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HEKIMA REVIEW
Journal of Hekima College
Jesuit School of Theology
Nairobi
Number 27, May 2002
Address: P.O. Box 21215, Ngong Road, Nairobi 00505 – Kenya
Telephone: (254-2) 576607/8/9
Fax: (254-2) 570972
E-mail: [email protected]
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Isidore K. Bonabom SJ
Hekima Review is a bi-annual publication of Hekima College, Jesuit School of Theology, in Nairobi, Kenya.
The Editorial Board
Director:
General Editor:
Assistant Editor:
Managing Editor:
Distribution:
Members:
Michel Istas, S.J.
Isidore K. Bonabom, S.J.
Edoth Mukasa, S.J.
Kelechi Egonu, S.J.
Patrick Mulemi, S.J.
Mateso Bahati, S.J.
Celestine U. Akpan, S.J.
Emmanuel Bueya, S.J.
Edward Chakwiya S.M.M.
Jean-Baptiste Ganza, S.J.
Odomaro Mubangizi, S.J.
Alex Muyebe, S.J.
Gervais Yamb, S.J.
The views expressed in this issue of Hekima Review do not necessarily reflect the
opinions of the editorial board. We welcome letters to the editor in reaction to any
of the pieces published by Hekima Review.
Price per issue:
in Kenya: KShs 200.00
abroad: US$ 10.00 (including postage)
All payments to be made in the name of Hekima College; cheques may be made with
equivalent in Pounds or Euro.
All correspondence should be addressed to:
The Editor
Hekima Review
Hekima College
P.O. Box 21215
Ngong Road, Nairobi 00505
KENYA
ISSN 1019-6188
Typesetting and artwork by
PAULINES PUBLICATIONS AFRICA, P.O. Box 49026, 00100 Nairobi GPO (Kenya)
Printed by Kolbe Press, P.O. Box 468 Limuru (Kenya)
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Hekima Review, No. 27, May 2002
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Editorial
Contents
EDITORIAL
Africa's Search Is Halting, but We Cannot Despair
by Isidore K. Bonabom, S .J. .........................................................................5
SCRIPTURE
Jonah and Pre-existing Legends of Sea Monsters (Jonah 1:17; 2:10)
by Celestine U. Akpan, S.J. .......................................................................... 9
SYMPOSIUM
The Understanding of Liberation in African Theology
by Michel Istas, S.J. ..................................................................................... 19
THEOLOGICAL ISSUES
Pour une Ethique Chrétienne de la Résistance: Réflexion à partir
de l’engagement pastoral de Mgr Emmanuel KATALIKO
par Emmanuel BUEYA, S.J. ..................................................................... 43
Ghanaian Nationalism and the Catholic Bishops’ Pastoral Response:
An Essay on Church-State Relationship
by Isidore K. Bonabom, S .J. ...................................................................... 56
Symbole et Eucharistie: La Problématique des Espèces
Eucharistiques chez Jean-Marc ELA et Laurent MPONGO
par Jacquineau AZETSOP, S.J.................................................................. 69
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SOCIAL ISSUES
INADES-Formation: A Builder of the Kingdom of God among
Farmers
by Loua Zaoro Hyacinthe, S .J. ................................................................. 85
BOOK REVIEWS
Dominique ARNAULD,
Histoire du Christianisme en Afrique: Les Sept Premiers Siècles
Reviewed by Gervais Désiré YAMB, S.J. ............................................... 100
Howard Adelman and Astri Suhrke, (eds)
The Path of a Genocide: The Rwandan Crisis from Uganda to
Zaire
Reviewed by Mubangiz i Odomaro, S .J. .............................................. 102
Volker KÜSTER,
The Many Faces Of Jesus Christ: Intercultural Christology
Reviewed by Gervais Désiré YAMB, S.J. ............................................... 105
POETRY
The Pilgrim Mind
by Joseph Arimoso, S.J. ............................................................................ 107
Inter-Net
par Toussaint KAFARHIRE MURHULA, S.J. ....................................... 109
BOOKS RECEIVED
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Editorial
Editorial
Africa's Search Is Halting, but We Cannot Despair
The biggest riddle of Africa is its political situation. Over the last three decades, our
continent’s preoccupation with the process of democratisation has only had marginal
success. At the onset of this third millennium, the call urging African countries to democratise is coming both from within and from without. In our time, to subscribe to democracy as a form of government is to appeal for national renewal and global deference.
However, a cursory glance at the continent’s political history shows that two opposing
forces are at work: on the part of the majority, goodwill to change the situation, and on
the part of others, unwillingness to tamper with the status quo. The weight of the inertia
has, of course, been exacerbated by the absence of regard for the promotion of justice
and by fanatical intolerance towards dissenting voices. The assumption is easily made
that the democratisation process is itself a response to the political riddle, which taunts
Africa and its people.
This year, thirteen African countries are embarking on parliamentary elections while
six are going to the polls to elect new heads of government. Among them, Madagascar
and Zimbabwe are still in the glare of the media as we go to press. Many factors have
been offered to explain why democracy has not yet been a success in Africa: corrupt
leadership, ethnic pluralism, political intolerance, illiteracy among the electorate, the colonial legacy, poor economic management and interference from Western countries. These
factors are certainly not irrelevant to the problem. Alone or in combination they may be
impediments to the democratisation process in Africa. Without doubt, significant numbers of children, women and men are suffering, east, west, south and north of the
continent, as a result of some of these factors. Yet for all the pathos in Africa, the
political situation remains a riddle.
The notion is worth entertaining, I believe, that the standard practice of democracy
gives us a clue to the state of affairs in the continent. Democracy is not some accident
of history in the global village. It developed over time, with peculiar mistakes and adjustments depending on the particular country and its overall history and values. Although
the democratic culture in Africa is still a fledgling one, the winds of political change that
have blown over the entire continent in the 1990s, have gained strength in this millennium. If events in recent elections are anything to go by, the electorates in Africa have
not given up yet, even if their trust has been frayed year in year out. People are still
yearning for change, and want to believe in an essential code of decency that justifies
mutual trust between the citizens and those who aspire to govern.
By all indications, political conditions in Africa are the greatest impediment to development. After all, power and production are the twin axes of politics in Africa – as
anywhere else in the world. Currently, we are facing a continental crisis, and life is threatened and disrupted by conflicts brought about by parochial political interests. Such ac5
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tions as happened in Zimbabwe this year – when press laws were made more stringent –
make it easier for a government to put a good face on bad actions and distance itself
from the reality of the lives that are being directly affected in the long term. Just as
demoralizing as the political leaders’ manipulation of constitutions is the way our politicians mask their true intentions with comforting clichés at election time. The lack of
political reliability is not likely to hasten Africa’s move forward, because the effects of a
good or bad election culture go far beyond the present time.
The question of where God is in all of this is hardly a new one. Many before us
have asked it, and it is indeed the kind of question that calls for serious reflection. The
way we answer it will have a profound impact on the direction we, as a continent, are
taking in life. Among the many responses already given to the question, there is one that
continues to make an impression on people today – Scripture. In the Old Testament
tradition, for example, the mission and ministry of the prophet is always bespoken by
the actual situation of the people to whom his message is addressed.
The Church is acutely aware of Africa’s political problems, as well as of her prophetic vocation to foster peace and reconciliation with justice. In a recent pastoral letter,
for instance, the Catholic Bishops of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) asserted that
‘despite all the difficulties, the violence, the wars and economic crisis, Africa is searching
for peace.’ All these attempts at democratic exercises, the Bishops say, represent a halting
search, but we cannot despair. They offer not only a plausible interpretation of Africa’s
current condition but also a discerning hope for the continent’s people.
In This Issue
Hekima Review, in a significant way, shares in the hopes and aspirations of Africa’s
people! How does this issue express the orientation we have chosen as a theological
review? By exploring the challenges of proclaiming the Kingdom of God in the humdrum realities of our place and time, a number of Hekima College’s staff and students
employ the tools of theological reflection to explore Africa’s multifaceted riddle. Six
articles, three book reviews and two poems make up the core of this issue. In the area
of Scripture, Celestine Akpan traces the link between the biblical tradition in the book
of Jonah and ancient literature. He illuminates an age-old vision that makes the book of
Jonah a kernel of our universal Christian vocation.
Then Michel Istas, a professor of moral theology, explores the theme of liberation
in African Christian theology. The article affirms both the continuity and the changes in
theological reflection, as different dimensions of one enduring quest become more prominent. He reflects on how liberation theology is born out of a people’s struggle for
meaningful freedom and justice. In the same area of theology, Emmanuel Bueya examines the common heritage of Christian belief to which the Church gives witness today.
He describes the late Archbishop Kataliko’s prophetic engagement, and analyses the
pastoral letters he wrote in the midst of the war situation in the Bukavu area of the
Democratic Republic of Congo.
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Editorial
Widening the range of study further, Isidore Bonabom presents the pastoral response the Ghanaian Bishops have given over the years to the very sensitive issue of
nationalism. The article underscores the interest Church leadership is giving to current
social concerns, and shows its ongoing struggle to discern the best way forward. This is
how one Episcopal Conference in Africa responds to its prophetic calling. A theology of
inculturation, Jacquineau Azetsop argues, opens up the way for a deeper understanding
of the Eucharist in the African context. His arguments are built on the theological
writings of two great African theologians, Laurent Mpongo and Jean-Marc Ela.
Hyacinthe Loua then speaks about the holistic formation lay men and women receive through the programmes prepared by the Jesuit-inspired African Institute for Economic and Social Development (INADES), in north-western Cameroun. In an article
that combines theology and social analysis, he hones out the Kingdom values which the
INADES-Formation programme embodies among farmers. The two poems of this
issue situate us in a world, where we are confronted daily with the many illusions of
globalisation, and where our pilgrim minds wander about in the search of something
authentic. The newly introduced column on ‘books received’ round out this issue.
We hope Hekima Review, and indeed this issue, will continue the tradition of excellence established thirteen years ago this month, by offering to our cherished readers an
original theological approach to some of the major social issues of our time. We wish all
our readers stimulating reading!
Much appreciation goes to John-Okoria Ibhakewanlan, S.J., Samuel Okwuidegbe,
S.J., Joan-Agnes Njambi, M.C., Gervais Désiré Yamb, S.J., and Jean-Pierre Nziya, S.J.,
for the laudable services they have rendered to Hekima Review in the last three or so
years. At the same time we thank all our esteemed contributors of articles to this issue.
May God bless you.
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Scripture
Jonah and Pre-existing Legends of
Sea Monsters (Jonah 1:17; 2:10)
Celestine U. Akpan, S.J.*
Sommaire
L’argument premier de l’article est que le ou les auteurs du livre de Jonas se sont inspirés de
légendes existantes pour créer l’épisode du poisson. Allant de Homère (8ième siècle avant
J.C.), jusqu’à Ovide (premier siècle avant J.C.), l’auteur retrace les sources que ce ou ces
auteurs ont pu employer. Le problème n’est pas purement académique: le livre de Jonas nous
montre comment des légendes locales ont été employées dans la Bible pour convaincre les Juifs que Yahweh est
Dieu pour les Assyriens comme il l’est pour eux, et prêt aussi à pardonner leurs fautes. Comment, en Afrique,
souligner la miséricorde de Dieu, et sa bienveillance à l’égard de tous? L’usage d’histoires et de légendes locales
peut, maintenant comme alors, faire passer ce message.
YYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
Jonah is a unique prophet in many ways, and the compact and rich nature of his book
has generated a lot of scholarly work over the centuries, its appeal spillIntroduction ing over into music and popular literature, e.g. Lennox Berkeley’s Jonah
(oratorio 1935) and Zora Neale Hurston’s Jonah’s Gourd Vine (1934).1
Let us forget the fact that he is the only prophet who not only refuses his
vocation but takes steps to flee from the Lord. Let us forget the fact
that like Jeremiah he is sent to convert an enemy nation, Assyria. On the whole, these
novelties actually make for an interesting read, allow an insight into the complexity of
vocation and dramatize another dimension of God’s universal mercy; moreover, Jonah’s
inability to escape from the Lord could be taken as a sign of God’s supremacy over his
creatures. Among scholars, one main difficulty with Jonah has been its historicity. The
controversy seemed to have abetted towards the turn of the eighteenth century in favour of those who denounced its historicity and categorized it as a fable, allegory, legend, parable, midrash2 or satire. (Many scholars have been inspired to plumb the depths
of this short book, arguing that (the characterization of Jonah) is better read as a “comic
hero” and “comic dupe.”3 Still, Douglas Stuart disagrees with these categories and pre* Akpan, a second year student of Hekima College, is a Nigerian Jesuit. He has published
articles, short stories and poetry in a variety of journals, newspapers and reviews.
1
For a list of Jonah related works and arts see Hans Wolff, Obadiah and Jonah: A Commentary. Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1984, pp. 88-93.
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fers to call it “sensational” and “didactic” literature, like the initial chapters of Daniel or
Elisha’s miracle accounts.4 ) But the argument for its literal meaning keeps coming back,
as exemplified in M. R. Dehaan’s Jonah: Fact or Fiction? (1957), Father Alberto Vaccari’s
“Il Genere Letterario del libro di Giona in recenti pubblicazioni” (1961),5 or T. D. Alexander’s
recent “Jonah and Genre” (1985).6
My purpose in this paper is to argue against the historicity of the Book of Jonah, by
narrowing in on the fish episode:
And the Lord appointed a fish to swallow up Jonah; and Jonah was in the belly of the
fish for three days and three nights... And the Lord spoke to the fish and it vomited out
Jonah upon the dry land (Jonah 1:17; 2:10)
I will show that many legends about fish rescuing people did exist prior to the Book
of Jonah, and that the writer(s) of Jonah, because of their proximity to the sources of
these legends, were most likely inspired by them. It is my contention that the writer(s)
brought them together (along with other pre-existing Biblical materials7 ) and developed
them into the Book of Jonah, in Bruce Vawter’s words, “surely, the greatest of all
prophets.”8 Though I protest that the book should not be taken literally, I concede that
Assyria, Jonah’s mission land, existed as a place, and that there could have been a man
named Jonah. I will use the story of Arion and the dolphin; the story of Heracles’s
deliverance of the Trojan royalty Hesione. To illustrate how we humans are fated to
God’s will (cf. Ps 139.9f), the author(s) of the Book of Jonah “took an existing seafaring
story, into which several folklore motifs have entered: (1) a person thrown overboard
and saved by the monster; and (2) a person swallowed by a sea monster but disgorged
again.”9 At the end of this paper, due to the growing relevance of African narrative
theology, I will say a word or two about the importance of this theology, since Jonah
borrowed heavily from ancient myths. Also I will reflect briefly on relevance of a theme
in Jonah’s theology for Africa.
Let us begin by assessing the time of prophecy of Jonah in the overall history of Israel
vis-a-vis the pre-existing legends of the fish. Like most other parts of the Bible, there is a
lot of literature on the dating of Jonah. Jonah is usually situated in the reign of Jeroboam II (8th century), though most scholars believe it came into its written form in post2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R. B. Salters, Jonah & Lamentation. England: Sheffield Academic Press, 1994, pp. 43-47.
J. Sasson, The Anchor Bible: Jonah. New York: Doubleday, 1990, pp. 345-348.
D. Stuart, Word Biblical Commentary: Hosea-Jonah. Texas: Word Books, 1987, pp. 435-436.
Vaccari quoted in Bruce Vawter’s Job & Jonah: Questioning the Hidden God. New York:
Paulist Press, 1993, p. 96.
Quoted in Salters, p. 43.
See B. Trapenier, “The Story of Jonah,” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 13:8-16, 1951, pp. 9-11.
He believes the writer(s) of the Book of Jonah could have been inspired by some of the
palms, the books of Jeremiah, Kings and Ezekiel. Of importance to the concern of this
short paper is his bid to establish a link between the stories of Jeremiah being told by God
to go and convert a foreign nation (Jeremiah 20:9; 9:1) and Elias fleeing to the desert to
escape the wrath of Jezebel (2Kings 17-19).
Vawter, Job & Jonah: Questioning the Hidden God, New York: Paulist Press, 1983, p. 103.
Kraeling, Commentary on the Prophets, Camdem, NJ: Thomas Nelson & Sons, 1966, p. 193.
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Dating
of Jonah
exilic times. The mention of Jonah ben Attatai in 2 Kings 14:25 proffers
some evidence in favour of pre-exilic dating for many. Building on this,
Vaccari and Dehaan cement their arguments on the fact that Christ uses
the ‘sign of Jonah’ in the New Testament (Mt 12:40; Lk 11:29.30). Since
Jesus made use of it, they argue, it follows that it is a true story and its historicity must
be judged too by the aforementioned kernel of evidence from 2 Kings. “The Lord Jesus
Himself vouches for the historicity and literalness of Jonah by seizing upon it as a type
of His own literal Death and Resurrection.”10
But Stuart argues that “the actual composition of the book is not datable except
within the broadest boundaries (ca. 720-250 BC) simply because there are no certain
indicators in it of date.”11 He gives four reasons for this assertion: instances of supposed Aramaisms in the story, Jonah’s seeming dependence on Jeremiah, Jonah’s more
substantiated dependence on Joel though he allows room for the fact that Joel could
have in fact copied from Jonah, as argued by J. Magonet, and, finally, the seeming
mistake of identifying Ninevah as Assyria’s royal capital.12 Jack Sasson, who dates Jonah
in the second century BC, gives four broad categories against which the historicity of
Jonah has to be judged: “historical” features within the story, literary and linguistic features, dependence on earlier literature (meaning earlier prophetic writings), and social
and theological arguments.13 His arguments, though more elaborate, are basically the
same with Stuart. However, according to Sasson, as far as the development of the
Jewish consciousness is concerned, the Book of Jonah was written in post-exilic times.
His argument is that apart from the Jewish God sending a prophet to others, there is no
pressure on the sailors to convert to Judaism.14 There is openness to religious freedom,
something that could not have happened before the exile. Father B. Trepanier supports
this argument when he writes that
the multiplication of unrealistic happenings, of which the queerest one is not, as it is
often thought, the sojourn of Jonas in the belly of the fish, but rather the sudden
conversion of a huge pagan city to the monotheism of the small nation of Israel, an
event which cannot be traced, either in the Bible or in the Assyrian annals...15
His presupposition seems to be that such a miraculous event would have been
entered in the so-called historical books of the Old Testaments. The OT theologians
would not have failed to seize this opportunity to magnify the omnipotence of their
God. So when, in the above quote, Trapanier says the conversion of Nineveh “cannot
be traced, either in the Bible,” I understand him to mean other books of the Bible other
than the Book of Jonah.
Wolff ’s contribution to this discourse is even more pointed: “How far removed the
10
11
12
13
14
15
Dehaan, “Introduction” in Jonah: Fact or Fiction?
Douglas, p. 432.
Douglas, p. 433.
Sasson, The Anchor Bible: Jonah. New York: Doubleday, 1990, pp. 22-23.
Sasson, p. 24.
Trapenier, p. 8.
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narrator is from the historical realities of the pre-exilic era is shown by the uninhibited
way he combines historical names. The addressee of his Jonah is no longer the eighth
century Jeroboam II (as was the historical Jonah’s, according to 2 Kings 14:25),”16 but to
a people of a different time and place. “Jonah’s message is now addressed to Ninevah,
which entered Israel’s orbit only when it became the capital of the Neo-Assyrian Empire
in the seventh century.”17 As Wolff observes, the home of the “historical” Jonah (2 Kgs
14:25), the one the proponents of historicity claimed Jesus believed existed
is never mentioned. The Jonah of our book is soon to be found in the port of Joppa,
which was probably not Israelite at all in the eighth century, and which was not precisely
the nearest port for a Galilean, but which was no doubt of interest for Jerusalem in
postexilic times.18
But there is a corollary to the question of the precise dating of this book and to the
controversy about the actual place this Jonah was missioned. It is the question of unity
of the book. Was this book written at the same time, by one author or a line of editors
over the ages? So when most scholars lean towards dating Jonah in the second century
BC, are they talking about the completion or beginning of the task? A brief look at this
reveals, too, a huge pool of literature. And actually, the prayer or psalm of Jonah while
in the belly of the fish, which is sandwiched by the two verses under our consideration,
is one major point of dispute. The book is certainly not a homogeneous whole. Differences in vocabulary and syntax, the presence of the psalm in the middle of prose and
the changes in the name for God all argue for the book to be regarded as a composite.19
In fact, Gerard von Rad argues that the book probably came through different writers
and editors, otherwise presence and elements of the psalm vis-à-vis the whole text is
“psychologically unconvincing.” Other scholars like Stuart, Sasson and Wolff imbibe the
single-authorship theory, though they disagree among themselves about the origin of the
psalm. James Limburg argues strongly in favour of a single authorship (though he does
not rule out the author having been inspired by other biblical works) and maintains that
the psalm is homogenous with the rest of the work because it picks up key expression
from other parts of the text. And besides, “if one leaves the psalm in place as an original
part of the narrative, then Jonah’s experience of deliverance from death comes to
expression with all the fullness and depth of Israel’s psalm tradition.”20
The immediate import of this digression is to help us appreciate the complexity of
emergence of the Book of Jonah. The issue of whether one or many people wrote it
does not really concern us here. The important point is that those who insist on its literal
understanding do not have enough evidence to back up their stance. This point is not
lost on Sasson:
Therefore, they must be satisfied just to recreate historically plausible scenarios.. .
16
17
18
19
Wolff,
Wolff,
Wolff,
Pesch,
p. 77.
p. 77.
p. 77.
quoted in Sasson, p. 16.
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I want to point out that scholars who insist that Jonah is recording history risk equating
what is plausible with what really has happened in the past. This approach ignores the
fact that plausibility and verisimilitude are also goals for imaginative writing, resulting in
“historical fiction.”21
From available pre-existing evidence of fish and storm legend or folklores, we
could now turn to what could have served the authors’ imagination with this rich story
of Jonah, their dating and geographical proximity to the post-exilic Jews. In fact, no less
a scholar than Walter Wolff has contested that the dating of the book should even be
pushed within the Hellenistic era because of
the use of non-biblical sea motifs. These are worked up into variants of Greek saga
material, strangely reminiscent of old Indian stories. This is true of the ‘great fish,’ the
rescue through ‘being swallowed’ and ‘vomited up,’ the discovery of the guilty person
through casting of lots by the seamen during the storm, etc.22
As it has been said before, stories about fish rescuing people existed long before the
book of Jonah could have been written. A lot of it existed in “old Indian stories,” and
the Greeks had variants in their own legends. The legend of Arion is the best and oldest
recorded example of the two motifs found in the Jonah’s story (antagonist being thrown
into the sea and being rescued by a sea monster23 ) coming together.
Arion, the son of Cycleus, came from 8th century Methymna.24 He was a friend of
the Corinthian tyrant Periander. Arion was a semi-legendary poet and musician, and
toured a lot to perform his art. Though nothing of his work has survived, he is said to
have excelled in choral poems and cyclic choruses.25 He is reputed to have invented the
dithyramb, an instrument that aided his composition.
On one fateful occasion, a legend that most likely provided the fodder for the writer
of Jonah, Arion was said to be travelling to Joppa from Corinth. 26
Sea Monsters
He hired a ship whose crew was made up of Corinthians. These
in Pre-existing men turned out to be dubious men. They decided to kill Arion and
Stories
claim his treasures. But Arion begged them to allow him the privilege of singing a parting hymn. He did this standing on the brink of
the ship and playing his dithyramb into the raging sea. After this he
was tossed into the waters. Behold a dolphin, enchanted with his incredible mastery of
the instrument, came along and rescued him, by carrying him on its back to the shores
of Taenarum at the tip of the Peloponnesus. He finally made it to Corinth ahead of the
ship. Periander is said to have learnt the truth by stratagem. He summoned the crew and
asked them what happened to Arion, but they denied knowing his whereabouts. They
were shown Arion and punished. Arion’s musical instrument and the dolphin, because of
20
21
22
23
24
25
Limburg, p. 32.
Sasson, p. 327.
Wolff, p. 78.
Kraeling, p. 193.
The New American Encyclopaedia (vol. 2) Connecticut: Grolier Incorporated, 1981, p. 282.
The New Encyclopaedia Britannica (vol. 1, 15th ed), “Arion.” Chicago: Encyclopaedia
Britannica Inc, 1977, p. 513.
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their roles in the legend, are said to have become constellations.
Unlike this Arion legend, other legends exhibit either of the motifs. For example, the
motif of the protagonist being swallowed and vomited shows up in the story of Jason
and the Argonauts by the fifth century BC Greek playwright Euripides. Archaeological
findings reveal that this story was also depicted in other art forms. For example, in H.
Schmidt’s “Jona,”27 this story is illustrated in an attic vase “showing a monster giving up
Jason, while the goddess Athena stands by.”28
Krealing insists that Ovid’s Perseus/Andromeda legend, “though in perverse accounts” (his words) could have also served as an inspiration for the Jonah story. Well, if
one situates the time frame for the writing of Jonah deep into the Hellenistic era as
Wolff suggests, then some of the oral stories which Ovid finally weaved together (in the
first century BC) in his Metamorphosis, a romantic epic, provide another evidence of an
antagonist almost eaten by a sea monster. However, in these stories, “the hero merely
slays the monster by the shore.”29
In the epic, Perseus (son of Zeus and Danae), is flying home on his winged horse
after the final showdown with Medusa, the monster which had snakes as locks of hair.
Crossing over Ethiopia, Perseus finds the place in total desolation.30 Looking down he
sees beautiful Andromeda, a princess, being tied to a rock by the sea.
Bound by the arms to the rough rocks; her hair,
Stirred in a gentle breeze, and her warm tears flowing
Proved her not marble, so much so that he almost
Forgot to move his wings.
Metamorphosis, 4:675-679 31
Her parents, the land’s royalty, are around but helpless and crying. As Perseus
swoops down to save Andromeda, the “sea roared/ And over the sea a monster
loomed and towered/ Above the waves.” 32 Andromeda is so beautiful that her
parents boast that she is more beautiful than the Nereids (ocean nymphs). The
brother of Zeus, Poseidon, the guardian of sea and nature, is not amused. His
anger rouses a sea monster from the depths of the ocean, which begins to slay
human beings and animals alike for the sins of the royalty. The oracle of Ammon
reveals that feeding Andromeda to the sea monster was the only way to save
the country, hence her being fastened to the rock by the sea whence Perseus,
Poseidon’s nephew, sights her. Aided by his father Zeus, against his uncle,
Perseus finally overcomes the monster and marries the lady.
26
27
28
29
30
Grant and Hazel, Gods and Mortals in Classical Mythology: A Dictionary. New York: Dorset
Press, 1985, p. 18.
Kraeling, p. 193.
Kraeling, p. 193.
Kraeling, p. 193.
Grimal, The Concise Dictionary of Classical Mythology, Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1990, p.
343.
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Unlike Kraeling, I have some doubts about the connection between this particular
story and that of Jonah. The monster never swallows the lady, like the fish did Jonah.
Though Kraeling goes on to maintain that ‘according to Strabo (16,2,28) and Josephus
(War, 3, 419), the spot where Andromeda was chained to a rock was shown near Japho
[Joppa?],’ for me, the story presented by Ovid is too distant from our Jonah narrative.
My bother is not even that Ovid, a Roman citizen, wrote in the first century BC, when
the Book of Jonah would already have been at least a century old. The myths Ovid put
together were already present in oral renditions. The key elements in Ovid’s narrative
that have a bearing on Jonah’s sea troubles-cum-miracles are too diluted or perverse to
serve as a strong evidence for source material for Jonah’s narrative. Ovid does not
mention ‘Japho’ or ‘Joppa’ in his book. (In fact, some sources say it happened in Ethiopia33 ) We get this from critics. Kraeling does not furnish us with how they came by the
name of the place, which ironically tallies with where Arion was heading before he was
done in by his rented crew. Short of the miracles of imagination and creativity, I do not
see how this terrible monster who is defeated to save Androemeda could have turned
out to be the fish that swallows and rescues Jonah to the shore. The story lacks the kind
of merits one finds in the gentle and caring dolphin that brings Arion speedily to the
shores of Corinth. If there is more in this legend, Kraeling does not go further to show
us what the original accounts looked like,34 or why he insists on it, in spite of the
perverse form we have seen in Ovid’s account. Apart from this particular story though,
I am of the firm belief that the writer of Jonah might have been influenced by these
ancient classics.
From the above, even if some people still argue for the originality of the Jonah-fish
episode, at least, we can see that the Jonah story has parallels in pre-existing legends. The
writer(s) of Jonah have adapted these stories very well to their situation. The people of
Israel, thus, are able to listen to the prophecy of Jonah through this weaving together of
ancient stories. “Scholars often refer to the mythology of the Ancient Near East as a
help for understanding the background and meaning of many passages in the Genesis...”35
For us in Africa – just like people all over the world – story telling is very important.
Every culture has myths, legends, poems, proverbs, parables, songs, etc., illustrating the
omnipresence, kindness, justice, love, power, etc., of one local deity or a supreme God.
Universally, stories have a way of touching the heart of a listener, a way of staying in the
memory. (Whenever Jesus was faced with questions that would take hours of theorization and nuances to tackle – like, who is my neighbour? – he always resorted to parables
to get the message across.) In Africa, stories already have a cherished place in our
people’s hearts, and people yearn to use what they know to learn about this foreign God
31
32
33
34
Ovid, Metamor phosis, Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press, 1964, p. 102.
Ovid, p. 103.
Grimal, p. 343.
Even Homer’s variant of this theme in the Iliad (composed in 9th or 8th century BC –
contemporaneous with the legend of Arion – three or four centuries before Israel’s postexilic experience), a classic material Ovid must have known about, still does not show the
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that has come to us through the missionaries.36 Thus, I think it would be a great help to
use our local myths, even as anecdotes, to introduce the great stories of the Bible. Many
priests and preachers are already using proverbs to the delightful reception of the congregation all over Africa. But we still need to plumb the depth of
our rich, traditional myths and legends. In this context, one cannot
The Relevance
but admire the work of Joseph Healey and Donald Sybertz (Toof Jonah in
37
African Narrative wards an African Narrative Theology ). It is a major attempt to
Theology and in reconstruct or reveal a theology that is more accessible to African
people. As Anne Nasimiyu-Wasike has said, “The oral literature
Contemporary
of the African people is their unwritten Bible. This religious wisAfrica
dom is found in African idioms, wise sayings, legends, myths, stories, proverbs and oral history.”38 We have to use these to evangelise our people. These are powerful tools for the much talked-about inculturation exercise.
Other than this, one of the two main theological themes of the Book of Jonah – the
universality of God’s love and mercy – has a lot to say to our contemporary African
situation. Today, genocide, ethnicity, tribalism, nationalism, wars, etc., plague our continent. Though the people who engineer these conflicts do not, like the Israelites, explicitly
proffer a monopoly to the supreme God (with an attendant freedom to wipe out other
peoples and nations and tribes), any group which thinks that its people alone has the right
to survive must think of others as less than human at the least, and be very close to a
theology that establishes its people as the chosen ones.
The intolerant nationalism that characterized Israel’s post-exilic community is not unlike the narrow tribalism that we find in many African nations today. This is usually due
to cultural prejudices and a false sense of superiority. Sometimes, it is based on memories of inter-tribal wars that took place in the past, which people do not want to forget.
It is this vengeful spirit that often brings about social and political instability in a
number of [African] countries. The author of Jonah was certainly aware of what Assyria
had done to his people in the past. But he also believed in God’s forgiveness for those
who repent, no matter what they do.39
The message that Prophet Jonah had sought to teach the Israelites is still relevant
35
36
37
monster swallowing the lady. In this version Heracles is the saviour and the princess about
to be fed to the sea monster is Hesione of Troy. In this version, Poseidon who demands
this sacrifice is offended because he and Apollo (having helped the Trojans to wall and
fortify their city against foreign invasion) were never rewarded. Heracles kills the monster
on the condition that he marries Hesione. See P. Grimal’s Concise Dictionary of Classical
Mythology (Trans. A. R. Maxwell) Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1990, p. 200.
“Introduction to Genesis,” The African Bible”, Nairobi: Paulines Publications, 1999, pp. 2324.
Chima, “Story and African Theology,” African Ecclesial Review (AFER), 26, 1-2 (Feb-Ap
1984), p. 55.
Healey and Sybertz, Towards an African Narrative Theology, Nairobi: Paulines Publications, 1996.
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for us in Africa today. We would need to overcome past ‘cultural prejudices and a false
sense of superiority’ over other peoples.
Above all, we need many Prophet Jonahs to come up with symbols and ways to help
us reconcile our countries and tribes with each other. In Africa, many conflicts have
been instigated by religious leaders. They do not only provoke Moslem-Christian intolerance, as it is obvious in many places; a close analysis of many socio-political crisis in
many parts of our continent would reveal that religious leaders could have said something to douse the crises. If an Israelite prophet could creatively think of a way to spread
God’s universal love, our religious leaders should strive to do the same.
