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
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.
Journal Organizes Special Issue on “Research with Religio-Cultural Heritage in Africa”
Papers may be submitted from now until 31 December 2021 as papers will be published on an ongoing basis. Submitted papers should not be under consideration for publication elsewhere. We also encourage authors to send a short abstract or tentative title to the Editorial Office in advance (david.ren@mdpi.com).
Guest Editors
Chammah J. Kaunda
The United Graduate School of Theology, Yonsei University
ckaunda@yonsei.ac.kr
Tinyiko S. Maluleke
of Pretoria
Casely Essamuah Interviewed in Latest Issue of JACB
The Rev. Dr. Casely Essamuah, executive officer of the Global Christian Forum, was recently interviewed in the January issue of the Journal of African Christian Biography. Entitled "Accidental Missionary: Called to a Life of Building Bridges for Christ and His Kingdom," the interview describes the challenges and obstacles Essamuah faced in becoming who he is today and outlines the hopes, dreams, and challenges he sees for the African church going forward. He also tells of growing up as the child of a Methodist bishop in Ghana, his early work with the Ghana Student Christian Movement, his studies at the Boston University School of Theology, his leadership of churches in Boston and Baltimore, and his current work as the leader of the Global Christian Forum.
Alumnus Appointed Executive Coordinator of Africa Inter-Mennonite Mission
Dr. Bruce Yoder ('16) has recently been appointed one of the two Executive Coordinators of Africa Inter-Mennonite Mission (AIMM), alongside John Fumana of the Mennonite Bretheren Church of the Congo. Presently a member of Listowel Mennonite Church in Ontario, Yoder has spent 26 years in mission work in West Africa and Latin America, most recently serving as a missiologist in seminaries in Burkina Faso and Benin. He will begin to take up this new work for AIMM in January 2021.
In response to his appointment, Yoder says, “With over a century of missionary engagement, AIMM’s work has been instrumental in the development of multiple African Mennonite/Anabaptist churches; intercultural relationships between African, North American, and European partners; and transnational Anabaptist networks. Time and again I am amazed and inspired by the vitality and resilience of the African Church and am pleased for the opportunity to engage partners on the continent and around the world to advance their collaborative mission initiatives. I’m humbled and honored to be able to contribute to this tradition of mission engagement in Africa and beyond."
Read the full report from Twila Albrecht, AIMM Search Committee Secretary, here.