Issues In African Mission History

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For a long time, African mission history has been viewed primarily through the lens of Western missionaries. However, Christian mission in Africa was not solely a Western endeavor. As demonstrated by Blessing Chishanu and Thorsten Prill, African Christians played crucial roles in the growth of the African church. Anthony Brendell illustrates that Western missionaries sometimes hindered this growth, comparing the Finnish Missionary Society, which supported indigenous leadership among the Ovambo in Namibia, with the Rhenish missionaries, who struggled to engage Herero, Nama, and Baster Christians in the central and southern regions. The treatment of African women by Western Protestant missionaries in Southern Africa also reflects this ambivalence. While some missionaries contributed to the subordination of women, others advanced gender equality by offering refuge, education, and opportunities for women to become decision-makers. In his concluding article, Prill identifies the lack of cross-cultural training and firsthand experience as key reasons for the mistakes made by many Protestant missionaries in the late 19th century. Their insufficient cultural intelligence led to underestimating cultural barriers, resulting in misunderstandings and miscommunications with the indigenous African population.