Part of the beauty of the book of Jonah then is the smooth integration of these legends
into a holistic and inspiring story. The literary genius of the author(s) is able to place
Jonah in an impossible situation, by throwing him into the sea, and then rescue him using
the fabular.40 In the creativity of the writer(s), we are able to see God’s miracle and
come to appreciate God’s total control of his universe and our lives. The fact that it is
not history does not add or subtract anything from the theological significance of this
story: the mastery of the universe by God is so complete that we cannot escape his will,
as Psalm 139 says, and the compassion of the Lord is as universal as his desire to forgive
a pagan nation.
Bibliography
The African Bible, Nairobi: Paulines Publications, 1999.
Chima, A., “Story and African Theology,” African Ecclesial Review (AFER). 26, 1-2 (Feb-Ap 1984).
Dehaan, M. R., “Introduction” in Jonah: Fact or Fiction? Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House,
1966.
Grant, M and Hazel J., Gods and Mortals in Classical Mythology: A Dictionary. New York: Dorset
Press, 1985.
Grimal, P., The Concise Dictionary of Classical Mythology. Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1990.
Healey, J., and Sybertz, D., Towards an African Narrative Theology. Nairobi: Paulines Publications,
1996.
The Holy Bible (Revised Standard Catholic Edition) London: The Catholic Truth Society, 1957.
Kraeling, E. G., Commentary on the Prophets. Camdem, NJ: Thomas Nelson & Sons, 1966.
Limburg, J., Jonah: A Commentary. Kentucky: Westminster/John Knox Press,
Conclusion 1993.
New American Encyclopaedia (vol.2) Connecticut: Grolier Incorporated, 1981.
New Encyclopaedia Britannica (vol. 1, 15th ed), “Arion.” Chicago: Encyclopaedia
Britannica Inc, 1977.
Ovid, Metamorphosis. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press, 1964.
Salters, R. B., Jonah & Lamentation. England: Sheffield Academic Press, 1994.
Sasson, J., The Anchor Bible: Jonah. New York: Doubleday, 1990.
38
39
40
Nasimiyu-Wasike, quoted in Healey and Sybertz, p. 28.
“No Boundaries to God’s Love” African Bible, p. 1566.
Sasson, p. 16.
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Stuart, D., Word Biblical Commentary: Hosea-Jonah. Texas: Word Books, 1987.
Trapenier, B., “The Story of Jonah,” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 13:8-16, 1951, pp. 9-11.
Vawter, B., Job & Jonah: Questioning the Hidden God. New York: Paulist Press, 1983, p. 103.
Wolff, W. H., Obadiah and Jonah: A Commentary. Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1984.
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Symposium
The Understanding of Liberation in African
Theology
Sommaire
Michel Istas, S.J.*
Depuis ses débuts, la théologie africaine s’est efforcée de contribuer à la libération du
continent. Mais chaque décennie a vu l’attention se concentrer sur un domaine différent.
Dans les années soixante, le souci majeur était encore de se défaire des structures coloniales.
Dans les années soixante-dix, l’idéologie du développement a dominé, qui présentait la libération de la pauvreté
comme un devoir chrétien. Durant la décennie suivante, la libération culturelle devint le souci majeur. La
dernière décennie du siècle fut marquée par la lutte contre les systèmes oppressifs, elle-même portée par une
réflexion sur les structures démocratiques. Depuis le millénaire, une spiritualité de la libération semble se
développer, qui ne rejette aucune des approches antérieures, mais veut leur donner à toutes une nouvelle
profondeur chrétienne. Ces différentes manières de comprendre la libération montrent que la théologie se
développe moins en fonction de paradigmes qu’en réponse aux besoins qui sont le plus intensément ressentis.
YYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
Throughout its development, modern African Theology has been influenced by the idea
of liberation. However, a different focus has been given to the idea in
Introduction the course of time: liberation has always been sought, but from what?
My thesis in this paper is that five different answers have been given
to the question, roughly one for each of the last decennia. In and
around the sixties, liberation from colonial structures was the main
concern; in and around the seventies, liberation from poverty; around the eighties, liberation from cultural denial; around the nineties, liberation from dictatorships; and since
and around the turn of the millennium, a spirituality of liberation has begun to emerge.1
The categories are not neatly confined to each period: all have been present to some
* Fr. Istas is a Belgian Jesuit and one of the founding fathers of Hekima College. He
on moral theology, and is the director of the Hekima Review Editorial Board.
authored several articles on social ethics and moral issues. The following article
vised text of a lecture he delivered at this year’s Catholic University of Eastern
Interdisciplinary Session.
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lectures
He has
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Michel Istas, S.J.
extent since the earliest days of African theology, and remain significant to this day. Yet
a shift in emphasis is noticeable from one period to another.
In my analysis, I will not differentiate between the contribution of bishops or of
theologians: in different ways, they all determine the faces of African theology. Nor will
I differentiate between Francophone and Anglophone African theology, despite the real
differences between the two schools. And finally, I will not give equal consideration to
protestant contributions, which may not fall within the same categories: my focus is on
Catholic theology.
The sixties have been, for most of Africa, the years of independence: colonial structures
disappeared, and national supremacy was established. During these
years, theology was still mostly understood as theologia perennis, the
Liberation
from Colonial eternal doctrine; it had not yet learned to be attentive to the signs of
the times, though John XXIII and Council Vatican II were bringing
Structures
the Church to dialogue with the modern world. They made contextual theologies possible. But in most countries the change came too
late for theology to play a significant role in the political transition: in the context of
seminary formation, as it existed in Africa at the time, it would have been impossible for
seminarians to come to active involvement.
Yet, even if theology did not immediately contribute to the process of liberation,
the Church did play a role, particularly through its educational institutions: many of the
first generation politicians were trained in Church schools, and sometimes even received
a seminary formation, in some cases to an advanced level. In one case, of CongoBrazzaville, a priest, Fulbert Youlou, became the first president. The Church also influenced the formation of trade unions, which in turn spread nationalistic ideas. In 1961, in
his encyclical Mater et Magistra, John XXIII noted “with deep satisfaction that Catholic
men, citizens of the less developed nations, are for the most part second to no other
citizens in furthering efforts of their countries to make progress economically and socially according to their capacity” (no. 182).
These efforts did not produce new theological insights, but they certainly did have a
theological dimension, which manifested itself clearly in the pastoral letters and other
documents by which the Church tried to instruct the people and show its own position.
I shall briefly examine two cases, of Kenya and of Congo-Kinshasa.
1
An analysis that is tantalizingly similar to the one developed in this paper has been worked
out in an article which I only know through a summary: G. Hyden, “Uncertainty in Africa:
shifting paradigms and levels of analysis,” in: Manoeuvring in an environment of uncertainty: structural change and social action in sub-Saharan Africa, ed. by Boel Berner and
Per Trulsson, Aldershot, Ashagate, 2000, pp. 29-51, argues that development theory similarly went through four different approaches: modernization theory in the 1960s, neoMarxist theories in the 1970s, neoliberal theories in the 1980s, and democratic theories in
the 1990s.
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In Kenya, the position of the Church with regard to “liberation from colonialism”
must be understood in reference to a number of sensitive issues. Racial discrimination
had become a cause of growing tension, as also the conflicts between all parties involved
in negotiations, from the first African election in 1957 to independence in 1963. But the
most important issue was certainly the Mau Mau uprising and the State of Emergency
which remained in force up to 1959. The Catholic Church, as all other mainstream
churches, very explicitly condemned the Mau Mau. Their rejection focused particularly
on the secret oathing rituals, which were sanctioned with immediate excommunication.
During the uprising, attachment to a Christian mission was understood as a sign of
loyalty to the British authority.2 Quite deliberately, in order to break the spell of fear
created by the Mau Mau, colonial authorities used the missions to ‘re-establish Christian
values’, ‘through the deployment of African elders.’3 Yet, in a pastoral letter of 1953, the
then Vicar Apostolic of Zanzibar, John J. McCarthy, who represented the Catholic Church
in Nairobi, made it clear that “there is no intention to condemn love of country, laudable
nationalism and the just attempt to air legitimate grievances.”4 Catholic missionaries in
Kikuyuland were predominantly Irish Holy Ghost or Italian Consolata; they had no
special loyalty to the colonial government, while most Protestant missionaries did. People saw the difference. When the Kikuyu Independent Church was proscribed, because
of its involvement with the Mau Mau, people were given the opportunity to put its
schools under another management, and a majority choose to entrust them to the Catholic
Church. A real mass movement towards Catholicism was noticed all through that period.
It is against this background that the joint pastoral letter, published by the Catholic
hierarchy in July 1960,5 must be understood. It expressed the Church’s desire that the
people of Kenya “should be independent, united, prosperous and happy” (no. 1). But
once this was stated, the letter showed its main concern to be law and order. The emphasis was put, from the very beginning of the letter, on the “inescapable submission” to
“the natural and revealed laws of God.” (no. 2). Cosmic laws, physical laws, the moral
law were all mentioned, and happiness and prosperity were said to depend from a free
submission to these laws. The letter speaks of freedom, but nearly always in order to
underline the need for a free acceptance of laws, duties, or obligations, which ultimately
come from God. In line with the whole content of the letter, the conclusion stated: “real
freedom does not consist in the right to do whatever one likes or wishes, but in the
fulfilment of God’s purpose.” (no. 65). The letter obviously does not understand political liberation either as a gift or a task from God. Its general tone is very didactic: indeed,
it appears as a kind of summary of the social doctrine of the Church. The problems
which are addressed are all about social justice. The significance of political changes is
2
3
4
5
Keith Kyle, The politics of the Independence of Kenya, London, Macmillan, 1999, p.61.
Id., p. 96.
Pastoral letter, published in Missionary Annals, Dublin, Rathmines, July 1953, no. 4; quoted
in L. M. Njoroge, A Centur y of Catholic endeavour. Holy Ghost and Consolata Missions in
Kenya, Nairobi, Paulines, 1999, p. 168.
Full text in: The Conscience of society. The social teaching of the Catholic Bishops of Kenya
1960-1995, ed. by R. Mejia, Nairobi, Paulines, 1995, pp. 13-28.
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Michel Istas, S.J.
minimised: “conditions change with the passage of time; old forms of government are
replaced by new constitutions.” (no. 48). The people desire another form of government, but “in all changing circumstances, the function of the State remains the same”
(no. 50). The word “liberation” is never used, and is not reflected upon theologically. But
rights and duties are acknowledged, which the State as well as the individuals must
respect. It sometimes sounds as if, now that the colonial power is about to disappear, the
Church is turning to God’s law for its protection.
In Congo, the Catholic Church had often been associated with colonial authority,
though relations with the central government had become difficult when an anticlerical
government had come to power in 1954. In order to break the influence of the Church,
State-sponsored schools had been started in the colony. Yet, by 1960, the importance of
its institutions and its majority position in the country still made the Catholic Church
very powerful. Three documents can be used to illustrate its stand on the issue of
liberation from colonial authority. None of these documents speaks of liberation: the
term used is emancipation. But the meaning is the same.
The first document is usually called Manifeste de Conscience Africaine,6 a name best
translated as African Awareness manifesto. It was published in 1956, in a local monthly
newspaper, and was unsigned, but several people had worked on it, led by the director
of publication Joseph Ileo, who had been involved in Catholic trade unions. One of
those who took an active part in writing the text was Fr. Joseph Malula, then parish priest
in Kinshasa. It has been said that he was the brains behind the whole project. The
manifesto tried to express the aspirations and feelings of all Congolese, who wanted to
build up a new society, in which – and this is the only reference to Christian faith in the
text – “Christian religion teaches us the deep meaning of life, the eminent dignity of the
human personality, and the brotherhood of all men.”(p. 302). The signatories were striving for total emancipation: political, by increasing democratization of structures of authority, and in social and economic life, through higher salaries, and better conditions of
life and of promotion.
At about the same time, the Congolese Bishops’ Conference was in session. At the
end of their meeting, the bishops were given the text of the Manifesto. Their own
statement7 was more like the letter of the Kenyan Bishops, a few years later: it emphasized both duties and rights of all parties involved. It considered a number of social
issues, and proposed guidelines in matters of property rights, of salaries, of trade unions, and of personal relationships. It declared that “the Church does not have to formulate a definite position on the modalities of the emancipation of a country. The
Church considers such an emancipation legitimate, if only it is accomplished in a manner which respects mutual rights and charity.” (p. 48).
A third document, also from the Bishops’ Conference, was published in 1959. Its
purpose was to respond to the social unrest caused by a government declaration which
6
Cf. Oeuvres complètes du Cardinal Malula, ed. par L. de Saint Moulin, Kinshasa, FCK,
1997, vol. 6, pp. 301-309.
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stated that independence would come soon, but which did not set any timetable. The
bishops wanted to instruct the faithful about their responsibilities: people must first seek
the Kingdom of God and its justice; yet, they also have a task in the earthly city, and the
Church tries to guide them in this effort. However, “if it is the Church’s task to define
the moral principles which should guide society, in the temporal domain it is often up to
the Christian himself to decide how to apply them in practice. With regard to the technical organisation of this-worldly institutions, Christians are free, as all people are, to
choose the means they consider most appropriate to ensure the progress of society in
justice and charity.”8 Freedom, therefore, must always be combined with responsibility.
The Bishops encourage people to take part in politics: it is a Christian duty, which must
be taken up for the sake of the community. Indeed, political freedom is not an end in
itself: it must serve the common interests, be rooted in authentic traditions, and benefit
everybody, particularly the poor. To ensure the freedom of all, political parties must be
allowed, in which Catholics will collaborate with others to make the principles of justice
and charity prevail. Again, the bishops insist that human relationships must be based on
mutual respect, just salaries, full employment, and equal opportunities, in rural areas as
well as in the cities: “It is essential to overcome all divisions of races, tribes, social
milieux, economic interests. Whatever divides must be rejected; misleading rumours
must be dismissed, and people should rather be attentive to what unites: the nation,
Christian civilisation, solidarity in work, seeking progress together.”9
All these documents, from Kenya and from Congo, were published before independence. They stated the position of the Church on the issue of political liberation.
Though they reflected a pastoral approach, rather than an original theological reflection,
a very scholastic understanding of the social teaching of the Church is obvious in all of
them.
Should theology have been more directly involved? A more aggressive approach
can be found in an article by a Congolese presbyterian, Dibinga wa Said.10 The author
writes in the U.S., and many years later, as the article was published in 1971. He is
obviously strongly influenced by the newly emerging Black Theology movement.11 Dibinga
wa Said’s article is rather exceptional in its aggressivity towards what he calls bourgeois
theology. He argues: “Theology of Decolonization is a survival theology. It is a theology
of freedom. It does not talk about it, but does something -joining freedom fighters who
are fighting for both spiritual and political salvation of the oppressed.” (a.c., p.519).
What this may have meant, at the time, is not clear: when this was written, Mobutu had
been successful in bringing back peace to the country, and the economic situation was
improving. Freedom fighters were certainly not what Congo needed. The author does
not specify his position; in fact, he is essentially making a plea for another theology,
which would be free of everything that was wrong in pre-independence bourgeois theol7
8
9
Cf. Eglise et société. Le discours socio-politique de l’Eglise catholique du Congo (1956-1998).
Tome 1: Textes de la Conférence épiscopale, eds. L. de Saint Moulin et R. Gaise, Kinshasa,
FCK, 1998, pp. 45ff.
Id., p. 50.
Id., p. 59.
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Michel Istas, S.J.
ogy. But the article does not really consider the practical problems and possibilities, as
did the earlier documents. Does this indicate something of the danger of doing contextual theology from a distance?
These first steps towards an African Theology of Liberation have something to
teach us:
1. The fact that theological reflection was not able either to inspire the struggle for
independence, or to direct it more effectively shows that indeed it had lost the
necessary vision. Since Vatican II, theology has undergone a tremendous change,
but the point is that even the most doctrinally faithful theology can fail to bring
liberation. We must allow the signs of the times to challenge us today, as they challenged John XXIII. Theology, in 1960, was too narrow, too doctrinaire. The danger
of making our own theology similarly blind to the real needs of God’s family, the
Church, cannot be ignored.
2. Even if it was limited, the Church did play a role, as it was illustrated with Malula’s
contribution to the Manifesto of Conscience Africaine. What inspired this involvement? Evoking this period, Cardinal Malula himself said this about it: “From the
time I started my ministry, I have given time to the intellectuals. And so it came
about that with these intellectuals, we started to reflect upon the problems of our
country, a reflection which later led to the writing of the Manifesto of Conscience
Africaine. And I know that people thought that the Cardinal would embrace a political career. But there was nothing true in this. If my name is connected to this
historic document, it is mainly as an animator of the intellectuals. I was there to help
them, to encourage them, to support them in their reflection, in their project. I did
actually work with them to write this document. But, I must state it, I have never,
never thought, not for one second, to become a politician, because I was finding in
my priesthood everything I needed to give value to my life, as man and as priest....”12
This statement describes perfectly the role of the Church in politics: to help, to
encourage, to support, as part of the priestly ministry.
3. The Church did not show a real sensitivity to the whole issue of independence.
Instead, it focused on social problems. The Bishops obviously considered that much
of the power of the revolutionary ideologies was a consequence of these problems.
They thought they were dealing with causes, rather than with their effects. Even if
this shows a disregard for the strength of the desire for independence, the point
certainly has validity.
In the seventies, all over the world, but particularly in the Third World, liberation from
poverty gained prominence as a major theme, in political as well as in theological dis10
11
Dibinga wa Said, “An African Theology of Decolonization,” in: Harvard Theological Review, 64, 1971, pp. 501-524.
J. H. Cone, Black Theolog y and Black Power, New York, Seabury; 1969, 165 pp.; A. B.
Cleage, Jr., The Black Messiah. The religious roots of Black Power, New York, Sheed and
Ward, 1969, 278pp.
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courses. Or rather, development did, but development soon came to be understood as
liberation from poverty.13 Development was the more commonly used term, in Africa,
and therefore, it will also be used here.
Immediately after independence, perspectives about development were extremely
optimistic. It was commonly assumed that only the selfish interests of the colonial powers had stood in the way of unlimited progress. Now that this obstacle had been removed, the future could only bring radical improvement. The promises of a bright
future would soon be fulfilled. In fact, development was not just a promise: it was
considered a right, the fulfilment of which had been withheld by unjust means. As it was
being repeated frequently, the African continent is rich, and its richness was now going to
be restored to its rightful owners.
These perspectives were not only due to a poor assessment of the problems involved. In the Western world also, following its extraordinary economic expansion after
World War II, development had come to be seen as normal. This view emerged during
the second half of last century, because of a new awareness that
Liberation
poverty can be overcome: appropriate policies have only to be apfrom Poverty plied. In the past, a kind of fatalism had been normal; in the seventies, there was reason to hope for liberation from poverty. It is in this
context that expectations concerning development must be considered.
Influenced by this general approach, the Church also began to consider poverty as
anomalous, as contrary to God’s will. This view challenged a number of commonly
accepted ideas. Previously, when poverty had been seen as the norm, and wealth as an
exception,14 the Church was able to explain this situation as a punishment for Adam’s sin:
God had cursed the ground from which our livelihood depends (Gn 3:17). The Church
could give occasional relief, through its works of charity, but poverty itself would remain: “you always have the poor with you” (Mt 26:11). In the seventies, poverty began
to be seen as a scandal, as the O.T. sometimes had considered it, a scandal which should
not be accepted, because it contradicts the promises of God. The Church had been
active in development work before, and would continue to be, but such activities were
no longer to be considered as a matter of charity, of helping the poor;15 they were now
more and more seen as a direct contribution to the establishment of the Kingdom of
God, and as part of the fight against evil.16
Ever since, the Church has been grappling with the difficult questions arising from
such views, concerning the meaning of salvation, of material goods, of progress, of
12
13
Interview of Cardinal Malula on National Television, in September 1984. Text in: Oeuvres
complètes du Cardinal Malula, vol.2, Kinshasa, FCK, 1997, p.120.
A ground-breaking work was R. Laurentin, Développement et salut, Paris, Seuil, 1969, 303
pp. The English translation has the title Liberation, development and salvation, Maryknoll,
N.Y., Orbis Books, 1972, 238 pp.; a preface is added, in which the author analyses the
relationship between development and liberation (pp. vii-xvii). It can also be argued that
“development and liberation are semantic reflections of perspectives of those on top and
of those under,” as does Ogbu U. Kalu, “Theological ethics and development in an African
context,” in: Missiology, 4, 1976, 4, p. 457.
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Michel Istas, S.J.
poverty, and more particularly, of religious poverty. These questions are still with us
today. But without waiting for theological elaborations, in the seventies, the Church
committed itself fully to liberation from poverty. However, it did not have the means to
contribute effectively to major undertakings; it could only continue to support smallscale projects, as it had always done. In consequence, it learned to qualify its action: while
governments planned to develop their countries, the Church promoted what it often
called “integral human development.”17 Cardinal Malula, in a homily celebrating the
tenth anniversary of the independence of Congo, described the task of the Church as
follows: “To serve in the truth, that is, to go beyond the formulas fixed by the authorities, beyond the institutions set up by the scientists and technicians of this country,
constantly to proclaim the permanent requirement of progress in all domains, so that
people will not be hampered in their personal and communitarian development.”18 This
qualification became particularly important at the time, when pressure was brought to
bear upon African governments to implement policies which some agencies considered
essential for development, as e.g. efforts to reduce population increase. In such cases,
the Church clearly rejected the validity of the argument of development. Moreover, in
setting priorities, governments were often tempted to neglect their first task: to care for
the common good. The SECAM meeting of 1981 spoke out against such policies:
“SECAM asks that in public spending, priority be given to meeting the basic needs of
the people, such as health, food, housing and education, and that public money never be
employed in extravagant expenses.”19 This was written in 1981. In the early seventies,
such a statement could hardly be made. At the time, it was still assumed that governments needed the loyal support of all people and institutions, to confirm their legitimacy,
and criticisms were mostly veiled. But from the beginning, the Church had introduced its
particular point of view in the debate about development. Bishop Blomjous, retired
from Mwanza in Tanzania, made the point in the early days of this period: “It is certainly not always true that increasingly rapid progress and development really serves the
betterment of the human condition, which must always remain the ultimate priority.”
He added: “The recent preference for the use of the term “human liberation” instead
of “development” has certain advantages in this respect.”20 His remark was not taken
up at the time: the use of the term “liberation” could have been understood as setting
national governments on a level with colonial regimes, or with the apartheid regime in
South Africa. In the early seventies, collaboration was sought, rather than confrontation,
but governments became increasingly conscious of the fact that the position of the
Church, in matters of development, did not coincide with their own. Relationships be14
15
16
17
18
See J. Austruy, Le scandale du développement, Paris, Rivière, 1965, 535 pp.
J-M. Ela, From charity to liberation, London, Cath. Inst. for Internat. Relat., 1984, 20 pp.
See, e.g., the Declaration on Human Development and Christian Salvation, by the International Theological commission, published in September 1977, no. 2.
Bp. J. J. Blomjous, “Christians and human development in Africa,” in: AFER, 14, 1972, 3,
pp. 189-201; B. Bujo, “Le chrétien face au développement intégral de l’homme,” in: Revue
du Clergé Africain, 25, 1970, 3, pp. 284- 298.
Card. J. Malula, “Pour un développement authentiquement africain,” in: Documentation
Catholique, 20 Sept. 1970, no. 1570, p. 824.
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came strained, and in a number of cases, led to conflicts and more or less complete
nationalization of Church institutions of education and healthcare.
This evolution in fact helped the Church to gain a better perspective on its involvement in development, or in liberation from poverty. Rather than to identify itself with its
many institutions, the Church acknowledged that its task, in this area, was a matter of
subsidiarity. If others could take over responsibility for its institutions, so be it: they were
not essential to its mission. A particular understanding of religious poverty was expressed here: whatever the Church had built, it had not built for itself, but to serve. And
indeed, in many cases, the State could do better than the Church, which came to realize
and acknowledge its own limitations. Inevitably, its action was too limited in scope, and
could not address the real causes of poverty, for which political solutions needed to be
found. The only action it could undertake was in complement of others, and possibly
merging with them.
But at the same time, the Church warned that these wider policies should not follow
the paths of Western development. Cardinal Malula again put it clearly: “Countries
looking for ways for their development are threatened by an insidious temptation: fascinated by the economic and material success of the European and American West, young
nations are tempted to apply the same methods and techniques, to take over without
discernment the schemes of development of which the effectiveness seemingly cannot
be denied.”21 The Cardinal argued that we must resist this temptation with all our strength,
first because the development of Western societies has is fact led to much discontent,
people finding themselves reduced to their purely economic and material dimension;
and second, because a development programme must correspond to what he called “the
originality of peoples”: “To ensure our authentic development, it is necessary in a certain
way, to be totally indigenous, to come up with solutions from within our society, to be
intimately attuned to its characteristics and problems.”22 As this text shows, from the
very beginning of its reflection on development, African theology has been aware of the
specificity of the situation of the continent, and of the need to find solutions which
fitted the specific context and culture of Africa. In Latin America, liberation theologians
found the term development too closely linked with Western models, and abandoned it,
giving preference to liberation. In the eighties, African theology largely followed their
lead, and theological reflection on development waned. In recent years, however, the
theme has come up again,23 and new ways of reflecting upon it have been opened.
The context, at this point, has become quite different from what it was in the seventies. The easy optimism, which prevailed at the time, has disappeared. Instead, afropessimism, as it has been called, has emerged. But more significant has been a growing
awareness and careful assessment of the problems involved.24 Governments and people
have begun to realize that poverty will not disappear through a kind of natural process
19
20
SECAM, Justice, mar riage and evangelization in Africa today, Accra, Secam Secretariat,
1981, Resolution on Justice, no. 6 (SECAM stands for Symposium of Episcopal Conferences
of Africa and Madagascar).
a.c., p. 193.
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Michel Istas, S.J.
of growth. Poverty is not a purely economic phenomenon: many factors combine to
bring it about, both internal to the societies concerned, and external to them. Among the
internal factors, political instability and misrule, and also cultural elements need to be
corrected. Among the external factors, terms of international trade and of aid are of
major significance. In all these domains, theology may have to play a role, to create a
better awareness of the problems and the values involved, and of the available remedies. All these are not theo-logoumenoi, revealed truth. But they can be shown for what
they are, in the light of God’s word, or in confrontation with its demands.
Considering the initial efforts to liberate the continent from poverty, and in view of
later clarifications, what can we learn from this stage of African Theology?
1. In the seventies, poverty was blamed upon colonial regimes; today, upon bad local
governance. In both cases, a scapegoat is used, to clear us from what is taken as
shameful, and prevents us from tackling the problem objectively, and taking it up
ourselves.
2. A more discriminating approach of poverty is certainly needed, inspired by a specifically theological perception. Poverty is not a curse, nor a disgrace: if it were, how
could, and why would God love the poor? On the basis of this faith, the Church
emphasizes the dignity of the poor. Yet, at the same time, possibly more clearly than
in the seventies, the Church now realizes the dehumanizing power of poverty.
3. External aid may facilitate development, but will not bring it about. In 1970 already,
Cardinal Malula insisted upon the need for creativity and originality. In Kenya, these
qualities are often associated with jua kali initiatives, which may indeed help individuals to overcome their poverty, but will not help the national economy in a really
significant way. Wider perspectives must somehow be opened.
More than for the other themes, situating this particular struggle for liberation in one
decade is questionable. From the very beginning, African Theology has shown great
concern for cultural values, and this concern has remained vivid all through. If I use it
to characterize one decade, of the eighties, it is not because theology showed a new
awareness for these issues at the time, but because during this period it gained new
authority in much wider circles, all over the world. In Africa, around the eighties, people
21
22
23
24
a.c., p. 823.
Ibid. It must be noted that, by then, Mobutu had not yet launched his ideology of authenticity.
C. B. Peter, “Beyond a theology of development,” in: AFER, 35, 1993, 1, pp. 54-67; E.
Bone, “Pour une théologie du développement,” in: Revue Africaine de Théologie, 11, 1987,
22, pp. 179-201; A. Pholo Bala, “Evolution de la théorie du développement de l’aprèsguerre à la mondialisation: vers le mythe de l’éternel retour,” in: Congo-Afrique, 41, 2001,
no. 353, pp. 142-156; C. Santamaria, “Toward a theology of development,” in: SEDOSBulletin, 32, 2000, 2, pp. 57-60.
Cf. Axelle Kabou, Et si l'Afrique refusait le développpement,” Paris, L’Harmattan, 1991, 208
pp.; see also the World Development Report 2000/2001, Attacking poverty, Washington,
The World Bank, 2001, 335 pp., and the African Development Report 2001, Banque Africaine
de développement, Abidjan, 2001.
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were beginning to realize that the promises of independence and of development were
not being fulfilled, and the need for a different approach was generally acknowledged. In
this way, cultural issues gained prominence in the debates about liberation. To a considerable extent, theology had opened the way for this evolution. But how it dealt with the
issues from then on cannot be isolated from earlier efforts and reflections.
Initially, theology strived for cultural liberation, because, as Meinrad Hebga put it in
1956, in Des prêtres noirs s’interrogent, it wanted to make use of African culture in order to
praise God.25 Later, during his debate with Vanneste in 1960, Tshibangu wanted African
culture studied in order to come to a better understanding of the transcendental reality
of God: African systems of thought, he believed, could shed a new light on Christian
revelation.26 In these early reflections, culture was not yet fully acknowledged as a value
in itself: it remained instrumental. A wider approach was taken by the Fathers of Council Vatican II. For the first time in official Church documents,27 they considered culture
as the point where economic, political, familial, philosophical, and religious questions
meet. The Council acknowledged that fresh avenues had been opened for the refinement and wider diffusion of culture; however, it focused on the new culture of the
future. African theology first wanted to rehabilitate the continents’ own heritage. Studies
on culture multiplied in the years following the Council, and they soon connected culture
with liberation. The twelfth theological week of Kinshasa, in 1977, had as its main
theme: “Liberation in Jesus Christ.” Both socio-economic and cultural liberation were considered. This session therefore illustrates the transition towards a new appreciation of
the significance of culture. More generally, from then on, inculturation, a word first
coined in 1962, became a central issue in Church debates. Around 1980, it was still
considered a new phenomenon: the problem was old, but the way it
was envisaged, was new. And new ways of dealing with the problem
Liberation
from Cultural were considered: it was now accepted that Church and culture must
enter in dialogue with each other, and that only the local Church can
Denial
do this.28
African Theology became very involved in this effort. First, a
radical critique helped to locate African Theology more precisely in the wide spectrum
of post-conciliar theological movements. Various concerns, which animated the early
missionary movements, were submitted to analysis, and shown to be inadequate: the Church cannot strive only for the “salvation of souls”; nor is it the
primary task of the missions to “implant” and “establish” the Church in pagan
territories. To look for “stepping stones”, or for possibilities of adaptation is not
a good method either: such an approach still assumes that African elements
must be incorporated in a given structure, supposedly of universal significance.29
Another method had to be found, which would respect the specific nature of
African cultures, in their totality, and at the same time confront them with Christian challenges, as perceived in faith, and in continuity with the whole Christian
25
M. Hebga, “Christianisme et négritude,” in: Des prêtres noirs s’interrogent, Paris, Cerf, 1956,
p. 202: “Osons donc faire servir notre culture à la louange publique de Dieu.”
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Michel Istas, S.J.
tradition.
However, at the same time, the influence of Latin American liberation theology
made itself felt, leading to another approach, which rather focused on the liberating
dimension of faith. In the eighties, it became common to consider that African theology
had split in two distinct movements, one which concerned itself with inculturation, the
other with liberation. In 1989, when the faculty of theology of Kinshasa celebrated the
25th anniversary of its “Theological Weeks”, it reflected on the achievements of African Theology. One conference, given by Fr. Kangudi, a priest from Kananga in the
Kasai province of Congo, considered “Inculturation and liberation in African Theology.”30 It
analyzed the two movements, within the African Theology of the time. This analysis
covered much of the publications of the eighties, and described how the two approaches
considered each other. Liberationists were criticizing culturalists who had been focusing
on the past, and did not contribute to the solution of current political and economic
problems. Culturalists, on the other hand, criticized liberationists, whom they blamed for
being dependent from foreign ideologies, and for neglecting the religious and cultural
dimensions which are essential to humanity. Both approaches, the author argued, are
relevant: inculturation remains a necessity, so that the Word of God may be understood
as it is spoken in the African context, while liberation expresses the cry of the poor of
the land, desperately looking for salvation. The terminology of cultural liberation does
not just bring these two approaches together: it goes beyond them. It points to the more
fundamental problem, that underlies efforts to promote development as well as
inculturation, that is, the need for the people to draw from their own resources to build
a better world.
