Non-discrimination from a Christian ethical perspective

Paper presented at the Conference on Christian Perspectives on Human Dignity and Humans Rights held in Wuppertal (Germany) online from 9–12 April 202

At the Crossroads : A Call to Christians to Act in Faith for an Alternative Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe, a country that is made up of around 80% of Christians find itself as among the worst administered countries, among the most corrupt nations and overflowing with injustice. This paradox urges to question the role of Christianity in shaping the morality of the nation and in creating a just society for all its citizens. While acknowledging the major role played by politics and politicians in putting Zimbabwe at the crossroads, this book does not absolve the Church of complicity in making the country what it is today. Taking lessons from the Jesus Movement,, this book proposes ways in which the Church can reclaim her role in shepherding the nation towards justice, equality and equity. As the current system running the nation is anti-Christian at its core, it needs to be challenged by a propagation of the authentic faith in Jesus Christ. Christian leaders are called upon to re-direct politics instead of politics re-directing the faith towards empire sustenance

ON THE PUBLIC ROLE OF THE BIBLE IN ZIMBABWE. Unpacking Banana’s “re-writing” call for a socially and contextually relevant Biblical Studies

Bias Volume 18 is a book that is dedicated to critically unpack the meaning of the call to re-write the Bible made by the first President of Zimbabwe, Canaan S. Banana in 1991. In this book, the author engages with Banana’s written works and makes critical observations regarding the call to re-write the Bible. This book argues that re-writing was proposed as a means to an end by Banana. It is demonstrated that what Banana intended was eradicating injustice, violence and inequality in the Middle East which was fuelled by the “ideology of chosenness”, which was sustained by a use of the Bible. Once it became clear the end was not re-writing the Bible, this work moved on to consider alternative means to achieving the same end. The search for alternatives leads the author to consider “the way of Europe”, that is, de-biblification or a watered down de-biblification, which is named partial de-biblification in this work. Finally, the author proposes a “critical biblification” as a viable alternative to re-writing or de-biblification. This book, in honour of Banana, calls for socially and contextually relevant biblical studies

From Text to Practice - The role of the Bible in daily living of African people today

That the Bible is a manual for daily living is attested in almost all Christian denominations, how this role is transformed into practice is clearly an area that remains a contested terrain among Christians. This volume is our modest contribution to looking at the relationship between the Bible and our practices. The central question that the articles in this volume respond to is: how is the Bible related to our daily life? This question is especially important on the African continent where religion appears to be gaining influence. Without taking anything away from western biblical scholars, African biblical scholars must also engage with the question: how do we put into practice the teachings of the Bible? This volume contains papers presented at the International Bible Symposium 2009 in Bamberg (Germany) and additional contributions

The Bible and Politics in Africa

This volume is based on the International Bible Symposium “The Bible and Politics in Africa” which was held in summer 2010 in Kloster Banz (Germany). The IBS 2010 was organised by Prof. Kügler’s team at the Chair for New Testament Studies at Bamberg University and was generously funded and hosted by the Hanns Seidel Foundation, Munich/ Kloster Banz. Some of the articles published here are based on papers presented at IBS 2010. The editors, however, added some articles to broaden the discussion and to also give a voice to those who could not be present at the symposium. The topic of Biblical influence on politics and of political uses of the Bible is of course not merely an African topic. Christian tradition has always stressed that it not only wants to show ways to heaven but also to reconstruct this world according to God’s will. However the topic seems especially relevant in African societies as many of them ascribe a paramount role to the “Word of God” and thus the Bible seems to be used most directly as a handbook for political actions. With their critical analytical approach the contributors of BiAS 7 try to meet this special challenge for Contextual Biblical Studies which has to be taken more serious than it used to be in academic research

PROPHETS, PROFITS AND THE BIBLE IN ZIMBABWE: Festschrift for AYNOS MASOTCHA MOYO

BiAS 12 examines the phenomenon of prophets and prophecy in contemporary Zimbabwe. By applying insights from biblical studies and other approaches, the volume sheds light on how this contentious phenomenon has been discussed in the Zimbabwean context. The different chapters highlight the role of the Bible, gender, media, literature and other perspectives have influenced attitudes towards prophets and prophecy in Zimbabwe. While the phenomenon has been principally associated with the new wave of Pentecostalism, it remains critical to appreciate pre-existing attitudes towards prophets from African Initiated Churches (AICs), as well as traditional healers in African Indigenous Religions (AIRs). Contributors to this volume have explored the complexities that characterize prophets and prophecy. The volume is of interest to scholars in biblical studies, theology, religious studies, political science, anthropology, philosophy and other disciplines. General readers, church leaders and civil society activists will also find the chapters in this volume valuable

From Text to Practice - The role of the Bible in daily living of African people today

That the Bible is a manual for daily living is attested in almost all Christian denominations, how this role is transformed into practice is clearly an area that remains a contested terrain among Christians. This volume is our modest contribution to looking at the relationship between the Bible and our practices. The central question that the articles in this volume respond to is: how is the Bible related to our daily life? This question is especially important on the African continent where religion appears to be gaining influence. Without taking anything away from western biblical scholars, African biblical scholars must also engage with the question: how do we put into practice the teachings of the Bible? This volume contains papers presented at the International Bible Symposium 2009 in Bamberg (Germany) and additional contributions

Homosexuality, politics and Pentecostal nationalism in Zambia

Building upon debates about the politics of nationalism and sexuality in post-colonial Africa, this article highlights the role of religion in shaping nationalist ideologies that seek to regulate homosexuality. It specifically focuses on Pentecostal Christianity in Zambia, where the constitutional declaration of Zambia as a Christian nation has given rise to a form of ‘Pentecostal nationalism’ in which homosexuality is considered to be a threat to the purity of the nation and is associated with the Devil. The article offers an analysis of recent Zambian public debates about homosexuality, focusing on the ways in which the ‘Christian nation’ argument is deployed, primarily in a discourse of anti-homonationalism, but also by a few recent dissident voices. The latter prevent Zambia, and Christianity, from accruing a monolithic depiction as homophobic. Showing that the Zambian case presents a mobilisation against homosexuality that is profoundly shaped by the local configuration in which Christianity defines national identity – and in which Pentecostal-Christian moral concerns and theo-political imaginations shape public debates and politics – the article nuances arguments that explain African controversies regarding homosexuality in terms of exported American culture wars, proposing an alternative reading of these controversies as emerging from conflicting visions of modernity in Africa