DISSERTATION Titel der Dissertation THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH IN A CONTINENT TORN APART BY WARS, CONFLICTS, VIOLENCE AND OPPRESSION – Towards an African Political Theology of Reconciliation (Based on Nigerian Experience) Verfasser Mag. Chudi Joseph Ibeanu angestrebter akademischer Grad Doktor der Theologie (Dr. theol.) Wien, im September 2012 Studienkennzahl lt. Studienblatt: A 080 011 Dissertationsgebiet lt. Studienblatt: Katholische Fachtheologie Betreuer: Univ.-Prof. DDr. Kurt Appel DEDICATION This Work is dedicated to my country Nigeria and to all the citizens of this country I love so much, hoping that one day we will come to the full awareness of who we are; one family of God! 1 ACKNOWLEGEMENT I thank the Almighty God for the great wonder of my being! For their cooperation with God in making this wonder an existential possibility, I thank my beloved parents, late Mr. Felix Ibeanu and Mrs. Virginia Ibeanu. I can never ever thank them enough for their love and for all they have done for me in life. I therefore ask the good Lord to bless them in the way He alone knows best. My profound gratitude goes to my highly esteemed professor, Uni.-Prof. DDr. Kurt Appel, who accepted to supervise this work, in spite of his numerous academic engagements. He not only exposed me to zeal for scientific research and widened the scope of my quest for knowledge; he trained me to maintain a modicum of objectivity in my theological thinking! His friendly nature und unassuming character provided a lovely and accommodating atmosphere for us students from different Continents in our institute of Fundamental Theology of the University of Vienna. I am also greatly indebted to his assistant in the institute, Dr. Helmut Jakob Deibl, who meticulously read the work right from the beginning to the end. His corrections and suggestions contributed to a great deal to the richness of this work. Thanks a million times dear Kurt and Jakob! I am eternally indebted to Univ Prof. (emeritus) DDr. Paul M. Zulehner. His benign suggestions were of immense help to enriching the quality of this work. In the course of my research I came in contact with Prof. Dr. Robert J. Schreiter. Being an expert in the theme of Reconciliation, I did not waste time to draw from the wealth of his knowledge and experiences. He proofread the original manuscript and made valuable corrections and suggestions. I thank him immensely for his priceless effort and kind support! His Eminence, Dr. Christoph Cardinal Schönborn – the admirable Archbishop of Vienna accepted me as one of his many beneficiaries to study in this great and noble institution of learning, the University of Vienna, Austria. He remains inspiring, loving and caring. May the good Lord reward his great works both for the Church and for the world at large. I thank my then Local Ordinary, Most Rev. Dr. Simon A. Okafor for the opportunity given to me to travel outside the shores of Africa to continue my studies. His 2 Grace, Most Rev. Dr. Valerian Okeke, the Archbishop of Onitsha offered me the opportunity as the then Rector of Bigard Memorial Seminary, Enugu, to come to Vienna, Austria for my further studies. I can never thank him enough for his love and belief in me, in spite of me! I thank my Bishop and local ordinary, Most Rev. Dr. Paulinus Ezeokafor. He has been very supportive. Thanks a lot! The love, acceptance and conducive atmosphere given to me by the Redemptorist Community of the Marienpfarre, Hernals Vienna gave me the confidence to be in Austria and to face my studies with less difficulty. The Rector of this community, P. Andreas Hiller, whose life is a source of hope not only to me as a person but also to all who come in contact with him, is worthy of special mention. He became to me not only a brother but a great friend. Enyi m, daalu! Chukwu gozie gi! Patres Augustine Froschauer, Franz Geiblinger, Anthony Schmolmüller (now of blessed memory), Engelbert Jestl, and Dr. Gerhard Schulltes are great companions in the Lord´s vineyard. I am grateful – Danke sehr! I thank also the entire community of the Marienpfarre for the love and acceptance shown to me! Worthy of mention are Mag. Rudi Mijoc, Frau Edith Schumatschek and many others that I cannot mention here due to want of space. Frau Hildegard Mayr, who is totally committed to peace and reconciliation through the International Fellowship of Reconciliation, made her books and ideas available to me. Thanks! I thank my beloved colleagues and friends here in Austria, Dr. Ikenna Okafor, who has become my best friend in the truest sense of it, Mag. Anistus Njoku, Dr. Jakob Nwabor, Dr. Peter Okeke, Dr. Fabian Mmagu, Fr. Francis Nwosu and all the Nigerian priests and religious in Austria for their brotherly love and concern. In the course of my studies I made impressive encounters with many men and women of good will, who are really source of strength and encouragement to me; Vera Dornhackl, DDr. Alfred Längle and Dr. Silvia Längle, who offered me the scholarship to do Psychotherapy and Counselling training in their institute, Gesellschaft für Logotherapie and Existenzanalyse (GLE), Dr. Wolfgang Grebner, Riki Grebner, Mag. Ursula Lassnig, Martin Lassnig, Chinaza V. Lassnig, Eva Schindlecker, Hildegard Sedlatschek and 3 Bac. Phil. Beate Hacker. And to all I could not mention here due to want of space, I say: thank you last and most! 