CHRISTIANITY AND AFRICAN CULTURE: NAVIGATING THE INTERACTIONSAND OUTCOME

Abstract

Christianity often interacts with every culture with which it comes in contact to determine the mode of its co-existence with the prevailing culture in any given environment. Since its inception, Christianity has come into contact with and interacted with various cultural environments, ranging from the Jewish religious/cultural environment of the first century to that of the general Middle Eastern cultural environment. Then to the Greco-Roman world, which prevailed in the early days of its existence. In the Eastern and Western world, Christianity persisted and interacted with their cultures and also absorbed large chunks of the prevailing cultures. Since its inception in Africa, especially sub-Saharan Africa, many questions have arisen regarding the acceptable or unacceptable modes of interaction between Christianity and African culture. Some terms that have arisen and come to play in that interaction include – inculturation, acculturation, and indigenization, among others. Questions have arisen whether some cultures could be regarded as Christian while others are regarded as pagan or heathen. In the African context, what should be the best modes of interaction between Christianity and African cultural practices? Should the cultural practices be absorbed and swallowed, or should there be a mode of sifting through the cultural practices, refining what needs to be refined, and throwing overboard what is incompatible with the tenets of Christianity? These are some of the issues this paper seeks to investigate and proffer solutions to the arising questions. The methodologies being employed in this investigation are the historical and sociological methods.