View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Brigham Young University Law School BYU Law Review Volume 1998 | Issue 2 Article 5 5-1-1998 Christianity and Islam: Lessons from Africa J. Paul Martin Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.law.byu.edu/lawreview Part of the Christianity Commons, Human Rights Law Commons, Other Religion Commons, and the Religion Law Commons Recommended Citation J. Paul Martin, Christianity and Islam: Lessons from Africa, 1998 BYU L. Rev. 401 (1998). Available at: https://digitalcommons.law.byu.edu/lawreview/vol1998/iss2/5 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Brigham Young University Law Review at BYU Law Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in BYU Law Review by an authorized editor of BYU Law Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. D:\ 1998-2\ FINAL\ MAR-FIN.WPD Ja n. 8, 2001 Ch ristia nit y a nd I slam: Less ons fr om Africa J. Paul Martin * I. INTRODUCTION As we end the twentieth cen tury t her e is a resurgen ce of interest in religion an d the r ole it plays in our lives.1 Religion and, un fortu na tely conflicts tha t a re religiously defined ha ve returned to center stage in world polit ics.2 After years of ne- glect, more a cademics are exa min in g r eligiou s beliefs and p rac- tices. They recognize, perhaps, the de facto role r eligion plays in the lives of large segment s of the ear th ’s populat ion and in the decisions of many world leaders. Certain works and the popular press have suggested an inherently conflicting relationship between Islam and Chris- tianity.3 The potent ial for conflict between Chr istian ity a nd Islam is augm ent ed by modern commu nications and increasing populat ion movem ents th at bring a bou t an unprecedented in- ter min gling of religions, elimina tin g religiou sly h omogen eou s communities virtually everywhere.4 * Execut ive Dir ect or of th e Ce nt er for the Study of Hum an Right s, Colum bia Un iversit y. The Essay draws on the author’s re se ar ch o n t he eva ng eli za ti on of th e Sotho in n inet eent h cent ur y Sout her n Africa a nd on an ar ticle on re ligiou s pr osel yti zat ion co-authored with Father Harry Winter, O.M.I., who is a dir ect or of th e Oblate Center for Mission Studies in Wa shingt on D.C. 1. See David M. Smolin , Cra cks in th e Mi rror ed Prison: An Evangelical Critique of Secularist Academic and Ju dicial Myths Regarding the Relationship of Religion and American Poli tics , 29 LOY. L.A. L. REV. 1487, 1512 (1996) (discussing worldwide “resurgence of con se rv at ive , a nd eve n fu nd am en ta lis t, re ligi on”). 2. See A. Pet er Mut ha rik a, The Role of the United Nations Secur ity Cou ncil in African Peace Management: Som e Proposals, 17 MICH. J. INT’L L. 537, 538 (1996) (stating th at coun tr ies ar e in cre as ing ly faced w ith th re at s fr om int er na l re ligiou s con flict s). 3. S ee, e.g., Johnathan K. Stubbs, Persuading Thy Neighbor to Be as Th yself: Constitutional Lim its on Evan gelism in th e United S tates and India, 12 UCLA PAC. BASIN L.J. 360, 366 (1994) (stat ing tha t wh en Ch rist ian miss ionar ies moved int o Islam ic ar ea s t he re wa s a na tu ra l con flict wit h e xis ti ng la ws ). 4. See SAMUEL P. HUNTINGTON, THE CLASH OF CIVILIZATIONS AND THE REMAKING OF WORLD ORDER 198-200 (1996) (discussing the r ise in immigrat ion due to improved tr an spor ta tion and communication). 401 D:\ 1998-2\ FINAL\ MAR-FIN.WPD Ja n. 8, 2001 402 BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY LAW REVIEW [1998 However, Is la m and Christia nit y h ave m uch in common.5 They come from r elat ed theological tr aditions, and both believe in a single omnipotent God who is concern ed wit h h um an his- tory and who has sent messengers to guide human beings to salvation.6 Proselyt iza tion 7 ha s cha ra cter ized t he history of bot h Chr istian ity and Islam , although its intensity ha s varied from group to group, and historical period to historical period, with in each tr adition. Toda y, Muslims and Christians are in- creasingly in ter min gled. Th ey n ow live more often in the same spaces, which increases the danger