A History of Development of Medical Missions and Catholic Evangelization in Sub-Saharan Africa From the Early Twentieth Century to the Present: Tracing Some Representative Founders and Orders in the Context of the Twentieth Century Church

2021 ◽  
pp. 002436392110245
Author(s):  
Ellen M. Dailor
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Fourth Century ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Medical Missions ◽  
Religious Orders ◽  
Catholic Health Care ◽  
History Of ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The Church

Although the care of the sick has been a charism of Catholic community since the beginning, and hospitals as we know them have developed since the fourth century, religious orders began to develop hospitals as part of their mission work during the colonial expansion of the seventeenth century. These early efforts, however, were primarily a response to the needs of the colonists as well as recognition that the poor who were sick required care in these regions. It can be argued that medical missions developed during the twentieth century as a response to the outreach of Protestants as well as the exposure of physicians to the needs in mission territories, and that their advancement and success impacted the attitudes of the popes and bishops of the twentieth century. This article examines several individuals and organizations who have contributed to the development of medical missions in Africa in modern times and trace the approach of the Church toward medical missions by exploring missionary religious orders, especially women’s religious orders, and papal and council documents. It primarily considers the role of medical missions in areas that had only a limited Catholic presence prior to nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and where Catholic health care and the local Catholic Church essentially developed together, and considers ways in which the growth of medical missions and the thinking of the Church developed together.

Conclusion

2019 ◽  
pp. 357-366
Author(s):  
Brian Stanley
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
First Century ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Christian Faith ◽  
Cultural Perspectives ◽  
History Of ◽  
Twenty First Century ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The Church ◽  
Northern And Southern Hemispheres

This concluding chapter argues that the twentieth century was indeed a period of extraordinary and sustained Christian growth in sub-Saharan Africa and parts of Asia. Yet it also witnessed a serious recession from Christian faith in most of Europe, Australasia, and parts of North America; the continuance and even intensification of serious obstacles to the progress of Christianity in the Islamic world and in most of India; and an accelerating and tragic exodus of Christians from those parts of West Asia and the Middle East that had once constituted the heartlands of Christianity. In some of its manifestations that have become increasingly prominent since the 1980s, the fabric of Christian doctrine and spirituality has been so fundamentally redesigned in the interests of the pursuit of individual material prosperity that the question becomes whether Christianity has converted indigenous religionists or whether indigenous religious and cultural perspectives have succeeded in converting Christianity. The Christian history of the twenty-first century may provide an answer. If the gravest challenge faced by Christianity in the twentieth century was the repeated subversion of Christian ethics by a series of tragic compromises between Christianity and ideologies of racial supremacy, the most serious challenge confronting the religion in the twenty-first century looks likely to be the preparedness of some sections of the church in both northern and southern hemispheres to accommodate the faith to ideologies of individual enrichment.

Past Belief

2019 ◽  
pp. 13-40
Author(s):  
Anthony Grafton
Keyword(s):  
Early Modern ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Saint Augustine ◽  
Fourth Century ◽  
Early History ◽  
Ecclesiastical History ◽  
Royal Road ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Church

This chapter examines the centrality of early modern ecclesiastical history, written by Catholics as well as Protestants, in the refinement of research techniques and practices anticipatory of modern scholarship. To Christians of all varieties, getting the Church's early history right mattered. Eusebius's fourth-century history of the Church opened a royal road into the subject, but he made mistakes, and it was important to be able to ferret them out. Saint Augustine was recognized as a sure-footed guide to the truth about the Church's original and bedrock beliefs, but some of the Saint's writings were spurious, and it was important to be able to separate the wheat from the chaff. To distinguish true belief from false, teams of religious scholars gathered documents; the documents in turn were subjected to skeptical scrutiny and philological critique; and sources were compared and cited. The practices of humanistic scholarship, it turns out, came from within the Catholic Church itself as it examined its own past.

