr. iii Wendy Cotter for her tough love and wakeup call that pushed me toward completion of my dissertation. Special thanks go to Ms. Catherine Wolf and Ms. Marianne Wolfe for assisting me with administrative tasks necessary for completing my doctoral program. To the Benedictine Sisters of Chicago for creating for me a safe space during the long years of my doctoral program. Thanks for their hospitality, patience, and love. My special thanks to the Sisters of St. Therese for giving me this opportunity to study in the United States of America. My time here was enriching, and I can’t wait to share my experience with all the members of our community and all those who will be entrusted to me during my future ministry. To all my friends who supported me with a word of encouragement. I thank you. Finally, to the Muganda family for their love, support, and understanding during this long separation. I hope this work makes them proud. iv In loving memory of my dear parents, Ta Leonard A. Muganda and Ma Clara L. Tibashemelerwa, who inspired my ideas. To them I dedicate this work. TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iii ABSTRACT viii CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION: STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM 1 Statement of the Problem 1 Traditional Christian Doctrines on God and Christology 7 Divine Impassibility in Contemporary Thought 17 Solution to the Problem: Reconstructing African Christology 19 Defining the Terms 24 Literature Review 25 Patristic Evidence 25 Contemporary Views on Divine Impassibility 26 Divine Impassibility in the African Context 30 Outline of Chapters 34 Methodology 36 Significance of This Study 36 Qualifications 37 CHAPTER 2: GOD AS IMPASSIBLE: A REVIEW OF PATRISTIC THOUGHT 38 The Notion of Divine Impassibility: Evaluation of Patristic Thought 38 Second-Century Theology: Impassibility as “Apophatic Qualifier”of Divine Emotions 41 Setting the Stage: What is at Issue? 43 Christological Controversies between the Second and Fifth Centuries 48 Second-Century Docetism: Was Christ’s Passion Real? 49 Third-Century: The Problem of Modalist Patripassianism 51 Fourth and Fifth Centuries: The Early Hints of Divine Passibility 54 Arius and Arianism: The Problem of Subordinationism 55 Athanasius of Alexandria against Arius 58 Gregory of Nyssa against Eunomius 60 Cyril of Alexandria against Nestorius 62 Conclusion 68 CHAPTER 3: DIVINE IMPASSIBILITY: VIEWS FROM SELECTED WESTERN CONTEMPORARY THEOLOGIANS 70 Contemporary Notions of a Passible God 70 Jürgen Moltmann and the Theology of Divine Suffering 71 The Hermeneutics of the Cross 75 Contemporary Liberation Theology on Divine Suffering 79 James Cone: Divine Impassibility and the African American Experience 80 The Issue of Racism 83 vi Slavery and Divine Involvement in the Suffering of Black People 85 Divine Impassibility in the Black Theology of Liberation 88 Black Theology of Liberation 90 Cone’s Christological Titles in Black Theology 92 Christ the Liberator 92 The Black Christ 93 What Christ Means for Black People 96 What Is Missing in Ancient Christian Theology? 98 The Mystery of God in Situations of Suffering 99 Conclusion 102 CHAPTER 4. THE PROBLEM OF DIVINE IMPASSIBILITY IN AN AFRICAN CONTEXT 104 The African Context 104 The Background of Contextual Theology in Africa 109 The Emergence of Contextualization 112 The Hermeneutics of African Christian Theology 116 The Concept of a Supreme Being in African Traditional Religion 120 God as Transcendent and Immanent 124 God as the Great Ancestor 129 Christ as Brother-Ancestor and Liberator 131 God as Liberator 135 Divine Impassibility in Situations of Suffering: The African Experience 137 Divine Impassibility and Passibility as Metaphorical Attributes 140 Conclusion 141 CHAPTER 5: RECONSTRUCTING AFRICAN CHRISTOLOGY VIA THE DOCTRINE OF INCULTURATION AND LIBERATION 143 Introduction 143 Reconstructive Theology: Definition 145 The Need for Reconstruction 149 The Need for Inculturation and Liberation Theologies 152 The Mystery of God and the Relevance of Christ to Africans 159 Transformation of African Traditional Religion 161 Rituals 164 Prayers 166 Divine Passibility and Relational Ontology: A Paradigm Shift in God-Talk 168 Heirloom Christology 172 Conclusion 175 BIBLIOGRAPHY 178 VITA 185 vii ABSTRACT During the patristic era, theology dealt with the problem of how to explain the union of the two natures in Christ without losing the impassible nature of God. Today, the understanding of God as impassible is no longer absolute in light of present human suffering. To gain a better understanding of God as passible, the following areas will be examined: the patristic view and the contemporary critique of divine impassibility, the African context and the reconstruction of African Christology via inculturation and liberation. The concept of God as passible can make a significant difference in the lives of Christians. This passibility is revealed in the suffering Christ. Thus, a theology of a passible God is appropriate, not only for the African context, but also for the entire Christian world. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM Statement of the Problem Suffering is a common human experience and is, perhaps, the most puzzling aspect of humanity’s relationship with God. My work as a chaplain has revealed to me that suffering is the most difficult test of faith for a believer. To believe that God is there with the sufferer, especially when one is in extreme suffering, is hard for many to comprehend. It is difficult to recognize God’s hand acting in our broken world. During difficult times, human beings tend to seek God for immediate help. They want a God who can suffer with them and alleviate their pain. Although traditional Christian theology has long held the doctrine of divine impassibility, the passible God revealed in the suffering Jesus offers humanity strength, hope, and solace. The story of Jesus’ passion found in the Gospels suggests that the suffering Jesus, as the revelation of a passible God, is the basis of a more adequate Christology for Africa and, therefore, a more adequate theology for the Christian world. Today, the enormity of suffering in our world makes it difficult to understand the concept of omnipotence in which God seemingly stands silently and apathetically above the world’s struggles. Today’s world does not value the idea of a God who is impassible. Impassibility was the effort on the part of the ancient fathers to protect God’s transcendence; however, it may have the effect of giving the impression that God is able 1 2 but unwilling to intervene in the face of social and political injustices. Looking to my own experience as a daughter of a continent that has been ravaged by war, famine, diseases, oppression, domestic violence, corruption, and fear of the presence of evil spirits, I believe that Africans, like other people in the world, are longing for deliverance. From where will this deliverance come? The events of violence in Kenya and Zimbabwe after their presidential elections, the long-term suffering of the people in Darfur Sudan, in the northern part of Uganda, in the Republic of Congo, the Rwandan genocide of 1994, and the systemic oppression of women by African patriarchal culture are examples of overwhelming suffering.
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