THERE ARE VIRTUES AFRICAN CHRISTIANS CAN LEARN FROM AFRICAN TRADITIONAL RELIGION, CULTURE AND SPIRITUALITIES

THERE ARE VIRTUES AFRICAN CHRISTIANS CAN LEARN FROM AFRICAN TRADITIONAL RELIGION, CULTURE AND SPIRITUALITIES

Many of the virtues we celebrate in Christianity today were not invented with Christianity. Long before Christianity was born, African societies already had moral values, communal responsibilities, spiritual practices and systems of thought that shaped how people lived.

The proper task, therefore, is not to throw away everything our ancestors practised and replace it with Christianity.

It is to use the Gospel to deepen, purify and enrich the good that was already there.

This requires preachers who are not only deeply versed in Christianity, but also deeply knowledgeable about African traditions and religions, and capable of respecting and appreciating them.

Our traditional symbols should not automatically be treated as obstacles to Christianity.

They can become bridges.

Our culture does not have to disappear for Christ to take root.

When we recover the good in our heritage and place it in dialogue with the Gospel, Christianity can become a source of renewed dignity rather than a reason to be ashamed of who we are.

That is part of what #ReturnToFactorySettings really means:

not returning to the past,
but recovering ourselves.