Comparative Analysis of the State of Religious Pluralism between Intertestamental Palestine and Post-Apartheid South Africa

Religious pluralism has characterized societies since time immemorial and has been one of the sources of conflict in many societies. This article compares how religious pluralism was handled in intertestamental Palestine and the manner it is managed in post-apartheid South Africa. The study used academic literature which applied the Apocrypha to describe the religious context of Palestine between 336 BC and 63 BC. The themes that emerged from this analysis were then used to source academic literature that describes the religious context of South Africa from 1994 to 2021. This process led to the synthesis of the similarities and differences of the two contexts. The findings latently reveal the contribution of the Apocrypha to theological reflection while simultaneously showing that the Roman Empire’s violent attempts to undermine religious pluralism in intertestamental Palestine bred counterviolence. The paper further reveals that post-apartheid South Africa’s use of legal instruments to promote religious pluralism seems to contribute to the optimization of religious freedom and peaceful co-existence. These findings are likely to contribute to the discourse of religious pluralism, interfaith dialogue, and intercultural communications. Keywords: Hellenism, Apocrypha, Religious Pluralism, Democracy

Examining Inter-disciplinary Commonalities in the Referents of I, We and You in Classroom Lecturer Talk

Studies have sought to establish the ‘territory of reference’ or ‘patterns of referentialities’ of I, we and you (tri-PP) in academic lectures across disciplinary supercommunities (DSs): Humanities, Social Sciences and Natural Sciences. These studies are largely from L1 context, and also report on only referents common to the three DSs, without giving attention to those at the interface of two DSs. This study, therefore, is the first attempt to examine the referents of the tri-PP at the interface of two DSs in academic lectures, using a corpus from the L2 context. A corpus of over one hundred thousand words was built for the study, and AntConc was used to search for the occurrences of the tri-PP. Drawing on the contexts and co-texts, the authors determined the referents of the tri-PP. It was found that across the tri-PP, some referents were shared by two DSs. The findings further deepen understanding of the ‘pointing’ role of personal pronouns in classroom lecturer talk and “degree of cross-disciplinary diversity…” Keywords: academic lectures, discourse referent, disciplinary variation, personal pronouns

Implications of Acts 1:8 for Ghanaian Neo-Pentecostal Missiology

The book of Acts is often referred to by many scholars and preachers when discussing Christian missions with emphasis on Acts 1:8 as the centrality of the book. Unfortunately, very little exegetical study is done on the text by scholars in relation to missions. It appears that Luke fails to provide a detailed blueprint strategies or approaches to the command for missions (witnessing) in the text. This article therefore considers Acts 1:8 exegetically to establish its missionary importance. In the light of this, the article assesses the mission strategies of the Early Church, Historic Missions and Neo-Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches in Ghana. The article contends that, a reflection on the current trend of Neo-Pentecostal/Charismatic approaches or strategies to missions in Ghana gives a valuable insight of a departure from the early missionary strategies in general. The article acknowledges that, the recent widespread involvement of Pentecostal and Charismatic churches in the use of radio, social media, television, open-air crusades, street evangelism, preaching in buses, prayer and prophetic meetings/conventions, medical outreach work and social welfare are ways to fulfill missions in the light of Acts 1:8. The article also highlights the need to broaden the understanding and task of Christian missions to meet the challenges of the recent changing Ghanaian Christian religious landscape. Keywords: Missions, Missiology, Neo-Pentecostal Churches, Early Church,Strategy, Book of Acts, Historic Churches.

Conversion Experience of Akan Christian Royals in Ghana

The study is an examination of the conversion challenges confronting Akan Christian Royals in Ghana. The Western missionaries and missionary established churches demand that as part of their conversion requirements, Akan Royals must reject and disassociate themselves from the Black Stool, ancestors and all ancestral related activities. The Royals who claim that their families have become Christian royal families insist that authority symbols like the Black Stools and ancestral ceremonies like the Adae do not take the place of the sovereignty of God and the Lordship of Christ in their belief system. Moreover, participation in Palace services prepares them for traditional leadership and does not take them away from their faith in Christ. The traditional leadership institutions and the Royals that welcomed the Western missionaries, provided them with hospitality, security and resources for the missionary work have come to be considered as unchristian and an anathema to the Christian faith. The position of the church has created tensions within Akan Christian Royal and put the genuineness of their conversion in doubt. The study which is qualitative in nature uses both primary and secondary methods in its information gathering. Its findings provide responses to some contemporary tensions in gospel and culture studies in African Christianity. Keywords: Akan Royals, Christian Conversion, Cultural Identity, Black Stool, Authority Symbols

Religious Functionalism: An Influential Tool for Harnessing Corruption in Ghana

One of the most influential and ever-expanding dimensions of almost every African society is religion. Every function political, legal, or economic, is intertwined with the ingredients of religion. In Ghana, it is socially, politically, and legally offensive to separate religion from communal exhibitions and, restrict it from individual performance. Amid the widely spread commitment to different religions by public officials, the reality of corruption alongside its destructive nature still infringes on the public administrative efficiency in Ghana. With regards to this submission, one question worth asking is, can religion, owing to its measurability, be operable in curbing corruption in a notoriously religious and corruption-spotted country like Ghana? In finding a response to this question, this paper argued that religious functionalism can be used as a practical tool in the fight against corruption in Ghana. Religious functionalism in its definitional postulation refers to activities that promote social integration, adhesive group formation, and social control that foster a moral framework that contributes to the development of a society. To achieve its objective and arrive at workable recommendations, the paper relied on library materials—drawing contents from the research papers relating to the subject matter. The paper recommended that in order to fight corruption in Ghana the functional dimensions of Christianity, Islam and African Traditional Religion should be emphasized. Specifically, the adherents of these religions owe a responsibility to their religious moral frameworks. If the Ghanaian society is ‘notoriously’ religious, it follows that religious functionalism is indispensable in the fight against corruption. Keywords: Functionalism, Corruption, Religion, Development.

