1.1 HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT OF CHRISTIANITY
Christianity is a
religion that believes there is only one God. It is based on the life
and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christianity has evolved over the
centuries. Like any religion, disciples from one generation to another
and from place to place as missionary including Africa conveyed the
message and teachings.
Christianity in Africa
is not devoid of the culture of the people. This integration easily
promoted the mass exodus of missionaries into Africa and West Africa in
particular. It must be noted that the coming of missionaries to Africa
saw a different orientation of the culture of the West African people
that was said to seen as negative arising from some customs such as the
killing of twins, burial of the living alive with a dead king including
corporal punishment to offenders for conduct of certain level of
criminal activities. African culture and or customs is not a monolith
and while the foundations remain fundamentally unaltered, the
interpretation and expression of continues to be a forever-blossoming
flower.
Christianity has been
plagued with the history of European conquest and today it is yet to
escape that legacy and become an agent of true liberation. With the
exception of Ethiopia, the intention of Christianity in Africa was never
to create development, in any capacity, in the African mind. Jesus was a
Jew. He observed the Jewish faith and was well acquainted with the
Jewish Law. In His early thirties, Jesus traveled from village to
village, teaching in the synagogues and healing those who were
suffering. Thus being the very first missionary of the Faith. Jesus'
teaching was revolutionary. He challenged the established religious
authorities to repent from their self-righteousness and hypocrisy and
realize that the Kingdom of God is rooted in service and love. Jesus'
teachings stirred the hearts of people and created instability,
something the Jewish religious authorities feared. Soon, a faithful
group of men began to follow Jesus and call him teacher. These men
became His disciples. Jesus taught His disciples about the will of God
and about the "new covenant" God will bring to humanity through Him.
Jesus helped them to see that mankind is bound to the pain and futility
of life as a result of sin. Due to sin, mankind lost its relationship
with God.
The purpose of this
"new covenant" is to restore those who accept it into a renewed
fellowship of forgiveness and love with God. What is this new covenant?
Jesus himself would pay for the sins of all humanity by being crucified
unjustly on a Roman cross. Three days later, He would rise to life,
having conquered death, to give hope to a hopeless world. Well, it
happened just as Jesus taught, and His disciples were witnesses to an
amazing miracle. Their teacher, Jesus of Nazareth, died and three days
later rose again to become their Messiah. Compelled by a great
commission to share the love that the God of this universe had imparted
upon them, the disciples began to proclaim this gospel of hope
throughout the territory as the earliest missionaries. Thus, from a
small group of ordinary men that lived in a small province in Judea
about 2000 years ago, and the Christian Faith has since spread to the
rest of the world including West Africa. Their gospel message was and
still remains simple: "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but
have everlasting life." (John 3:16).
Though most of the historical record for
the start of the Christian faith is recorded in the New Testament
accounts, the history of Christianity actually began with prophecy in
the Old Testament. There are over 300 prophecies (predictions) that span
over a period of 1000 years that are recorded in the Old Testament
concerning the coming of a Jewish Messiah. A study of Jesus' life, death
and background will show that He was undoubtedly the fulfillment of
these Messianic prophecies. Thus, even long before Jesus came in the
world, His mission was made known to mankind through the Word of God. At
first glance, the history Christianity's origin may seem like nothing
more than a fairy tale. Many feel that it's just too implausible, and
even intellectually dishonest, for people living in the 21st century to
believe that these events actually took place. However, the Christian
faith, unlike any other religion, hinges on historical events, including
one of pivotal importance. If Jesus Christ died and never rose to life,
then Christianity is a myth or a fraud. In 1 Corinthians 15:14, Paul
exhorts his readers to grab hold of this central truth, that "And if
Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also
vain." The evidence for the resurrection is the key to establishing that
Jesus is indeed who He claims to be. It is the historical validity of
this central fact that gives Christians genuine and eternal hope amidst a
hurting world.