MEROE AND THE SUDANIC KINGDOMS

1998 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
pp. 175-193 ◽  
Author(s):  
DAVID N. EDWARDS
Keyword(s):  
Early Development ◽  
Fourth Century ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Nile Valley ◽  
Early States ◽  
Political Complexity ◽  
Research Areas ◽  
History Of ◽  
Sub Saharan

The kingdom of Kush (Meroe) represents one of a series of early states located within the Middle Nile. At its greatest extent controlling more than 1,000 km. of the Nile valley from northern Lower Nubia to Sennar on the Blue Nile, its scale, longevity and cultural achievements are remarkable (Fig. 1). While its origins in the early millennium b.c. and its demise around the fourth century a.d. still remain obscure, it is one of the earliest and most impressive states yet found south of the Sahara. This notwithstanding, the place of the Kushite state and its civilization within the history of sub-Saharan Africa remains far from clear.The early development of complex societies in the Middle Nile within the frontiers of the modern republic of Sudan raises many questions concerning the role of external influences and cultural contacts on the region. The ever present shadow of Pharaonic Egypt looms large in most studies, and very close links are still maintained between Meroitic (and Nubian) studies and Egyptology. One result of the undoubted Egyptocentrism which has for so long dominated research in the region has been the neglect of many research areas likely to be of interest to archaeologists and historians working elsewhere in Africa. The political structuring and organisation of power within the Kushite state still remain little studied, while little interest has been shown in trying to contextualize it, either in relation to later kingdoms of the Middle Nile or indeed in the history of state development in Sudanic Africa as a whole. All too often it seems still implied, if not explicitly stated, that the early development of social/political complexity in the region, with the rise of Kerma, Napata and Meroe and their attendant cultural achievements, may be largely explained by, and understood in terms of, Egyptian models: ‘secondary states’ on the margins of a great civilization, unique within, and effectively unconnected with, other regions of sub-Saharan Africa.The concern of this paper is briefly to reassess a number of questions concerning our perceptions of the Kushite state, which also have implications for our understanding of the long-term history of early states within the Middle Nile and their relation to other parts of Sudanic Africa.

‘To Suffer Grief in All Kinds of Trials’: Persecution and Martyrdom in the African Church in the Twentieth Century

1993 ◽  
Vol 30 ◽  
pp. 465-482
Author(s):  
David Killingray
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Authoritarian Regimes ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Good Case ◽  
The World ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The Church

There is a good case for regarding the twentieth century as the century of Christian persecution and martyrdom. Both individual Christians, as well as the Church as a whole, have suffered severely at the hands of authoritarian regimes in Europe and Asia and also from institutional and state hostility in all but a few areas of the world. The Church has invariably been divided and split in its reactions to these pressures. This paper focuses upon the experience of Christians in sub-Saharan Africa where the Church has grown very rapidly in size and significance this century, most notably since the 1940s.

Christianity in the Twentieth Century

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Stanley
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Racial Identity ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Central Importance ◽  
Regional Survey ◽  
History Of Christianity ◽  
The World ◽  
History Of ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Different Parts

This book charts the transformation of one of the world's great religions during an age marked by world wars, genocide, nationalism, decolonization, and powerful ideological currents, many of them hostile to Christianity. The book traces how Christianity evolved from a religion defined by the culture and politics of Europe to the expanding polycentric and multicultural faith it is today—one whose growing popular support is strongest in sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, China, and other parts of Asia. The book sheds critical light on themes of central importance for understanding the global contours of modern Christianity, illustrating each one with contrasting case studies, usually taken from different parts of the world. Unlike other books on world Christianity, this one is not a regional survey or chronological narrative, nor does it focus on theology or ecclesiastical institutions. The book provides a history of Christianity as a popular faith experienced and lived by its adherents, telling a compelling and multifaceted story of Christendom's fortunes in Europe, North America, and across the rest of the globe. It demonstrates how Christianity has had less to fear from the onslaughts of secularism than from the readiness of Christians themselves to accommodate their faith to ideologies that privilege racial identity or radical individualism.

ZAANGAŻOWANIA KOŚCIOŁA KATOLICKIEGO NA RZECZ MIGRANTÓW – PRZESŁANKI DOKTRYNALNO-PRAWNE

2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (`1) ◽  
pp. 49-68
Author(s):  
Piotr Wojnicz
Keyword(s):  
Pastoral Care ◽  
Social Integration ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Primary Objective ◽  
Human Migration ◽  
Religious Orders ◽  
Important Thing ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Catholic Church

The Catholic Church is naturally associated with migrants and its history and doctrine areinextricably linked with the migration of people. Many of the documents of the Catholic Church referto the history of human migration. The responsibility of the Catholic Church for migrants has deephistorical and theological roots. The Catholic Church sees both the positive and the negative sidesof this phenomenon The pastoral care of migrants is a response to the needs of these people. It doesnot replace the territorial structures. They both work closely together and complement each other.The primary objective of the pastoral care of migrants is to enable migrants to integrate with thelocal community. An important element of these structures are religious orders of men and women.The most important thing for migrants is the Christian attitude of the local community tothem. Church repeatedly stressed the importance of hospitality to migrants. Both human andChristian attitude towards migrants expresses itself in a good reception, which is the main factorin overcoming the inevitable difficulties, preventing opposites and solving various problems. Thisattitude helps to alleviate the problems associated with the process of social integration.