African Theology has certainly contributed significantly to the effort of cultural
liberation. From its very beginning, it saw that liberation from cultural impoverishment
was needed, both through education, in order to create a new culture, as the Council
wanted, and through a more positive appreciation of the African cultural heritage. The
theological contribution to cultural liberation is particularly effective on the level of
anthropology, that is, as a Christian affirmation of the value of the person, and of
everything that contributes to give the person full stature. It is a theology both of
creation and of incarnation. To acknowledge an existing culture as a creation of God is
to replace it in the wider context of God’s plan for humanity. To reflect upon it as a
place of incarnation shows our belief that God is at work in human cultures, making
himself known in human creativity, and challenging us to manifest him as the source of
26
27
28
29
Th. Tshibangu, “Vers une théologie de couleur africaine, Débat sur la théologie africaine,”
in: Revue du Clergé Africain, 15, 1960, 4, p. 344. Tshibangu had been ordained in August
1959; he would become bishop in 1970.
Commentary prepared by Action Populaire, Paris, Spes, 1966: no. 101, on Gaudium et Spes
no. 54.
A. A. Roest Crollius, “What is so new about inculturation? A concept and its implications,”
in: Gregorianum, 59, 1978, pp. 721-738.
O. Bimwenyi Kweshi, Discours théologique négro-africain. Problème des fondements,
Louvain, 1977, Chapter 2, particularly pp. 102-131. This doctoral dissertation was later
published: Paris, Présence Africaine, 1981, 682 pp.
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all good for all peoples.
Lessons to be learned from these efforts of African theology are many.
1. First, theology’s concern for cultural liberation shows an appreciation for a dimension of humanity which is easily disregarded in our technological world. Theology’s
sensitivity to this dimension has been, and must continue to be important: it underlies much of its involvement in other areas of liberation, which otherwise might
fade away. Theological anthropology, with its attention for some spiritual dimensions of our humanity, is not a luxury, but is needed to keep our various commitments on track.
2. Cultural liberation must somehow combine appreciation for a particular cultural
heritage, creativity in building up a different future, and openness to other cultures.
In each of these three dimensions, theology recognizes the word of God, as incarnated, eschatological, and universal.
3. In its own domain, African theology must maintain an awareness of the limitations
of the methods of theological inquiry it proposes. As it has itself suffered from a
framework that was too narrow and rigid, it must be open to new ways of theologizing!
In the nineties, reaction against oppressive regimes was a worldwide phenomenon, following the collapse of the communist system in Eastern Europe. An important, even
decisive contribution to this development, according to John Paul II’s encyclical Centesimus
Annus, was “the Church’s commitment to defend and promote human rights.”31 What
happened in Africa participates in the same general movement. However, it also showed
some very specific features, which have determined much of its outcome.
In Africa, the Church’s contribution to the liberation from oppressive regimes, sometimes called “the second liberation”, has taken the form of repeated calls for the implementation of democratic reforms, and of an ongoing reflection on the principle and
nature of democracy, as an appropriate form of government in the continent. The
Church has formulated these calls at various levels. For the whole continent, the message of the African Synod was that “democracy should become one of the principal
routes along which the Church travels together with the people.”32 Pastoral letters have
further clarified the position of the Church on democratic government,33 in function of
local situations. Theologians also have brought their contribution, through a variety of
publications, talks, seminars and conferences.34 No clear and unambiguous blueprint of
new political structures has emerged from these efforts. They have undoubtedly nourished aspirations and given orientations, but, like everybody else, theologians have been
30
Semaines Théologiques de Kinshasa, Théologie Africaine. Bilan et Perspectives, Kinshasa,
FCK, 1989, 441 pp.; Kangudi Kabwatila, “Inculturation et libération en théologie africaine,”
pp. 199-209.
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Michel Istas, S.J.
overcome by the complexity of the problems. Very briefly, the most significant of these
problems can be listed.
First, it must be noted that, while democratic aspirations grew among the people,
conditions often did not make an effective implementation of democratic government
possible. In most of the States, democratic structures were introduced, during the nineties, but at the same time, and for various reasons, the States had to implement policies
which were widely unpopular. In consequence, politicians could only maintain their positions by making sure that the peoples’ frustration could not effectively be reflected in
the electoral procedures. The new so-called democratic structures did create opportunities for power competition, but did not serve the needs of the people; indeed, they often
had the opposite effect.35
Another issue which remains unsolved concerns the economic policies which a democratic system was supposed to implement. While it was commonly acknowledged that
the earlier waves of nationalizations have only brought ruin or higher prizes, privatisations
or free access to local markets were not necessarily going to bring significant and lasting
improvements. It also seemed that the extraordinary accumulation of wealth by a small
minority had become irreversible: in some cases States could regain possession of misappropriated wealth, but such efforts were obviously not going to
Liberation
revive national economies, and could on the contrary discourage lofrom
cal investments. A more effective system of taxation of property
Dictatorships and of imports would be much more helpful, but the chances of
implementing such measures were nil. This meant that mismanagement and corruption still appeared as the most effective way to riches. Work and
entrepreneurship were not rewarded; on the contrary, they were constantly
submitted to higher demands by money-hungry government officials.
Democratic progress has also been blocked by social conflicts, which have
taken many forms in Africa, from ethnic cleansing to regional wars. In such
situations, democracy appears to be ineffective and even dangerous: political
leaders feel that to retain their privileged positions, they must turn communities
against each other, up to the point that political discourses take the form of
direct incitement to violence. When social relationships have been so poisoned,
popular consultation is no longer a help towards good governance, because the
voice of the majority is not always just, and people themselves are not willing to
make peace.
Confronted with all this, how could the Church, and more specifically, African the-
31
32
33
Centesimus Annus, 1991, no. 22.
Message of the Synod, no. 34 (6/5/1994). The Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation, Ecclesia
in Africa, quoted this text again in its no. 112.
Catholic Bishops of Kenya, On the road to democracy, 1994; Evêques du Zaïre, Libérer la
démocratie, Déclaration du comité permanent, 23.2.1991; Conférence épiscopale de Madagascar, Lettre pastorale sur la démocratie, 25.3.1995; Evêques du Congo (Brazzaville), Eglise
et démocratie au Congo, 16.5.1992...
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ology, contribute to liberation? Possibilities of effective action are limited, partly because
the Church’s means of action have been restricted through the often brutal intervention
of local governments during earlier periods, partly because the Church was not really
prepared for action at this level. Its proper task was not there, and if it became involved,
it was only because no other instances showed themselves able to respond to the needs
of the people, sometimes least of all the new opposition parties, which often showed
themselves unable to propose a credible alternative programme of government.
In some cases, the Church became directly involved in action leading to political
change, and had, in consequence, to suffer persecution. But mostly its efforts to bring
liberation have remained indirect: its main contribution has been to reflect upon the
nature and demands of democracy, and sometimes, more specifically, to explain the
proper role of the people and of the State, and sometimes, more explicitly, to set up
structures promoting peace and reconciliation. Often, it also played a significant role by
providing clear testimonies on the excesses of repression. The emergence of civil society, as a significant factor in social and political life, has often been supported by the
Church and by theological reflection, bringing on the scene another protagonist, with its
own views, but often with an explicitly Christian inspiration. In a way, civil society has
acknowledged this debt, by giving religious leaders a major role in various National
Conferences or in other instances of reform, as here in Kenya, in the constitutional
review.
The nineties, obviously, have not solved the problem of liberation from oppressive
dictatorships. Remarkable efforts have been made, but a more fundamental dimension
of the problem needs to be tackled: dictators are only an extreme expression of the
power of the State. When it becomes absolute, it is this power which enslaves people.
Dictators can be removed from the scene. The State cannot. Dictators have gone, or are
going. But what must be done with the State? The liberal theory, which wants to reduce
the power of the State, has few supporters in the continent. Yet the people are fed up
with the State, which has repeatedly shown its inability to solve their problems. A solution
must be found, by which the State’s power would be effectively harnessed and put at the
service of the people. But how can the Church help to bring this about? Politicians
consider its involvement with great suspicion. And indeed, can such an action be reconciled with the Church’s proper role, so that it does not become involved in partisan
movements, which would make it difficult, or even impossible for some people to recognize the word of God as it is proclaimed to them?
Central to this whole debate, it appears, is the age-old issue of Church/State relations. In the continent, these relations have never been easy. During the colonial period
as well as immediately after independence, the issue had already come up, but at these
stages the State had been in a position of great strength, as it had also been when the
34
35
A few publications should be mentioned: J. N. K. Mugambi, ed., Democracy and development in Africa. The role of Churches, Nairobi, AACC, 1997, 196 pp.; L. Magesa and Z.
Nthamburi, eds., Democracy and reconciliation. A challenge for African Christianity, Nairobi, Acton, 1999, 242 pp.
Cf. E. Osaghae, “Democratization in Sub-Saharan Africa: faltering prospects, new hopes,”
in: Journal of Contemporar y African Studies, 17, 1999, 1, pp. 5-28.
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Michel Istas, S.J.
issue was raised in the West, in the 19th and 20th century. The conflicts which broke out
in Europe were eventually resolved, and led to a form of mutual acceptance of Church
and State, in which the relative independence of both instances was recognized: the
legislative and executive power of the State, as well as the moral authority of the Church
could co-exist and operate each at their own level. But during the nineties, in Africa, the
weakness of the State and the prestige of the Church created a different situation, and
the conventions of Western diplomacy now appear inadequate.
The Church, on its side, has largely kept to the established patterns of behaviour,
accepting the authority of the States within their own sphere, but also reminding leaders
of their duty to serve the common good. These calls have often created serious tensions, but despite all accusations to the contrary, the Church has successfully avoided the
role of power-broker. Sometimes, its efforts have not been well understood and accepted by the Christian communities: a more resolute handling of some situations would
have been preferred, to ease transitions or avoid protracted crises. Instead, the Church
has refused to move beyond its self-imposed limits of competence.
The States, for their part, have showed themselves generally unwilling to accept any
criticism or the existence of any kind of parallel authority. It can be argued that by now
the Church has worked out a solution and proven its ability to keep to its own role: if
relations with the State remain difficult, today, the problem is with the State, not with the
Church. In theory, this might be true. In practice, the Church still has to face the question, when and how to involve itself in the struggle for liberation. Its contribution,
during the nineties, has been considerable, but at the end of that period, the movement
has come to a halt, not really knowing how to extend its action. Professor Terrence
Ranger, of Zimbabwe, writing about South Africa, judges, somewhat ironically, that “the
initiative now lies with the charismatic rather than with the phlegmatic churches. These
charismatic churches, which in the past have been quietist and conservative, now constitute a moral opposition to the new nationalist order. By so doing they make possible the
operation of democracy.”36 He quotes Bishop Desmond Tutu, who was wondering
where to go, after the fall of apartheid: “I now realise what I did not previously, that it is
a great deal easier to be against. It galvanises support and action. Now that apartheid is
being dismantled we are finding that it is not quite so simple to define what we are for.
That is a more nebulous, somewhat vague, thing, being in favour of a just, democratic,
non-racial, non-sexist dispensation....”37 Despite all its theological reflection, the Church
indeed does not know how exactly human society should be structured. It proceeds, as
Council Vatican II already stated, while sharing in the joys and hopes, or, more often, the
grief and anguish of our time.
Yet, in the struggle for liberation, some guidelines can be given, and have been
given, by the hierarchy as well as by theologians. In 1994, Robert Sarah, Archbishop of
Conakry, Guinea, argued that, in whatever the Church does, with respect to totalitarian
regimes, five points need to be considered.38 They are listed here as the lessons to be
drawn from this period:
1. In its discourse, the Church must formulate how people live and think. The Church,
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2.
3.
4.
5.
therefore, must listen to the people, and provide, in the midst of this restless world,
an area of encounter free of all prejudices, conditionalities or calculations.
The Church cannot solve all the problems which affect the people in their dignity
and rights. But it must share in their deprivations and humiliations, and remain in
solidarity with them.
Often accused of being controlled by either foreign powers or by the opposition,
the Church must be committed both to the fatherland and to its faith. To show that
these two allegiances are not contradictory, it has to be faithful to people, and to
show that its structures and mission are only meant to serve people, in truth, justice
and love.
When the Church speaks out on issues which are not specifically religious, as politics, economics, human rights, justice and peace, people must be able to recognize,
in its groping ways, the mysterious, yet real presence which inspires it and helps it to
witness to the permanence of God’s love, in the erratic history of our nations.
The Church is submitted to influences from within as well as from outside the
nation. Resisting them, it must show its freedom, but also understanding for slowness and even failings. It must be free to challenge people and institutions for the
sake of the people and of national interest.
Bishop Sarah does not mention, in his description of the Church’s task, the need for
greater competence in the various fields which it may be called to evaluate. Indeed, he
acknowledges, at one point, that the Church does not speak because of a particular
competence in any of these fields. His focus falls entirely on the Christian message. For
him, it is only on this basis that the Church can be a light for the nations.
36
37
T. Ranger, “Religion and Democracy in Africa,” in: Chiedza, Arrupe College Journal, Harare,
December 2000, p. 21. This public lecture reviews, after seven years, the work of a conference that took place in Leeds , in 1993, ed. by P. Gifford, The Christian Churches and the
democratisation of Africa, Leiden, Brill, 1995, 301 pp.
Quotation completed from the original, o.c., p. 96.
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The heading under which I put this last period, the one in which we live, is not imposed
by a common usage. Another approach is possible, which would show how operative the
concept of liberation is in the theologies of reconstruction.39 But in the context of this
analysis, reconstruction is too near to development, which characterized the seventies,
and too focused on this-worldly commitments to include many recent developments in
African Theology. For some time already, theological reflection all over the world has
taken a new, more spiritual orientation, which does not abandon any of the previous
concerns, but is meant to provide “a deep and genuine spiritual undergirding for the
theology of liberation.”40 In Africa also, the need for such a foundation has been felt,
and efforts have been made to provide it,41 sometimes quite explicitly in connection with
more practical concerns as reconstruction.42
This need is not just felt by theologians or Church leaders: it also reflects common
aspirations. In an investigation conducted in Kinshasa, in 1998, 439 people were asked
how they understood liberation. When all the answers were brought back to two categories, results showed that three out of four people (75.3%) gave an answer that reflected
spiritual concerns, rather than material needs.43 Even though these answers were influenced by the fact that the word liberation had acquired strong political overtones, at the
time, this result shows that the need for spirituality is a much wider concern than might be
thought. A spirituality of liberation, therefore, is not for theology’s own sake, but primarily a service to the Church and to the people.
If indeed this will be the face of African theology for this decade, what kind of
service is it going to offer? In comparison with the earlier efforts towards liberation, it is
clear that its scope, today, will be much wider. While previously, liberation mainly focused on one obstacle on the way to human fulfilment, now it must include a variety of
dimensions. Spirituality opens the person and communities to the Spirit, and to its many
gifts.44 Past struggles for liberation opposed deficiencies which were essentially this-worldly.
Openness to the Spirit enables people to build the future in the likeness of the kingdom
of God. Both are calling for action, but one is, as contemporary vocabulary puts it,
reactive, the other pro-active. Liberation now has to be for, rather than from something.
It focuses on an inner attitude, rather than on an external problem, but is confident that
one will help to solve the other. Thus liberation remains a leading category for theological reflection.
A number of elements are emerging today, which in the coming years may well
become the focus of a spirituality of liberation in Africa.
One concerns the nature and role of Christian identity in Africa today. In its efforts
to promote liberation, Christianity certainly has played a major role in the recent history
of the continent. While in the West, the Christian factor has become largely irrelevant, in
Africa, it has gained an enormous importance, causing, among other things, the desacralization of the political environment, which opened the way to democracy. This
38
Mgr Robert Sarah, “L’Eglise et la démocratie en Afrique,” in: Chronique. Supplément au
Bulletin de littérature ecclésiastique, Institut Catholique, Toulouse, 1995, no. 2, pp. 11-34.
Archbishop Sarah has since been appointed secretary of the Congregation for the evangelization of people (AAS 93, 2001, 11, p. 805).
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A Spirituality contribution is sufficiently important to bring one theologian, Kwame
of Liberation Bediako, to expect “a considerable breakthrough in the potential role
that religious persons and religious communities can play in the coming new world order”. He also argues that “Africa’s most important
resource for its needed transformation may well reside in its current Christian spiritual
vitality....”45 The spiritual vitality of the continent is certainly impressive. And the desacralization of authority is certainly a positive factor, but is it not going to turn against
the Church? Will spiritual vitality then be able to sustain itself, and be able to counterbalance the secularization which will follow?
This process is different from the one that has taken place in Europe. Western
secularization has a long history behind it, which is not going to be repeated in Africa.
But with the development of social structures, in the continent, a kind of secularization
will most likely take place also, and is in fact already noticeable. It may be directed more
against Church-oriented religion, than against religion itself,46 which continues to flourish
in many different forms. Thus spirituality may remain strong, even when its institutional
framework is weakened. The task of theology, in this context, is certainly to examine
and strengthen its spiritual foundations.
To respond to the needs of our time, a spirituality of liberation also needs to clarify
its relationship with, and attitude towards the poor and towards poverty.47 In the seventies, African Theology has focused on liberation from poverty. Its answer was a call to
development. If today, a spirituality of liberation is going to be developed, this spirituality must confront the issue of poverty in another way. Which way is not clear. But in the
African perspective, it seems that a focus on life would be appropriate. Poverty must be
acknowledged as life-threatening. Everything that contributes to it, as corruption, mismanagement, and the denial of basic human rights, must be denounced as causing
39
40
41
42
43
Valère Kambale Kandiki, “Les Eglises africaines pour une nouvelle approche de la théologie
de la libération,” in: Alternatives Sud, 7, 2000, 1, pp. 101-125.
P. Caspersz, “The future of the theology of liberation, if it has a future,” in: G. De Schrijver,
ed., Liberation Theologies on shifting grounds. A clash of socio-economic and cultural paradigms, BETL 135, Leuven, U. P. Peeters, 1998, p.182. The more obvious references are to
Jon Sobrino, Spirituality of Liberation. Toward political Holiness, New York, Orbis, 1988,
189 pp., and to Nestor Jaén, Toward a Liberation Spirituality, Chicago, Loyola U.P., 1991,
123 pp.
An early effort showing this orientation is the second international colloquium of the
Centre d’Etudes des Religions Africaines (CERA), 21-27/2/1983: L’Afrique et ses formes de
vie spirituelle, Kinshasa, FCK, 2ième éd., 1990, 408 pp. (published as special issue of
Cahiers des Religions Africaines, 24, 1990, no. 47). The approach developed in most of the
conferences fits within the timeframe proposed here: their focus is more on cultural liberation. But the need for a spiritual foundation is also clearly expressed.
E.g., by Smangaliso Mkhatshwa: “With the change in strategy and laying the foundation for
social reconstruction, the issues are no longer so clear-cut as before. To participate meaningfully in this new phase of the struggle for national liberation requires a new spirituality
to match the new struggle. Foreword to: We shall overcome. A spirituality of liberation, ed.
by M.Worsnip and D. van de Water, Pietermaritzburg, Cluster Publ., 1991, 139 pp.
Léon de Saint Moulin, “La perception du salut et de la libération à Kinshasa,” in: Revue
Africaine de Théologie, 21, 1997, p. 227.
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Michel Istas, S.J.
death. Liberation from death means liberation for life. A spirituality of liberation may be
indeed an absolute requirement for Africa, because such a spirituality would inspire and
empower those fighting against these social evils. Action against corruption, as it has
been organized here and there, has been shown to be largely useless, not just because
those who are given the task have no real powers to tackle the problem, or because they
are themselves corrupt, but more basically because the spirituality of liberation which
must underlie such an action is not well grounded and generally accepted. In this context
also, religious poverty could be given a new impulse.
A final element which appears to be a constitutive part of a spirituality of liberation
is its capacity to face the truth. In a pastoral letter published in December 1996, the
bishops of Guinea insist on this dimension. They present it as the opposite of what the
totalitarian one-party State did previously, but also as a corrective to the modern world
which has distorted our spiritual ability to distinguish what is healthy from what is not,
what is good from what is evil.48 Therefore, people must be reborn to the truth (no. 14);
they must re-acquire the sense of truth (no. 20). Truthful language is now re-appearing
(no. 29), the bishops write: people are won over by a new language, which does not hide
the truth (no. 44). It is the religious leaders’ task to lead the faithful on this way: “The
strongest defence against dictatorship is faith, which establishes the person in faithfulness to the truth and in obedience to conscience, even at the risk of death. The conscience of the person is an inviolable sanctuary, because it is enlightened by the “splendour of the truth”; there an intimate dialogue takes place of man with himself, and with
the one whose image and likeness he is, God, his Creator. No authentic progress is
possible, without respect for the basic natural right to know the truth, and to live according to the truth.” (no. 39, p. 280). This insistence on truth is not proper to the Guinean
bishops. Something similar appears when African Theology is called to assume a public
function beyond its magisterial one: “This means that it may have to do and articulate
things that are not always comforting or acceptable to (sections of) the African church.”49
Not only totalitarian regimes or socio-economic structures have to be submitted to
critical analysis, but also theology’s own efforts to christianise the African past, to create
its separate identity for today, or, as feminist theology already does, to mount “a critique
of both African culture and African Christianity in ways that previous theologies have
not been able to do.”50 Spirituality has more freedom to achieve this than systematic
theology, which is more concerned about building upon the past.
Liberation, in African Theology, does not have just one face. It determines a variety of
theological approaches, in response to different needs and concerns. More than in the
concept of liberation itself, or in the content given to it, the originality of African theol44
45
46
Cf. Tony Balcomb, “The gifts of the Spirit in a context of liberation,” in: We shall overcome,
o.c., pp. 78-89.
Kwame Bediako, “Africa and Christianity on the treshold of the third millenium: the religious dimension,” in: African Affairs, 2000, 99, p. 322.
Cf. Udobata Onunwa, “The concept of secularization and the study of West African traditional religion,” in: Africana Marburgensia, Special Issue 13, 1989, p. 5.
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ogy lies in the various ways it has approached these challenges. African theology has
grown in dialogue with the history of the continent, and with the needs and concerns of
its peoples. For them, it has formulated its own responses and orientations, guided by the
Spirit, and prompted by its own self-understanding and grasp of the possible ways of
dealing with the situations. To conclude this overview, we need to examine critically how
theology has taken up these issues.
First, it must be noted how African Theology has used its sources: its own heritage,
the Bible, and the Christian tradition. About the latter only, it is striking that the earliest
documents have found guidance and inspiration in the social teaching of the Church,
which gave them a remarkable openness, even if the form they took was often unattractive, insensitive, and dogmatic. Today still, in pastoral letters as well as in theological
studies, inspiration is drawn from the social encyclicals of John Paul II, or from Church
documents as those of the African Synod. In the present situation, which often appears
as an ideological vacuum, at world level as well as in Africa, these specifically Catholic
sources can still be tapped, with full consideration for the specific situation and heritage
of Africa.
Next, we must ask whether theology has effectively contributed to liberation, as and
when it was called to do so. The question must be asked, even if no general answer can
be given to it: situations and responses have varied too much from one period to another, and from one place to another, for one answer to cover them all. In some cases,
particularly in the first phase, theology has been late in reacting to particular situations.
In others, it has contributed significantly to whatever was undertaken, and sometimes it
has initiated action, particularly in development and cultural awakening. A more passive
attitude must sometimes be accepted: the Church may be “the conscience of society,”51
but even conscience is often more effective after the fact than before. Theology, as an
academic discipline, similarly reflects upon what has been done, rather than to initiate
action. Still, theology can sharpen our awareness of the challenges of the day, cultivate
sensitivity to the signs of the times, and warn against loosing energy in useless endeavours. The last forty years show remarkable achievements, in often very difficult circumstances. They also show the need for more critical analysis, at the levels of method, of
reflection, and of commitment. But the validity of the various approaches of the struggle for liberation is unquestionable: they all remain as challenges for today.
A particularly difficult and delicate question concerns the articulation of the various
approaches. Because in the process of working them out, they were not clearly distinguished from one another, arguments or explanations of one approach have often simply been transferred to another. Liberation was sought from colonial structures, from
poverty, from cultural denial, from dictatorship, but the way to explain one or to deal
with it was not necessarily valid for the other. Causal analysis has often been influenced
47
48
Cf. Gustavo Gutierrez, “Option for the poor: review and challenges,” in: The Month, 256,
no. 1525, N.S., 28, 1995, 1, pp. 5-10; Fr. Text in: Alternatives Sud, 7, 2000, 1, pp. 27-37.
“Vaincre la pauvreté.” Déclaration de la Conférence épiscopale de Guinée, 8/12/1996, in:
La Documentation Catholique, 16 Mars, 1997, no. 2156, pp. 273-289, no. 50.
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Michel Istas, S.J.
by opportunistic denunciations. And an answer proposed for one issue does not necessarily respond to the needs expressed in another.
Another point is about the versatility of theology: in our analysis, five different
approaches have been distinguished, but all have been considered as representing the
one theme of liberation. Are these “faces of liberation” so many paradigms, or is the
analysis to be located at a different level? It can be argued that in our fast-moving and
polymorphic world, theology must show flexibility; that it is better to move to a new
approach, when the old one has been exhausted. In this way, studies
Conclusion
of African Theology explain the shift from liberation to inculturation,
and from there, to reconstruction, renaissance, translation, or
globalisation. On the other hand, theology does not concern itself
with fashionable topics or issues, but concentrates on permanent values, which give stability and strength to the Church and to the faithful. Where do we
stand?
As the chronological framework that has been used indicates, the analysis has tried
to show how African Theology has clarified for itself the challenges it was confronted
with, since it first came on the scene. The paradigm of liberation was not a starting point.
Indeed, the term liberation was hardly ever used, in the early stages. It did not, by itself,
direct theological thought and production, which were more determined by the commonly experienced needs of the people. Similarly, when it was specified what liberation
had to be from, theology did not rely only on its own resources and analysis, but often
simply drew from the common experience, and considered the possibilities. The emphasis on paradigms could obscure the simple fact that theology focuses on God, who
himself responds to the prayers of those who turn to him in their need. Thematic
analysis helps theology to come to a better understanding of the wider implications of a
particular experience, but does not itself govern theological reflection. Therefore, paradigm may be too strong a word to qualify the various themes that have been distinguished here, if a paradigm is understood as setting a pattern for analysis and interpretation.
On the other hand, the movement of thought which has been described here is
indeed very fast, too fast probably to explore all the ins and outs of each issue. But then,
none of these themes can now be dismissed as of no relevance any longer: they are all
challenges for today. It has been noted how the favourite theme of the seventies, development, again comes to the forefront. Other themes have never been left behind. Therefore, the picture drawn here is not one of themes that come and go; it rather shows a still
incomplete portrait, to which the artist slowly adds new strokes, enriching it with new
colours and lines.
49
50
Tinyiko Sam Maluleke, “Half a century of African Christian Theologies. Elements of the
emerging agenda for the twenty-first century,” in: Journal of Theology for Southern Africa,
99, November 1997, 4-23; see also, from the same author: “Black and African Theology
after apartheid and after the Cold War – An emerging paradigm,” in: Exchange, 29, 2000,
3, pp. 193-212.
Id., p.22.
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51
The formula was used by President Jomo Kenyatta, in an address to the AMECEA Bishops
in 1976. It has been given as title to the collection of pastoral letters of the Catholic Bishops
of Kenya, edited by R. Mejia, Nairobi, Paulines, 1995.
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Pour une Ethique Chrétienne de la Résistance
Theological Issues
Pour une Ethique Chrétienne de la Résistance:
Réflexion à partir de l’engagement pastoral de
Mgr Emmanuel KATALIKO
Emmanuel BUEYA, S.J.*
Summary
Since 1998, Rwandan, Ugandan and Burundian troops, along with
the Congolese rebel movements, have occupied more than half of Congo’s ter ritories. Congolese in Bukavu and its environs have not known
peace; the rebels and their allies not only spread desolation in the area
but also death. During this crisis, Archbishop Kataliko of the besieged city, gallantly
denounced the oppression and challenged the people to authentic reconciliation as
well as justice. In the event, the Church played her prophetic role by resisting the
power of evil over good – even if it meant giving up one’s life for the struggle. In this
article, the author explores Archbishop Kataliko’s pastoral legacy.
YYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
“Aujourd’hui, nous, son Eglise, nous ne pouvons pas trahir l’espérance que Jésus
nous a apportée. Nous, ses fidèles, nous sommes appelés à continuer la mission
de Jésus: annoncer la vie et la vie en abondance; résister au mal sous toutes ses
formes; dénoncer tout ce qui avilit la dignité de la personne” ( Mgr Emmanuel
KATALIKO ).
Introduction
En Afrique Noire, les régimes de dictature ont fait place ou parfois
cohabitent avec les mouvements rebelles. Les uns et les autres
se soucient peu de la souffrance qu’ils infligent aux paisibles
citoyens. Dans leurs rivalités, tous les moyens leur semblent
bons. Le droit et la loi comme expression de la volonté souveraine du peuple
sont foulés au pied et remplacés par leur bon vouloir. Cette anomie sociale et
politique rend plus difficile la tâche quotidienne d’être chrétien, plus
particulièrement dans certains pays. Dans la Région des Grands Lacs, être évêque
ou simplement chrétien conduit souvent à un engagement public dont les
* Bueya est un jésuite congolais, étudiant à Hekima College. Agrégé de Philosophie (Université
de Kinshasa) et licencié en Philosophie (Faculté de Philosophie St Pierre Canisius, Kinshasa).
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conséquences peuvent être tragiques. De fait, les prélats connaissent là-bas des sorts
divers et pour la plupart peu enviables : quelques-uns mènent une vie sans histoire;
certains sont rélégués dans leur village d’origine; d’autres sont traînés devant les tribunaux;
d’autres encore sont assassinés. Dans la tourmente, ces pasteurs persécutés et ces laïcs
massacrés portent la livrée de leur Maître et Seigneur Jésus, le grand crucifié de l’Histoire.
Aujourd’hui le devoir de mémoire et les exigences de réparation sont à l’ordre du jour.
Pourtant la présente réflexion ne vise ni la réclamation de la justice ni la réhabilitation de
la mémoire de quiconque. Elle tente seulement de considérer le rôle social de l’Eglise,
très important dans un monde sans plus de repères moraux. Son point de départ est
l’engagement pastoral de Monseigneur Emmanuel Kataliko1 dont le courage dans la
résistance à l’oppression a impressionné beaucoup de témoins. Dans la désolation actuelle,
son audace évangélique peut raffermir la foi du chrétien et l’encourager dans le combat
pour la justice et la vérité. Il est nécessaire de faire mémoire de cet ancêtre du devenir
chrétien en Afrique, pour que ne sombrent pas dans la nuit de l’oubli son souvenir et
celui des tous les chrétiens ayant résisté à la barbarie des régimes dictatoriaux qui ont fait
de l’Afrique Noire une terre d’agonie.
D’abord seront évoqués les temps de détresse essentiellement dominés par
l’oppression et l’exploitation. Ensuite viendra une réflexion sur une «éthique
chrétienne de la résistance» centrée sur le Christ qui offre une totalité de sens
dans l’univers absurde de la guerre. Suivra une illustration de cette éthique: le
prélat catholique suivi pas à pas dans le difficile exercice de la résistance. Son
geste est perçu comme un exemple qui interpelle non seulement ses collègues
évêques mais aussi tout chrétien invité à créer l’espoir. La réflexion s’achève sur
cette note optimiste.
Les temps sombres de l’occupation commencent, en République Démocratique du Congo,
quand une armée étrangère investit les villes proches de la frontière et,
avec la complicité de quelques congolais assoiffés de pouvoir, instaure
Les Temps
de Détresse un régime de terreur et de pillage. Aux premières heures de cette tempête
qui s’abat soudainement sur Bukavu, des officiers des forces armées
à Bukavu
congolaises payeront de leur vie leur refus d’allégeance aux ‘rebelles’.
C’est dans ce contexte de violence et de mensonge que l’archevêque de Bukavu va
prêcher la vérité et exhorter à la paix des cœurs.
Les héros de la résistance militaire
1
Notre choix thématique porte exclusivement sur la signification de l’engagement pastoral
de l’archevêque au cours des derniers mois de sa vie à Bukavu. Cette délimitation ne nous
permet donc pas de nous étendre longuement sur sa biographie dont voici les éléments
essentiels: né à Lukole (Diocèse de Butembo-Beni, Nord-Kivu), il est ordoné prêtre le 20
décembre 1958. Nommé évêque de Butembo-Beni le 17 mai 1966, il est sacré Evêque le 11
octobre de la même année pour succéder à Mgr Henri Pierard. Nommé archevêque de
Bukavu le 22 mars 1997, il fut intrônisé le 18 mai 1998 pour succéder à Mgr Christophe
Munzihirwa sj, assassiné deux ans plus tôt. Agé de 68 ans, Mgr Emmanuel Kataliko meurt
à l’hopital de Marino (Rome), le mercredi 4 octobre 2000 à 1h00 du matin.