1.2 SPREAD OF CHRISTIANITY IN WEST AFRICA
A strange historical significance seems
to surround the Middle East. It has served as the birth place for many
cultures and religions. Its Fertile Crescent contained one of the
earliest culture hearths where civilization developed. In this area
great kingdoms of the ancient world, such as Babylon and Persia, arose
to shape history. Judaism had its roots in the Middle East, and
Israel-the country of God's chosen people-was formed here. Later one of
the largest and most historically important religions on
earth-Christianity emerged alongside other religions and spread from the
Middle East. Its expansion from this region had substantial impact on
the course of history and also made considerable progress during the
first 200 years of the spread.
Christianity existed several centuries
prior to the birth of Islam, and by the time Islam was founded in the
Middle East, Christianity had moved its center to Europe, where it had
firmly established itself as the official religion. But Christianity
originally sprouted in the Middle East after Christ's resurrection in
A.D. 30. The church began in Jerusalem and the surrounding area, and it
initially preached the Gospel only to the Jews. It grew quite rapidly
for a time. During this early period, however, Christianity did not
expand far beyond Jerusalem and its vicinity. That changed after the
first few years of relative peace for the church, a terrible persecution
broke out following the stoning of Stephen. Jewish leaders hunted down
the followers of Jesus and threw them into prison. At this time many in
the church scattered to the surrounding countryside of Judea and
Samaria. Christianity’s worldwide expansion then vigorously and
circumstantially begun.
The histories of Christian expansion
diverged from initial dispersions caused by persecution. Although
Christians continued to be persecuted until the "Edict of Toleration" of
311 AD, they were able to hide in house churches within the cities,
intending that the gospel would diffuse into the countryside from there.
But this made the spread of Christianity during the first two centuries
an essentially urban phenomenon, and it became an urban religion. That
the Christian church continued to grow in the face of persecution
throughout its first two centuries, served as a testimony to the power
and truth of the Gospel of Christ for Christians. This distinction made
the spread of Christianity and the spread of Islam extremely different.
Christians were taught to "turn the
other cheek" and "love your enemies". The Apostle Paul wrote, "God
demonstrates His own love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners,
Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8). While Christians taught that God
loves all people and wants them to have a personal relationship with
Him. Christians did not force their religion on others but relied on
missionaries, preaching, and leading godly lives as ambassadors of God.
Muslims, on the other hand, did not rely solely on preaching to spread
their faith-they turned also to the sword to conquer vast areas of land
in the Middle East and Northern Africa during the seventh and eighth
centuries. When they attacked or occupied new territory, they gave its
inhabitants three options: convert to Islam, pay a special tax, or die.
Under these circumstances many chose to pay the tax, and many others
chose to convert to Islam. Clearly, the Islamic method of expansion did
not match the loving approach of Christianity. However, as Christianity
fell under the control of Roman Catholicism, instances of conversion by
the sword were used. Emperors from Constantine to Charlemagne had forced
baptism into Christianity by conquered peoples. The Spanish Inquisition
also used violence to enhance the position of the Church. The differing
methods of expansion actually helped determine the area each religion
would cover as it spread. Christians during the first two centuries
traveled from city to city in the Roman Empire, taking advantage of the
excellent Roman roads. As a result, the first two centuries saw the
Gospel spread primarily in Roman territory although it was also carried
to some other areas, including Ethiopia and perhaps even India. By the
year 200 A.D., Christian communities existed throughout the Middle East
and Turkey, and there were several in Greece and Italy as well. Islam,
however, spread from Saudi Arabia and conquered most of the Middle East
and North Africa. Christianity was hesitantly welcomed where people had
been living under suppressive rule.
As a result of its method of expansion,
Christian missionaries easily spread to eventually becoming the official
religion of the Roman Empire, and it profoundly influenced the
development of Europe and, consequently, of the Americas and eventual
Africa and by extension West Africa