Africa's Educated Evangelicals, Discernment, and the Disconnect
http://www.yesumulungi.com/index.php/commentaries/429-africas-educated-evangelicals-discernment-and-the-disconnect-.html
Kato Mivule | August 16, 2010
While we have repeated what I am writing in this article a number of times, I felt compelled once again to cast this reminder on the need for discernment to Christians everywhere, especially in Africa, where a growth of Africa's middle class, combined with unemployment, poverty, and corruption have not left the African Church untouched.
There is so much going on in Christendom that we could just devote every 24 hour effort exposing what the fallacies and outright evil behavior of so-called Men of God going on in many of our Evangelical Churches. There is an outright attack on New Testament Christianity sanctioned by none other than the Christians themselves.
From the the recent TBN TV scandals of Benny Hinn and Paula White, to the continual gospel of greed preached in many of African Evangelical Churches, Christians are partly to blame for allowing themselves to be used and exploited by pseudo preachers and pseudo pastors who care about nothing but only money, fame, and building personal kingdoms.
What is astonishing is the number of young and well educated young Africans who are giving into the pseudo gospel. While literacy rates might still be low, overall in Africa, there is a higher literacy rate among Africa's Middle Class and young generation than say 50 years ago. This is what shocks the most, why is it that Africa's Evangelical most brightest still buy into a gospel that they know contradicts with New Testament scriptures?
Take for instance Uganda as a test case, Uganda has one of the highest literacy rates among adults in Africa at 74 percent according to UNICEF. [3]. When the statistics are further broken down, Uganda even offers more compared to other African Nations, between the ages of 15 to 24, UNICEF reports as of 2008 that 88 and 84 percent are literate among girls and boys respectively.[3] This is an astonishing figure, yet this same population that makes up most of Africa's current middle class will not exercise any discernment, critical thought and proper judgment, skills taught in most of Africa's major Universities.
African Literacy
Image Source: www.huebler.blogspot.com
African Education
Image Source: www.huebler.blogspot.com
According to CIA's Fact Book, for instance, almost 48 percent of Uganda's population is between the ages 15-64 years. [1]This accounts for the most able, intelligent, educated, and and most technologically connected generation. Yet it is this same generation that will not research or even test what they receive from preachers and pastors to see if it tallies with New Testament teachings.
A visit to Uganda's largest mega churches will reveal this phenomenon. Most of the population in Robert Kayanja's Church is young, below 45 years of age, most attend, or have attended Uganda's most famous institutions of higher learning. Most do work for good companies, like Telecommunication companies, etc, basically enjoying an African standard middle class. The same is true with say Pastor Jackson Ssenyonga's Church, Pastor Sserwada, and many of the other Pastors in Kampala, Uganda.
Where is the intelligence and at least the exercise of simple discernment from this young educated African generation? Where is all the critical thinking, analysis, and attention to detail that this young African Educated population attained from Africa's prestigious Universities? How is it that Prosperity Gospel preachers take advantage of Africa's brightest? How is it that corrupted politicians are able to exploit young African Evangelicals for their own political gains?
In Nigeria for example, most of the youth are educated far beyond their counterparts in other African countries. In Nigeria at least each State in the Federation has a University and despite the education, still thousands of educated young intelligent Nigerians flock the Churches of pseudo preachers and pseudo pastors. Why is it that there seems to be a disconnect between educated young Evangelicals and discernment, critical thought, and sound judgment in Africa?
However, not all is dark and gloomy, there seems to be an opening, the tide is beginning to change despite the influence that pseudo preachers and pastors yield over Africa's young educated population. True Christianity is based on Teachings, Doctrine, and Lifestyle as laid out in the New Testament. This alone has been a source of contradictions for the “Men of God” as they continuously live lifestyles and teach doctrines that contradict New Testament Christianity.
It is not that we rejoice and muse in the scandals and 'falling down' of the “Men of God”, rather we mourn and sorrow over the abuse and disrepute they bring to the Name of The Lord. However, we also take this moment to utilize this 'opening' to declare the truth by The Lord's Grace and tell our fellow Christians who are still caught up in the Prosperity Gospel, Dominion-ism Gospel, Christian Politics, etc that the New Testament Teachings are true and contradict what many pseudo preachers have had to offer.
Thank God for Technology and the free flow of information while it still lasts. While Information Technology comes with its cons, the pros could be utilized in putting out the truth and countering the lies of the pseudo gospel, such as the prosperity gospel, Christian Political Gospel, Dominion-ism, etc. Technology still remains a good tool to freely Teach and Instruct Christians in what the New Testament says about the Christian Faith, reaching across the globe.
Yet still there is still a lot of misinformation out there on the web that Christians must take great precaution in what they read and engage in online. The New Testament should be used as a basis for testing whatever folks put out there. Always question if what someone is teaching or saying tallies up to what the Whole Counsel of God Teaches concerning any subject or topic in the New Testament.
Proverbs 2:1-15 ASV My son, if thou wilt receive my words, And lay up my commandments with thee; (2) So as to incline thine ear unto wisdom, And apply thy heart to understanding; (3) Yea, if thou cry after discernment, And lift up thy voice for understanding; (4) If thou seek her as silver, And search for her as for hid treasures: (5) Then shalt thou understand the fear of Jehovah, And find the knowledge of God. (6) For Jehovah giveth wisdom; Out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding: (7) He layeth up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to them that walk in integrity; (8) That he may guard the paths of justice, And preserve the way of his saints. (9) Then shalt thou understand righteousness and justice, And equity, yea, every good path. (10) For wisdom shall enter into thy heart, And knowledge shall be pleasant unto thy soul; (11) Discretion shall watch over thee; Understanding shall keep thee: (12) To deliver thee from the way of evil, From the men that speak perverse things; (13) Who forsake the paths of uprightness, To walk in the ways of darkness; (14) Who rejoice to do evil, And delight in the perverseness of evil; (15) Who are crooked in their ways, And wayward in their paths:
The need for discernment, critical thought, reason, and sound judgment have never been greater, and it is a call that Africa's young and learned Evangelicals must take on seriously to fight the rampant corruption in Evangelical circles and perhaps offer hope for morals and ethics across Africa corrupt landscape. Believing in Jesus Christ and being a Christian does not in anyway mean throwing off all discernment, critical thought, reason, and sound judgment, rather one begins to fully utilize such God given gifts of reason.
Kato Mivule
Notes
[1] CIA World Fact Book, Uganda
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ug.html
[2] Friedrich Huebler, International Education Statistics
http://huebler.blogspot.com/2008/05/literacy.html
[3] UNICEF, Statistics on Uganda
http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/uganda_statistics.html
74 per cent Total adult literacy rate (%), 2003–2008*; 88 per cent Youth (15–24 years) literacy rate, 2003–2007*, male; 84 per cent Youth (15–24 years) literacy rate, 2003–2007*, female.
