African Initiatives
Boston University hosts the second oldest African Studies Center in the United States, and is recognized by the federal government for its excellence in the study of African languages and cultures. The School of Theology is a vital component of African Studies at Boston University, beginning with the sending of graduates to Africa as missionaries over a century ago. Important African alumni include Bishop Josiah Kibira (1964 graduate), the first African head of the Lutheran World Federation; Dr. Kenaleone Ketshabile, Head of the Mission Desk, Methodist Church of Southern Africa; Yusufu Turaki, Professor and former General Secretary of the Evangelical Church of West Africa; and Professor Emmanuel Anyambod, Rector of the Protestant University of Central Africa.
Africa research in the CGCM grows from the work of retired Professor M.L. “Inus” Daneel. His over forty-year presence among African Initiated Churches in Zimbabwe culminated in the 1990s with the largest tree-planting movement in southern Africa, and a program in Theological Education by Extension. The son of missionary parents, Daneel served as a missionary of the Dutch Mission Councils, and then as professor of African theology and missiology at the University of South Africa. He and Professor Robert co-edit the African Initiatives in Christian Mission Series, published by the University of South Africa Press. The goal of the series is to reflect upon contemporary African Christianity, and to document its expansion. Other Africa projects include the digitization of Daneel’s photography and publications on the multimedia site Old & New In Shona Religion, and ongoing research into southern African traditions of earth-care.
See also the Dictionary of African Christian Biography (DACB) listed under Digital Projects.
Dr. Marthinus Daneel, Africa Research Director
Spiritual Seeking among Ghanaian Immigrants to the US
Dr. Nicolette Manglos-Weber, CGCM faculty associate, was recently featured in the podcast series sponsored by the journal Sociology of Religion. In the conversation, Dr. Manglos-Weber shares about one of her latest articles, "The Contexts of Spiritual Seeking: How Ghanaians in the United States Navigate Changing Normative Conditions of Religious Belief and Practice." The article itself can be accessed here.
John Thornton to Speak on Religion & Slavery in the Kingdom of Kongo
On April 21 at 4pm, Dr. John Thornton, CGCM faculty affiliate, will speak on "Religion, the Kingdom of Kongo and the Slave Trade" as a part of the W.E.B. DuBois lecture series at the Hutchins Center for African and African American Research at Harvard University.
Register here: https://harvard.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_M8YrmuXmSfGf9PdoPUBqqQ
New Africa-Focused Journal on Public Theology
Theology & the Arts in the African Context
On May 26-27, the Center for Primal and Christian Spirituality at the Akrofi-Kristaller Institute of Theology, Mission and Culture will hold a Theology and the Arts Symposium on the theme "Christian Faith and the Arts in Africa: Bridging the Cultural Divide." Register here!
Remembering Fr. Vincent Machozi, Congolese Martyr
Five years ago on Palm Sunday, Fr. Vincent Machozi ('15) was shot to death as a result of his efforts to document, protest against, and end violence and exploitation of the people of North Kivu in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Fr. Machozi, who was born in the village of Vitungwe-Isale in North Kivu, was a member of the Augustinians of the Assumption. In order to gain control of valuable coltan mines, many different armed groups terrorized and exacted forced labor from the people living in this region, which borders Rwanda and Uganda. Fr. Machozi ran an important website, Beni Lubero, where he publicized the atrocities for all to see. After spending time in studies at the Boston University School of Theology, Machozi returned to the Congo, where he eventually was selected as president of the Nande community. As a result of his continued work for justice in the region, Fr. Machozi was murdered on March 20, 2016, in Katolu village.
A fuller story of Fr. Machozi's life and struggle can be found in Bostonia magazine and at the Dictionary of African Christian Biography.