African Theology as Liberating Wisdom: Celebrating Life and Harmony in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Botswana

Erscheinungsjahr 2013
ISBN: 978-90-04-24595-2
Verlag: Brill

Buch, Englisch, Band 12, 400 Seiten, Format (B × H): 159 mm x 241 mm, Gewicht: 1760 g

Reihe: Studies in Systematic Theology

In African Theology as Liberating Wisdom; Celebrating Life and Harmony in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Botswana, Mari-Anna Pöntinen analyses contextual interpretations of the Christian faith in this particular church. These interpretations are based on the special wisdom tradition which embraces monistic ontology, communal ethics in botho, and the indigenous belief in God as the Source of Life, and the Root of everything that exists. The constructing theological principle in the ELCB is the downward-orientated and descending God in Christ which interprets the ‘Lutheran spirit’ in a liberating and empowering sense. It deals with the cultural mythos which brings Christ down into people’s existence, unlike Western connotations which are considered to hinder seeing Christ and to prevent existential self-awareness.

Zielgruppe

All interested in contextual theology in general and African theology in particular, especially African Lutheranism, and anyone concerned with African traditional wisdom, Tswana philosophy, culture and religion.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Pöntinen, Mari-Anna

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Christentum, Christliche Theologie Systematische Theologie Fundamentaltheologie, Dogmatik, Christologie
• Geisteswissenschaften Religionswissenschaft Religionswissenschaft Allgemein Religion & Kultur
• Sozialwissenschaften Ethnologie | Volkskunde Ethnologie Religionsethnologie
• Geisteswissenschaften Christentum, Christliche Theologie Christliche Kirchen, Konfessionen, Denominationen Protestantismus, evangelische und protestantische Kirchen
• Geisteswissenschaften Christentum, Christliche Theologie Systematische Theologie Sonstige Theologien
• Geisteswissenschaften Christentum, Christliche Theologie Christentum/Christliche Theologie Allgemein Missionswissenschaft, Missionsgeschichte

Inhaltsverzeichnis

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. ix
ABBREVIATIONS. xiii

1. INTRODUCTION. 1
1.1. Challenges of African theology and the context of the ELCB. 1
1.2. Aim of the study, its methods and previous research. 15
1.3. Sources and structure of the study. 25

2. AFRICAN THEOLOGY AND THE HERITAGE OF WISDOM. 35
2.1. African theology. 35
2.1.1. Characterising ‘African’ theology. 35
2.1.2. From Africanising theology into African theology. 47
2.2. African oral wisdom as philosophical and religious inquiry. 64

3. EPISTEMOLOGICAL PRINCIPLES OF THEOLOGICAL THINKING IN THE ELCB. 87
3.1. Theology as liberating wisdom. 87
3.1.1. Interplay of faith and understanding. 87
3.1.2. Relationship to contextual theories. 105
3.2. Principle of contextual theology and the Lutheran spirit. 125

4. CULTURE PHILOSOPHICAL EMPHASES OF THEOLOGICAL THINKING IN THE ELCB. 153
4.1. Holistic perception of life and the ontology of spiritual monism. 153
4.2. The Tswana humanity principle. 176
4.2.1. Communal human existence. 176
4.2.2. Botho as an ethical principle. 198

5. RELIGIOUS IMPLICATIONS AND THEOLOGY OF SPIRITUALITY IN THE ELCB. 219
5.1. Theology of relationship and African spirituality. 219
5.2. Modimo, the Source of Life and the Father and Mother of the universe. 238
5.3. The Life principle in the context of Tswana thought. 262
5.3.1. Celebration of Life. 262
5.3.2. Harmony as a state of mind and being. 278
5.4. Participation in Life through Christ. 287
5.4.1. Christ, the Saviour, the Liberator and the great Ngaka of the sinners. 287
5.4.2. Possessed by Christ. 302
5.4.3. Christ as the Mediator and the role of badimo as saints. 310
5.5. Separation from the traditional explanatory theory. 324
5.6. Community of God and the prophetic mission of the Church. 337

6. CONCLUSIONS. 363

APPENDIX: Interviewees. 385

BIBLIOGRAPHY. 389
Sources. 389
Unpublished sources. 389
Published sources. 390
Interviews. 391
Literature. 391

INDEX. 415

Über Autor(innen)

Pöntinen, Mari-Anna
Mari-Anna Pöntinen, Ph.D. (2011), University of Eastern Finland, is head of mission and development studies in the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Mission. She has edited several books and articles on contextual theology, postcolonial mission, and African theology and thought.

Mari-Anna Pöntinen, Ph.D. (2011), University of Eastern Finland, is head of mission and development studies in the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Mission. She has edited several books and articles on contextual theology, postcolonial mission, and African theology and thought.