of competing for the same souls.8 Decision s on the per missibilit y of Mu slim cust oms a re finding their way int o western lega l syst ems, wh ich, though secular in form, still reflect their Christian origins. In some part s of the world, Christian-Muslim antagonisms exhibit , and in others could regain, the polit ica l for ce t hey p os- sessed during the period of the crusades in the lat e Middle Ages.9 Some people in the West identify political Islam as the major en em y of West er n Civiliza tion .10 On the other hand, ot h- ers seek to improve relations between the two faith s. Christia n groups are reformulating their theologies of mission to reject pejora tive concepts like pr oselytism to talk about witn ess, dia- logue and cooperation.11 Th e in crea sing r eligiou s p lu ralis m of modern society h as brought these segments of the Christian church to appr eciate th e importance, and indeed the necessity, of institut ionalized tolerance in the civic sphere. 5. See S.I. St ron g, Ch ris tia n C ons tit ut ion s: Do T hey Prot ect Internationally R ecogn ized Hum an Righ ts and Minim ize the Potential for Violence Within a Society?, 29 CASE W. RES. J. INT’L L. 1, 6 2 (19 97). 6. See Leila P. Sa yeh & Adr iaen M. Mors e, J r., Islam and the Treatm ent of Women: An In complete Understand ing of Gradualism, 30 TEX. INT’L L.J . 311, 313-14 (199 5). 7. Pr osel yti zat ion and religious missionary work are used interchan geably in th is Essay in th eir m ost gen eric form, n am ely, as witn essin g an d seek ing to recru it new me mb er s t o th e be liefs an d pr act ices of a par ticu lar re ligiou s t ra dit ion. 8. See JOHN L. ESPOSITO, THE ISLAMIC THR EAT : MYTH OR REALITY? 46 (199 2). 9. See John S. Pobee, R eligi ous Hu m an R igh ts in Af rica , 10 EMORY INT’L L. REV. 163, 165 (1996 ); Lisa L. S chm an dt, Com men t, Peace with Justice: Is it Possible for the Former Yugoslavia?, 30 TEX. INT’L L.J . 335 , 33 7 (19 95). 10. See Ann E lizabet h Ma yer, Universal Versus Islam ic Hum an Righ ts: A Clash of Cultures or a Clash with a Construct?, 15 MICH. J. INT’L L. 307, 320 (199 4). 11. See DAVID J. BOSCH, TRANSFORMING MISSION: PARADIGM SHIFTS IN THEOLOGY OF MISSION 368 (199 6). D:\ 1998-2\ FINAL\ MAR-FIN.WPD Ja n. 8, 2001 401] CHRISTIANITY AND ISLAM 403 This Ess ay u ses h istorica l a nd t heologica l reflect ion s on Chr istian missionary work in Africa to rea ch beyon d the stereo- typical view that religions are necessa rily in conflict wit h one another an d tha t t he West is fight ing Islam for souls. It seeks to develop a vis ion of a path toward a pea ceable social order based on contemporary concepts of human rights. Religion and society are obviou sly m ult ifa cet ed. My resea rch on missionary work in Africa shows that religious missions in volve much more than competition for souls. Their net results are pervasive and it is important to take into account the resulting big picture. My basic thesis and the lessons we can lear n from Christia nit y and Islam in Africa are: (a ) the r ela tion sh ip between religion an d “civilization” as a whole is complex a nd descriptions should not be undu ly s im plified, let alon e r educed to stereotypes; (b) social equilibr iu m depends on the continuing, gradual int erpenetr at ion of differ en t cult ural, economic a nd p olit ica l traits an d tra ditions; th ese processes are im peded when public policies try to separate out, socially or physically, the different traditions; an d (c) while still t o be improved, hu ma n r ight s represent the best set of common standards to assur e a peaceable social order. II. IMPACT OF RELIGION ON SOCIETY In the moder n wor ld, in crea sing plu ralis m is bot h an em pirica l fact and a process that requires astute public policy to ensure a peaceable social order.12 Wor ld views and n ation al policies that juxtapose or, worse still, separate or demonize as in im ica l traditions, ideas and practices that have significant numbers of adherents, inevita bly lead to social tension, and may lead to violent social conflagr at ions, a s we have seen most recen tly in the former Yugoslavia and Northern Ireland.13 12.