Categories
Africa

Is Christianity African?

William at Onesimus Online has come up with another brilliant blog post:

There is a persistent myth among both Christians and Muslims and others that Christianity is a Western religion that is foreign to Africa. And yes, it is true that Western versions of Christianity, such as Roman Catholicism and all forms of Protestantism are all imports from the 15th century onwards (Roman Catholics) and the 18th century onwards (Protestants – Moravians of all people!). And unfortunately it is also true that these imported versions of Christianity were often the vanguard of attempts by European powers to claim, subjugate, exploit and even colonize vast swaths of the African continent. But it is wrong to suggest that, therefore, Christianity is a Western religion (as opposed to Islam or more local traditional religions).Christianity has been ‘African’ since the time of the apostles, with increasing numbers in Egypt and North Africa until majorities in both areas were at least nominally Christian. The same for the ‘upper Nile’ region, present day northern Sudan. And Ethiopia (or more precisely, the Axumite empire) experienced a dramatic Christianization with the conversion of the emperor Ezana in the 4th century, and the subsequent consecration of the former Syrian slave Frumentius as the first bishop in Axum by the hand of none other than Athanasius, patriarch in Alexandria. (Read more.)