Breaking the Ethnic Barrier in Mark 7:24-30: Implication for the Ghanaian Context

The study aims at interpreting Mark 7:24-30 to establish whether Jesus was initially reluctant in helping a needy woman because she was non-Jewish, or the author was establishing the gradual breaking of ethnic and all other barriers to redefine the scope of Jesus’ ministry. The study uses African Biblical Hermeneutic theory of Gerald West that allows a dialogue between the text and the African context. It argues that the text may be interpreted as a covenant renewal discourse aimed at including Gentiles into the covenant family. The study concludes that unproductive ethnic and religious barriers may be broken for the common good of God’s family. It recommends the importance of mutual respect in dialogue in the face of diversities of opinions and perspectives. Keywords: Ethnicity, Barriers, Covenant, Discourse.

An Impact Study of Hymnody on Selected Ghanaian Churches

This paper is an investigation of the efficacy of hymns and their impact on personality. The investigation was aimed at addressing ‘the problem of the relationship of hymnody and discipline, self-regulation which results in guarded behaviour reflecting in speech, personal appearance, and conduct within the Ghanaian society.’ The investigation was against the backdrop of the perception that hymnody influences devoted singers with the power to shape personality and bring about character transformation. The objective of the investigation was to spike the hymnody effect within society. The theory of personal transformation combined the qualitative design. The study consisted of a single question to determine the most predominant view about hymnody in hymn-singing churches in Accra and Kumasi. Findings indicated that 41% of 300 informants confirmed hymnody as powerful and transformative, but elitist and excluded the non-literate. Eurocentric and Afrocentric perspectives attended the analysis of Hymnody. The study concluded that hymnody is beneficial to mood and character change to stimulate the transformation of soul and mind, leading to the growth of the inner man as a function of discipline. Thus, a reference to the notions of pedagogy and discipline are underscored as transforming outcomes of devoted hymnody participation. The paper’s contribution to knowledge lies in its focus on the role of hymnody, a religious ritual, as catalyzing the development of the discipline ethic to engage the attention of the academy for further research. Keywords: Discipline, Ghana, Hymnody, Personality.

Oxymoronic Legalism in the Ghanaian Supreme Court? Case Comment on Attorney-General V Faroe Atlantic Co Ltd.

In 2005, the Supreme Court of Ghana in Attorney-General v Faroe Atlantic Co Ltd rendered its decision on the interpretation of Article 181(5) of the 1992 Constitution. The Court’s decision influenced its subsequent decisions in 2011 and 2012 on the scope and application of Article 181(5). This Case Comment reveals that the Court’s interpretation in relation to the PPA in question was oxymoronic in that it simultaneously held the PPA as both valid and void. The author argues that the Court would have rendered a clearer and fairer decision if it had wholly interpreted Article 181. Its partial interpretation, needless bureaucratic judicial process, and the Government’s lack of due diligence are disincentives to private investment in Ghana’s power sector. Keywords: Ghana, PPA, investment dispute, interpretation, illegal contract, power crisis, power sector investment.

Evil and Meaningful Existence: A Humanistic Response through the Lens of Classical Theism

This study modestly proposes a humanistic response as supplementary to classical theism in addressing concrete cases of gratuitous human suffering. Classical theism places evil in God’s divine plan of salvation for humanity. There is thus a good reason behind human suffering. However, there are times when suffering is so intense and dehumanising that any attempt to justify it in terms of God’s love for humanity fails to make sense in the lives of most people. It is at this point that a humanistic response, coupled with spiritual guidance, becomes relevant. A humanistic response expresses itself through an African ethical theory and practice known as Ubuntu. It pivots on key human values such as love, compassion, trust, consideration, dialogue, forgiveness, solidarity, justice as equity, etc. It is in a spirit of togetherness that most existential challenges can be squarely faced to make human life more meaningful. Ultimately, a humanistic response recommends a change of attitude towards human suffering. Suffering should be seen as part of what it means to Be in this finite world, and that it is in one’s struggle towards the heights that one finds a sense in living. Keywords: Evil, Classical Theism, Humanistic Response (Ubuntu), Attitudinal Change.

Carrying the War against COVID-19 into Ghanaian Communities: The Case of the Akan Community

Ghana is seriously reeling under the weight of the scourge of the COVID-19; while the scientists are doing their best to provide information concerning the dos and don’ts of the disease, its communication to the people has been a huge problem. This paper uses the qualitative research approach and the Performance and Communication theories to investigate this challenge. The study isolates the Akan communities for this investigation and argues that the Ghana COVID-19 communication uses too many elitist approaches and the local language is rarely used. Again, the paper establishes that the communication falls short of considering the Akans as oral thinkers and completely ignores their ideological identities as a group of people who rely on oral structures in language and morality. The paper further observes that the COVID-19 communication in Ghana fails to recognize the subtle creative processes of translating concepts in English into Akan due to the influence of the contexts of contact. These challenges have resulted in minimum or complete lack of cooperation by Akan communities thus throwing the whole COVID-19 campaign into jeopardy. The paper recommends that the COVID-19 communication should reconfigure its approach to reach the Akan communities. KEYWORDS: COVID-19, Akan communities, Akan moral thought, communication and cultural shareability, Ghana.