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L’événement a lieu dans la ville de Bukavu, au matin de l’occupation du Congo par
les militaires du pays voisin, avec le concours de milices composées de banyamulenge.
Quelques militaires congolais se joindront très vite à ces groupes armés. A ce point, les
raisons de cette nouvelle croisade militaire sont encore très floues.2 Le 2 août 1998, à
l’aube, la ville de Bukavu est prise sans coup férir.
Quarante officiers des Forces Armées Congolaises ne se rallient pas à cette nouvelle
aventure. Ils estiment que le pays, engagé dans l’œuvre de reconstruction, n’a pas besoin
de faire les frais d’une nouvelle guerre. Après trente-deux ans de dictature, après la
récente guerre dite de libération, il convient d’enterrer les morts décemment et d’envisager
l’avenir autrement. Ils refusent de répondre aux appels démagogiques des envahisseurs.
La fibre du nationalisme -ou le simple bon sens- résiste.
Ces officiers sont alors désarmés et battus. Mais ils ne capitulent pas: on ne peut pas
soumettre par la force un esprit libre et lucide. A toutes les tortures, ils résistent avec un
courage qui force le respect et l’admiration. Fous de rage, les tortionnaires les traînent
hors de la ville. Ces malheureux, défigurés et épuisés, atteignent péniblement l’aéroport
de Kavumu. Sur les lieux, ils sont alignés et, les yeux bandés, attendent leur délivrance.
Espèrent-ils un miracle du ciel ou l’intervention subite de l’armée gouvernementale? Se
sentent-ils abandonnés et trahis dans leur fidélité et loyauté? Personne ne le saura jamais.
Les officiers chrétiens ont le temps d’esquisser un signe de croix.
Un ordre claque. Les détonations retentissent. Les corps amollis s’affaissent. La
scène est macabre : un filet de sang à la commissure des lèvres du premier ; un trou
béant dans la poitrine du second, une gorge perforée pour un troisième…Un jeune
congolais enrôlé de force se détourne et pleure silencieusement la triste fin de ces honnêtes
officiers. Le lendemain le monde apprend la nouvelle et s’indigne. Les familles des disparus
entonnent un chant de deuil. A Kinshasa, les messieurs du gouvernement écument de
rage et annoncent une guerre «longue et populaire».
Ces meurtres ne représentent pas un cas isolé dans l’histoire des pays africains.
Certains penseront peut-être à la pendaison publique de l’écrivain nigérian Ken
Saro-wiwa et de ses compagnons qui avaient résisté aux puissances économiques
qui dépossèdaient le peuple ogoni de ses terres. Ces résistants ont lutté jusqu’au
bout contre la dictature du général Sani Abacha. D’autres exemples de résistance
et de lutte peuvent encore être évoqués. Ils mettent en scène des hommes
souvent fragiles et désarmés mais prêts à affronter l’ennemi pour défendre une
cause juste, même au prix de leur propre vie.
Le refus des officiers de Bukavu a pris forme dans un cadre différent de celui qui
animera la résistance chrétienne de Mgr Kataliko, intrônisé comme archevêque trois
mois plus tôt. Le récit de leur mort violente décrit le climat de terreur dans lequel le
prélat exercera son ministère épiscopal, au milieu d’un peuple asservi.
«Nous sommes écrasés par l’oppression...»
2
C’est seulement plusieurs mois plus tard, après une série de dénégations, que le GénéralPrésident Kagame avouera la présence de ses troupes sur le sol congolais.
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Au cours de la première année de son ministère dans l’archidiocèse, Mgr Kataliko
poursuit courageusement l’oeuvre commencée par son illustre prédécesseur, Mgr
Christophe Munzihirwa, notamment par l’animation des différentes commissions
diocésaines et les visites des paroisses affectées par la guerre. Il prend conscience de
l’ampleur du pillage des ressources de la région. Dans sa lettre pastorale de Noël 1999,
il dénonce les acteurs de l’oppression, leur mode d’exploitation et l’arme de leur domination. Soucieux des conditions de vie de la population, il ne s’embarrasse pas des subtilités
et circonlocutions diplomatiques qui émoussent le tranchant de la vérité et finissent par
rassurer les exploiteurs : «Notre vie quotidienne est loin de la joie et de la liberté. Nous sommes
écrasés par une oppression de domination. Des pouvoirs étrangers, avec la collaboration de certains de
nos frères congolais, organisent des guerres avec les ressources de notre pays. Ces ressources, qui devraient
être utilisées pour notre développement, pour l‘éducation de nos enfants, pour guérir nos malades, bref
pour que nous puissions vivre d’une façon plus humaine, servent à nous tuer. Plus encore, notre pays et
nous-mêmes, nous sommes devenus objets d’exploitation.»3 Longtemps confisquées par une petite
élite maffieuse et improductive, ces ressources n’ont jamais servi à améliorer les conditions de vie d’une population misérable. On comprend alors pourquoi le riche Congo est
habité par des pauvres Congolais. Cette pratique de prédation, jadis familière à Monsieur
Mobutu et à sa cour, est reprise aujourd’hui par des étrangers efficacement assistés par
des compatriotes congolais. L’archevêque ne peut s’empêcher de faire retentir dans
l’église le cri du pauvre qui réclame la justice distributive. Deux ans plus tard, le 12 avril
2001, confirmant ses propos, le Sécretaire Général de l’ONU remettait au Président du
Conseil de Sécurité le rapport du Groupe d’Experts sur l’exploitation illégale des ressources
naturelles et autres richesses de la RDC. La communauté internationale admettait enfin
l’évidence: la guerre au Congo n’est pas le noble combat des héros de la liberté, mais
l’exploitation éhontée d’un pays et le massacre d’une population désarmée et affaiblie
par trois décennies de dictature.
Après avoir dénoncé les coupables, le prélat analyse les modalités de leur action:
«Tout ce qui a valeur est pillé, saccagé et amené à l’étranger ou simplement détruit. Les impôts collectés
qui devraient être investis pour le bien commun, sont détournés. Des taxes exorbitantes n’étranglent pas
seulement le grand commerce et l’industrie, mais aussi la maman qui vit de son commerce. Tout cet
argent prélévé sur nous, provenant de nos productions, et déposé à la banque, est directement prélévé par
une petite élite venue d’on ne sait où.»4 Non seulement ils détruisent, mais ils exigent aussi
impôts et taxes. Autant de rouages d’un système qui exploite la population et lui fait
payer un tribut de sang. L’étranger pille et exporte le produit de sa rapine.5 Dans cette
situation de violence économique, la sollicitude pastorale du prélat le porte vers les plus
vulnérables, et spécialement vers ces ‘mères-courage’ qui continuent de nourrir les familles.
Il rappelle l’urgence de travailler pour le Bien commun en vue d’assurer à tous et à
chacun une vie bonne. Cette invitation à la redistribution équitable des revenus de la
région évoque l’appel à la justice sociale lancé par les prophètes de l’Ancien Testament.
Pour asseoir cette servitude économique, les agresseurs recourent à la terreur : «Cette
3
“Consolez, consolez mon people” (Is 40,1). “L’espérance ne trompe jamais”(Rm 5,5). Message de Noël 1999 de Mgr Emmanuel Kataliko aux Fidèles de Bukavu. Dans la suite, nous
citerons ainsi: Message de Noël 1999.
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exploitation est soutenue par une stratégie de terreur qui entretient l’insécurité. En ville, les bandes
armées, souvent en tenue militaire, font irruption dans nos maisons, volent le peu de biens qui nous
restent, menacent, enlèvent et même tuent nos frères. Nos frères et sœurs, dans les campagnes, sont
massacrés à grande échelle(…). Notre Eglise institutionnelle elle-même n’est pas épargnée. Des paroisses,
des presbytères, des couvents ont été saccagés. Des prêtres, des religieux, des religieuses sont frappés,
torturés et même tués parce que, par leur mode de vie, ils (…) condamnent la guerre et prônent la
réconciliation, le pardon et la non-violence.»6 Les conséquences de cette terreur sont très lourdes:
les paysans quittent les campagnes livrées à la furie des pillards et viennent s’amasser aux
alentours et dans la ville de Bukavu; les champs sont déserts; criblés de lourdes taxes et
d’impôts, les commercants se découragent; en ville comme au village la famine s’installe;
les assassinats ne se comptent plus. Comment faire face à cette détresse, se demandent
les gens. Le prélat leur montre Jésus venu libérer l’homme de toutes les servitudes. Il
n’élabore pas une christologie inculturée ou libératrice; il médite sur la figure évangélique
du Christ et, conscient de ce potentiel de libération, il invite les chrétiens à mettre leur
pas de disciples dans ceux du Maître. Annoncer l’Evangile de libération dans ce contexte
d’occupation ne se limite pas à dénoncer ce qui ne va pas mais surtout à montrer en
Jésus la voie de libération et d’humanisation tant pour les oppresseurs que pour les
opprimés. Dieu offre à tous la grâce du salut en Jésus.
La Croix de Jésus : chemin de libération
Ce qui précède peut donner à croire que Mgr Kataliko est parti en croisade contre ceux
qui répandent la terreur et sèment la mort dans la région. Rien n’est plus faux. Il appelle
en premier lieu les chrétiens à méditer chacun sur sa responsabilité personnelle et par
conséquent à se convertir. Il les invite à un examen de conscience, sans pour autant les
pousser à l’autoculpabilisation (du collabo ou du passif) ou l’autojustification (de la victime
innocente). L’engagement ou l’abstention sont des attitudes ambiguës: il est facile de
condamner son prochain et de se dégager paresseusement de toute responsabilité lorsque
la foi nous place devant le mystère du mal. La transformation de la situation et des
structures oppressives, pense-t-il, doit partir du cœur; aussi invite-t-il chacun à réexaminer
les différentes formes d’aliénation au-dedans de lui-même pour désirer la rédemption du
Christ: «Prenons conscience de nos liens de servitudes! Reconnaissons notre part de responsabilité dans
la situation de péché qui nous accable! Prenons le risque du chemin de libération sous la conduite de
l’Esprit!»7 Relue à ce niveau de profondeur spirituelle, l’analyse ne met plus en scène des
forces politiques et militaires antagonistes, qui sacrifient le peuple sur l’autel de leurs
4
5
6
ibidem.
Dans une interview parue dans Jeune Afrique L’Intelligent no. 2064 du 07 août 2000, le
général Kagame répondait ainsi à la question de Jean-Dominique Geslin sur les diamants
congolais: “Le Rwanda n’a pas bénéficié des pierres précieuses du Congo, et Kabila luimême ne s’est pas enrichi grâce à ses ressources minières. En revanche, d’autres personnes
en ont bénéficié. Les Congolais, qui sont aussi pauvres que les Rwandais, se demandent
où vont leurs diamants. Toujours est-il que nous n’avons rien à voir avec cela” (p. 29). Rien
d’étonnant à cette nouvelle dénégation lorsque l’on sait que ces propos ont été tenus bien
avant la publication du rapport des experts de l’ONU!
Message de Noël 1999.
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Jésus
Comme
Totalité
du Sens de
l’existence
rivalités. Il n’y a plus que des hommes ployant sous le fardeau du
péché de convoitise, d’égoïsme. Tous sont conviés au pied de la Croix,
pour renaître.
L’homme est appelé à collaborer avec Dieu au parachèvement de
la création dans la liberté et l’amour. Mais l’homme pécheur est enchaîné
par de nombreuses servitudes, qui empêchent cette collaboration : la
servitude du pouvoir oppressif et de la soif insatiable des biens matériels qui engendre
l’injustice et la misère. Autant de formes de servitude au péché, entendu comme refus
d’amour de Dieu et du prochain.8 Là est la racine de tout le mal qui ravage la région et
le cœur de l’homme. Le Christ se présente comme le rédempteur qui ouvre le chemin du
retour vers l’Eden perdu. Par sa Parole salvifique, il recrée l’homme à l’image de Dieu et
lui apprend à instaurer une société d’amour et de liberté à l’image de la Trinité Sainte.
Dans les «territoires occupés», la déchéance a atteint le point où «le frère livre son frère pour
dix ou vingt dollars». Pour recouvrer la dignité et mener ainsi une vie d’homme vraiment
libre, le chrétien doit renaître avec le Christ de Noël. Tel est le message d’espérance et de
consolation de cette lettre écrite à l’occasion de la fête de Noël et à la veille de l’année
jubilaire.
Mais recouvrer sa dignité de chrétien et d’homme libre exige de passer par la croix.
Dans sa lettre suivante, écrite quelques mois plus tard, Mgr Kataliko prolonge sa pensée:
«Mes chers frères et sœurs dans le Christ, pendant ce temps de Carême, n’oublions pas de faire ce chemin
de croix à la suite de Celui qui s’est donné jusqu’au bout pour manifester l’amour du Père (Jn 15,13).
Notre Seigneur, Jésus-Christ, le premier, a payé le prix fort de son engagement pour l’humanité déchue.
Il a été crucifié à cause de la perversité humaine qui n’a pas supporté la vive lumière (Jn 3,19) projetée
par son être et sa parole, sur le cœur de l’homme.»9 Il ne s’agit pas seulement de penser aux
souffrances du Christ sur la route de Golgotha mais de faire soi-même ce chemin de
croix. Concrètement les chrétiens sont invités à s’engager avec courage et foi aux côtés
de tous les opprimés. Cet engagement qui va jusqu’à donner sa vie n’est pas clos sur luimême ; il est plutôt l’expression de l’amour de Dieu qui veut sauver l’homme en l’arrachant
à la boue du péché et à la nuit de la violence.
Ce combat pour l’homme -et non contre lui- sera mené avec les armes de la nonviolence : «L’Evangile nous pousse à récuser la voie des armes et de la violence pour sortir des conflits.
C’est au prix de nos souffrances et de nos prières que nous mènerons le combat de la liberté, que nous
amènerons également nos oppresseurs à la raison et à leur propre liberté intérieure.»10 Le Chrétien ne
peut vaincre le mal que par le bien; il ne peut briser le cycle de la violence que par cet
amour divin qui refuse de détruire l’adversaire. En acceptant de souffrir, il tend la main
à son frère ‘ennemi’. A travers cette souffrance consentie, croit-il, se déploie la puissance
de Dieu qui transforme les cœurs et vainc la violence dont la victoire n’est qu’apparente,
car le monde est l’oeuvre de l’Amour et non de la haine.
La force de Dieu dans la faiblesse du chrétien résistant
7
8
Ibidem.
Ibidem.
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Celui qui résiste à l’oppression et au mal ne tire pas sa force d’une sorte de volonté
de puissance surhumaine. Son refus du mensonge et de la barbarie est l’envers d’une
volonté positive, qui vise à protéger la vie de l’homme et à ne pas abuser de sa vulnérabilité.
Le résistant fait siennes ces valeurs absolues et s’oppose à toutes les tentatives de réduire
la personne humaine au rang de chose ou de moyen. Ce ne sont ni une théorie
d’émancipation ni une quelconque idéologie qui lui donnent des motifs d’agir. Il agit au
nom de sa foi, mais avec l’energie que seul donne l’amour de Dieu répandu dans son
cœur. Il porte en lui l’espérance qui ne trompe pas, cette certitude invincible que, à la
place de ce chaos qui menace la société, un autre projet de Dieu doit donner forme au
monde, et qu’il est appelé à y collaborer. Cependant, même si cette foi rassure, elle ne
supprime pas pour autant la faiblesse du résistant.
Dans l’histoire du peuple juif, Mgr Kataliko trouve d’autres hommes qui se sont mis
au service de la puissance de Dieu. Il médite sur la figure de Moïse qui a été l’instrument
choisi par Dieu pour libérer le peuple juif du joug égyptien : «Il m’arrive souvent que je
médite cette scène de Moïse qui avait été chassé par Pharaon et qui, à travers le désert où il avait fui,
avait trouvé une famille (Ac 7,23ss, Ex 21,1ss). Il en était revenu pour ramener le peuple d’Israël à
Canaan, grâce à la Parole et à la Force de Dieu.»11 Jeune homme élevé à la cour de Pharaon,
Moïse jure de libérer son peuple du joug égyptien. S’efforcant de rendre justice à sa
facon, il tue un Egyptien et, craignant d’être dénoncé, il s’enfuit loin d’Egypte. Errant
dans le désert, il trouve à Madian une famille d’accueil, s’y établit et devient bientôt père
de famille. Ramolli par la douceur de cette vie tranquille, il semble renoncer à sa mission : que peut-il faire face à la puissance de Pharaon? De même, rélégué loin de son
troupeau et contraint à l’inaction, Mgr Kataliko ne peut que confesser sa fragilité et son
impuissance : «Mais quand je songe à vos souffrances, à vos sacrifices, à vos prières de supplication, et
surtout à toute la population de Kalonge, de Bunyakiri, de Burhale et de toutes les regions embrasées,
les larmes me viennent aux yeux.»12 Sa faiblesse lui révèle que cette mission est celle de Dieu,
dont la force se manifeste paradoxalement à travers l’impuissance de l’homme. Confiant
en ce Dieu qui a sorti Moïse de son refuge pour l’envoyer auprès de Pharaon, le chrétien
résistant peut reconnaître avec Saint Paul le déploiement de la force de Dieu dans la
faiblesse de l’homme, qui confond les puissances de ce monde. Il percoit cette force
divine dans l’obéissance à la logique de l’évangile qui triomphe du mal par l’amour, la
patience et l’espoir: «Le mal n’a jamais le dernier mot. Dieu est là. Il nous écoute. Soyons solidaires,
ne cédons pas à la tentation du découragement, du défaitisme et des intérêts égoïstes.»13 La confiance
en Dieu ne supprime donc pas la frayeur devant les exigences de l’œuvre de Dieu qui
excèdent les forces humaines. Le prélat y pense constamment : «Chercher la vérité du Christ
c’est, comme dans ma situation actuelle, me décider à vivre, comme lui, dans l’amour, et à me battre
comme Lui encore, contre la violence du péché qui divise, jusqu’à donner ma vie, s’il le faut, pour ceux
que j’aime. Option téméraire sans doute, dont la radicalité ne manque de m’effrayer et me fait douter de
ma capacité à la mettre en œuvre par ma seule force.»14 Le Dieu fidèle lui donne la force de
mettre cette option en pratique dans le conflit qui l’oppose aux responsables politiques
du mouvement rebelle (RCD). Dans ce bras de fer, il bénéficie de l’immense soutien
9
10
“Si Dieu est pour, qui sera contre nous?”. Message de carême 2000 aux Fidèles de Bukavu.
Message de Noël 1999.
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d’une communauté croyante.
«Rendez-nous notre pasteur…»
A Bukavu, Mgr Mzee Munzihirwa avait été assassiné quelques années plus tôt. Les
organisations non-gouvernementales dénoncaient les violations des droits de l’homme et
tentaient de maintenir les structures nécessaires pour une vie décente. Les populations
concernées étaient loin de la capitale du grand Congo. Assiégées par des armées étrangères,
elles trouvaient dans la prière la force de gérer ces moments de crise. Avec leur nouvel
archevêque, elles ressentaient le tragique d’une situation sans issue apparente. Lorsque
leur pasteur fut exilé, ces chrétiens ont poussé un cri de détresse: «Rendez-nous notre
pasteur». Symbole de la résistance dans la région, l’archevêque connaît la situation réelle
de ces chrétiens. Ce vieillard discret se présente aux prêtres et à la population de Bukavu
comme un simple pasteur. Le peuple qui sait reconnaître les siens l’accueille avec gratitude.15 Pressé par l’amour de Dieu et de ses fidèles, Mgr Kataliko réalise le tour de force
de visiter toutes les paroisses de son diocèse en moins d’une année. Homme de dialogue
et apôtre de l’unité, il prend en compte les avis de ses prêtres et se met au service des
différentes confessions religieuses et communautés ethniques. Ses prises de positions en
faveur des pauvres et ses dénonciations des violations des droits de l’homme sont désormais
connues et même commencent à inquiéter.
Eloigné de son diocèse, il ne porte pas moins le souci de ses fidèles chrétiens auxquels
il ne cesse de penser: «Pendant cet éloignement forcé, je mesure davantage la justesse de cet adage
connu: loin des yeux, plus près du cœur». Les sentiments de ce cœur affectueux transparaissent
dans la conclusion émouvante de la lettre adressée à ses fidèles depuis son lieu d’exil: «Je
vous embrasse tous et vous souhaite bon carême et bonne fête de Pâques». Il signe: «Celui qui vous
aime, votre Archevêque en exil». Ses lettres n’ont pas le ton impersonnel d’un courrier administratif ; elles sont celles d’un Père. Cette manière d’être évêque répond fidèlement à
l’esprit de Vatican II: «Dans l’exercice de leur charge de père et de pasteur, que les évêques soient au
milieu de leur peuple comme ceux qui servent, de bons pasteurs qui connaissent leurs brebis et que leurs
brebis connaissent, de vrais pères, qui s’imposent par leur esprit d’amour et de dévouement envers tous et
11
12
13
14
Mgr Kataliko, “Réponse aux messages me transmis par son Excellence Mgr Ngabu”, Butembo,
4 mars 2000 ( Pour faire bref, nous citerons: Lettre à Mgr Ngabu ). Comparer le sort du
prélat à celui de Moïse est facile. En effet, comme Moïse chassé d’Egypte et refugié à
Madian, il est “chassé” de Bukavu et exilé à Butembo. Comme Moïse pensant au peuple
juif, il ne cesse de penser aux chrétiens de son diocèse. Comme Moïse impuissant, il
expérimente aussi sa propre faiblesse…Une autre évidence s’impose: le contraste entre
l’immensité de la tâche et la faiblesse de l’homme qui l’accomplit montre que le combat
pour l’homme est toujours et avant tout l’initiative et l’oeuvre de Dieu. C’est Lui qui donne
à l’homme la force de résister contre ce qui s’oppose à son projet de salut.
Message de Carême 2000.
Ibidem.
Lettre à Mgr Ngabu.
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Le Pasteur
dans la
Résistance
Chrétienne
dont l’autorité recue d’en-haut rencontre une adhésion unanime et reconnaissante.
Ils rassembleront et animeront toute la grande famille de leur troupeau, en sorte que
tous, conscients de leurs devoirs, vivent et agissent dans une communion de charité.»16
C’est cet amour de pasteur pour ses brebis qui le mènera à travers le
désert de l’exil.
L’Exil comme ‘sereine traversée du désert’17
Du 31 janvier au 5 février 2000, Mgr Kataliko participe à la réunion du Comité
Permanent des Evêques de la RDC. Le 12 janvier il prend l’avion pour regagner son
diocèse, mais à Kigali, les autorités l’empêchent de continuer sur Bukavu. Il est relégué
à Butembo. Par le biais du collège des consulteurs, le clergé diocésain demande le retour
du prélat. Une des mesures prises pour faire pression et obtenir gain de cause est la
suspension des activités liturgiques. Cependant le 3 mars, l’archevêque demande au clergé
et aux fidèles de reprendre le service ecclésial. Le 9 mars, ce même collège revient à la
charge: «Pourquoi Mgr Kataliko n’est-il pas encore de retour à Bukavu ?». La question est posée
aux responsables du mouvement rebelle. Ceux-ci affirment que l’archevêque est rélégué
dans son village pour sa sécurité. L’un d’eux est plus explicite : «Nous ne pouvons pas prendre
le risque de le faire entrer à Bukavu et de lui faire courir un risque d’un acte irresponsable». Les
consulteurs diocésains s’interrogent alors: «D’où peut venir l’insécurité pour Mgr Kataliko et qui
est en train de la créer ?». La question est un coup de pied dans une fourmilière. Dans sa
lettre à Mgr Ngabu, l’archevêque de Bukavu reprend les motifs de sa relégation et en
montre l’inconsistance: «Mgr Kataliko, Archevêque de Bukavu, précédemment Evêque du diocèse
de Beni-Butembo, constitue un obstacle majeur à la réconciliation nationale et au règlement pacifique
des conflits interethniques, dans la mesure où il se pose comme le héraut du refus de la cohabitation
pacifique entre les ethnies du Kivu, composantes de la communauté nationale»18 . Peut-on croire que
cet homme, porte-parole des opprimés et apôtre de l’unité, soit un obstacle à la paix ? Il
est difficile de l’admettre. La lettre qu’il écrit à son collègue Mgr Ngabu montre comment il voit son rôle: «(…) je voudrais que nous aidions nos chrétiens et compatriotes des zones
embrasées par des conflits meurtriers à plus de solidarité pour combattre la culture du chantage, de la
diabolisation, du mensonge qui ne peut que générer la paralysie déjà longue de notre tissu social. Notre
mission commune est de rappeler sans cesse ce commandement : ‘vous êtes tous des frères : arrêtez les
guerres. Aimez-vous les uns les autres comme je vous ai aimés (Jn 13,34)’. Quel programme pastoral
en ces temps difficiles.»19 Comment qualifier d’obstacle à la réconciliation un homme qui
prêche la paix et la solidarité entre les ethnies ? Le prélat explique lui-même la contradiction, avec la clarté des hommes droits : «Excellence, si je suis forcé à cet éloignement , c’est , je
l’espère bien, à cause de mon ‘Message de Noël 1999’ aux chrétiens de mon archidiocèse (…). C’est un
message d’espérance qui en appelle à la conversion de tous pour voir en face nos malheurs, pour sortir du
marasme socio-économique qui nous plonge dans la misère qui ne fait que s’aggraver 20». En effet, un
15
16
“Mgr Kataliko: L’Homme, l’Evêque, le Symbole”. Interview de l’abbé Jean-Bosco Bahala,
prêtre de l’archidiocèse de Bukavu et un des proches collaborateurs de Mgr Kataliko , in:
DIA du 13 Octobre 2000.
Christus Dominus, no. 16.
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mois après la publication de ce message de Noël eut lieu une grève générale de toutes les
composantes de la population civile. Durant une semaine, du 31 janvier au 06 février
2000, cette désobéissance pacifique d’une population appauvrie fut une moyen de pression
pour amener les autorités du mouvement rebelle à faire droit aux revendications sociales
de la population. Incapables de contenir cette marée montante de contestation, les rebelles
brouillent les cartes d’une situation bien claire et cherchent un bouc émissaire.
Cette méthode de gouvernance révèle la nature totalitaire d’un système qui étouffe
les aspirations populaires et réprime les protestations sociales. Un régime de violence et
de terreur est établi. Le mensonge devient un moyen efficace de gestion du pouvoir.
L’ordre des choses est renversé : la sécurité est invoquée pour légitimer toutes les tueries.
Les relations humaines sont faussées par la méfiance qui engendre la haine et la délation.
L’adhésion des citoyens à un projet de société est nulle parce que les responsables politiques
ne se soucient pas du bien social. Support essentiel de l’agir communicationnel, le langage
est corrompu : un autre contenu est donné aux expressions telles que ‘justice sociale’,
‘ordre public’ etc…En d’autres termes, l’espace de la communication est envahi par des
discours sur l’ethnicité, la sécurité…, qui laissent de côté les vrais problèmes. Enfermés
dans cette logique de «l’identité meurtrière», les hommes au pouvoir entretiennent un
flou idéologique qui masque à peine les exactions commises sur des populations paisibles.
Pour revivre, il faut que renaisse d’abord l’espoir.
Prêcher ou vivre l’évangile n’est pas une sinécure. L’Eglise de Bukavu, par son pasteur
et ses chrétiens, a montré aux hommes un exemple de résistance au mensonge et à
l’arbitraire. Cette démarche évangélique est une invitation pour chaque chrétien à créer
l’espoir.
En effet, l’attitude et l’action de Mgr Kataliko sont un exemple de résistance dans une
Afrique où tant de situations d’injustice, de violence convient les chrétiens au témoignage
prophétique. Point n’est besoin d’élaborer un discours programmatique, c’est-à-dire de
décréter ce que l’Eglise doit faire, ce que les Evêques doivent être, ou la manière dont les
chrétiens doivent agir. La figure d’un pasteur très engagé en faveur de ses chrétiens
asservis nous a fait réfléchir. Cet exemple de courage chrétien ne concerne pas seulement
les évêques ou les chrétiens congolais. Bien au contraire, il interpelle tout chrétien confronté
à des situations d’injustice, de violation des droits de l’homme, d’exploitation de la femme,
d’atteinte à la vie, etc… En effet, la situation de Bukavu n’est pas vraiment très différente
de celle que connaissent bien d’autres parties de l’ «Afrique de tous les dangers» : l’Angola, le
Sierra-Leone, le Congo-Brazzaville, la République sud-africaine de l’après-apartheid,
etc…Toutes ces situations nous confrontent au problème fondamental et urgent de
l’homme à sauver, qu’il soit le sierra-léonais mutilé au cours de la guerre civile ou condamné
à extraire le diamant qui enrichit les autres, l’angolais errant depuis trente ans sur une
17
18
19
20
La métaphore est de l’archevêque lui-même.
Lettre à Mgr Ngabu.
Ibidem.
Ibidem.
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terre devastée , le nègre du ghetto, sans emploi malgré les espoirs suscités par la victoire
de l’ANC, etc... La barbarie revêt différents masques dans chaque pays d’Afrique. Et
pour bon nombre d’Africains l’avenir est bouché, sans promesse de bonheur. Il faut
créer les conditions qui permettent à ces hommes d’espérer un avenir différent et de
déplacer la pierre tombale pour accéder à la lumière de la Résurrection.
La réponse du chrétien est inspirée par la Parole de Dieu et se vérifie par son
engagement là où il est. Ainsi se comprend l’histoire de Mgr Kataliko, qui renvoie chaque
chrétien à ses adhésions personnelles et aux exigences d’un Maître, qui est venu proclamer
une vérité libératrice, donner une vie surabondante et annoncer un royaume qui rend
caduques toutes les formes de pouvoir terrestre. Cette histoire est plus que le récit d’une
communauté croyante quelque part dans un Congo au bord de l’éclatement ; c’est la
manifestation de l’Esprit qui guide l’Eglise à travers les épreuves du temps présent. Etre
chrétien partout et toujours c’est accepter de vivre sous la mouvance de cet Esprit qui
souffle où il veut. Portée par ce souffle, la résistance va au-delà du simple refus pour
rétablir la fraternité et organiser un espace de vie bonne pour tous ceux qui collaborent
à l’œuvre de Dieu.
Nombre de chrétiens africains semblent satisfaits du dynamisme de leurs jeunes
églises: même quand les casseroles sont vides ou quand des prisonniers innocents hurlent
sous la torture, ils chantent et dansent au rythme de leurs liturgies inculturées. Pourtant
il y a encore beaucoup à faire pour que la gloire de Dieu resplendisse sur le visage de
l’africain vivant, affranchi de l’arbitraire des despotes ivres du pouvoir. Le devenir chrétien
sur ce continent cruciforme et crucifère ne peut être un jeu frivole ni un
L’invitation positionnement en quête d’efficacité ; il doit être une prise de position
contre toutes les formes d’idolâtrie qui asservissent les hommes.
à créer
l’espoir…
Cette réflexion a cherché à raviver la «mémoire vigilante» du chrétien,
afin qu’il donne à l’avenir une orientation positive. La lecture de quelques
lettres de Mgr Kataliko a éclairé d’une lumière nouvelle les exigences de la vocation
chrétienne en Afrique. Son engagement pastoral a été celui d’un homme de foi. Hors de
toute effervescence médiatique, sa parole transmet un écho vibrant d’espoir.
Ce pasteur des temps de détresse a trouvé en Jésus le chemin de la libération. Il a
vécu dans sa chair une éthique chrétienne de la résistance au mensonge et à la barbarie.
Il a allumé la bougie de l’espérance pour éclairer un peuple plongé dans la nuit de la
barbarie. Son courage invite chacun à créer l’espoir, en ouvrant les fenêtres sur l’avenir
et en cherchant les conditions d’une vie bonne pour tous.
Dans une société africaine où presque tout va mal, il invite le chrétien à insuffler à
ses contemporains le courage de vivre debout. Dans son homélie au cours de la messe
de funérailles à Rome, Mgr Paul Mambe évoque ainsi le zèle pastoral de son collègue :
«Un feu brûlait en lui du fait qu’il ne pouvait pas rentrer dans son diocèse. Et il souffrait parce qu’il
avait lutté pour la justice, alors qu’il était accusé toutefois d’inciter à la haine». Puisse ce même feu
brûler dans le cœur de ceux pour qui l’éthique de la résistance est un impératif chrétien.
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Bibiographie
Mgr Emmanuel KATALIKO, «Consolez, consolez mon peuple». Lettre pastorale de Noël aux fidèles
de Bukavu, Bukavu, Décembre 1999.
Idem, «Si Dieu est pour nous, qui sera contre nous ?». Lettre pastorale aux fidèles de Bukavu, Butembo,
Mars 2000.
