Kagure Mugo writing in This Is Africa:
Islamic extremism gets a lot of coverage, but much of what many Christians accept as normal because their pastor says it is so looks very much like religious extremism, too. Time to rethink this new style Christianity?
image courtesy of This Is Africa
‘May the spirit fill you.’
These are the words that are often uttered before the pastor tries to push some poor congregant to the floor to show she is filled with the spirit. In this scenario the believer will, more often than not, hit the dirt in their Sunday best.
This is a good image of how some of the more ‘dedicated’ sects of Christianity interact with their African flock: making them lay face flat on the ground in all their glory.
Over-zealous Christianity has cost the continent far more than has been gained Granted there is a great deal that the Church does. In many places where social services do not reach they becomes the giver of social grants, schooling and even medical services whilst providing comfort in some dark times.
But for every way ‘the Church’ uplifts on the continent it finds three ways to bring her to her knees. Leaving aside the fact that the ‘Ministry’ was the vehicle that colonisation drove in on and that it was the basis on which slavery was built, why is it that Christianity in its current form is so widespread in Africa?...[continue reading]