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THE BOOK OF JOB THROUGH CENTRAL AFRICAN EYES: THEODICY, SUFFERING AND HOPE AMONGST FANG PROTESTANT CHRISTIANS IN EQUATORIAL GUINEA BY JASON A. CARTER DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY THE UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH 2014 ABSTRACT The Book of Job through Central African Eyes: Theodicy, Suffering and Hope amongst Fang Protestant Christians in Equatorial Guinea This thesis seeks to close the gap between the growing Christianization of much of sub- Saharan Africa and the relative marginalization of ordinary African voices in the areas of biblical hermeneutics and contextual theology. In spite of the rise of Christianity in Africa, studies offering a descriptive analysis of how grassroots Christians interpret and appropriate the themes and theologies of a particular biblical book are remarkably atypical. A central argument of the thesis is that experiences of the Christian faith and the dominant themes, theologies and trajectories adopted by local believers are uniquely informed by the intersection of biblical hermeneutics, local culture and ecclesial praxis. Referring to this dynamic as the hermeneutics-culture-praxis triad, a contextual reading of the book of Job amongst Fang Christians (mostly Protestants) in Equatorial Guinea seeks to elucidate the interconnections between hermeneutical reflection, local Fang culture and dominant ecclesial practices. Providing the overall structure for the thesis, each “pole” or “source” of the hermeneutics-culture-praxis triad is explored at length in part one (chapters 1-3) of the study. With respect to hermeneutics, chapter one gives a general overview of the hermeneutics-culture- praxis triad in highlighting its significant relationship to African Christianity as well as delineating why the book of Job provides a particularly suitable window into an exploration of issues affecting contemporary African Christianity. Chapter two focuses on the culture of the Fang peoples of Equatorial Guinea and their history, beliefs and practices which inform local readings of the book of Job. Chapter three explores the ecclesial praxis and histories of three significant Protestant denominations in Equatorial Guinea: the Reformed Presbyterian Church of Equatorial Guinea and two Pentecostal churches – “Joy of My Salvation” and Assembly of the Holy Spirit. These provide the interpretive communities in which I observed the appropriation of the book of Job by ordinary Christians through sermons and Bible studies. The second part of the study (chapters 4-6) views the themes, theologies and trajectories currently occupying Fang Protestants through the window of their contextual readings of the book of Job. In chapter four, I argue that the underlying concerns of theodicy amongst Fang Christians shape their particular vision of a “moral etiology” of evil and suffering. I present this moral etiology as the critical lens through which ordinary Christians interpret the book of Job, re- conceptualize the cosmology and construct images of God and the Devil. In chapter five, the stigmatizing experiences of Catholic leprosy patients and people living with HIV/AIDS are illustrated through their appropriation of Job’s lament and engagement with a theology of retribution. The chapter analyses the challenge posed by the paradigm of “Job the Innocent Sufferer” to the retributive theologies of blame which continue to characterize Christian rhetoric during the HIV/AIDS crisis. The chapter also explores Job’s lament as an authentic and liberating theological language capable of embodying compassionate solidarity for people living with HIV/AIDS. Chapter six examines the eschatological orientation of Fang Protestant Christians as they respond to Job’s experience in the midst of suffering and his final liberation and restoration. It suggests that the center of Christian hope amongst Fang Protestants is a Deus (rather than Christus) Victor paradigm expressed in the Christian practice of prayer. ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS As the Fang refrain says, “onuú ovóó wăá vea fwás á mbií” (“a single finger does not extract the larva from the hole”). The refrain implies that communal cooperation is the only sure path in the pursuit of a goal. In this thesis, many fingers lent their help in extracting the fwás from the hole! I owe a tremendous amount of gratitude to so many people who helped make this project possible. The riches of hospitality and generosity that I received amongst friends, colleagues, churches and even new acquaintances in Equatorial Guinea who shared their lives, stories, homes and meals with me during my fieldwork is truly remarkable. I count my own life immeasurably enriched through my time spent amongst the Fang, a journey which began in 1998-99 when I spent one of the richest relational years of my life eating, working and studying shoulder-to-shoulder with several of the future leaders of the Protestant community in Equatorial Guinea. The many nights sharing, singing, dreaming and laughing around a candle or kerosene lamp after supper have not easily been forgotten, and, in many ways, this thesis stands as a rather distant testimony to the impact those times have had on my life. Of the many people who helped make this project possible, I want to especially acknowledge the three churches that graciously agreed to host studies on the book of Job. Within the Reformed Presbyterian Church of Equatorial Guinea, General Secretary, Pastor Manuel Nzôh Asumu, enthusiastically embraced this project from its very beginning. The National Director of Christian Education, Pastor Alberto Mañe Ebo Asong, spent long hours talking Presbyterian church history with me in his unofficial, but quite capable, role of local Presbyterian church historian. Pastor Manuel Owono Akara Oke not only graciously arranged the sermon series and Bible studies on Job within the “Bata Jerusalén” church in Bata but also welcomed me in his extended family which provided many enriching conversations centering upon Presbyterian ethos and Fang culture. One of the foremost Presbyterian matriarchs, “Mama Lily”, also went out of her way to host me on several occasions, including a trip to visit the old missionary station in the village of Bolondo. Within the church “Joy of My Salvation”, the Superintendent, Pastor Damián Ángel Asumu, and Pastor Basilio Oyono proved extremely kind to the project and both were instrumental for gaining an appreciation for the dynamics of Pentecostal deliverance ministries as practiced by the church. These two pastors not only welcomed me to observe the deliverance prayer time but also encouraged me to sit alongside the counselees as they expressed their presenting problems. In the Assembly of the Holy Spirit, Apostle Augustín Edu Esono, along with his wife Maria Dolores Nchama, were very gracious and hospitable hosts. Pastor Liborio Nvo Ndong was also enormously helpful in arranging many of the sermons on the book of Job at the church. These few names, of course, only begin to scratch the surface. I am indebted to so many others within all three church communities: pastors who preached, lay people who diligently prepared Bible studies, and other church members and pastors who simply spent time answering my various questions. In addition to the hospitality of the three churches, my five months of field research was enormously enriched, and indeed made more profitable, through extended stays with the families of Agapito Mang and his wife Mari Carmen (in Bata), Deogracias Bee and his wife Juanita (in Nsork) and Clemente Alogo and his wife Nelly (in Kogo). All were surrogate families for me during my field research while also providing invaluable inroads into the Fang culture. At the local seminary, Instituto Bíblico “Casa de la Palabra” (IBCP), professors Modesto Engonga Ondo and Esteban Ndong graciously agreed to co-teach the class on the book of Job despite their busy schedules as local pastors. I am also grateful that one former graduate of the seminary, iii Martin Mbeng Nze, who is known at the Centro Cultural Español for his knowledge of Fang indigenous practices took a particularly keen interest in spending hours discussing Fang traditional rituals with me. Finally, it would be remiss of me if I did not mention the absolute privilege that was granted to me upon being warmly received by the community at the leprosarium of Micomeseng and the Good Samaritan HIV/AIDS support group. The Fang sense of hospitality shone bright even against the backdrop of the darkest of personal stories. Samuel Ndong and Allen Pierce, two members of the Asociación Cristiana de Traducciones Bíblicas (Christian Association of Bible Translations) currently working to finish the translation of the New Testament into the Fang language, were both exceeding helpful at various stages of the research. Two of my former students at IBCP seminary, Benedicto Ndong Ondo and Gregorio Nsomboro Ndong, provided the lion’s share of the work for translating from Fang to Spanish the Bible studies and the female interviews at the leprosarium. A blend of sheer kindness and utter unselflessness were evident in their perseverance of that task of which I am exceedingly grateful. My own missionary colleagues, Roly and Cristina Grenier and Jazmin Abuabara, were characteristically welcoming, and their friendships and hospitality in facilitating numerous logistical and practical details were most helpful.