Idem, «Réponse aux messages me transmis par son Excellence Mgr Ngabu», Butembo, Mars 2000.
Lettre du Collège élargi des consulteurs du Diocèse de Bukavu, le 12 février 2000.
«Mgr Kataliko : L’Homme, l’Evêque, le Symbole». Interview de l’abbé Jean-Bosco BAHALA,
in: DIA du 13 Octobre 2000.
Vatican II. Les seize documents conciliaires. Texte intégral ( Sous la direction de PaulAimé MARTIN ), Fides, Montréal/Paris, 1966.
Conclusion
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Ghanaian Nationalism and the
Catholic Bishops’ Pastoral Response:
An Essay on Church-State Relationship
Isidore K. Bonabom, S.J.*
Sommaire
Au Ghana, comme dans beaucoup de pays africains, le nationalisme qui s’est développé
avant les indépendances unissait des groupes divers, qui avaient en commun leur opposition
au pouvoir colonial. Une fois acquise l’indépendance, la solidarité de ces groupes s’est
affaiblie, pour faire place à un esprit de compétition. Les mécanismes idéologiques et
institutionnels qui par la suite auraient du soumettre l’accès au pouvoir à un ordre constitutionnel n’ont pu se
maintenir. Pourtant, le nationalisme n’a cessé de se manifester, avec une puissance surprenante. Au Ghana,
différentes instances ont fait appel à lui, et lui ont parfois donné un caractère ethnique dangereux. L’article en
présente quelques facettes, et analyse comment les évêques ont abordé ce problème délicat.
YYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
“…The midmost of my world
when I went forth,
And hence it was that, whether I turned
To south, east, west, or north,
Beams of an all-day Polestar burned
From the new axe of earth.”1
Thomas Hardy
The geo-political map of Ghana, as it is presently, was determined at the Berlin Conference in 1884 and slightly altered in 1922 when Britain received part of German Togoland
after Germany’s defeat in World War I. The beginnings of nationalism
Introduction in what is today’s Ghana could be viewed as an expression of a growing
self-awareness of the indigenous people and their aspiration for selfrule. Nationalism fashioned Ghana as a nation-state in 1957, out of the
fedora of colonial borderlines; 2 then post-independence euphoria helped
* Bonabom is a Jesuit from Ghana in his second year of studies at Hekima College. He is the
current editor of Hekima Review.
1
Stanley A. Clayes and John Gerrietts, Ways to Poetry, New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich,
1975, p. 100.
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Ghanaian Nationalism and the Catholic Bishops' Pastoral Response
to mould a collective sense of ‘one Ghana, one nation with one destiny.’
Since independence, Ghanaian nationalism has had its positive as well as negative
uses. The civilian state has attempted to keep the connection with the original nationalist
rhetoric on the one hand, and military coup makers have tried to develop a parallel
nationalist argument on the other. In my view, this dichotomy is key to the understanding
of nationalism in Ghana. The Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference’s critique of nationalism must be understood in this context. Indeed the Bishops’ pastoral response has had
an important effect on the national terrain. This paper attempts to briefly trace the
evolution of nationalism in Ghana and to examine the bishops’ pastoral response to the
phenomenon.
Current literature on nationalism, for the most part, problematises the concept rather
than defines it in very clear terms. I will, similarly, try to tailor a description rather than
a definition, to suit the Ghanaian context, by using the thoughts of various experts.
According to James Kellas, nationalism is both an ideology and a form
3
The Complex of behaviour. As an ideology it builds on the people’s awareness of ‘a
nation’ to elicit a set of attitudes, and in some cases, a programme of
Face of
Nationalism action. As a form of behaviour, nationalism is closely linked to patriotism. In his definition, Kellas uses the idea of a nation as applying to
a group of people who see themselves as a community bound together by ties of history, culture and some shared legacies. In the view of Ernest Gellner,
nationalism is a principle of national organisation, which is “contingent, an accidental
invention, a by-product of… a particular historic situation.” 4 For him, Ghana as a
nation is distinguished by objective characteristics such as territory, lingua franca,5 and
subjective attributes like the people’s awareness of being Ghanaians. Kohn’s description
of nationalism as “a mindset in which the supreme loyalty of the individual and the
group is due to the nation-state or a prospective nation-state”6 ties in well with Kellas’.
Kellas makes an important distinction between an ethnic nation where the nation consists of one ethnic group, a social nation where several ethnic groups form one nation,
and an official nation, which is based on the nationalism of the nation-state.
Adrian Hastings, in talking about nationalism in Ghana from a historical perspective, asserts that the beginnings of Gold Coast nationalism could be viewed [against the
2
3
4
5
Adrian Hastings, The Construction of Nationalism, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,
1997, p. 154. The new nation took its name from the ancient Ghana kingdom that spread
over the great Sahara between the fifth and twelfth centuries C.E.
James G. Kellas, The Politics of Nationalism and Ethnicity, London: Macmillan Press, 1991,
p. 3.
Ernest Gellner, Nationalism, London: Weidenfeld and Nicholson, 1997, see pp. 7-10.
Although territory and lingua franca could be viewed as historical accidents, in some
sense these elements have come to characterise what Ghana has been since 1957. At one
level, the ethnic groups are distinct and yet united in the nation because they are essentially ‘ascriptive,’ that is, open to the double loyalty to the particular ethnic group and to
the whole nation. This dichotomy or dialectic, as the case may be, is sometimes the cause
of disorder, and can lead to disintegration of the nation-state.
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background of] the common aspiration of the people for self-rule.7 For him then, colonial rule shaped nationalism, and nationalism created the nation-state, Ghana, in 1957,
and nationalism moulded the sense of ‘one Ghana with one destiny.’ Hastings affirms
that “Black Africa’s prototype nation-state Ghana [had] a far longer unitary history”8
than most African nation-states. He builds his argument on the peaceful co-existence of
the various empires and kingdoms that occupied the Volta basin down to the Gulf of
Guinea before British colonial rule. It is true to say that in the struggle for independence,
nationalism was a great source of unity for the ethnic groups.9
Therefore, the key issue in trying to describe nationalism in Ghana is to see whether
nationalism tailed off into an instrument of power for civilian and military politicians, or
created an outlook in which the loyalty of the group is due to the nation-state as such.
Kellas’ argument that in nationalism “groups may pursue goals of rational self-interest…
firmly related to a human propensity to identify with an ‘in-group’”10 could be applicable
to the Ghanaian case. Even after the common enemy, colonialism, was overcome, the
communal will of the Ghanaians kept nationalism alive, even if it sometimes appeared
nebulous. The military coup makers, never fully claimed ‘devolution’ of power, but they
nonetheless recognized themselves as ‘nationalists’ who ought to ‘intervene’ in governance for the sake of Ghana and its citizens. Could one say that as a form of political
behaviour, nationalism is closely linked to the ‘patriotism’ of these military men?
The question of nationalism is also relevant when a number of problems in Ghana’s
recent history are considered, particularly in dealing with ethnocentrism, and in some
sense with class struggles.11 The symbolism of land and economy, I think, are important
in the rhetoric of nationalism. From 1957 up to this day, if there has been anything that
diminishes Ghana’s national ardour, it is the military takeover of governments, which is
only a derivative of the two bigger problems mentioned above. This sort of situation
adds some artificial gloss to the complex face of nationalism. However, nationalism in
Ghana could still be described as an ideology and a form of behaviour that has brought
Ghana to where it is today.
From a historical point of view, external forces shaped Ghana into the geo-political
entity that it is today.12 However, before the advent of colonial rule, the legendary
6
7
8
9
10
11
Hans Kohn, Nationalism – Its Meaning and History, New York: Van Nostrand Co., 1955,
pp. 192-193.
Hasting, p. 154.
Idem, p. 235. As a Ghanaian who has experienced a bit of our divisive national history in
the 1980s and 1990s, it seems to me that this assertion is only partly true, at least for the
southern and northern cores of the country, although tension at the time may have been
exacerbated by other historical factors such as fledgling party politics and the desire to
share in the national cake.
Ibid. I think Julius Nyerere’s nation-building device of a common language, Kiswahili, was
a decisive factor for Tanzania. In fact, it is the only such example in Africa today.
Kellas, p. 13.
Plato in The Republic defines justice as each part of the society performing its proper
accredited task. So, if the military played their proper role there would not have been so
many military coup d’Etats in Ghana’s political history.
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Asante Kingdom dominated a significant part of the south, while the Gonja, Mossi and
Dagomba kingdoms had established their influence in various parts of what is now
northern Ghana. Today’s borders are not those of the ancient kingdoms, and therefore,
nationalism in Ghana must be seen as the product of the colonial history.
A robust nationalist consciousness first took hold among the diverse ethnic groups
in Ghana, when educated Africans began to see themselves as one people with a common destiny. One of the great figures in this consciousness-raising was Joseph Danquah,
a London-educated lawyer and Gold Coast newspaper publisher. He brought
a group of indigenous intellectuals together to work toward independence
The
Historical from colonial rule. World War II strengthened this consciousness, when a
sizeable group of Gold Coast veterans of the Royal British army returned
Context
to lend support to the group of local leaders. The late 1940s and early
1950s brought Ghana the first benefits of the nationalist struggle with
greater representation in the colonial legislative assembly. During the first nine years of
independence, nationalism was largely shaped by the ‘common will’ of the citizens and
political leaders to make Ghana a paragon of Pan-Africanism and an abode for African
nationalists who were fighting for independence in their respective countries.13 This is
the first phase of nationalism in Ghana.
The second phase of nationalism was an effort to deal with ethnic tensions, which
arose in the country for territorial and economic reasons. Nkrumah had emphasised the
Pan-African philosophy over and above some key national issues. But the Asantes, who
are the major ethnic group in Ghana, showed more loyalty to their ethnic group than to
their nation over time. With independence the Asante Kingdom first accepted the status
of a region, but their chieftains retained enormous powers over the entire ethnic territory. Minority ethnic groups were threatened by their influence, and responded by a
show of ethnocentrism as well. Since economy and land were controlled by political
power, ethnic considerations came to the fore in the political life of the nation.
In 1966, Ghana experienced its first coup d’État when some members of the army
and police service overthrew Nkrumah’s government. The new military government
cited as the principal reason for the coup the desire to redirect nationalist sentiments
towards the development of the nation-state; to this end, it established a National Liberation Council government. A new constitution was drawn to reassert the fact that
“national sovereignty resided in the Ghanaian people.”14 In 1969, elections were held
under a new constitution to elect a civilian government. Then in 1972, another military
12
13
The first contact between Europeans and the people in the Volta basin area occurred in the
1490s when a group of Portuguese explorers established a trading post in El Mina, on the
southern coast. During the next three centuries, the English, Danes, Dutch, Germans and
Portuguese established control over various segments of the coastal expanse. Many of
these groups used their footholds to ease participation in the profitable West African slave
trade. See Area Handbook for Ghana, Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office,
1971, p. 3.
In part, that explains why Nkrumah sheltered Kamuzu Banda of the then Nyasaland,
Robert Mugabe of the then Southern Rhodesia, Nnamdi Azikiwe of Nigeria, Sekou Toure
of Guinea among others.
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government took over the reins of power. The National Redemption Council also laid
claim to nationalist reasons for the take-over – in fact, in the words of the military
leader, the coup d’Etat was intended to “save the nation, Ghana, from disaster.”15 In a
1978 palace-coup, yet another military overthrew that government on the pretext of
“develop[ing] a genuine feeling of nationalism and… tak[ing] steps…to help us to unite
the nation.”16 A year after, there was a fourth military take-over. After a short spell of
civilian governance in 1979, there was a fifth coup d’Etat in 1981.
A horde of other factors sustained a somewhat thin sense of nationalism between
1979 and 1986.17 It is worth noting that except for one leader, Ignatius Kutu Acheampong,
who came from the Asante ethnic group, the four other military rulers came from
minority ethnic groups, and every single one of these military regimes used nationalist
rhetoric to justify its take-over. The connection between the two phases of nationalism
and the history of the coups lies in the complex interlocking economic and territorial
dynamics. Moreover, it is interesting to note how the words, nation/national/nationalism, recurred in the political parlance of the military take-overs.
14
15
16
17
18
Emmanuel Doe Ziorklui, Ghana – Nkrumah to Rawlings, Accra:Em-zed Books, 1989, p.
217.
Ibid.
Idem, p. 233.
During the lean economic years of Ghana’s history, significant numbers of Ghanaians
migrated to Nigeria because of the oil boom there. Then in 1982, Shehu Shagari’s government legislated that Ghanaians should return to their country – that incident elicited a lot
of nationalist sentiments among Ghanaians, who, at the time, were in very grim economic
conditions!
Rodrigo Mejia, [ed], The Conscience of Society, Nairobi: Paulines Publications Africa, 1995,
p. 3.
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A Christian
Critique of
Nationalism:
Ghana Catholic
Bishops’
Pastoral Letters
One of the crucial points of the nationalism debate in Ghana’s
history revolves around the character of the Church as a bona
fide voice in a cacophony of often-false sounds. The Church represents the “moral conscience of a nation, and she is expected to
spell out what is good or bad, right or wrong, in the public life of a
given community.”18 Consequently, the response of the Church
leadership to the national situation in Ghana is as important as it is
sensitive. The pastoral letters of the Ghana Catholic Bishops that characterised the
period under review drew heavily from the deposit of social teachings and political
philosophy. Between 1968 and 1998, the bishops19 wrote thirty-two pastoral letters,
communiqués and memoranda. They were addressed either directly to the government
and/or people of Ghana or to “all Christians.”20 Fifteen pastoral letters directly deal
with nationalism and national concerns.
The intent here is not to present a comprehensive review, but to offer a descriptive
analysis of the bishops’ pastoral response to nationalism. The following section shows
what issues were considered.
[a] One Nation with Many Ethnic Groups
A pivotal component of the bishops’ critique of nationalism is the dialectic between
ethnicity and nationalism. In the 1974 pastoral letter, for example, the bishops made a
strong case for national unity by zeroing in on the fact that “God is the Father of us all,
and therefore, we are entitled to the respect and concern for one another. Never should
we look down upon people from different tribes. All Ghanaians form one nation with a
common destiny.”21 The need to accept our ethnic heterogeneity as an inevitable part of
Ghanaian society was also stressed in the letter:
Ghana is geographically, culturally, linguistically and socially a heterogeneous society
with varying stages of scientific and technological development… Unless this diversity
is recognized and reflected in any Government, which must then set about working and
cutting across it, in order to achieve a degree of desirable unity within it, we shall be
doing an injustice to a vast majority of Ghanaians.22
In addition to that, the 1981 pastoral letter highlighted the issue of ethnic tension. It
shows how the ethnic clashes that took place over land in parts of northern Ghana
19
20
21
22
When Ghana attained independence in 1957, there was only one indigenous Ghanaian in
the episcopacy; in 1968, five of the bishops were Ghanaians while two were expatriates,
a French Canadian and a Dutch. By 1975, all eight dioceses had indigenous bishops.
Currently, the national Episcopal conference has a twenty-two all-Ghanaian membership.
All of them, in addition to the conventional seminary training, have done graduate work in
either theology/philosophy or in the social sciences in Europe and/or North America. The
oldest bishop, who retired some years ago, is eighty-four while the youngest is forty-five
years of age.
Ghana Bishops Speak, Accra: National Catholic Secretariat, 2000, see for example, p. 1.
Idem, p. 11.
Idem, p. 15.
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around 1981 ran counter to national sentiments. The 1984 affirmation of national unity
as a tool for nation building23 also takes into consideration ‘the communal will’ that
brought us together in 1957. In all these letters, the main focus is that national unity has
the potential to build a sense of Ghanaian-ness, a renewed sense of nationalism and
unity: a “New Ghana is not possible without a new Ghanaian.”24 In 1993 too, taking a
cue from the ethnic tensions that had plagued a number of countries in the early 1990s,
the bishops revisited the issue of ethnicity: “Over the years, Ghanaian society has come
to be identified as a nation of diverse ethnic peoples who, in spite of their heterogeneity,
are closely united by many bonds.”25 They were also quick to recognise ethnic selfinterest as a force that “can only destroy the greater feeling of national belongingness.”26
That letter in particular emphasized the beauty and potential of unity in diversity
with an analogy from the books of Genesis and Acts of the Apostles that brings the
point home:
God in his own divine plan created humanity, making each individual person in his
own image and likeness (see Gen. 1:26-28). He endowed us with our ethnic differences,
making humanity rich in a variety of cultures, customs and languages.
This same humanity, rich in variety, he also called to one faith and salvation in Jesus
Christ, when at Pentecost, through the outpouring of the Holy Spirit ‘peoples from
all… tribes… under the sun’ heard the good news of Jesus Christ in his or her own
language (see Acts 2:1ff).27
This issue was revisited in 1994 when the Bishops asserted that ethnic groups could
be a source of unity in diversity if Ghanaians saw themselves as one people with one
destiny. The 1994 letter is also of particular importance because it is the only one that
makes some reference to religious plurality and appeals earnestly to “Catholics, other
Christians, the Islamic Community and followers of Traditional Religion to… pray for
universal inter-ethnic peace and understanding to reign in Ghana.”28
[b] National Solidarity
A critical analysis of Ghana’s political history shows that ethnic differences have
been at the centre of all the conflicts of power, economy and land. Indeed, the internal
forces of social and political cohesion for the sake of the nation underlie the question
of Ghana’s national solidarity. The bishops never took the unitarian state of Ghana for
granted in their critique. The governments’ policies, even in times that Ghana has had
military regimes, aim at eliciting loyalty to the nation-state while the maintenance of local
traditions and the use of ‘mother tongues,’ are time and again a source of disunity in the
nation. In recognition of this, the Bishops dealt with national solidarity as well in their
23
24
25
26
27
28
Idem,
Idem,
Idem,
Idem,
Idem,
Idem,
pp. 40-42
p. 41.
p. 237.
p. 249.
p. 250.
p. 259.
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letters:
We need national solidarity based upon grassroot unity, reflected in collaboration between contiguous ethnic groups…. If Ghana is to progress and achieve its aims as a
nation, Ghanaians must consider themselves as one people with one identity and one
destiny29
The focal point of the 1997 pastoral letter, a year which marked the fortieth anniversary of Ghana’s independence, was national solidarity. The letter appealed to nationalist sentiments in very emotional words; it talked about “our dear nation, Ghana, which
attained the age of 40 years of independence…”30 , then went on to outline the key
ingredients for national solidarity: the communal will of the citizens and good government. The Bishops said in the conclusion that: “Ghana, our beloved country, is our only
God-given heritage. It is only ourselves, and no one else, who can make it a better place
to live in.”31 In their thinking, therefore, a particular kind of national solidarity is necessary, a unity that is inspired by a common heritage.
[c] Patriotism and Civic Responsibility
One way to look at the Bishops’ critique of nationalism is also through their analysis
of the communal will of the nationals, as it becomes manifest when they take up the
issue of civic responsibilities. The Bishops’ statements on civic responsibilities, their own
as well as others, in the 1977, 1982 and 1984 pastoral letters affirm their own sense of
national belonging to Ghana: “We are Ghanaians. We love Ghana.… It is in the spirit of
patriotism, therefore, that the [Ghana] Catholic Bishops Conference advances any opinion for consideration…”32 In 1984, they go on to say that it is their “prophetic and
patriotic duty”33 not only to assume their national responsibilities but also to offer suggestions to the government. This may be an underlying dynamic in whatever they have
said in the last forty or so years. Basically, the Bishops acknowledged their double identity of being citizen and Christian in Ghana. Their 1968 challenge to Ghanaian Christians to become involved in national issues is pertinent. They:
call[ed] the serious attention of all Christians to the fact that they are both Christians
and citizens of Ghana. Besides being faithful to their religious duties they should never
forget that as citizens they not only have privileges but also national responsibilities.34
The above could strike one as a reaction against the assertion that rights are a source
of nationalism, i.e., one’s sense of patriotism is built on the enjoyment of one’s rights.
The 1996 letter also underlined the need for Ghanaians to exercise their nationalism by
exercising their duties, besides demanding their “God-given rights”35 from the nation-
29
30
31
32
33
Idem,
Idem,
Idem,
Idem,
Idem,
p. 224.
p. 291.
p. 297.
pp. 13 and 70.
p. 83.
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state. Then the Bishops made a prophetic call about the general lowering of standards
at the time:
Politics in our country needs to be redeemed. Our country needs to be resurrected from
the death of corruption, and from all forms of moral evils that should not even be
mentioned among us. Our national life in the past has degraded Ghana beyond human
repair. Our hope is in God who alone can raise us up from this plague stricken situation.36
Of course, their words also underscored the need for national responsibility. National responsibility, for the Bishops, is directly linked to human rights. Although human
rights have always been a major concern in Ghana, they were only paid lip service by the
military governments, which had little regard for the rule of law. The 1982 pastoral letter
gave a largely balanced analysis of the state of nation, with a particular focus on human
rights abuses perpetrated by the government of the time. The importance of that letter
is founded on two key innovations: the Bishops gave assent to a balanced notion of
nationalism under the political, economic and social circumstances in Ghana, while expressing pastoral concerns that corresponded with what the universal Church acknowledges. 37 The Bishops, in collaboration with the Christian Council of Ghana, also offered
a constructive pastoral response to the muzzling of press and religious freedoms, issues
that had come to a head in 1989, while keeping a firm focus on civil rights in general.
They expressed “disquiet [in] the recent government edicts to ban some religious denominations,”38 then went on to state that “the action seems to… be in direct contravention of the freedom of religion enshrined in the United Nations Charter of Human
Rights to which Ghana subscribes.”39
[d] National Sovereignty
Since Ghana’s political history has been checkered with a number of military governments, the citizens’ sense of sovereignty seldom had an opportunity to assert itself.
As a result, people tended to identify sovereignty with the ruling government – in Ghanaian idiom the buzzword became aban, which literally translates as ‘the rulers or the
political party in power.’ So the Bishops considered it pertinent to assert in their 1979
pastoral letter that national “Sovereignty rests with all the people who are the source of
legitimacy in the nation-state.”40 They developed what I think is an integrated theory of
nationalism by zeroing in on three elements: a shared sense of national identity, a communal will of solidarity and good government.41 Their emphasis here is determined by
the political occurrences in Ghana at the time.
They also criticised the politicians who claimed to be nationalists, but deliberately
34
35
36
37
38
39
Idem, p. 1.
Idem, pp. 282 and 285.
Idem, p. 41.
Idem., see pp. 30-43, 65-68, and 99-101.
Idem, p. 147.
Ibid.
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divided people along sectional and ethnic lines. Their point in 1986 and 1991 was that in
the “the supreme interest of the nation,”42 governments should be a tool for the advancement of the people in the nation-state. This point underscored the need to forestall all forms of class struggles between civilians and the military, of ethnic conflicts
between Ghana’s thirty-eight or so ethnic groups, and of veiled sectional tensions between the so-called southerners and northerners. Since sovereignty essentially means the
ability to exercise internal control, the writings of the Bishops focus on this element,
which originate with the people, but is exercised in the name of the citizens by the
government. In the authentic experience of sovereignty, then, respect for all is necessary.
[e] Education
One of the important points the Bishops zeroed in on in their critique of nationalism is the necessity for quality education, to build up a sense of nationalism that keeps a
proper balance between the national and ethnic identities. This point is made in their
1994 advent pastoral letter. The onus for education, in their analysis, lies in the hands of
government, the press, the Church, schools, chieftaincy institutions, and so on. “There is
more that unites us than divides us… This is very true in Ghana. Let us correct those
things that are a source of division and improve upon those that unite us into one people
and one nation through sound education.”43 The call for quality education is founded on
the Bishops’ desire to foster a well-informed citizenry.
The Bishops’ pastoral response to Ghanaian nationalism is contextual. They took up the
question of nationalism in their pastoral letters with a dual conviction: that there is an
essential harmony between the Gospel message and human beings’ particular identities,
and that the Church’s social teaching provides an appropriate response to a crying pastoral need in Ghana. They believe that nationalism is an essential component of anthropology: all human beings are created in the image and likeness of God but this image
can take many forms. This point is significant, because, for the Bishops, the national
destiny is built on a sense of a common fatherhood in God, and a shared brotherhood/
sisterhood of human beings.
First, the issues of national concern that the bishops’ pastoral letters raise are dealt
with in an original way, through a combination of social analysis and Catholic social
40
41
42
43
Idem,
Idem,
Idem,
Idem,
34.
see 1991 and 1992 pastoral letters in pp. 190, 196, and 224.
p. 114.
p. 252. The first part of the assertion is a quote from Pope John XXIII.
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Evaluation of the
Catholic Bishops’
Pastoral
Response
teaching. To be sure, the overall theological framework of the
letters hinged on a form of inculturation, which inserted the
Gospel message and the Church’ teaching, as it were, in the particular Ghanaian context. The 1983 pastoral letter, in particular,
accentuated the link between the Gospel message and national
situations:
As Christian pastors, we would like to underscore the importance of three truths. In
the first place, we must recognize God as the shaper of history. It is only His initiative
that can liberate us. … Secondly, we always have to remember that liberation must free
us from sin. … The third point is that we should have faith in Jesus Christ. … [W]e
know that justice comes from faith in Jesus Christ the Lord.44
Indeed, as the sacrament of peace and justice in our world, the Church leadership’s
pastoral concerns about nationalism in Ghana was as legitimate as it was consistent.
Secondly, the strength of the pastoral letters lies in the fact that the letters did not
get into the rhetoric of definitions as such. Although they attempted to describe nationalism in various instances, the bishops never got into the polemics of defining nationalism, something that could have turned out to be word play. In some sense, by moving
away from polemics, they placed themselves outside the games most Ghanaian politicians have played with the word ‘nationalism.’ For example, their letters in the 1980’s and
1990’s emphasised democracy as a springboard for social homogeneity in the nation-state,
which in turn led to an integrating nationalism.45 But their main focus was on the human
agents rather than on the wordings of a concept.
Thirdly, the Bishops’ response presupposes that a sense of identity hinges on human
nature, before moving to a particular solidarity, which opens up into a wider, national
loyalty. However, the theological vision of the human person as the centre of creation
and redemption in the Christian tradition offers the basis for talking about a sense of
identity.46 The Bishops underscored the need to use the idea and practice of balanced
nationalism to unite the people for the sake of national advancement. Nationalism, for
them, is clear solidarity that does not end with the ethnic group but spreads out to the
whole nation.
Fourthly, there are some deficiencies in the letters. For one thing, the Christian
justification for nationalism is not always strong and the letters are not always inclusive
enough of other faiths.47 While the majority of the letters were addressed to Catholics in
particular or Christians in general, other Ghanaians who are non-Christian might not
have seen the message as applicable to them in the same way. Indeed, the only time the
members of the other religions are given recognition is when they are asked to join
hands with the Christians to pray for the nation and for some national concerns.48
By way of conclusion, Ghana’s nationalism is not very different from others in many
44
45
Idem, pp. 81-82.
Although the Bishops do not use the exact words in their writings, the idea is directly
intimated.
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parts of Africa.49 Although most nations in Africa have no “historic navels”50 as such,
they were born through a process of nation-formation initiated first by colonial powers,
and second, by the people who had a communal will to build a nation together. Nkrumah,
the first president of independent Ghana, is, in my view, the one who has given the best
justification for nationalism, by making a contribution to the overall trend of national
history through his writings and enterprising political spirit. Other political leaders in
Ghana have, in diverse ways, build on or ruined the existing sense of Ghanaian nationalism.
Ghanaian nationalism is still a dynamic force as well as problem. In its misguided
form, nationalism has had terrible consequences for Ghana’s political history. In its best
form, nationalism has brought Ghana to where it is today, a fledgling democracy with its
share of good and bad things. This is a significant element of the doubled-facetted
nationalism in Ghana. The Bishops’ critique of nationalism is a good contribution and a
successful attempt to encourage and/or admonish Ghanaians, leaders and ordinary citizens alike, to see our ethnic diversity as a source of national unity.
Conclusion Indeed, for the Church leadership to have integrated the idea of nationalism with the Christian ethic today is a laudable pastoral action.
Furthermore, the fact that the Episcopal conference is entirely Ghanaian reinforces the Bishops’ response to key national concerns. Although some pastoral
letters elicited more negative reactions from the government of the time than others,
the Ghanaian Christian community almost always received all of them with one and the
same respect. They saw the pastoral letters, rightly, as helping them to live fully as
Christians and as Ghanaians.
Bibliography
Clayes, Stanley A., and Gerrietts, John, Ways to Poetry. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich,
1975.
Gellner, Ernest, Nationalism. London: Weidenfeld and Nicholson, 1997.
Hasting, Adrian, The Construction of Nationalism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997.
Kellas, James G., The Politics of Nationalism and Ethnicity. London: Macmillan Press, 1991.
Kohn, Hans, Nationalism – Its Meaning and History. New York: Van Nostrand Co., 1955.
Mejia, Rodrigo, [ed], The Conscience of Society. Nairobi: Paulines Publications Africa, 1995.
Ziorklui, Emmanuel Doe, Ghana – Nkrumah to Rawlings. Accra: Em-zed Books, 1989.
Area Handbook for Ghana. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1971.
Ghana Bishops Speak. Accra: National Catholic Secretariat, 2000.
46
47
48
49
50
See Ghana Bishops Speak, pp. 81-82.
This might sound somewhat contradictory, because the pastoral letters have a Christian
justification, and may not necessarily hold the same meaning for people of other faiths.
Idem, pp. 41-45.
No country in Africa is strictly a nation in the sense of ethnic homogeneity, except for
Lesotho and Botswana.
See Gellner, p. 98.
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Symbole et Eucharistie
Symbole et Eucharistie: La Problématique des
Espèces Eucharistiques chez Jean-Marc ELA et
Laurent MPONGO
Jacquineau AZETSOP, S.J.*
Summary
Inquiries about the inculturation of the Eucharistic species are not restricted to African
theologians. They mark the contrast between symbolic theology and rationalistic theology;
the first one views the Eucharist as a symbol while the second perceives it as a sign. In order
to point out this contrast, the author of this article compares the stands of two African
theologians on the issue – Jean-Marc Ela and Laurent Mpongo. Through an analysis of symbol, the author
shows that inculturation of Eucharistic species can only be based on an understanding of the Eucharist as
symbol.
YYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
Le présent travail est motivé par la prise de conscience de la pauvreté
Introduction symbolique de l’eucharistie dans une petite région de l’Afrique. Envoyé
dans la partie centre-est du Tchad pour un stage apostolique de deux
ans, je fus très tôt frappé par le contraste qui existe entre la nourriture
quotidienne des lieux et les espèces eucharistiques. Dans l’église de la
paroisse de Mongo (chef-lieu du département du Guéra), on trouve en dessous du
tabernacle qui contient le pain eucharistié, un pot contenant une tige de mil portant
quelques grappes de mil sec. Ce décor rend bien compte du contraste qui existe entre le
pain quotidien des Adjirai du Guéra et la matière utilisée pour fabriquer le pain eucharistique.
Ce contraste créa en moi un malaise qui dura pendant tout moi séjour au Guéra. Je
porteais ce problème comme un désordre pastoral et il devint pour nous un lieu théologique.
Quand l’occasion nous fut donnée de l’analyser de manière approfondie, je me rendis
compte que le problème n’est pas nouveau dans l’histoire de la théologie; il est aussi vieux
que la théologie elle-même1 . Fort de ce constat, j’ai entrepis d’aborder le problème en
comparant les positions de deux théologiens africains sur la question.
La problématique qui fait l’objet de la présente réflexion soulève donc une question
* Azetsop est un jésuite camerounais qui termine son premier cycle de théologie à Hekima
College.
1
A certaines périodes de l’histoire de l’Eglise, des sectes religieuses remirent en question la
nécessité de célébrer l’eucharistie avec du pain de froment et du vin de la vigne ( Lire
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Jacquineau Azetsop, S.J.
d’actualité dans les Eglises locales d’Afrique, celle de l’inculturation de la foi chrétienne.
Le souci d’inculturer le christianisme, couplé à la revendication d’une certaine autonomie
des Eglises locales, a fait naître plusieurs débats dont l’un des plus poignants porte sur
l’inculturation des espèces eucharistiques. Sur cette question, les positions des théologiens
africains sont divergentes. Comme Laurent Mpongo, certains théologiens africains s’alignent
sur la position officielle de l’Eglise, alors que d’autres, à l’exemple de Jean-Marc Éla,
revendiquent l’usage des nourritures et boissons locales.2
Dans les lignes qui suivent, les positions divergentes d’Ela et de Mpongo seront
analysées. Ensuite nous dépasserons cette analyse dans une perception symbolique,
ecclésiologique et christologique du sacrement de l’eucharistie. Pour ce faire, nous
présenterons dans un premier temps la position d’Ela et dans un second temps celle de
Mpongo. Dans un troisième temps, nous confronterons et évaluerons les deux positions.
