Pentecostal and Charismatic Spiritualities and Civic Engagement in Zambia

Naar M’fundisi-Holloway, Naar M'fundisi-Holloway

• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
• Year: 2018
• Print ISBN:
  9783319970578
• eBook ISBN:
  9783319970585
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: African History
• Index: Social Sciences

For the past sixty years, the Pentecostal and Charismatic movement has played a major role in Zambia. In this book, Naar Mfundisi-Holloway explains the history of this development and its impact on civic engagement. She opens a discussion on church-state relations and explains how the church presented a channel of hope in the wake of the HIV/AIDS pandemic, despite having a history that eschewed civic engagement. In fact, the pandemic propelled the church to work alongside the state in the fight against the disease. Using interviews and historical analysis, this book provides valuable insight into how Pentecostal and Charismatic churches have effectively engaged matters of civic concern in Zambia dating from colonial times.

© The Author(s) 2018

Naar M’fundisi-HollowayPentecostal and Charismatic Spiritualities and Civic Engagement in ZambiaChristianity and Renewal - Interdisciplinary Studieshttps://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-97058-5_1

Begin Abstract

1. Constructing the Identity of Pentecostal/Charismatic Christianity in Zambia: Zambia’s Religious Landscape

Naar M’fundisi-Holloway¹

(1)

Territorial Headquarters of the Salvation Army, London, UK

Naar M’fundisi-Holloway

Email: [email protected]

End Abstract

Christianity infuses every part of daily life in Zambia. Based on the Zambia 2010 Census of Population and Housing Report, 75.5% were classified as Protestant Christian, 20.2% Catholic , 0.5% Muslim, 2.0% other and 1.8% other. ¹ This report did not provide a proportion of Pentecostal /Charismatic Christians as their numbers would have been added to the Protestant group. It equally did not indicate the percentage of African Initiated Churches (AICs) which would have been included in the ‘other’ category. The arrival of Dr. David Livingston, a missionary and explorer in the late nineteenth century is linked to the advent of Christianity in Zambia. It was after his arrival that Christian missionary activities and formation of Christian mission stations and churches happened. Thereafter, AICs arose, however, its leaders ‘did not shun Christianity altogether, but rather endeavoured to retain the African traditional flavour and idiom within their ecclesiology and liturgy. The arrival of Pentecostalism in the early 1940s helped reinforce a spiritual connection (a world view that is innately African)’ that was downtrodden by missionaries. ² This was not a spiritual connection that engaged ancestral worship and the veneration of ancient spirits, but rather a connection to the Spirit of God.

What resulted after the death of Dr. David Livingstone , was a progression of missionary stations were planted throughout Zambia especially in rural areas. According to Robert Rotberg, approximately over 100 mission stations were opened in Zambia between 1882 and 1924. ³ This led to the rise of numerous mission-led churches and AICs across the country. ‘Pentecostal growth benefited greatly from this religious plurality as some of its members had prior links to mainline churches and AICs. Many young people left their churches, converted and joined this seemingly vibrant movement with new religious sensibilities’. ⁴ Subsequently, Charismatic churches developed in the 1980s. ⁵ Examples of these churches will be discussed in Chapter 2. Unfortunately, Dr. Kenneth Kaunda the first president of post-colonial Zambia from 1964-1991 detested religious plurality amongst the mainline churches and labelled it ‘denominational idiocy and a terrible condemnation of Christianity and confusion to the people of Zambia’. ⁶ Kaunda espoused the idea of having one national church, just like the Church of Scotland in which his father was a minister. The formation of the United Church of Zambia (UCZ) in 1965 was to be one of the first ecumenical ventures to be exhibited during that time. ⁷ This came close to what Kaunda desired. Gifford called it a ‘remarkable ecumenical venture’ in that this church was an amalgamation of various Protestant movements namely; The Union Church of Central Africa, The Free Church of Scotland, The London Missionary Society, The Methodist Missionary Society and the Paris Evangelical Mission Society to Barotseland. ⁸ The UCZ still exists today and has also experienced ‘Pentecostalisation’ which has led to the creation of a breakaway Charismatic church called Grace Ministries.

Since their inception, mainline churches have made a number of contributions to civic engagement within the country and continue to do so in the twenty-first century. This in turn has provided a context for Pentecostal and Charismatic civic engagement . Mainline churches have always been linked to various learning, health and development institutions. For this reason, Zambia has several schools and hospitals situated in remote areas of the country that have served the needs of local people for decades. These institutions continue to stand today and currently, with the changes in socio-economic, religious and political dynamics, mainline churches have diversified into more areas of civic engagement . More importantly, they have strengthened their voice by using the media as a platform to air their concerns and to lobby the state on a variety of issues at the core of Zambia’s civic concerns. Roman Catholic institutions have been known to express their views through pastoral letters and articles to the state often concerned with various issues including matters of governance. Both Catholic and Protestant churches are currently engaged in matters concerning the constitution , governance, health, education, economic justice, elections , rural and urban development, youth empowerment, agriculture, gender issues, church-state relations, politics and socio-economic justice. This book will demonstrate how Pentecostals and Charismatics have played centre stage in their own capacity as well as through interreligious relations in meeting the needs of people on Zambia’s public domain.

Identifying the Gap

Historians and sociologists have written about Pentecostal and Charismatic Christianity in Zambia and in a number of other African countries where the movement is larger and more vibrant. ⁹ Unfortunately, very few scholars have engaged with the different histories surrounding the various expressions of the movement in Zambia from 1946 to 1947 when the Apostolic Faith Mission (AFM) is believed to have come to the country. ¹⁰ It is only in the last two decades that Pentecostal and Charismatic Christianity in Zambia has received academic attention. This research has largely focused on the history of the movement, especially since the ascension of Frederick Chiluba , a Pentecostal , to the presidency in 1991. Those that have written about Pentecostal and Charismatic Christianity in Zambia have lamented the lack of sources to aid their research. They have noted that even the churches themselves did not formally record their history or retain important historical documents in their church archives. ¹¹ In comparison to mainline churches, few Pentecostal and Charismatic churches have detailed official documentation of their church histories. Therefore, much of the data gathered for this research was collected through oral histories provided by some of the main leaders in these churches.

Publications about Pentecostal and Charismatic churches have been written but have mainly focused on the ten years when Zambia had a Pentecostal president. ¹² This research aims to provide a history of the civic engagement of Pentecostal and Charismatic Christianity in Zambia from 1964 to 2012. The book will explore how this form of Christianity has interfaced with and helped to change the social, political and religious realities of the public domain in Zambia. Research on civic engagement has previously been developed in the global South where Pentecostalism has had a colossal impact on society and politics . Similarly, studies have been conducted in Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, Malawi and Zimbabwe showing the impact Pentecostalism and Evangelical Christianity has had on the democratization of African countries. ^13...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Front Matter
• 1. Constructing the Identity of Pentecostal/Charismatic Christianity in Zambia: Zambia’s Religious Landscape
• 2. The History of Pentecostal and Charismatic Christianity in Zambia
• 3. ‘Zambia Shall Be Free!’ Exorcizing Dictatorial Regimes, Embracing Democracy and Civic Engagement (1964–1991)
• 4. ‘The Hour Has Come!’ Born-Again Christians and Their Influence on Democratic Zambia 1991–2002
• 5. Towards an Evaluation of Pentecostal and Charismatic Political Engagement Post the Chiluba Era (2001–2012)
• 6. ‘Zambia Shall Be Saved!’ Pentecostal and Charismatic Christianity in the Fight Against HIV/AIDS
• 7. Conclusion
• Back Matter