PRZEŚLADOWANIA KOŚCIOŁA KATOLICKIEGO NA ZIEMIACH POLSKICH W DOBIE POWSTANIA STYCZNIOWEGO W ŚWIETLE RAPORTU KONSULATU FRANCJI W WARSZAWIE Z 1869 ROKU

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 67-88
Author(s):  
Jacek Wojda
Keyword(s):  
Catholic Church ◽  
Political Repression ◽  
Hard Time ◽  
Church And Society ◽  
History Of ◽  
Difficult Position ◽  
Apostolic See ◽  
Xix Century ◽  
The Church ◽  
The Catholic Church

Seventieth of XIX century were very hard time for Catholic Church in Polish Kingdom. Mainreason was aim for independency in Poles’ hearts. Deeply connected with polish nation, Churchsuffered because of Tsar’ political repression. Although different stages of its history are not closelyconnected with post uprising’s repressions.Report of French General Consulate in Warsaw bearing a date 1869 stress accent on samekind of the Catholic Church persecutions, which were undertaken against bishops and dioceseadministrators, and some of them were died during deportation on Siberia, north or south Russia.Hierarchy was put in a difficult position. They had to choose or to subordinate so called Rome CatholicSpiritual Council in Petersburg or stay by the Apostolic See side. Bishop Konstanty Łubieński isacknowledged as the first Victim of that repressions.Outlook upon history of persecutions, which is presented, shows not only Church but pointsout harmful consequences Russia’s politics in the Church and society of the Polish Kingdom. Citedarchival source lets us know way of looking and analysing history during 1861−1869 by Frenchdiplomats.

scholarly journals Demography of Anglicans in Sub-Saharan Africa: Estimating the Population of Anglicans in Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania and Uganda

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 42-60
Author(s):  
Andrew McKinnon
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Population Growth ◽  
Absolute Number ◽  
Statistical Estimate ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The Church

AbstractThere is an emerging debate about the growth of Anglicanism in sub-Saharan Africa. With this debate in mind, this paper uses four statistically representative surveys of sub-Saharan Africa to estimate the relative and absolute number who identify as Anglican in five countries: Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania and Uganda. The results for Kenya, South Africa and Tanzania are broadly consistent with previous scholarly assessments. The findings on Nigeria and Uganda, the two largest provinces, are likely to be more controversial. The evidence from statistically representative surveys finds that the claims often made of the Church of Nigeria consisting of ‘over 18 million’ exceedingly unlikely; the best statistical estimate is that under 8 million Nigerians identify as Anglican. The evidence presented here shows that Uganda (rather than Nigeria) has the strongest claim to being the largest province in Africa in terms of those who identify as Anglican, and is larger than is usually assumed. Evidence from the Ugandan Census of Populations and Households, however, also suggests the proportion of Ugandans that identify as Anglican is in decline, even if absolute numbers have been growing, driven by population growth.

Institutionalization and Evangelization in the Argentine Church: Córdoba Under Zenón Bustos, 1905-1919

1989 ◽  
Vol 45 (3) ◽  
pp. 363-381
Author(s):  
Arthur R. Liebscher
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Pastoral Care ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Central City ◽  
Religious Institutions ◽  
The People ◽  
National Leadership ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Church

To the dismay of today's social progressives, the Argentine Catholic church addresses the moral situation of its people but also shies away from specific political positions or other hint of secular involvement. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the church set out to secure its place in national leadership by strengthening religious institutions and withdrawing clergy from politics. The church struggled to overcome a heritage of organizational weakness in order to promote evangelization, that is, to extend its spiritual influence within Argentina. The bishop of the central city of Córdoba, Franciscan Friar Zenón Bustos y Ferreyra (1905-1925), reinforced pastoral care, catechesis, and education. After 1912, as politics became more heated, Bustos insisted that priests abstain from partisan activities and dedicate themselves to ministry. The church casts itself in the role of national guardian, not of the government, but of the faith and morals of the people.

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