Enfin nous examinerons la possibilité de dépasser la confrontation en restituant à
l’eucharistie sa signifiance, c’est-à-dire sa valeur symbolique.
Expérience pastorale et symbolique eucharistique
2
Laurent Mpongo, «Pain et vin pour l’Eucharistie en Afrique noire ? Le problème a-t-il été
bien posé ?» , Nouvelle revue théologique, 105 (1983), pp. 74-76. Cette question prit de
l’ampleur en Afrique au début des années 70. Pour preuve, nous pouvons lire : Wauthier
de Mahieu, «Anthropologie et Théologie africaine», Revue du clergé africain, 25(1970), pp.
378-387 ; René Luneau, «Une Eucharistie sans pain ni vin… ?» , Spiritus, 48 (1972), pp. 311 ; René Jaouen, L’Eucharistie du mil. Langages d’un peuple, expression de la foi, Paris,
Karthala, 1995 ; Jean-Marc Ela, Le Cri de l’Homme Africain, Paris, L’Harmattan, 1980. pp. 917 (chapitre 1) ; Ezukwu Elochukwu, «Food and Drink in Africa, and the Christian Eucharist : an Inquiry into the Use of African Symbols in the Eucharistic Celebration» , Bulletin de
Théologie Africaine, 2 (1980), pp. 171-187 ; Balembo Buetubela, «Le produit de la vigne et
le vin nouveau. Analyse exégétique de Mc 14, 25 ”, Revue africaine de Théologie, 8 (1984),
pp. 5-16; Barthélémy Adoukounou, «L’Eucharistie: Une approche africaine du débat
interculturel ”, Communio 10 (1985), p. 65-78 ; A. Mampila, «Une Eucharistie sans pain ni
vin ? Une question théologique », Revue africaine de Théologie, 8 (1984), pp. 17-32 et
«Recherches de nouveaux symboles chrétiens», in : Cahier des Religions Africaines, 42(1987),
pp. 403-408 ; Dominique Nothomb, «Une Eucharistie sans pain ni vin ? Éléments de réflexion
pour un problème pastoral», Nouvelle Revue Théologique, 105 (1983), pp. 69-79; Chukwuma
Okoye, «The Eucharist and African Culture», AFER, 34 (1992), pp. 272-292; Ernest Sambou,
«L’Eucharistie, une vie, une foi», Spiritus, 80 (1980), pp. 308-314; Anselme-Titianma Sanon,
«Dimensions anthropologiques de l’Eucharistie», Documentation Catholique, 78 (1981),
pp. 721-728 ; A. Vanneste, «Une Eucharistie sans pain et sans vin ? Le problème théologique
du rite eucharistique», Revue africaine de Théologie, 6 (1982), pp. 205-218; E. Ntakarutimana,
Une Eucharistie de manioc pour l’Afrique noire? dans Select 18 (1985), p. 17-24.
Pour que l’eucharistie ne se ferme pas aux questions de justice sociale, Éla refuse d’aborder
ce débat de manière «ecclésiocentrée». Selon Ela, «L’Eglise ne saurait se contenter de réclamer
une plus grande souplesse dans la discipline afin d’avoir plus de liberté pour célébrer
l’Eucharistie avec les produits locaux convenables et significatifs pour la culture d’un peuple
déterminé ; Elle doit s’ouvrir à la grande masse des hommes en quête de liberté et justice.
Elle doit être attentive à la clameur des opprimés de notre continent» (Cf. J.M. ÉLA, Le Cri de
l’Homme Africain, Paris, L’Harmattan, 1981, p. 15).
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Loin d’être le résultat de connaissances livresques acquises sur les bancs
d’écoles ou dans les bibliothèques, la position d’Ela sur l’eucharistie comme
toute sa production théologique naît d’une expérience de terrain auprès des
Giziga de l’Extrême-Nord du Cameroun. Éla constate qu’une bonne partie
de la vie des paysans se structure autour du mil; la question du mil est un problème de
vie ou de mort3 : le religieux, l’économique, le politique, le social et le symbolique s’y
recoupent.4 A partir de ce premier constat, Éla s’interroge sur la constitution de la
matière eucharistique: « comment faire du pain le fruit de la terre et du travail des hommes dans un
contexte socio-économique où la culture du mil marque profondément la vie des montagnards du Nord
Cameroun qui ont su domestiquer leurs rochers pour tenter de survivre ?»5 Par ailleurs, dans la
pastorale, Éla se confronte aux questions des chrétiens: «pourquoi dire la messe avec les choses
des Blancs alors que le mil signifie tant de chose pour nous ?»6
Enfin, Éla constate que l’eucharistie accentue non seulement l’extraversion symbolique
des Eglises locales mais aussi leur dépendance financière. C’est pourquoi il s’oppose au
schéma théologique qui fait du prêtre le ministre absolu de l’eucharistie.7 Incapables de
financer le coût de la formation des futurs ministres de l’eucharistie, les Eglises locales
sont obligées de compter sur l’aide extérieure.8 A partir de son expérience pastorale, Éla
perçoit les enjeux symbolique et économique de l’eucharistie, les limites de la position
officielle ainsi que le problème de la participation du peuple.
La
Position
d’Éla
Position officielle de l’Eglise et anthropologie de l’eucharistie
La position officielle de l’Eglise au sujet des espèces eucharistiques est formelle : elle
demande que l’eucharistie soit célébrée avec du pain de froment (panis triticeus) et du vin
de la vigne, naturel, pur, sans mélange d’aucun ingrédient.9
La réaction d’Ela est consécutive aux constats faits sur le terrain. Pour Éla, la position officielle de l’Eglise est essentiellement disciplinaire. Elle est oppressive, car «on érige,
en fait, en modèle universel, un usage particulier, étroitement lié à une région du monde, à son climat et
aux produits de son sol. La façon dont on écarte les produits locaux, en Afrique, révèle des difficultés
d’un Christianisme qui se trouve mal à l’aise dès qu’il s’agit de renoncer à une manière d’exister propre
aux Européens.»10 La position officielle pose le problème de la considération d’une culture
« où le repas est un fait humain et culturel d’une importance décisive à cause du symbolisme des éléments
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Le mil joue «un rôle primordial non seulement dans la vie sociale mais aussi dans la vie
religieuse» ( Cf. Le Cri, p. 12).
René JAOUEN, L’Eucharistie du mil. Langages d’un peuple, expressions de la foi, Paris,
Karthala, 1995 p. 84.
Cf. Le Cri, p. 12.
Ibid.
Id., p. 35.
Id., p. 10.
Il suffit de se référer à l’Institutio Generalis Missalis de 1969, nn. 281-284 ; à l’Institution de
la Sainte Congrégation pour les sacrements et le culte divin Inaestimabile donum, du 3
avril 1980, n. 8 (dans la Documentation Catholique, n. 1789, 6 juillet 1980, 642) et au canon
924. (Cf. Dominique Nothomb, «Une Eucharistie san pain ni vin ? Eléments de réflexion pour
un problème pastoral», in: Nouvelle Revue Théologique, 105 (1983), pp. 69-79.
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qui le composent. »11 Dans une situation comme celle des Giziga où l’homme croît que
Dieu s’est éloigné du monde des vivants, la prise en compte de la symbolique africaine
du repas pourrait permettre de vivre une certaine proximité de Dieu. Ainsi, la rencontre
du ressuscité se fera dans une action liturgique où la fraction du pain et le partage de la
coupe du salut se font au cours d’un repas.12
Selon Éla, il faut reconnaître que le Christianisme occidental est notionnel13 ; il a
atteint l’Afrique à une époque où la scolastique avait étouffé le langage symbolique. Le
langage rationaliste de la théologie occidentale a battu en brèche la symbolique chrétienne,
appauvrissant la symbolique du repas et rendant par le fait même la prise en compte de
la symbolique africaine difficile. La symbolique du repas eucharistique échappe à l’africain,
car le sens du pain et du vin dans la civilisation occidentale lui échappe.14 L’interprétation
ethnocentrique des espèces eucharistiques étouffe la mise en valeur de la dimension
sacramentelle qui ne prend son sens que si elle considère la symbolique des éléments qui
constituent la nourriture de base d’un peuple.15 Tout se passe donc comme si l’Eglise
privilégiait la matérialité des espèces utilisées plutôt que la signification sacramentelle à
laquelle elles renvoient.16 En conséquence, elle en vient à maintenir l’eucharistie dans la
sphère de l’insignifiant.17 La question de la participation active de la communauté
eucharistique se pose. Nonobstant son caractère universel, la célébration eucharistique
est la rencontre d’un peuple particulier avec le verbe incarné.
Depuis Vatican II, «il est devenu courant dans le langage théologique de dire que l’Eglise fait
l’eucharistie. Mais il importe de préciser la part de l’Eglise qui entre dans la composition du sacrement
de l’eucharistie. »18 La rigidité juridique par laquelle sont pénalisées les Eglises d’Afrique,
même dans une matière qui ne révèle pas du dogme,19 remet en cause le commandement
de Jésus à ses disciples : « faites ceci en mémoire de moi.» Pour Éla, la mémoire n’est nullement
synonyme d’exhumation et de répétition fidèle du passé, mais plutôt « d’une mise en situation présente d’un acte et d’une réalité qui dominent tous les temps. Il ne s’agit pas de rendre présent une
structure de salut mais une réalité constituée originairement par des actes concrets, historiquement vécus.
»20 En commandant à ses disciples de faire mémoire de lui, Jésus n’institue pas seulement
un rite, mais un nouveau mode d’être: ses disciples sont appelés à faire comme lui. Ce
qui importe, c’est moins la précision botanique des éléments utilisés par Jésus que la
nouveauté de la relation qu’il initie avec ses disciples. L’imposition d’une matière
eucharistique précise pourrait être considérée comme une forme d’aliénation.
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
Le Cri, p. 10.
Id., P. 12.
J.M. Ela, Ma Foi d’Africain, Paris, Karthala, 1981, p. 76.
Le Cri, pp. 128-131.
Id., p. 14.
Ibid.
Ibid.
Selon Ela, cette attitude rigide et ethnocentrique, caractérisée par le «manque d’ouverture
aux réalités non occidentales étonne singulièrement dans une Eglise qui fait de la catholicité
l’une de ses notes essentielles.» (Le Cri, p. 13)
A. MAMPILA, «Recherches de nouveaux symboles chrétiens», in : Cahier des Religions
africaines, 42(1987), pp. 407.
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Eucharistie et aliénation
En plus de l’aliénation symbolique qui se réalise chaque fois qu’on célèbre l’eucharistie
en terre africaine, Éla perçoit l’eucharistie comme un moyen de dépendance économique
des Eglises locales. Le schéma théologique qui fait du prêtre le ministre absolu de
l’eucharistie oblige les Eglises locales à dépendre de l’aide extérieure pour financer la
formation des ministres de l’eucharistie et les communautés locales à célébrer l’Eucharistie
de façon épisodique. Pour mettre fin à ce problème ainsi qu’à la pénurie eucharistique
que crée l’insuffisance de ministres ordonnés, Éla propose que celui qui rassemble la
communauté, fût-il laïc, célèbre l’eucharistie par délégation épiscopale.21 En plus de la
pénurie eucharistique, « les règles rigides sur la matière eucharistique obligent les Eglises africaines
à se résigner à faire prospérer le commerce d’autrui. »22 Aussi, la célébration de la Pâques du
Seigneur par laquelle s’opère la libération du peuple de Dieu devient-elle source d’aliénation
et de négation du travail de l’homme et de la femme.
«Fruit de la terre et du travail des hommes»?
Éla fait ressortir le contraste qui existe entre la matière eucharistique et la nature des
dons qu’offrent les fidèles pendant l’offertoire. «La présentation des offrandes est en effet l’acte
par lequel les laïcs apportent le monde, leur monde, sur la table eucharistique. »23 A la suite de
Monseigneur Sanon, Éla constate avec amertume que le repas eucharistique est
préfabriqué.24 La misère symbolique qui frappe l’eucharistie en Afrique frappe donc
l’œil,25 car le peuple apporte des offrandes qui sont mises de côté au profit des espèces
venues d’ailleurs et dont le symbolisme est presque insignifiant : la terre africaine est
jugée inapte à produire la matière eucharistique. «Si le champ de mil et sorgho germe à la gloire
de Dieu, à quand le jour où ces humbles fruits de la terre d’Afrique seront eucharistiés ?»26
La position d’Ela repose sur une assise pastorale et anthropologique, elle prend en
compte l’initiative singulière de Jésus-Christ et de l’univers symbolique du peuple qui la
réactualise chaque fois qu’il célèbre l’eucharistie. La démarche de Mpongo est différente
de celle d’Ela.
Le point de départ
Laurent Mpongo voudrait s’attaquer aux «arguments évoqués en Afrique noire en faveur d’une
Eucharistie sans pain de froment et sans vin de vigne»,27 le sous-titre de son article indique
clairement l’orientation de sa contribution : «le problème a-t-il été bien posé ?» Pour lui, le
débat sur les matières eucharistiques en Afrique noire est un débat posé en des termes
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
Cf. Le Cri, p. 13.
Id., p.9.
Id., p. 11.
Id., p. 15.
Cf. L’Eucharistie du mil, p. 149.
Ma Foi, p. 77.
Ibid.
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inadéquats;28 en plus, les diverses contributions des théologiens africains n’apportent
rien de nouveau à un débat aussi vieux que la théologie elle-même. Les thèses soutenues
par les défenseurs des nourritures locales ne sont pas d’ordre culturel mais plutôt d’ordre
économique, politique et théologique. «C’est pourquoi, faute d’arguments culturels suffisants, il
serait téméraire de ne pas se conformer, comme dirait saint Cyprien, à ‘la discipline évangélique et
apostolique.’ Dans l’état actuel, les diverses théologies africaines devraient commencer par déterminer
leurs critères d’interprétation des faits religieux en vue d’assurer leur rapport avec l’anthropologie.»29
Les thèses défendues par Mpongo
La réflexion de Laurent Mpongo s’appuie sur les positions
La Position de
soutenues par des théologiens défenseurs des nourritures et boissons
Laurent Mpongo locales. Contre W. de Mahieu qui appelle à la relativisation des
arguments historiques et à la prise en compte de la symbolique
africaine,30 Mpongo affirme la centralité de Jésus de Nazareth et prône l’ouverture de la
culture africaine à d’autres réalités. Pour lui, les cultures africaines devront assumer les
influences juives de Jésus, car «tout élément de la création soumis au Christ devient l’héritage
commun des croyants.»31 Contre René Luneau qui relativise la matérialité du pain et du vin
pour souligner la centralité du «propos du partage»,32 Mpongo affirme que « la phénoménologie
des religions… attache… beaucoup d’importance à la matérialité des signes authentiquement posés par
l’initiateur pour renvoyer aux mystères de la religion qu’il fonde.»33
Mpongo s’oppose à Mgr A. Sanon, J-M. Éla et Elochukwu Uzuku qui, pour prôner
l’utilisation des nourritures locales, soulignent l’importance de la symbolique du repas
pour les populations de la savane et dénoncent l’aspect aliénant de la pratique eucharistique
actuelle. Selon Mpongo, «le culte chrétien est un facteur de développement et de progrès social»34
comme le prouve l’exemple de l’Europe. Plutôt que d’insister sur la perception de
l’eucharistie comme repas, il affirme que l’eucharistie n’est pas un repas ordinaire, mais
plutôt un repas d’action de grâces qui a une structure particulière.35 Selon Mpongo,
l’eucharistie renvoie non pas à un repas matériel partagé ensemble, mais à l’histoire de
l’Alliance. Aussi affirme-t-il que le pain et vin eucharistiés ne sont pas le signe d’une
coutume alimentaire, mais le signe du Christ en tant qu’il inaugure un nouveau mode de
présence au milieu des siens: «célébrer l’Eucharistie c’est, fondamentalement rejoindre le Christ
dans le mouvement par lequel il récapitule l’univers. »36 Les cultures africaines devront donc
s’ouvrir à la particularité judéo-chrétienne du message de Jésus. Dès lors, le pain et le vin
ne pourront plus être perçus comme des réalités exotiques, mais plutôt comme des
éléments faisant partie de l’univers religieux de toute personne se réclamant du Christ.
Mpongo ne s’oppose pas comme tel à l’inculturation des espèces eucharistiques,
26
27
28
29
30
31
Id., p.78.
Laurent Mpongo, Art. cit., p. 517.
Id., p. 530.
Id., p. 531.
Id., p. 518.
Id., p. 530.
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mais s’insurge contre la légèreté (!) des arguments avancés par les défenseurs des
nourritures locales. Selon lui, pour mener à bien l’inculturation des espèces eucharistiques
et changer la discipline actuelle de l’Eglise, il faudrait préciser les arguments culturels
valables qui justifient une telle entreprise et proposer des schèmes de lecture du phénomène
religieux, sans perdre de vue la signification de l’acte unique posé par Jésus de Nazareth.
En plus, il faudrait, «cerner les lieux effectifs de l’inculturation de la foi en Jésus-Christ»,37 tenir
compte du dynamisme culturel et tirer les leçons de l’histoire des religions.38 Même si les
critiques que Mpongo adresse à l’endroit des partisans des boissons locales créent un
cadre théorique au sein duquel la réflexion sur ce problème peut avancer, une question
fondamentale demeure: comment actualiser la mémoire du geste que Jésus de Nazareth
posa à la veille de sa passion par un mémorial qui sortirait du formalisme juridique et
symbolique pour parler aux peuples qui le célèbrent? Une évaluation critique des positions de nos deux théologiens nous aidera à répondre à cette question.
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
Id., p.
Id., p.
Id., p.
Ibid.
Id., p.
Id., p.
Ibid.
519.
529.
526.
527.
531.
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Evaluation
Critique des
Deux Positions
1.
Pour développer leurs arguments, nos deux théologiens
s’appuient sur une certaine analyse du symbole. Mpongo part du
mystère de Dieu (le signifié), de la normativité absolue de l’action
de Jésus de Nazareth pour affirmer l’efficacité sacramentelle. Le
souci de Mpongo est essentiellement dogmatique39 alors que celui
d’Ela est pastoral, il n’accorde aucune chance à la ré-appropriation de l’initiative de
Jésus de Nazareth; pour lui, le souvenir de la mémoire du Christ implique un mémorial
qui ne peut s’accommoder d’un ajustement sérieux.40 Éla prend la démarche opposée,
il saisit le symbole par le bout du signifiant, il part de l’homme avec la certitude que
le sacrifice du Christ peut trouver dans sa culture un répondant symbolique dont
l’initiative divine peut maximiser la signification. Aussi Éla accorde-t-il une grande
place à la signifiance et souligne-t-il le caractère anthropologique de sa démarche.41
2. Dès l’introduction de son article, Mpongo souligne la nécessité de l’inculturation du
sacrement de l’eucharistie, mais il n’en fait plus cas par la suite. Il essaye de sauver la
proposition doctrinale en ayant recours à Cyprien de Carthage, aux scolastiques et à
la pratique traditionnelle de l’Eglise. Soucieux d’affirmer la centralité de Jésus de
Nazareth et la normativité de son action, il oppose le sacrifice au repas, le culte à la
communion fraternelle; il oblige ainsi toute personne non-juive à assumer la tradition juive pour célébrer l’eucharistie. Mpongo souligne la dimension institutionnelle
de l’eucharistie, opposant l’auteur du sacrement à son destinataire, et la matérialité à
la signifiance.
Si nous poussons la logique de Mpongo jusqu’à son terme, nous constaterons
qu’une trop grande affirmation de l’historicité de Jésus de Nazareth conduit
Mpongo à une Eucharistie sans la participation de l’homme. Mpongo semble avoir oublié que l’eucharistie est une action théandrique; elle est à la fois
l’œuvre de l’homme et de Dieu, la rencontre du chrétien et de son Dieu.
Cependant Dieu en garde l’initiative. Mpongo exclut de la célébration les
offrandes des fidèles. Une telle conception de l’Eucharistie ne peut pas
intégrer de façon sérieuse le fruit du travail des hommes et l’initiative de Jésus de
Nazareth.
3. Même si Mpongo met un accent particulier sur l’historicité de Jésus de Nazareth, il
39
40
41
Mpongo affir me au début de son article que son «propos rencontrera les soucis pastoraux
de ceux qui, dans l’Eglise, exercent, sous la présidence du successeur de Pierre, le ministère
reconnu aux membres du collège des apôtres de Jésus.» ( Art. cit., p. 517.)
Mpongo, Art. cit., p. 531.
Même si la réflexion initiée par Ela vise à pointer du doigt les problèmes rencontrés sur le
terrain, la pauvreté exégétique et historique de son propos sur l’eucharistie est assez
surprenante. Sa préférence pour les nourritures locales n’a ni fondement exégétique ni
pertinence historique. Ela élabore sa réflexion à partir d’une expérience de terrain en
milieu rural. Rien ne prouve qu’il pourra soutenir cette position avec la même force dans
les villes africaines où le pain et vin font partie des habitudes alimentaires. Il se pourrait
que les habitants des villes africaines aient intégré la symbolique du pain et du vin plus
que ceux de la campagne. Cependant, il reste vrai qu’une pellicule de pain consommée
pendant une célébration eucharistique n’a rien de commun avec la nourriture consommée
au cours d’un repas normal.
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refuse de pousser la logique de l’incarnation jusqu’à son terme et ferme les yeux
devant la transculturalité du ressuscité. C’est à ce niveau que se situe Éla. Son argumentation embrasse tout l’univers négro-africain,42 signe d’une incarnation réelle de
l’auteur de l’eucharistie. Éla montre ainsi que le souvenir du ressuscité devrait transformer tous les aspects de l’existence humaine, de telle sorte que le don de sa
personne pour le salut de l’homme puisse s’accompagner de son oui à Dieu dans des
réalités dont la signifiance ne lui est pas étrangère. Il voudrait que les espèces
eucharistiques médiatisent ce qu’elles signifient. Cependant, Éla pèche en ne
reconnaissant aucune valeur à la position officielle et en fondant sa position sur une
ecclésiologie dangereuse pour l’unité de l’Eglise. En plus, il n’établit aucun lien entre
la communion ecclésiale et l’eucharistie.
Dans les lignes qui suivent, nous voulons faire ressortir les éléments qui devront être
considérés pour éviter de dissocier l’initiateur de l’eucharistie de la communauté
pluriculturelle qui la célèbre. Pour ce faire, nous préciserons l’élément invariant de
l’eucharistie en connexion avec les possibilités d’inculturation de ce
sacrement en contexte africain; ensuite nous ferons ressortir les asDépasser la
Confrontation: pects ecclésiologiques et christologiques d’une telle démarche. Pour
finir nous essayerons de préciser les points de complémentarité de
Inculturer
chacun de nos deux théologiens.
l’eucharistie
Symbole, culture et symbolique eucharistique
Le champ du symbole est le lieu par excellence où s’exprime la profondeur du geste
singulier que posa Jésus au seuil de sa passion. Une analyse de l’histoire de la théologie
catholique montre que pendant la période scolastique, le langage rationaliste propre à ce
temps avait étouffé le symbolisme que la théologie chrétienne avait hérité du judaïsme et
des élaborations théologiques des Pères. En effet, soucieux de donner une réponse à la
querelle des universaux initiées par Porphyre,43 les penseurs des Ecoles utilisent les
catégories de la logique. La période pré-scolastique (800-1070) avait préparé la voie à
l’émergence de nouveaux courants épistémologiques qui s’affirmeront pendant la période
des grands scolastiques.44 Contrairement à la pensée patristique, la pensée scolastique ne
se contente pas des sources chrétiennes mais essaie de reformuler le donné révélé en
s’appuyant sur les catégories logiques. Cette nouvelle orientation de la théologie chrétienne
conditionne encore la théologie contemporaine et même l’évangélisation dans l’Eglise
42
43
Cf. Ma Foi, pp. 59-68.
Le néoplatonicien Porphyre (232-304) écrit dans son Isagoge (Introduction à l’Organon
d’Aristote) : «je ne rechercherai point si les genres et les espèces existent séparés en euxmême ou seulement dans l’intelligence, ni s’ils existent séparés des objets sensibles ou dans
ces objets et en faisant partie : ce problème est trop difficile.» Cette déclaration de Porphyre
a favorisé l’émergence d’un nouveau type de pensée et d’une nouvelle race d’intellectuels
vers la fin du 11ième siècle. Ceux-ci offriront de diverses manières leur contribution à la
compréhension des universaux. De cette diversité de prises de vue naîtront plusieurs
courants épistémologiques qui s’affronteront au sujet de la signification des mêmes
universaux (Cf. T. Bihlmeyer, Church Histor y. The Middle Ages, tome II, Maryland, The
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catholique. Nonobstant le pouvoir symbolique de la pensée africaine, l’Afrique héritera
d’un christianisme notionnel et desséchant, fruit de la théologie scolastique.
Il est temps de redonner une place au symbole dans la réflexion théologique de
l’Eglise catholique et plus spécialement en Afrique où le symbolisme médiatise toutes les
sphères de l’existence : «si l’on examine les formes d’expression de l’homme africain, dans les
multiples ethnies de la savane et de la forêt, chez les pasteurs comme chez les agriculteurs, on est frappé
par la place considérable du symbole dans la vie quotidienne.»45 Pour Ela46 comme pour René
Jaouen,47 la civilisation africaine est une civilisation du symbole, car «le rapport de l’homme à
l’homme, de l’homme à la nature, passe par l’invisible qui constitue le lieu symbolique où toute réalité
peut advenir à un sens, le vrai réel est invisible et le visible n’est qu’apparence: tout est symbole.»48 Pour
revenir au sacrement aux dépens du l’Eucharistie, nous dirons qu’il est regrettable que
l’Eglise ait privilégié le sacrement-signe au sacrement-symbole, et ait maintenu une telle
conception de l’Eucharistie même dans les lieux où l’ordre symbolique médiatise la réalité
de l’homme avec l’invisible.49
La compréhension du symbole passe par celle du signe. Alors que le signe vise la
matérialité de l’objet signifié, le symbole quant à lui renvoie à une réalité dont la totalité
inclut le sujet et l’objet. Le recours au symbole montre que l’objet n’a de signification que
par la médiation d’un groupe social ou d’un sujet qui le perçoit comme tel. Est-il dès lors
possible d’exprimer la signifiance d’un symbole appartenant à une culture donnée dans
une autre sans prendre en compte les éléments de son univers symbolique? Le geste
posé par Jésus de Nazareth lors de la cène rend compte de sa relation aux hommes et à
la culture de son temps. Que faut-il faire pour maximiser la signifiance d’une telle initiative dans un contexte où les repères symboliques sont autres?
René Jaouen montre que la théologie de l’Eucharistie telle que nous l’avons aujourd’hui
s’appuie sur la compréhension du sacrement comme signe. Pour lui, «il semble que le signe
et le symbole correspondent à deux grandes mentalités du monde d’aujourd’hui, bien que sans apanage
exclusif. Le monde occidental, avec son approche utilitaire et rationaliste des choses, a abouti, par le
signe, à la précision scientifique et à l’efficacité technique. Les mondes traditionnels ont privilégié l’approche
symbolique et participative des choses et se sont maintenus dans la communion avec le cosmos. S’agissant
des sacrements, la deuxième voie se révèle la plus adéquate. Jésus appartenait à une culture de type
traditionnel et c’est dans le langage des symboles qu’il nous a laissé ses sacrements. Les mondes traditionnels
sont plus proches de ces sacrements que les Eglises occidentales qui viennent leur en parler.»50
44
45
46
47
48
49
Newman Press, 1963, p. 242). Il s’agissait en fait de savoir si les genres, les espèces, les
idées générales correspondent, comme le prétend Platon, à des types réellement existants
ou si, selon Aristote, elles n’étaient que de pures abstractions de l’esprit. La pensée scolastique
débute donc par une querelle intellectuelle.
La querelle des universaux est une cause directe de la naissance de la pensée scolastique
( Cf. Joseph Rickaby, Scholasticism, London, Archibald Constable and Co LTD, 1908, p. 3).
Ma Foi, p. 59.
Ibid.
L’Eucharistie du mil, p.160.
Ma Foi, p. 59.
Id., p. 60.
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Le signe est donc de l’ordre du rationnel et de la connaissance alors que le symbole
est de l’ordre de l’action et de l’efficacité.51 Le rejet des nourritures locales réduit
l’Eucharistie à un sacrifice excluant ainsi la dimension fraternité-communion de ce
sacrement. La pensée de Mpongo s’inscrit dans une telle théologie de l’Eucharistie, elle
repose sur une conception limitée du signe où le signifiant (pain et vin) renvoie au
signifié (Jésus Christ), sans tenir compte de son efficacité auprès de la communauté qui
célèbre l’Eucharistie. Mpongo rejette, par là, le concept de symbole, plus à même de
favoriser la participation du peuple chrétien. C’est à ce niveau qu’apparaît le contraste
avec Jean-Marc Ela.
Contrairement à Mpongo, Ela bâtit son argumentation sur la compréhension du
sacrement-symbole. Il trouve dans la culture des Giziga de l’Extrême-Nord du Cameroun, un symbole qui rende compte de la totalité de l’existence humaine. Il s’agit de la
symbolique du mil. Chez les Giziga, le mil se mange et se boit: il constitue l’alimentation
de base et est utilisé dans la fabrication de la boisson locale (Bil bil). Il est également
utilisé pour des fins religieuses. En un mot, le religieux, le social, le politique, le culturel et
le symbolique s’y recoupent: la symbolique du mil réflète la totalité de l’existence du
Giziga. S’il arrivait que le mil soit utilisé comme nourriture eucharistique, sa signification
deviendrait encore plus importante pour les Giziga. La proposition d’Ela ainsi que celle
des défenseurs des nourritures locales repose sur une bonne anthropologie du symbole,
car elle re-situe le débat sur le terrain qui lui est propre. En effet, pour les disciples de
Jésus qui sont tous des Sémites, l’action prophétique de Jésus est compréhensive et
efficace. En mangeant le pain de la nouvelle alliance et en buvant dans la coupe du salut,
ils ont réellement conscience d’entrer dans la Nouvelle Alliance comme jadis au désert,
leurs pères devinrent membres de l’alliance mosaïque. Les disciples trouvent donc dans
leur histoire une référence symbolique qui leur permet de comprendre la signification de
l’action prophétique posée par Jésus. A la suite d’Ela et des défenseurs du sacrementsymbole, nous pensons qu’il est urgent de redonner droit de cité au symbole dans la
théologie de l’Eucharistie, afin de maximiser la compréhension de ce sacrement et de
favoriser la participation de la multitude des croyants pour lesquels le Christ offrit sa vie
en action de grâce à son Père.
L’élément invariant de l’eucharistie, symbole et inculturation
Pour réaliser une inculturation des sacrements qui soit fidèle à l’esprit de leur instituteur,
il sied de se poser la question suivante: quel est l’élément inchangeable du sacrement?
Quelles possibilités symboliques offrent les cultures locales pour mettre en lumière la
signification des sacrements? Dans le cas de l’eucharistie, plusieurs théologiens montrent
que la sacramentalité de l’eucharistie ne dépend pas des espèces mais plutôt des paroles
de l’institution.52 Ce sont des paroles efficaces grâce auxquelles le pain et le vin deviennent
corps et sang du Christ.53 Ce qui permet à Buetubela Balembo de conclure, après une
brillante exégèse de Mc 14, 25 qu’«il n’est nulle part dit que le pain de froment et le vin de raisin
50
51
L’Eucharistie du mil, p. 164.
Ibid.
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soient la seule manière de signifier le rapport nouveau qui unit l’homme à Dieu.»54 Aussi affirme-til que «tout élément humain capable d’exprimer le caractère festif contenu dans le vin peut servir de
préable à la symbolique du vin nouveau.»55
«Il est dès lors permis de penser que les paroles de l’institution, par nature dissociables du symbolisme
du pain et du vin, pourront se dire sur de nouveaux éléments.»56 Cependant, ces paroles devront
être comprises en relation avec la totalité du comportement de Jésus et la totalité de la
culture. La matière eucharistique est ce sur quoi l’inculturation de l’eucharistie devrait se
faire. C’est à partir de là qu’il sied de rendre à l’eucharistie toute sa signifiance, en la
situant dans l’univers symbolique des peuples, de tous les peuples. D’ailleurs, l’eucharistie
n’est-elle pas une action symbolique? C’est à ce prix que le sacrifice du Christ aura tout
son sens.
