Tomas Sundnes Drønen Knihy

The book explores the complex relationship between the Dii people of northern Cameroon and Norwegian missionaries, questioning whether the mission was a colonial endeavor or a spiritual revival. Through archival research and fieldwork, it reveals how both parties viewed the mission differently: missionaries saw it as spiritual liberation, while the Dii emphasized social liberation through literacy and political independence. The narrative highlights the interplay of captivation, miscommunication, and negotiation that shaped their interactions and resulted in both spiritual and social transformations.

The role of religion in development work has long been a neglected issue in the Western academic tradition. Religion and Nordic Perspectives on Involvement in Africa is part of a recent wave of publications trying to bring more colors into the traditional black-and-white picture of religion and development as two separate analytical entities. Through the voices of experts in a variety of fields, from theology and development studies to social anthropology and global studies, this book sheds particular light on Nordic involvement in Africa. The relationship between North and South is explored through historical approaches and recent analysis, bringing relevant fieldwork and new case studies into the discussion. Numerous and varied sub-Saharan regions are presented in the book, and all the chapters take different approaches to how the North-South relationship has affected the development of the African continent for better or for worse. The contributors all argue that in order to understand development work in an era of global change, religion has to be an important part of the discussion.