Pay attention to growing voice of African theologians

By David Daniels and ChristianWeek | September 1, 2008

As the first non-white person to ever seriously contend for the office of president of the United States, Barack Obama exemplifies the rising political fortunes of African Americans. This newfound influence is not only being felt on the political front; there is also a growing presence in the theological world. Africentric Christianity is flexing its muscle with increasing confidence.

I first encountered a serious form of Africentric Christianity when reviewing Africentric Christianity: A Theological Appraisal for Ministry (Judson Press, 2000) by J. Deotis Roberts, who at the time was professor of theology at the Divinity School of Duke University (Durham, North Carolina).

Africentrism seeks to deconstruct much of Western classical history as it strives to enable the African diaspora to find its rightful place in the cultural mosaic of humanity. On the theological side, it aims at restoring the African roots of Christianity.

Roberts, a classically-trained black scholar, critically explores Africentrism to discover its compatibility with the Christian faith, and its implications for the black church today. He addresses Africentrism's influence on one's view of God, worship, evangelism, biblical interpretation and society. Whether or not you agree with his conclusions, Roberts presents a fair-minded, rigorous challenge to Eurocentrism.

For a glimpse into the theological future of Africentrism, take a look at True to Our Native Land: An African American New Testament Commentary (Fortress Press, 2007). Answering a long-voiced call to provide a biblical commentary "from the perspective of our people's history and culture," 25 scholars teamed up to provide the first ever African American New Testament Commentary.

The commentary begins with seven introductory essays: "Slavery in the Early Church; The Place and Role of Africa and African Imagery in the Bible; Paul and African American Interpretation; 'We Will Make Our Own Future Text': An Alternate Orientation to Interpretation; Womanist Biblical Interpretation; African American Preaching and the Bible; African American Art and Biblical Interpretation." Following these essays is the book-by-book commentary on the New Testament text.

Though not the verse-by-verse exegesis I desire in a commentary, it does provide a fascinating glimpse into how another cultural mindset reads the biblical text. At times this glimpse is troubling. For example, the commentary on Galatians 4:1-11, where Paul speaks of being in slavery to "the elements of the world" reads:

"The elements of the world are (demonic) agents that enslave Jews and Gentiles… Just as Paul believed his culture was in bondage to evil forces, many African Americans might consider 21st-century America a 'present evil age'… In the context of America, 'the elements' assume many forms. Surely, racist ideas and practices, which have sponsored the enduring domination of African Americans, are particular manifestations of 'the elements'… African Americans must throw off perspectives and behaviors such as Eurocentrism, sexism, and self-hatred, which impede our progress as a people."

Without doubt, enduring forms of racism in contemporary American society should concern Christians, but reading those concerns into the Pauline text under discussion hardly qualifies as sound biblical exegesis and commentary. The value of this commentary, in my view, is the window it provides into how contemporary African American scholars read the Bible.

However one views Africentrism, there are exciting developments around the role Africa has played in shaping Christianity. Thomas Oden's How Africa Shaped the Christian Mind: Rediscovering the African Seedbed of Western Christianity (IVP, 2007) "challenges prevailing notions of the intellectual development of Christianity from its early roots to its modern expressions." And with three decades of reading in early African exegetical sources, Oden is eminently qualified to raise the challenge.

Oden's thesis is simple: "Christianity has a much longer history than its Western European expressions. Africa has played a decisive role in the formation of Christian culture from its infancy, a role that has never been adequately studied or acknowledged, either in the Global North or South."

In support of his thesis, Oden presents seven ways that Africa has shaped the Christian mind. Be prepared for a surprise here. He defines what he means by Africa, points out the way to retrieve the lost African Christian legacy, lays out the significant challenges in recovering that legacy and concludes with a personal challenge to African scholars particularly to redress the problem. The book closes with a 40-page literary chronology of Christianity in Africa during the first millennium.

Everyone interested in the roots of Christian thought, and in the future direction of African belief will want to get this book. David