Aspects christologiques
«La question de l’eucharistie est d’abord et avant tout la question du Christ»57 , en ce sens
qu’étant «archi-symbole»58 et «archi-sacrement»59 , c’est-à-dire «signifiance vécue et efficacité
communiquée»,60 le Christ est au centre de l’eucharistie. Sa vie terrestre est une expression
de la signifiance du sacrement, alors que sa résurrection est le véhicule de l’efficacité
sacramentelle ; « dans ce passage de la vie à la mort, puis à la résurrection, l’eucharistie joue un rôle
de charnière.»61 Elle est anticipation de la mort et choix de la liberté qui débouche sur la
résurrection. En tant qu’anticipation de la résurrection, l’eucharistie célébrée «pour la
multitude» préfigure la rencontre du ressuscité avec les hommes de toute culture et race.
Aussi affirmons-nous la transculturalité du ressuscité chaque fois que nous célébrons
l’eucharistie. Cependant nous ne restons pas moins fidèle à l’intention originelle de Jésus
de Nazareth, quand au soir de sa passion il réunit ses disciples pour partager le pain et le
vin de la Nouvelle Alliance. C’est pourquoi, à la suite de Buetubela Balembo, nous
pensons que «la fidélité à la réalité de l’incarnation du Christ n’est pas l’absolutisation de
la matérialité des éléments culturels utilisés par Jésus de Nazareth.»62 C’est à l’Eglise que
52
53
54
55
56
Plusieurs théologiens supportent ce point de vue. Cf. René JAOUEN, Op. cit. pp187-189 ;
Mampila dans les deux articles sus-cités ; René Luneau cité par Laurent Mpongo, Op. cit.,
p.519 ; Ela in Le Cri de l’homme africain, pp. 9-17 ; Anselme Sanon, Dimensions
anthropologiques de l’Eucharistie, au Symposium international de Toulouse dans Documentation Catholique, n. 1813, 9 août 1981, 721-728, part. 722.
Dans l’Ancien Testament, «la parole de Dieu est créatrice et a une efficacité intrinsèque. Elle
est nécessairement et inévitablement l’élément décisif ; un élément objectif, matériel n’est
introduit dans cette apparition du surnaturel que dans la mesure où il est intégré dans cette
expression verbale. On ne peut donc pas s’étonner que parmi les facteurs constitutifs de
l’eucharistie qui est l’un des sacrements de l’Eglise, la parole jouisse d’un statut particulier.»
(Cf. A. MAMPILA, «Une Eucharistie sans pain ni vin ? Une question théologique», p. 30.
P. BUETUBELA, «Le produit de la vigne et le vin nouveau. Analyse exégétique de Mc 14, 25
», in: Revue africaine de Théologie, 8 (1984), p. 16.
Ibid.
Cf. A. Mampila, Art. cit., p. 408.
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revient le devoir de concrétiser cette transculturalité du ressuscité dans la vie des Eglises
locales.
Aspects ecclésiologiques
«Quelle Eglise sera capable de traduire intégralement l’eucharistie dans les cultures africaines, non
seulement en paroles, mais en actes significatifs et symboliques?»63 Ce n’est certes pas l’Eglise telle
qu’elle est structurée aujourd’hui! Le centralisme romain arrache tout droit d’initiative
aux Eglises locales.64 Nous sommes confrontés à la tension que crée la réalisation de
l’Eglise locale dans la catholicité, tension entre la localité et l’universalité de l’Eglise. Cette
tension montre que l’Eglise est une communion des différences et donc que l’universalité
ne signifie pas uniformité. Par conséquent la tension entre localité et universalité indique
la possibilité qu’une certaine autonomie devrait être accordée aux Eglises locales, ceci au
nom des principes ecclésiologiques de différence et de diversité. Le choix des espèces
eucharistiques pourrait être l’un des lieux où l’Eglise locale pourra exercer sa juste
autonomie. Si nous prenons au sérieux l’affirmation selon laquelle l’eucharistie fait l’Eglise,
alors toute Eglise locale devra rivaliser d’ardeur pour maximiser la signification de
l’eucharistie dans une symbolique qui lui est propre sans pour autant déformer l’intention
initiale de Jésus Christ. Même s’il revient à l’Eglise de Rome de présider à la charité des
Eglises au-delà de leurs différences, il ne lui revient cependant pas d’imposer la particularité
occidentale à tous les peuples.
Dépasser la confrontation?
Le théologien congolais Roger Gaise N’Ganzi fait remarquer, dans une étude historique
sérieuse de la question des espèces eucharistiques, qu’il serait faux «de croire que seuls des
africains ou d’éventuels africanistes estiment que l’on ne devrait plus s’accrocher à soutenir l’absolutisation
du pain de froment et du vin de la vigne comme les seuls signes sacramentels capables de véhiculer les
grâces spirituelles de l’Eucharistie (…) Edward Schillebeeckx, John McHugh, David Power, Christian Duquoc, Lucien Deiss, Dominique Hermant ou encore Philippe Béguerie disent ouvertement que
l’on devrait se tourner davantage vers la pluriformité plutôt que de chercher à emprisonner la foi dans
une idéalisation des éléments culturels d’une aire géographique déterminée.»65 Passant en revue la
vingtaine de théologiens africains ou africanistes qui ont réfléchi à la question depuis les
années 1970, Roger Gaise N’Ganzi constate que la plupart d’entre eux «se sont montrés
favorables à un éventuel assouplissement de la régulation doctrinale en vigueur, à l’exception de cinq ou
six : de Pierre Grelot, d’Alfred Vanneste, de Dominique Nothomb, de Barthélémy Adokounou et de
Laurent Mpongo : trois européens et trois africains.»66 Soutenu par les arguments de ces auteurs
nous affirmons notre préférence pour la démarche d’Ela. Celui-ci montre qu’une certaine
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
Cf. L’Eucharistie du mil, p. 191.
Ibid.
Ibid.
Ibid.
Id., p. 192.
Buetubela, Art. cit., p. 16.
L’Eucharistie du mil, p. 253.
Id., p. 222-239.
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manière de théologiser peut se réduire à une cogitation sans incidence sur le vécu réel
des Eglises locales : le temps serait venu de redonner droit de cité à la théologie symbolique
plus à même de favoriser l’inculturation du Christianisme dans un continent du symbole
comme l’Afrique. En basant sa démarche sur l’Eucharistie-symbole, Ela voudrait favoriser
une compréhension plus grande du dernier repas de Jésus avec ses disciples. En effet,
pendant notre séjour à Mongo, nous avons constaté que les chrétiens de ce lieu considèrent
le pain et vin comme des éléments exotiques. Ils meurent d’envie de boire de ce vin dont
le goût leur est étranger. Et comme si cela ne suffisait pas, certains attribuent des vertus
magiques à ce pain et à ce vin venus d’ailleurs, et utilisés pour poser des actes sacrés,
dans un lieu où le mil est l’aliment couramment utilisé pour le sacrifice de la margaï67 .
Dans cette région du Tchad, le mil a une valeur symbolique significative et pourrait être
considéré comme l’un des points de rencontre de toute l’existence humaine.
Il faut cependant avouer que l’assise doctrinale sur laquelle repose la démarche
d’Ela n’est pas suffisamment solide. C’est pourquoi «avant de s’engager dans toute entreprise
qui irait dans le sens de nouveauté ou qui bousculerait des coutumes multiséculaires, il faudrait que les
bases doctrinales soient clarifiées.»68
Serait-il donc possible de développer les arguments d’Ela dans le cadre doctrinal
élaboré par Mpongo ? Oser une telle entreprise reviendrait à trahir l’originalité de la
démarche de chacun de nos deux théologiens. La seule manière de dépasser la confrontation de nos deux penseurs consisterait à revenir au symbole auquel ils font tous les
deux recours, pour voir quelle lecture du symbole serait plus fidèle à l’intention de
l’auteur du sacrement de l’Eucharistie, à la communauté qui la célèbre et à la tradition de
l’Eglise. Malgré ses limites, la démarche d’Ela satisfait ces critères plus que celle de
Mpongo.69
La position officielle de l’Eglise récuse l’utilisation de toute matière qui serait différente
du pain de froment et du vin de la vigne. Une telle rigidité n’est pas nécessairement en
harmonie avec le symbolisme eucharistique. Le symbolisant concerne tout ce qui a trait
à la culture du peuple qui célèbre l’eucharistie, alors que le symbolisé ne peut être inféodé
à une culture particulière. C’est Jésus lui-même qui donne sens à son geste d’amour par
les paroles qu’il prononce sur le pain et le vin. L’inculturation devrait porter sur le
symbolisant (le pain et le vin) susceptible de changer parce qu’il a une connotation
culturelle et non sur le symbolisé (Jésus-Christ). C’est ce qu’affirme Éla et que récuse
Mpongo. Une telle entreprise devrait s’appuyer sur la transculturalité du ressuscité, une
certaine théologie de l’Eglise locale ainsi que sur une bonne compréhension du symbole.
Cependant, compte tenu du dynamisme culturel que souligne Mpongo, une enquête de
terrain soigneusement menée pourrait permettre d’estimer l’importance de la question
et de voir s’il ne s’agit pas d’une querelle propre au milieu d’intellectuels. Quel que soit le
65
66
67
Roger Gaise N’Ganzi, «Les Signes sacramentels de l’Eucharistie», in : Eucharistie dans l’Eglisefamille en Afrique à l’aube du troisième millénaire, Semaines théologiques de Kinshasa,
Facultés Catholiques de Kinshasa, 2001, p. 110.
Id., p. 109.
La margai est un culte local que l’on fait en l’honneur du dieu de la montagne.
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résultat d’une telle enquête, il importe de centrer le débat de l’inculturation des espèces
eucharistiques sur le terrain du symbole.
Bibliographie
BAZIE, Y.A., Théologie Africaine de la Libération. Pertinence et prospectives théologiques, Rome, 1997.
BIHLMEYER, T., Church History. The Middle Ages, tome II, Maryland, the Newman Press, 1963.
BUETUBELA, P., «Le Produit de la vigne et le vin nouveau. Analyse exégétique de Mc14, 25», in:
Revue Africaine de Théologie, 8 (1984), pp. 5-16.
CHAUVET, Louis-Marie, Symbole et Sacrement. Une Lecture sacramentelle de l’Existence chrétienne
(Cogitatio fidei 126), Paris, Cerf, 1987, 552p.
Idem, Du Symbolisme au Symbole, Essai sur les Sacrements, Paris, Cerf, 1979, 306p.
Conclusion ÉLA, J-M., Le Cri de l’Homme Africain. Questions aux Chrétiens et aux Eglises
Generale
d’Afrique, Paris, L’Harmattan, 1980.
Idem, Ma Foi d’Africain, Paris, Karthala, 1981.
Idem et alii, Voici le Temps des Héritiers. Eglises d’Afrique et voies nouvelles, Paris, Karthala, 1982.
GAISE N’Ganzi, R., «Les Signes sacramentels de l’Eucharistie», in: Eucharistie dans l’Eglise-famille
en Afrique à l’aube du troisième millénaire, Semaines théologiques de Kinshasa, Facultés
Catholiques de Kinshasa, 2001.
JAOUEN, R., L’Eucharisite du Mil. Langages d’un Peuple, Expression de la Foi, Paris, Karthala, 1995.
LUNEAU, R., «L’Eucharistie sans pain ni vin…? », in: Spiritus, 48 (1972), pp. 3-11.
MAMPILA, A., «Une Eucharistie sans pain ni vin? Une question théologique», in: Revue africaine
de Théologie, 8 (1984), pp. 17-32.
Idem, «Recherches de nouveaux symboles chrétiens», in: Cahier des Religions Africaines, 42(1987),
pp. 403-408.
MOURRET, F., Histoire Générale de l’Eglise. La Chrétienté du Xe au XIVe, tome IV, Paris, Librairie
Bloud and Gay, 1921.
MPONGO, L., «Pain et vin pour l’eucharistie en Afrique noire? Le problème a-t-il été bien
posé ?», in: Nouvelle Revue Théologique, 108 (1986), pp. 517-531.
NDONGALA, I., Pour des Eglises régionales en Afrique, Paris, Karthala, 1999.
NOTHOMB, D., «Une Eucharistie sans pain ni vin ? Eléments de réflexion pour un problème
pastoral», in: Nouvelle Revue Théologique, 105 (1983), pp. 69-79.
RICKABY, J., Scholasticism, London, Archibald Constable and Co., Ltd, 1908.
SAMBOU, E., « L’Eucharistie, une vie, une foi», in: Spiritus, 80 (1980), pp. 308-314.
68
69
Roger Gaise N’Ganzi, art. cit., p. 111.
L’article de Roger Gaise N’Ganzi confirme cette affirmation encore hésitante.
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INADES-Formation: A Builder of the Kingdom of God among Farmers
Social Issues
INADES-Formation:
A Builder of the Kingdom of God among Farmers
Loua Zaoro Hyacinthe, S.J.*
Sommaire La plupart des ONGs qui travaillent avec les associations paysannes en Afrique se rendent
compte de plus en plus que tout projet de développement social et économique doit tenir compte
des valeurs culturelles et des aspirations locales. Le décollage social et économique africain ne
se fera qu’avec et à partir des agriculteurs motivés, structurés, conscientisés et formés. La
mission d’INADES-Formation s’incrit dans ce cadre de formation et d’appui aux associations paysannes
africaines. A partir de son expérience personnelle, l’auteur concentre sa réflexion sur l’impact d’INADESFormation sur les associations paysannes au nord-ouest du Cameroun. Elles sont devenues des communautés de
vie et de dialogue, et fondent un sentiment d’égalité et d’unité.
YYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
This work is the result of my pastoral insertion among Farmers’ associations that are
trained by INADES-Formation in the North-western Province of
Introduction Cameroon. INADES-Formation, which is the acronym for ‘African Institute for Economic and Social Development’, is a non-governmental
organisation or an international association. It aims at training farmers
and agents of development.
Around the time of the Vatican II Council, the Catholic Church became more
clearly aware that extreme poverty and development were part of the problems
she had to confront. She began to pay greater attention to the aspirations of
those who were fighting against hunger, disease, ignorance and injustice in
order to improve their lifestyle, and called its faithful to promote the development of every human being and of the human person as a whole.
In this spirit, the West African Bishops requested Father Janssens, then General Superior of the Jesuit Order, to create an institute for social action, where
the political and economic problems of Africa could be analysed and an effort made to
tackle them. The Bishops wanted to show the will of the Church to be concretely
* Loua is a Guinean Jesuit finishing his theological studies in Hekima College. He is the
author of several articles in journals such as Raison Ardente, Renaître, Tchad et Culture,
Rural Development Review, and L’Observateur Paalga.
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Hyacinthe Zaoro Loua, S.J.
committed to the development and promotion of the whole of mankind. Thus, in 1962,
INADES was founded in Abidjan (Côte d’Ivoire), by a group of Jesuits.
In this paper I intend to reflect on the way INADES-Formation is helping farmers
to improve their productivity, their food self-sufficiency and their production techniques.
Does this work bring the values of the Kingdom of God to the Farmer Associations in
the North Western Province of Cameroon? Are farmers’ associations a real brotherhood? I shall first present the formation programmes of INADES, then discuss the
institute’s philosophy. Next, a short analysis will be made of the social, economic and
pastoral situation in which the farmers’ associations find themselves. To conclude, I shall
discuss how the concept of Kingdom of God is operating in these associations, in
Cameroon.
The African Institute for Economic and Social Development, Agri-Service Training
centre, (INADES-Formation) is officially recognised since 1977 as an international nonprofit association with national offices in ten (10) African countries, which are: Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Côte
Presentation of
INADES-Formation d’Ivoire, Kenya, Ethiopia, Congo Democratic Republic, Rwanda,
Togo, Chad. Its Pan-African head office is located in Abidjan.
Around 1980, the founders (the Society of Jesus) gave it over
to lay leaders. Since then, the Church no longer runs INADES-Formation. However, the
centre still retains some characteristics of the Jesuit tradition, and some Jesuits continue
to be involved in the institution. Their presence helps it to combine technical expertise
and the sharing of experiences in a dialogue of life and of action, in an ecumenical
spirit.
The farmers’ organisations emerged around 1980 to fill up the gap between theory
and practice. The development theories and strategies of the 1960s had failed to bring
both together. What has been missing in the vast transference of European’s modules of
development to Africa was not money and materials, but the lack of participatory approach to development, as well as lack of motivation on the part of development
experts or farmers in Africa, and lack of political will. An economic attitude prevailed
that was marked by a dependency syndrome. Most people would rather sit back and
wait for solutions to come from the Western world. In developing countries, most people are engaged in agriculture. Their productivity remains low, whereas the input per
production unit is high. They have traditional methods of production, obsolete systems
of land distribution, high rents, and low prices for agricultural produce, all of which
contribute to the vicious circle of poverty and ignorance.
In this context, soon after its creation, INADES-Formation decided to train rural
people and to transform the structures in which farming was done, in order to bring the
people out of ignorance and to increase their productivity through their own resources.
INADES holds that the capability of a given society or a nation to use its own land
resources to feed its people and the ability to make available to farmers the basic tools
needed in food production or in other productions necessary for export, -which is what
development in Africa really means-, cannot be achieved without the contributions or
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participation of rural people and farmers. As Pope John XXIII puts it, “We are of the
opinion that in rural affairs, the principal agents and protagonists of economic improvement, of
cultural betterment, or of social advance, should be the men personally involved, namely, the farmers
themselves.”1 INADES-Formation’s training is given in an atmosphere of solidarity and
unity, where peace, love, justice and service are the “golden values” of life.
INADES-Formation undertakes to train farmers in agricultural techniques and
methods in order to achieve the following:
• Improve their production, marketing and management;
• Reflect together upon their situation and the changes they will have to face;
• Choose freely and implement on their own the solutions that they think are possible,
given their means and the unavoidable constraints linked to development;
• Organise them into groups so that they can make themselves heard, speak up in
defence of their interests, and dialogue with the leaders responsible for development policies in their area.2
In its diverse activities, INADES-Formation gives priority
a. To Groups: INADES-Formation gives “priority to the group as a working team bound
by the same purpose and the same activities.”3 Since 1980, the African continent has
seen the emergence of many farmers’ organisations, which needed help and training.
The emergence of these organisations is a very important moment for rural communities that want to play a role in society. For reasons of efficiency, INADES-Formation
has made the option to address the farmers in groups. However, INADES-Formation
has also been trying to answer requests for individual training.
b. To Women: This priority is based on the fact that in Africa, “women are offered less
training opportunities than men.”4 Yet in the agricultural domain, the role of women is
so important that no progress can be expected without them. Since 1967, INADESFormation chose to work with women. The creation of the Review called “Femmes des
villages aujourd’hui” gave concrete expression to this option. In 1995, the General Assembly Meeting held in Yaoundé (Cameroon) focused especially on Gender and Development.
This approach takes into account “women’s exclusion, and studies the relationship between men and women in society. It seeks an equal participation between men and
women in the development process, in order to end up with an equitable improved
standard of living in the community.”5
c. To “Demultipliers” (experts from some other NGO’s): The means of INADES-Formation
are limited and it is also limited in achieving its objectives. Hence the need for “demultipliers,”6
some agents of NGO’s whose role would be to transmit the training received to a larger
1
2
3
4
John XXIII, Mater et Magistra, 1961, no. 144.
“What is Inades-Formation”, National Office, Abidjan, April 1982, p.7.
General Assembly Meeting (1974), Resolution no.1 on ATC enrolled trainees.
General Assembly Meeting (1974), Resolution no.7 on Women’s training; no. 17 on women.
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public. Experts can provide precise information concerning agricultural techniques, breeding, bee farming, and so on. The role of INADES-Formation consists in finding these
experts. INADES-Formation has also adopted a method, which consists in training ‘farmertrainers’, that are sent back to form their colleagues. In Burkina Faso particularly, the
farmer-trainers have had considerable impact on different farmer associations.
d. To the Unemployed: The economic crisis that prevails in Africa has created large groups
of people who have no jobs. Some unemployed and former civil servants who return to
their villages, “request Inades-Formation to teach them farming skills.”7 INADES-Formation is interested in these people because they can be effective agents of development in the rural environment.
Activities of INADES-Formation
INADES-Formation trains rural adults who constitute the majority of the population, and normally have no access to development training. The means taken to carry
out these objectives are direct and indirect training programmes. Direct training involves
the organisation of workshops, which focus on management and agricultural techniques.
Indirect training is achieved through correspondence courses on agriculture, animal
husbandry, management of projects and training for rural self-development.
The pedagogical tools of INADES-Formation are the following:
• Agricultural training courses
• Training for community development
• Sessions or workshops
• Magazines
• Radio and television programs
• Initiation to development courses
• Other initiatives and programmes
All these objectives are carried out in a spirit of service, and take into account the
philosophy of self-advancement which underlies all the institution’s activities.
Self-advancement means that people are the most important factor of rural development.
Philosophy of INADES-Formation
INADES-Formation emphasises ‘personal motivation’ and “willing participation”8
of rural people in development projects. Materials, institutional aid and technologies are
5
6
7
INADES-Formation, Our Pedagogical Itinerary, from 1962 to the year 2005, ed. by INADESFormation, Abidjan, 1995, p. 11.
General Assembly Meeting (1983) no. 8 on “demultiplying part.
INADES-Formation, Our Pedagogical Itinerary, from 1962 to the year 2005, ed. by INADESFormation, Abidjan, 1995, p. 13.
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needed at different levels of development, but they will not lead to positive results
unless the rural people are motivated as well, and at the same time, educated on ways of
improving their farms and communities.
INADES-Formation places man and woman, the farmer or peasant right in the
middle of its reflections, research-actions and activities. The underlying conviction is
that human communities possess resources, which can be activated and mobilised for
their betterment. INADES-Formation uses community development as an educational
approach to social and economic betterment. The focus is on people, not only on physical facilities. But personal improvement is achieved in the process of carrying out social
actions that are aimed at a collective good.
Such an action makes man free from poverty, hunger, disease, ignorance, economic
insecurity and social inequalities. This freedom is required for the development of the
whole human being. A human being is not considered as a kind of vacuum, but as a
‘being in a situation’. Most of the problems that humanity is facing today are directly or
indirectly caused by human agency. Only those who have caused them can solve them.
The human being has an enormous capacity, imagination and initiative to improve life
through assiduous commitment. Awareness of needs is there, as well as the desire to
satisfy them. What is often lacking is motivation.
The betterment of people’s way of living, therefore, does not come from outside,
neither can it be imposed upon the people by any development authority. Outsiders can
master socio-economic problems of rural communities with or without difficulty. They
can create favourable conditions for progress and give financial and technical assistance.
But the actual improvement of life is the task of each one of the societies. Hence the
word ‘participation’ has become a leitmotiv of INADES-Formation.
Focusing on free participation in every of its programs, the philosophy of INADESFormation does not take a person only as an individual but also as a member of a given
community or a group. Self-sufficiency cannot be achieved in social isolation. An association with such social groups as the family, the local group, and interest associations is
indispensable. People are considered as ‘being with’. As an aggregate of men and women,
the community is a basic unit of development in the African context. A significant
change in a nation’s economic, social and political structure can be brought about through
efforts undertaken in small communities, where villagers, farmers and peasants are
involved in the process of improving their lives.
The community responds to fundamental human desires of living and working
together. It meets the human needs of recognition, fellowship, security and membership.
In focusing on ‘being-associated’, INADES-Formation promotes moral values such as
love, being loved, honour and loyalty, which are not made ex-nihilo. Freedom and fellowship always flourish together within the community. As John Dewey puts it, “Individuals
who are not bound together in associations, whether domestic, economic, religious, po-
8
We highlight these as key words for INADES-Formation in its work among farmers.
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litical, artistic, or educational are monstrosities.”9
Through farmer associations, INADES-Formation aims at promoting a strong consciousness of mutual interests and an awareness of community problems and issues. In
sum, the goal of this philosophy is essentially to change the feeling that people have
about themselves and to increase their capacity for self-development without any syndrome of dependency.
Economic Situation
The North West Province of Cameroon “occupies an area of about 17.409 sq. km for
a population estimated in 1998 at 1.725.600 inhabitants with about 36,46% of it living
within urban areas.”10 There are two seasons: a dry season of around five (5) months
(mid-October to mid-March) and a rainy season during the rest of the year. The main
activity of farmers is the cultivation of food and cash crops and the rearing of animals.
Food crops produced include maize, beans, yams, cocoyams, palms, and banana, garden
crops and vegetables. Some crops such as tomatoes, onions and cabbages are cultivated
for commercial purposes.
The soil is not fertile everywhere; organic and inorganic manure is commonly used.
The main cash crop is coffee. Animals reared include pigs, rabbits, fowls, goats and
honeybees. Formerly, food crop cultivation was mainly the domain of women while men
concentrated on cash crop production. However, recently men have shifted into food
crop production, bringing about a general increase in food crop production in the Province. There has also been a recent increase in the number of women involved in animal
rearing, an activity from which they were traditionally excluded in most villages in this
project area.
Brief Social
Agricultural practices remain basically traditional and extensive.
and Economic There is very limited farm investment. In fact, farm implements are
Analysis of
generally limited to hoes and cutlasses. Farmland is acquired either
Farmer
through purchase, inheritance, lease arrangements or the benevolence
Associations of persons with surplus farmland. Land inheritance, however, is still
limited to men; women’s ownership of land can only be achieved
through purchase. Therefore, very few women own land, in spite of the fact that they
are most in need of it.
One of the problems that the farmers encounter are the lack of infrastructure:
during the rainy season, the sale of products is often difficult. It is unfortunate that most
African rural areas lack roads. The real development of a rural area can only take place
when good roads are built. Since African independence, most heads of states, Julius
Nyerere for example, have declared their intention to respond to this need, but the bad
9
10
Dewey J., quoted by Boavda, Coutinho, Community Development through Adult Education and Cooperatives, the stor y of the Antigonish Movement, Borgo S. Spirito n.8-9, ROME,
1966, p.27.
Source: Ministry of Public Investments and Regional Development.
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state of the villages’ roads shows us today that they have not managed to implement
such policies. The villages remain isolated. And yet they are the economic backbone of
the urban centres.
Therefore, one of the biggest problem of the farmers is to market their products.
To produce is one thing; to sell the products is another. During the rainy season, the bad
state of roads prevents farmers from reaching the markets. The Farmers of Fosset
(Foumbot), for example, in the West Province, produce plenty of tomatoes, but they do
not have serious economic partners in towns who can buy their products. The marketing
systems are not well structured. Many farmers do not deal directly with factories. They
have to use intermediaries, who are only trying to maximize their profit. For example,
the farmers of Fosset turn to ‘traders’ commonly called ‘buyam and sellam’, who buy their
products in the village and sell them in towns. In general, these ‘buyam and sellam’ gain
more than the farmers. There is no structural partnership between farmers and consumers. This procedure is not beneficial to the farmers. They are not reaping the benefits of their work.
Other problems include infertility of the soil, lack of compost, etc. Farmers need
loans for the purchase of land and animals and for micro-activities such as buying palm
oil and selling it through village markets. The lack of loans is, therefore, a crucial issue.
It is also one of the limits of INADES-Formation. Some farmers would like to work
entirely under the direction of INADES-Formation, without interference of any other
NGO. But unfortunately, INADES-Formation cannot give financial help. Another limit
or more precisely failure of INADES programmes concerns the use of time. The
farmers I visited are still far from a rational use of the available time, either in their
work or meetings. I think this is a challenge for INADES-Formation, because development goes with the rational use of time.
Many other institutions and organisations contribute to the promotion of rural production in the Province: The North West Development Authority (MIDENO) was
created by the government in 1981. “The phase II Programme started in January 1999
with a life span of three years and a total cost of 3,8 Milliards CFA Francs financed by
the Cameroon Government (14,5%), the African Development Bank (26,6%) and the
African Development Fund (58,9%). Its activities cover the entire province and include
agricultural extension and training, adaptive research, rural road maintenance, village
water supplies, co-operative development and inputs supply, and small farmer credits.”11
There are many other development projects in the Province, but the farmers’ situation
is far from improving. Some people criticise the agents of the Government Development Projects for not working for the farmers but for themselves. Some people have
enriched themselves through corrupt practices. People get the impression that the governmental development projects enrich the agents of the projects rather than those for
whom the projects are launched.
Another problem area is healthcare. The appropriate infrastructure exists everywhere in the North West Province. But due to the economic crisis, many people, especially farmers, cannot afford to buy the necessary medicines. The cost of healthcare is
high, in hospitals and at the chemists. I heard for example that some medical doctors
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require that all the bills be cleared before they treat the sick. Some people die because
they cannot afford medicines. Some farmers think that, in the hospitals, money prevails
over life. Therefore, most farmers rather go to the traditional doctors rather than to the
hospital. The traditional doctors can treat the sick without demanding money “hic et
nunc.” The sick can pay or give some appropriate gifts after they are cured.
Cultural Situation
The great majority of farmers are illiterate and they are tied to traditional ways of
living. In spite of their efforts in agriculture, the farmers have in general little access to
new knowledge and technologies that have emerged in other parts of the world in the
course of the years. Many African farmers continue to plant old varieties of crops, and
are unaware of high-yield varieties, of fertilisers and pesticides.
Many of the farmers I visited were Christians; a few were Moslems, but these
religious differences did not prevent them from working together. In some places, they
sing religious songs together, at the beginning and at the end of their meetings. They also
pray before starting meetings. All their activities are carried out in a religious atmosphere. God is always present and they believe that God is controlling the smooth running of their activities. The members of farmer associations believe in a basic human
solidarity by reason of man’s common origin and destiny. They believe that all human
beings are creatures of God and their destiny is to enjoy happiness in union with God or
the ancestors.
Farmers are hardworking people. Most of their associations are constituted by
women, who are not only interested in agricultural activities but also seek to come
together. Meetings and workshops are an opportunity to meet each other, to discuss and
to share ideas about agriculture, seasons, and other life experiences. They are aware of
being marginalised by the national Government. Consequently, they have developed a
strong self-help attitude, that permits them to undertake income generating activities.
Farmers do not wait for the State to repair or to build their roads. Once a month, they
work on them themselves, in order to facilitate communication and the marketing of
their products.
Traditional values are highly respected in this area. There are some days in the week
in which nobody can go to farm. There are days dedicated to the ancestors, the guardians of the inhabitants of the village. When a traditional king dies, farmers or villagers
have to remain in the village for four to seven days without going to farm. People
observe also the day of Lord (Sunday), when they normally rest, and go for prayers. For
outsiders (and objectively speaking) all this is a waste of time. People spend more time in
prayers and parties than they do on their farms.
It must be noted that discrimination against women is mostly rooted in traditions in
which the women themselves believe. The traditional rulers are the overriding authority
in the village. According to traditional beliefs, some activities can only be undertaken by
11
Op. cit.
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men, whereas others belong to women. This division of work according to gender does
not facilitate the implementation of new agricultural methods. Traditional beliefs remain
therefore, an obstacle to innovation on the part of farmers.
Social and Political Situation
Farmers who have subscribed to INADES-Formation courses express their joy at
their success in husbandry and agricultural activities. They are motivated and hard workers and their success in the North West Province of Cameroon is undeniable. The
farmers of Bangang (West province), for example, are able to undertake modern husbandry, to diagnose the illnesses of pigs and to administer them drugs. The farmers have
learnt many agricultural methods and how to adapt their agricultural activities to seasonal rains.
However, it has been noticed that government intervention in development programs brought about widespread and large-scale corruption, misallocation of resources
and the hampering of private initiative. The inefficiency observed in government’s programs is well known, in Cameroon as well as in other parts of Africa. Generally, the
agricultural sector has been either neglected or dealt with wrongly.
Cameroon as any other African country is facing an economic crisis, which does not
spare the rural people. The Institutions of Bretton Woods such as the World Bank and
IMF influence the economic trend. The Structural Adjustments Programs (SAPs) adopted
by Cameroon have yielded a lot of negative consequences. Cameroon is a “victim” of
massive foreign debt and the currency (FCFA) has been devalued. The economic crisis
and the policy of the World Bank and IMF led the country to the reduction (twice) of
the salaries of civil servants. As a result, black market and corruption at all levels are
becoming common. Without fault of their own, the farmers are the victims of this
situation, because of the lack of legal protection of their products. The Government no
longer subsidizes agricultural imports, such as seeds, fertilisers, and tools. The new liberal
system of marketing has created new difficulties. Suddenly, the farmers have been facing these new problems, without any previous training and preparation. The effects of
the Structural Adjustment Programs have left families and communities unable to meet
their needs. People are becoming poorer than before.
Politically, the North West is considered as the home of opposition parties. Therefore, the ruling party has neglected the region. This negligence can be justified by the fact
that many development programs have been launched which have not brought about
any concrete results, or strengthened the position of the government. As an Englishspeaking region, the South and Northwest only got a University a few years ago. Previously, students had to go to Nigeria for higher education. The populations are aware of
this marginalization. It is sometimes expressed in social tension and social conflicts. During the presidential elections in 1996, there were clashes between villages, and between
members of different political parties in the North West Province. The positive side of
this marginalization is that private initiatives are very common in the Northwest. People
do not expect anything from the State. They know they have to rely on themselves in
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order to improve their lives.