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS DEDICATION………………………………………………………………………………1 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT................................................................................2 TABLE OF CONTENTS.................................................................................5 I. Introducing the Study..............................................................................9 II. Aims and Division of the Study..............................................................12 III: Method and Sources.............................................................................15 PART ONE: THE AFRICAN REALITIES AND THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH CHAPTER ONE AFRICA – A BRIEF HISTORY 1.1 Statement and Clarification of Facts.....................................................16 CHAPTER TWO AFRICAN WORLD VIEWS: THE AFRICAN AS HOMO REIGIOSUS AND HOMO POLITICUS 2.1 The African as Homo Religiosus...........................................................20 2.2 African Traditional Religion..................................................................21 2.2.1 Monotheism versus many Deities......................................................23 2.2.2 Belief in the Ancestral Spirits............................................................24 2.2.3 Sacrifice in African Traditional Religion.............................................26 2.3 The new Religions................................................................................28 2.3.1 Christianity.......................................................................................28 2.3.2 Islam.................................................................................................33 2.4 The African as Homo Politicus..............................................................36 2.4.1 Relationship between Religion and Politics in Africa..........................38 CHAPTER THREE AFRICAN SOCIO-ECONOMIC PHENOMENA 3.1 The European Invasion........................................................................40 5 3.1.1 Colonialism with the Evil of Exploitation and Impoverishment of Africa.........................................................................................................40 3.1.2 Racism and Slavery...........................................................................43 3.1.3 The Emergence of Nations: A square peg in a round hole!..................49 3.1.3.1 Wars and Ethno-religious Conflicts in Africa ..................................55 3.2 Poverty.................................................................................................64 3.3 Corruption...........................................................................................67 3.4 African Debt Crisis……………………………………………………………..….69 CHAPTER FOUR THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH 4.1 Images of the Church...........................................................................74 4.1.1 The African Image of the Church as “Family of God”..........................79 4.1.2 The Holy Church...............................................................................87 4.1.3 The Church of Saints and Sinners.....................................................89 4.2. The Mission of the Church..................................................................91 4.2.1. The Church as Liberator..................................................................94 4.2.2 The Church as Reconciler..................................................................99 4.3 The Reconciling Mission of the Church in Africa.................................101 PART TWO: THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF RECONCILIATION CHAPTER FIVE A: THE CHRISTIAN UNDERSTANDING OF RECONCILIATION 5.1 Reconciliation in the Old Testament...................................................108 5.2 Reconciliation in the New Testament..................................................115 5.2.1 St. Paul’s Teaching on Reconciliation..............................................116 5.3 Reconciliation: A Theological Perspective............................................122 5.3.1 The Christology of Reconciliation.....................................................126 5.3.2 The Soteriological Dimension of Reconciliation................................128 5.3.3. The Ecclesiology