The teaching of the Church on God’s Kingdom has been interpreted in many ways,
depending on the different contexts and epochs. In this essay, we try to identify the
values of God’s Kingdom that are at work in the lives of farmers. The Kingdom of
God is a biblical symbol used to express the idea of God’s salvation throughout the
world and in human history. Peter Edmonds states, “From the beginning of creation, sin
was a reality in the world (Rom 5:12). Genesis (1-11) describes its spread, though God
did not abandon his creation (3:21) and even established a covenant with Noah (Gen
9:11). Throughout history, God took initiatives to reestablish his reign.”12
God’s Kingdom signifies the fulfillment of his will in human beings and in their
relationship to the creator. In Mark (1:15), Jesus proclaims and inaugurates the Kingdom. He announces its growth, particularly in the parables of the growing seed (Mk
4:26-32). Jesus himself never defines the Kingdom, but we can say that God’s Kingdom
establishes a kind of life in which people, with their weaknesses, live in community and
transform their lives into the life of God. The purpose of God’s Kingdom is, therefore,
transformative, by raising their recipients to values such as conversion, justice, peace,
liberation, brotherhood, etc., with corresponding rites and responsibilities. Do these values exist in farmers’ associations?
Old Testament Background
The coming of God’s Kingdom began in the history of the people of Israel. The
Kingdom is first promised to them and is later extended to all peoples. Many biblical
traditions describe God as ‘King of Israel’: “For the Lord of hosts will reign on Mount
Zion and in Jerusalem and before his elders he will manifest his glory” (Is 24:23). The
author of the book of Deuteronomy states that: “Thus the Lord became king in Jeshurun,
when the heads of the people were gathered, all the tribes of Israel together” (Dt 33:5).
The author of the book of Chronicles refers to the Davidic throne as God’s kingdom
(1Ch 17:14), and God is the one who reigns over all nations: “For dominion belongs to
the Lord, and he rules over the nations” (Ps 22:28). Some of the
prophets looked for the “day” when God would not only restore the
God’s
fortunes of his people Israel and Judah but also establish an everlastKingdom
ing era of peace (eirènè), justice (dikaiosunè) and mercy. Peace would
among the
reign not only among all nations but also throughout the whole creaFarmer
Associations tion, among all living things (Is 11: 6-9). We can conclude that prophets promised and longed for the future coming of God’s kingdom on
earth: “And in the day of those kings the God of heaven will set up a
kingdom which shall never be destroyed, nor shall its sovereignty be left to another
people. It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall
stand forever” (Dan 2:44).
12
Peter Edmonds, Three Portraits of Jesus and other Gospel portraits, A study guide for Matthew, Mark and Luke, Gweru, Mambo press, 1994, p. 127.
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However, after the deportation of the people of Israel, the establishment of the
Kingdom was no longer seen in terms of actual realization; rather it became an
Eschatological Hope. God will come to establish his Kingdom among his people. The
Kingdom is, therefore, God’s presence among his people, his chosen and converted
people.
New Testament Background
In the period of the New Testament, Jews and Christians were under Roman rule.
Some writings assert that the world is at this time under the rule of the devil (Lk 4:5-6).
The world is subjugated by Satan. In this context, the basic message of Jesus was: “the
time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel”
(Mt 1:15). The Kingdom is linked with healing, exorcisms, forgiveness, the poor and
outcasts (Mk 2:13-17; Mt 12:28; Lk 11:20; 15:3-17). In the parable of the Vineyard,
God’s initiative in salvation history is shown (Mk 12:1-12; Mt 21:33-46; Lk 20:9-19). His
disciples too announced the presence of the kingdom that implies repentance: “And
preach as you go, saying, the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Mt 10:7).
The Kingdom is present in Christ. It is already present in the world through Christ.
The Kingdom is now in the Church, but the two are not identical. According to Nyamiti,
“The Kingdom is not an earthly rule, but a spiritual reign of love, peace, justice and
service in the divine Spirit.”13 The vocation of the Church is to become the Kingdom in
the world.
However, Jesus also taught his followers to pray for the coming of the kingdom:
“Father, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom comes” (Lk 11: 2). Only those who have
lived according to God’s will hope to enter in this kingdom. Jesus himself employed the
eschatological term of kingdom: “And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there are
some standing here who will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God come
with power” (Mk 9:1). At the Last Supper, Jesus vowed also not to drink wine again until
he did so in the coming kingdom (Mt 26:29).
We can say that there are two dimensions of the kingdom: the kingdom of God
already present and the “coming kingdom”. We take account of both because of their
being indivisible. Is God present in farmers’ associations? What elements in the life of
farmers express the presence of God’s Kingdom? Are the values of God’s kingdom,
such as peace, love, justice and service, present in farmers’ organizations?
Farmers’ Associations as a Kingdom of God
In spite of the apparent state of poverty and hopelessness of the farmers that I
visited, we cannot fail to point out the presence of a particular grace at work amongst
them. Their unity is lived in the light of the Trinitarian relationship (Perichoresis). In this
relationship, there is no domination, no exploitation, but freedom, equality and love. It is
a model of God’s Kingdom. For example the spirit of unity that guides and determines
the social activities of the members of the groups, leads them to communion and to real
love of each other. It is that unity for which Jesus prayed: “I do not pray for these only,
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but also for those who believe in me through their word, that they may all be one; even
as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may
believe that you have sent me” (Jn 17:20-23). The joint celebration of births or death
which concern members promotes the unity between the associations. They display a
concern for one another, especially in cases of need, sorrow and distress.
Farmers show a strong faith in prayer during their meetings. God is revealed among
these people in their acceptance of each other without any religious discrimination.
Members are gathered as children of God and they never cease to praise him during
their work. Farmers show also a spirit of patience and endurance in various difficulties
and hardships, due to weather conditions. All these qualities show that the grace of God
is at work. The unity that is expressed through love and service is a sign of God’s
kingdom.
Farmers’ Associations as a Community of Conversion
The preceding analysis of the farmers’ situation indicates a rather desperate state.
A reflection on the original core of the message of Jesus Christ about justice and
liberation is therefore appropriate. Throughout the history of Israel, salvation was not
limited to one aspect of life. Jesus’ mission is to free people from any force of alienation. Jesus has to enter into the political and economic crises under which the farmers
are living in order to make them free. But this liberation requires changes or conversion: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in
the gospel” (Mk 1:15). This conversion of hearts and this repentance consists in changing the ways of living that stand in the way of improved conditions of life. It aims at
changing the traditional and religious boundaries that prevent people from improving
their communities. In Mt 12:9-14, against the laws regulating the perfect fulfilment of
the holiness of the Sabbath, Jesus affirms, ‘It is lawful to do good on the Sabbath’.
Jesus denounces the Pharisees’ legalism, which oppresses instead of liberating people.
Jesus does not abolish the law but he rejects some of the ways in which laws are applied.
The traditional rules (supremacy of ancestors over people’s lives, division of labour
according to gender, strict observance of food taboos) must be scrutinised in the light
of this passage of Matthew. All traditional bonds, which do not promote the common or
the individual good, should be rejected. Conversion in this case gives the farmers the
freedom to accept innovation and new agricultural methods.
As a liberator, Jesus Christ is a friend of farmers. He is the centre of their lives,
their development projects and failures. The farmers’ motivations are based on the
grace of Christ who is helping them to build the kingdom through their mutual love. To
build together a community, the presence of the values of the kingdom, love, justice and
freedom, is needed. Farmers who have subscribed to INADES training are changing
and relatively free from religious and traditional boundaries. They are open to innovations that can improve their lives.
13
Charles Nyamiti, “An African theology of the Kingdom of God” in African Christian Studies,
vol.13, no. 4, December 1997, CUEA, p. 25.
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Farmers’ Associations as a Community of Justice and Dialogue
In our analysis, we mentioned also the fact that the members of farmers’ associations belong to different religious denominations. This diversity does not prevent them
from working together and building solidarity. All believers are invited to promote unity
in diversity. They have to live in the unity of the one God who pervades all that exists.
Saint Paul recommends it to the Ephesians: “I, then, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to
live in a manner worthy of the call you have received, with all humility and gentleness,
with patience, bearing with one another through love, striving to preserve the unity of
the spirit through the bond of peace: one body and one Spirit, as you were also called to
the one hope of your call; one father of all, who is over all and through all and in all”
(Eph 4:1-6). Farmers’ associations are a good example of inter-religious dialogue in
which the religious diversity is respected. There is a two-fold dialogue: ‘dialogue of life’,
where people strive to live in an open and neighbourly spirit, sharing their joys and
sorrows, their human problems and preoccupations, and ‘dialogue of action’ in which
Christians and others collaborate for the integral development and liberation of people.”14
Solidarity among farmers is based on principles, like respect for human beings,
freedom, equality and dignity. So the principle that guides their organisation is ‘one man
one vote’. Equal rights and opportunities in the management of the associations are
given without discrimination. This is a sign of hope and a sign of justice. Human personality, a person’s ability, character and talents count more than capital in farmers’ associations. The same primacy of man is strongly stressed by Gaudium et Spes: “Believers and
unbelievers agree almost unanimously that all things on earth should be ordained to man
as to their centre and submit. Because man was created to the image of God, as able to
know and love his creator, and as set by him over all earthly creatures that he might rule
them, and make use of them while glorifying God” (no. 12).
So to take man as an end of all material things and to respect his rights are also signs
of the presence of God’s kingdom. These associations are, therefore, signs of life in the
North West Province that has been deprived of many social services by the central
government. They are somehow a kind of wall of resistance to injustice.
Throughout this analysis, it has been shown that INADES-Formation has positively
influenced the farmers who have subscribed to its training programs. The work of
INADES-Formation in the North Province of Cameroon can be summarised in terms
of building-up self-awareness, through organisation and education. This task is in accordance with the desire of INADES-Formation to rejuvenate or reawaken the indigenous agricultural technology and use it in combination with modern technologies. The
development of indigenous technological ability is indispensable to sustain effective development at the grassroots. The promotion sought by the people not only responds to
the needs of local communities, but also to the desire of the neglected majority of the
rural poor.
Although INADES-Formation has nothing to do with the kerygmatic aspect of
evangelisation, its presence among farmers can be considered as a real work of evange97
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lisation, which aims at the transformation of the farmers’ world. It is a fertile soil where
one can plant an ‘apostolic tree’ in order to reach more people in our mission of evangelisation.
In its training of farmers, INADES-Formation brings into focus the question of
social justice, equality, liberation and human dignity, which are undermined by oppressive social, economic, cultural and political structures. The Catholic Social Teaching, as
expressed in Gaudium et Spes, focuses on the fact that all unjust and dehumanising political, economic and social systems are an aberration of the gospel values. The farmers’
situation is the consequence of injustice. This is precisely where the process of liberation
should begin.
Bibliography
Boavida Countinho, Community Development through Adult Education and Cooperatives, the
story of the Antigonish Movement, C.I.S.I.C. – Rome, 1966.
Pope Paul VI, Evangelii Nuntiandi, Apostolic Exhortation (1975), in: Vatican Council II,
vol. II, ed. by A. Flannery, Dublin 1982, pp. 711-761.
Pope John XXIII, Mater et Magistra, 1963.
Paul VI, On the Development of Peoples, 1967.
Vatican II, “Gaudium et Spes”, Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern
World (1965), in: Vatican II, vol. I, ed. by A. Flannery, Dublin 1981, pp.903-862.
Jean-Marc Ela, African Cry, trans. by Robert R. Barr, Orbis Books, Maryknoll, New
York, 1986.
Philippe Dubin, INADES-Formation, 40 ans d’histoire, texte non publié.
INADES-Formation, Our Pedagogical Itinerary, 1995.
INADES-Formation, What is INADES-Formation? National Office, Abidjan, April 1982.
INADES-Formation Bamenda, Projet, Moyen d’Information pour l’Animation Rurale,
Octobre1988.
Conclusion INADES-Formation Reports:
INADES-Formation, Rapport d’activité, 1977-1978.
INADES-Formation, Rapport d’activité, 1979-1980
INADES-Formation, Rapport d’activité, 1986-1987.
INADES-Formation Bamenda, Report of activities for 1988-1989.
INADES-Formation Cameroun, Rapport d’activité, 1994-1995.
INADES-Formation Cameroun, Rapport d’activité, 1995-1996.
14
34th General Congregation of the Society of Jesus, Decree 131.
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Book Reviews
,
HISTOIRE DU CHRISTIANISME EN AFRIQUE: LES SEPT PREMIERS SIÈCLES.
Editions Karthala, Paris, 2001, 378 pages.
Reviewer: Gervais Désiré YAMB, S.J.
Le Père Dominique Arnauld, missionnaire d’Afrique, originaire du Diocèse
de Bordeaux (France) et professeur à Tangaza College et à Hekima College,
nous livre, dans cet imposant ouvrage, une remarquable synthèse à la fois
documentée et accessible sur les sept premiers siècles du christianisme en Afrique.
Trois parties de longueur inégale composent cet ouvrage.
La première partie de l’ouvrage se focalise sur les «débuts du christianisme
en Afrique jusqu’en 313». L’Eg ypte y apparaît comme la «première née» du
christianisme africain. Eglise structurée et vivante (p. 37), elle étend son influence sur la Libye inférieure et supérieure, ainsi que sur la Nubie. Les Eglises
d’Afrique du Nord furent quant à elles très dynamiques malgré leurs faiblesses
(hérésies, schismes…). Les apports de l’Ecole d’Alexandrie et des auteurs comme
Tertullien, Cyprien et Arnobe marqueront d’une empreinte indélébile «la pensée
et le style de l’Occident latin» (p. 92).
«La période des grandes figures et de l’expansion maximale (313-451)»,
deuxième partie de l’ouvrage, se distingue par les élements suivants: les relations Eglise- Etat de 313 à 451, relations marquées par la domination romaine et
la politique religieuse des divers empereurs (p. 99) ; l’émergence des figures de
proue dans le christianisme égyptien comme Athanase (297-373), évêque
d’Alexandrie et grand défenseur de l’orthodoxie; l’évangélisation du royaume
d’Axoum et le développement de l’Eglise d’Afrique du Nord avec Augustin de
Thagaste (354-395), évêque d’Hippone (395-430). Cette Eglise sera, de manière
particulière, déchirée par des schismes majeurs tels que le donatisme et
l’arianisme, et « l’assaut vandale qui lui enlève tout son élan au moment où une
certaine unité recouvrée peut faire espérer un réel renouveau et, peut-être une
nouvelle ‘inculturation’, plus profonde, à la manière de l’Egypte » (p. 181-182).
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La période de 461 à 642 est surtout caractérisée par une lutte contre la
« marginalisation » qui, elle-même, est le fruit des bouleversements à la fois
politiques et ecclésiaux, comme le précise l’auteur lui-même en ces termes: «Les
Eglises d’Afrique vivent toujours dans l’orbite de l’empire romain, mais, alors
que jusque là elles étaient des points de référence, elles tendent à présent à se
marginaliser elles-mêmes (Eg ypte) ou à être mar ginalisées (Afrique du Nord)
par les événements qui les affectent» (p. 184). Parmi ces événements, certains
s’illustrent par l’ampleur de leurs conséquences sur le développement du
christianisme de l’Afrique du Nord. Aussi pouvons-nous citer : le démembrement
de l’empire romain universel (602-705); la fin de l’empire romain d’Occident;
l’émergence d’une « forte » papauté et de l’autorité apostolique des évêques de
Rome, autorité à la fois politique, pastorale et doctrinale, et la présence des
divisions internes (arianisme vandale, donatisme…). Ces évènements affaiblissent
l’Eglise d’Afrique du Nord qui, désormais, vit non plus dans son dynamisme
d’antan, mais des « beaux restes » de ce passé glorieux et prestigieux. La conquête
islamique du VIIème siècle mettra un terme à ces « beaux restes ». «Désormais,
les Eglises africaines vont vivre « sous l’islam » et devront faire la preuve de la
vérité de l’enracinement de l’Evangile dans ce continent » (p. 312).
L’ouvrage du Père Arnauld est un document indispensable pour la
connaissance de l’histoire du christianisme en Afrique pendant les sept premiers
siècles. Remarquablement riche en infor mations à la fois historiques et
théologiques, il aurait pu être très utile aussi au dogmaticien si l’auteur s’était
davantage appesanti sur certains développements doctrinaux à travers les
querelles christologiques (Homoousios…) et écclésiologiques (autonomie de
certains Eglises particulières vis-à-vis de Rome) qui marquèrent ces sept premiers siècles en donnant à l’Eglise « catholique » sa confession de foi. La question qui se pose ici est la marge d’interaction entre théologie dogmatique et
théologie historique. Peut-on parler d’une théologie dogmatique sans recours
(non exclusif) à une théologie de l’histoire?
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Book Reviews
,(
)
THE PATH OF A GENOCIDE: THE RWANDAN CRISIS FROM UGANDA TO ZAIRE
London: Transaction Publishers, 2000, 414 pages.
Reviewer: Mubangizi Odomaro, S.J.
Is there anything new to be written about the 1994 genocide in Rwanda?
There is some truth in the claim that dynamic scholarship is born out of crisis –
certainly this seems to be the case with regard to post-genocide Rwanda. Since
1995, every year there is at least one publication on the Rwandan crisis stressing
various dimensions of the crisis. Shortly after the 1994 genocide, except for
Gerald Prunier’s The Rwandan Crisis: History of a Genocide (1995), academics
as it were fell into a sort of literary inertia or paralysis – faced with a tragedy of
such magnitude what should one write about? After the dust of the genocide
settled down, that is from 1996 onwards, political scientists, and humanitarian
agencies started making scholarly investigations into the nature and origin of
the Rwandan crisis that gave rise to the 1994 genocide that left over 800,000
people dead.
The Path of a Genocide is yet another contribution to the dynamic scholarship on the Rwandan crisis in the context of the Great Lakes Region. What new
contribution does The Path of a Genocide make to our comprehension of the
Rwandan crisis? Fully aware that the Rwandan crisis is a multifaceted and complex phenomenon, The Path of a Genocide has brought together analyses of 17
renowned scholars of diverse ideological persuasions: political scientists, historians, a philosopher, a psychologist, anthropologists, sociologists and experts
on conflict, security and international relations.
To demonstrate that the 1994 genocide was not an isolated event, the authors treat the period from 1986-1997, thus effectively unearthing the forces that
gave rise to the genocide and also explaining how the Rwandan crisis got
exported into Zaire (the present DRC). By tracing the itinerary of the Rwandan
genocide from Uganda to Zaire and by pointing out how the international community failed to prevent the genocide, the study suggests that the Rwandan
crisis has national, regional and global dimensions. This is to suggest that a
lasting solution to the Rwandan crisis has to take into consideration these dimensions.
In this high quality and original research, the anatomy of the crisis in what
is commonly known as the Great Lakes Region is laid bare with profuse and
compelling empirical evidence and hard-nosed analysis. For instance the high
analytical quality of The Path of a Genocide can be discerned in the following
insights into the characteristics of the Great Lakes crisis which have eluded
other scholars: interplay between internal and external forces; movement of
refugees across national borders but remaining active players in their home
country politics and formation of new alliances by states and belligerent groups
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(p. xiii). The study also exposes one major fallacy in conflict resolution namely,
that signing a peace agreement marks the end of a conflict – the crisis in Rwanda
in fact became even more acute after the Arusha Peace accord.
The Path of a Genocide, faithful to objective scholarship, raises some very
critical questions, which political leaders in the region and the international
community have to pay attention to if the tragic saga in the Great Lakes Region
is to come to an end. Such questions are: How are the new leaders in Rwanda,
Uganda, and the DRC going to deal with dissident communities and militant
refugees, who do not believe in the legitimacy of these leaders? If behind the
Great Lakes conflict there is also the struggle between French culture and the
advancing Anglophone sphere, (p. xiv), is a homegrown solution to the Great
Lakes crisis possible? How can power seized through violence establish a government subject to the rule of law?
The book is divided into three major parts. Part I entitled “The movement
towards genocide” has five chapters, which progressively unveil the factors that
gave rise to the 1994 genocide. The key issues in these five chapters are: the
presence of Rwandese refugees and immigrants in Uganda dating as far back as
the 1920s; Rwandese Patriotic Army (RPA)’s invasion of Rwanda from Uganda in
1990; Zaire’s role in Rwanda’s conflict; extremism in Rwanda and use of radio
propaganda to fuel ethnic hatred. A close look at part I discloses the following
equation of the genocide: the ambiguous status of Rwandese refugees and immigrants in Uganda + RPA invasion of Rwanda from Uganda + extremists in
Rwanda + hate radio propaganda = GENOCIDE.
Part II deals with preventive diplomacy in five chapters (6-10). In diplomacy
as in medicine, prevention is better than cure, but unfortunately this strategy did
not work for Rwanda. The five interventions in preventive diplomacy namely:
those of OAU, Canada, the Arusha Peace process and the US, all failed to avert
the genocide.
Part III, in six chapters, addresses questions of peace keeping since preventive diplomacy had failed. This is the second failed attempt by the international
community to avert Rwanda’s genocide. Chapter 15 points out the tension between humanitarian assistance to refugees on the one hand and security concerns on the other. Having failed to resolve this tension, chapters 15 and 16
further discuss how the crisis in Rwanda was finally exported to the DRC culminating into the overthrow of Mobutu’s kleptocratic regime.
Are there some lessons, which the Church can draw from the Rwandan
crisis? There is no doubt that Rwanda is a highly religious country if we are to
go by numbers – about 90 % of the population is Christian while about 65 % of
the population is catholic. One can safely conclude that the major limitation of
the Catholic Church in Rwanda has been the overemphasis on the priestly role
of the Church at the expense of her prophetic role. To make matters worse,
some church leaders became too intimately close to the political powers that
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be. The case of the catholic Archbishop Vincent Nsengiyunva who was a devoted member of the ruling party is cited (p. 86). If the Church in Rwanda had
made peace and justice an integral part of her evangelization, most probably
the ethno-political hostilities in Rwanda would not have reached genocidal
proportions. Of course the danger of sustaining too close an embrace between
a church leader and the ruling party is obvious: it muzzles the prophetic voice.
Like any other human enterprise, The Path of a Genocide has some limitations. Although it represents a breakthrough in the growing and sometimes
controversial scholarship on Rwanda and the Great Lakes Region, The Path of a
Genocide does not treat the more perplexing political developments after 1997.
Consequently, the political divorce between president Kagame of Rwanda and
president Museveni of Uganda on the one hand and the late president Laurent
Kabila of DRC is not treated. Furthermore, the invasion of DRC on the other by
Rwanda and Uganda in 1998, the armed confrontation between Uganda and
Rwanda in Kisangani, and the emergence of splinter rebel groups in Eastern
DRC, are later developments, which challenge the analysis that stops with 1997.
The Path of a Genocide gives an impression that the leaders of Rwanda,
Uganda and DRC, Kagame, Museveni and the late Laurent Kabila respectively,
had a well defined common agenda. More to that, these leaders are highly
praised as: “…relatively efficient, rational, and pragmatic in comparison to their
predecessors. With that realism, they accepted English as the language of technology and global communication” (pp. xiv-xv). Does this favourable portrait of
these leaders still hold today? As far as the recent UN and International Crisis
Group’s report are concerned, the most evident efficiency and pragmatism of
these leaders of Rwanda and Uganda, is the wanton plundering of the mineral
resources of DRC. Even with the much needed Congolese dialogue, the various
rebel groups supported by Uganda and Rwanda are still divided – a proof of the
conflicting agenda that Rwanda and Uganda are pursuing in the Great Lakes
Region. Another area that would have benefited the readers is the rationale for
the involvement of other SADC countries namely, Zimbabwe and Namibia in
the Great Lakes crisis.
In the final analysis, The Path of a Genocide remains an unprecedented
resource book for scholars, international relations experts, policy makers, agencies for peace building and conflict resolution, humanitarian agencies, pastoral
agents and all those who are interested in finding a lasting solution to the crisis
in the Great Lakes Region. It is a must for anyone who wants to have a fairly
thorough grasp of the internal, regional and global forces at the heart of the
crisis in Rwanda and in the rest of the Great Lakes Region.
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Book Reviews
,
THE MANY FACES OF JESUS CHRIST: INTERCULTURAL CHRISTOLOGY,
Canterbury: SCM Press, 2001, 242 pages.
Reviewer: Gervais Désiré YAMB, S.J.
In this book, Dr. Volker Küster, a lecturer in the history of religion, mission
and ecumenics at the University of Heidelberg (Germany), offers a compendium of various Christologies from Africa, Asia and Latin America. The book has
three unequal parts. In the first part concerning a “contextual Christology in
intercultural perspective,” the author brings out his initial hypothesis: “In the
contextual theologies, the biblical stories and the Christian traditions (text) on
the one hand and the local human experiences (context) on the other are
related dialectically in a hermeneutical circle and are, as Ernst Lange puts it,
pledged to one another” (p. 4). This hypothesis finds its relevance in a process
in which two ‘generative themes’ are analyzed. “Christ and culture” is the first
generative theme. It is an attempt to read H. Richard Niebuhr’s Christ and
Culture (New York, 1951). This reading points out the possibility of defining the
relationship between Christianity and culture, a possibility, which has been
reawakened only in more recent discussions (p. 15). “Gospel and Culture” is the
second generative theme, which is basically an attempt to transfer Niebuhr’s
typology to intercultural discourse.
The second part is an attempt to explore “Christology in a diversity of contexts”. The first chapter tries to “proclaim the gospel to the poor” through a
Christology in the context of poverty and oppression in Latin America. Here, the
author focuses his analysis on two major foundations of Christology: 1) historical reconstruction, which is basically a christological discourse at the time of the
Conquista (p. 41); and 2) a christopraxis in the discipleship of Jesus according
to Leonardo Boff (Brazil) and Jon Sobrino (El Salvador) (p. 47). The second
chapter brings out a “Christology in the context of African tribal cultures and
religions”. Some models of African Christology such as Jesus the chief (F. Kabasélé:
DRC), Jesus the master of initiation (A.T. Sanon: Burkina Faso), Jesus the protoancestor (B. Bujo: DRC), Jesus the brother-ancestor (C. Nyamiti: Tanzania) and
Jesus the healer (C. Kolié: Guinea) are analyzed within the framework of
inculturation and liberation theology (p. 59). The third chapter examines
“Christology in the context of the pluralism of Asian Cultures and religions”. If
M. M. Thomas and Stanley Samartha (India) appear as the leading figures of
Christology in the context of Hinduism, Katsumi Takizawa and Seichi Yagi (Japan) are the most representative theologians in a Christology in the context of
Buddhism. But Kosuke Koyama (Japan) and Choan-Seng Song (Taiwan) are the
leading theologians of a Christology in the overall Asian context. The fourth
chapter is focused on a Christology in the context of poverty and oppression in
Africa and Asia. Three steps are mentioned: 1) a Christology in the context of
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Book Reviews
racism by James H. Cone (U.S.A) and Allan A. Boesak (South Africa); 2) a
Christology in the context of development and dictatorship by Ahn Byung-Mu
and the Minjung Theology of South Korea; and 3) a Christology in the context
of new departures in Liberation Theology in the 1980s by Arvind P. Nirmal
(India) and Temo Kuribayashi (Japan). The third part of this book tries to give
some models of contextual Christology.
This book is an interesting handbook for Christology in African, Asian and
American contexts. It could be useful as an introduction to the history and the
background of Third World Christologies. However, the Christological approach
in the African context is very poorly presented when compared with the Asian
and Latin America contexts. The approaches of some leading figures of “A
Christology of liberation” such as L. Magesa (Tanzania), J-M. Ela (Cameroon)
and J. N. K Mugambi (Kenya), E. Mveng (Cameroon) and Kä Mana (DRC) are
not properly analyzed; neither are some leading figures of the “problematic
evangelization of Africa” well presented, such as F. Eboussi Boulaga (Cameroon)
and O. Bimwenyi Kweshi (DRC). These authors would have given the book a
wider perspective on the African reality.
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Poetry
Poetry
The Pilgrim Mind
Joseph Arimoso, S.J.*
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I
Hear the children laugh
They bathe in warm milk
And virgins giggle on the
Way to the river
Disturbing the morning dew
The fields are breathing
Green – Death is but a
Strange visitor coming only
At half moon – a reminder
Of our finite selves
Let the wind blow
It’s imbued with blessings
Sit me there among
The elders and I will
Draw from the pot
Of ancient wisdom
Bring the fat bull
And wholehearted offer it
To the sacred winds
He who holds the skies
Inhales your worthy sacrifice
And sighs with the rains
Praise Him then in
The mystified drumbeats
Creation dances with the
Creator’s heartbeats
And souls are rapturous
In hallowed ebonies.
II
But twilight surreptitiously
Laughs the day away
Then jackals howl
Behind the Western mountains
III
The Western wind is dark
Hear children whimper in
Their innocent sleep – mourn.
Mourn for the pot of
Ancient wisdom – It’s broken
Exploitation is a worm
Gnawing on generous hearts
Pale ghosts taunt souls
Embedded in now
harrowing ebonies
Sit me with elders
I seek healing words
For a soul in anguish
Remove this thorn
Buried deep in my soul
* Arimoso is a Jesuit from Zimbabwe in his second year of theology in Hekima College. He
has published poems in Mukai, SJ Headlines, and Hekima Review.
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Poetry
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Let me bleed for
You my ancestral land
The road to distant future
Is already sprinkled
With the blood of kinsmen
Wayward dreams drag me
Along life’s jagged edges
Pain is but numb
Heal not these wounds
But a soul in anguish
The bull for sacrifice
Has indeed gone astray
Will the sacred winds
Lend us an ear?
He who holds the skies
Watches with a hidden eye
Appeal not to borrowed gods
Till He delivers wretched souls
Into arms of freedom.
IV
Kinsmen rule this land
Fear not, they say
We will have plenty.
Yes, plenty of promises
What is dawn when
The sun never rises?
A dawn that recedes
Into the howling night?
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Hear children sing dirges
Their dreams in contortion.
The giggles of virgins
Are muffled by the
Dark hand of oppression
Watch them toil in
Fields of choking dust.
Sit me then with elders
But where are they?
Under cold mounds – They
Lie in contented quietude
Who will give us words
Of ancient wisdom?
The fields are burning
With lies and greed
These kinsmen sacrifice life
For nothing but vanity.
Speak not against them
Restrain from rebuking words.
Or you will set out
At twilight to that land
Of burrowing loneliness.
Kinsmen have cold hearts
And sacrifice to borrowed gods.
Yet those who harbour
Fiery hope will speak
For He who holds
The skies still watches.
Fear not burrowing loneliness.
A hidden embrace awaits.
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Poetry
Inter-Net
Toussaint KAFARHIRE MURHULA, S.J.*
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Des captifs pris aux mailles du filet global
Gesticulent derrière des barreaux invisibles
D’un écran, illusion d’une liberté en folie
Qui enchaîne, emmure, cloître dans l’imaginaire
Prisonniers volontaires du nouveau mythe de la caverne
Lumière obscure, suppression de l’espace et réduction du temps
La connaissance facile à la portée de la main
Que voulez-vous d’autre puisque vous rêvez à profusion?
La pieuvre aux tentacules géantes vous enserre et vous embrasse
Tendresse mensongère qui vous ouvre les portes de l’enfer adulé
L’homme universel vous sourit, sans visage ni culture
Nouvelle divinité soumise aux pouvoirs des caprices humains
e-mail ma cellule, pourquoi te moques-tu de ma liberté?
Le culte de l’amitié dans la non-rencontre et non-lieu
Lorsque les horizons de l’éphémère explosent à l’infini
Pour exciter mon désir d’être, l’attiser pour ensuite le piétiner
Temple anonyme d’un hédonisme malade de soi
Sacrifice spirituel d’une génération sur l’autel du virtuel
La tête me tourne devant la sottise de votre pseudo-intelligence
Vertiges et nausées devant l’ombre d’une idole mondiale.
* Kafarhire est un jesuit congolais, étudiant à Hekima College.
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Poetry
Books Received
January-March 2002
(all from Gujarat Sahitya Prakash)
Bermejo, L. M., The Company & Communion of Saints (1999).
______ , Abba, My Dad (2001).
Coleman, G., Walking With Inigo: A Commentary on the Autobiography of St. Ignatius (2001).
Coutinho, P., The Ignatian Ideal and Jesuit Reality (2001).
Jacob, P., Ignatian Discernment (2001).
Lesser, R. H., Praying (1999).
Lewis, H., Happiness Manufacturers (2001).
McHugh, R. P., Mind with a Heart (second edition, 1999).
O’Mahony, G., Praying with St. Mark’s Gospel (1999).
Roberge, G., The Faithful Witness: On Christian Communication (1999).
Valles, C. G., We have Seen the Lord (1999).
Vempey, I., Conversion: National Debate or Dialogue (1999).
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