Faith, Spirituality, and Praxis Exploring Dynamics in African Grassroots Theologies and Churches

Theme 1 Foundations and Evolution of African Theologies

1. Introduction—Faith, Spirituality, and Praxis: Dynamics in African Grassroots Theologies and Churches

2. Unraveling the Roots and Theological Evolution of African Initiated Churches

3. African Grassroots Ministry and Praxis: A Study of the Life and Contextual Ministry Approaches of Prophetess Agnes Amanye Okoh and the Christ Holy Church International

4. African Indigenous Methods for Christian Mission and Theology in Contemporary Africa

5. The Role of Water in the Gospel of John and Its Echo in Prophetic Ministries in Africa: A Socio‑Rhetorical Interpretation

6. Nigeria’s Neo‑Pentecostals’ Religious Creativity and Innovations through the Lens of Indigenous Ontology in the Development of Grassroot Theologies

7. Faith and Spirituality as Knowing, Being, and Doing in Nigerian Pentecostalism

8. Reconnoitering Sierra Leone Christians’ Theological Perspective of "Na So God Want": A Contextual Grassroots Interpretation of 1 Thessalonians 5:18

9. Grassroots Theological Praxis and Socio‑Economic Contributions: A Case of the Saviour Church of Ghana

10. Faith at the Frontiers of Poverty: A Study of the Grassroots Praxis of United Church of Christ Communities in Southeastern Zimbabwe

11. Protest Theology: A Hope to Fight Injustices in Zimbabwe’s Socio‑Political Context

12. ‘Iyi Na Wɔdze Frɛ Sunsum’: Spiritism and Musical Healing in the Twelve Apostles Church in Ghana

13. Grassroots Theologies: Exploring Theological Themes in Selected Ghanaian Secular Music

14. Bethel: Constructing African Christian Theologies and Identities in the Diaspora

15. The Integration of the African Philosophy of Ubuntu into John Wesley’s Theology of Social Holiness in the Methodist Church of Southern Africa (MCSA): A Black African Perspective

16. From Reformed Roots to Charismatic Renewal: An Exploration of the Shift in Theology and Spirituality in the CCAP Synod of Livingstonia

17. Unity of God Amidst Diversity: Navigating Sangomaism in South Africa’s Multireligious Tapestry

18. Divine Interfaces: A Comparative Study of the Concept of God in Christian and Traditional Mende and Temne Beliefs in Sierra Leone

Biography

Peter White is an Associate Professor within Stellenbosch University’s Faculty of Theology, South Africa. His research specializes in analysis into the complex relationship between African Pentecostalism, Mission, religious practices, cultural dynamics, and socio‑economic development across the African continent.

"Great strides have been taken during the last 50 years in the production of academic Christian theology in Africa. This, however, represents only a tiny fraction of the theologizing that is taking place on the continent. A far larger part is found in unwritten forms at the grassroots – which is where this groundbreaking book will take you. Tracing the contextual, cultural, societal, inter-religious, and existential dynamics that are shaping African Christianity today, it offers a deeply textured account of a profound movement of faith. Scholars from across southern and western Africa have come together to create a kaleidoscopic collection that sheds light from many angles on the lived experience of Christianity that is found at the heart of innumerable African communities today. If you aim to understand contemporary Africa and/or contemporary Christianity, you will not want to miss this book."

Kenneth R. Ross,

Professor of Theology and Dean of Postgraduate Studies, Zomba Theological University, Malawi

"African Christian Spirituality is the understudied side of African Christian Theology. This book bridges that chasm between theology as a grassroots endeavor and the expressions of implicit, spontaneous, or oral spirituality, through the activities of the indigenous pneumatic churches that have shaped what counts as Christian in religious Africa. The book teaches us that we cannot understand spirituality from an African perspective without looking at it from the perspective of the ordinary Christians who express it in church and live it out in the public sphere."

Johnson Kwabena Asamoah-Gyadu,

Baeta-Grau Professor of African Christianity and Pentecostal Theology, Trinity Theological Seminary, Legon, Accra, Ghana

"Faith and spirituality blossom in Africa. In this fascinating contribution, Professor Peter White brings together some of the brightest African minds in the fields of religion and Christianity to explore the faith, spirituality, and praxis of African Christians. The research provides valuable insights into the indigenous theologies of African Christians. Important themes include African Initiated Churches (AICs), black theology movements, and liberation theology movements. The various contributions succeed in offering an exhaustive exploration of African grassroots theologies. The emphasis on lived religion and the practical dimensions of African churches adds to the value of this important resource for scholars, theologians, and practitioners. With appreciation for a great book!"

Nelus Niemandt,

Rector Hugenote Kollege, Wellington, South Africa, and Emeritus Professor in Missiology, Faculty of Theology, University of Pretoria

"This book has certain triune beauty. It is a union of history, theology, and social ethics in the study of African Christianity. The aesthetic feature of its scholarship is rooted in grassroots theology of African churches. The contributors with an unrelenting excellence and unbridled intellectual stimulation have given us a volume that takes seriously the lived experiences of faith in Africa’s ecclesia communities. This brilliant book should occupy a lofty place in our theological libraries.

This book has certain triune beauty. It is a union of history, theology, and social ethics in the study of African Christianity. The aesthetic feature of its scholarship is rooted in grassroots theology of African churches. The contributors with an unrelenting excellence and unbridled intellectual stimulation have given us a volume that takes seriously the lived experiences of faith in Africa’s ecclesia communities. This brilliant book should occupy a lofty place in our theological libraries."

Nimi Wariboko,

Walter G. Muelder Professor of Social Ethics, Boston University, USA

"Peter White and his contributors creatively reignite African theology by structuring its study around faith, spirituality, and praxis; anchoring theological study in thematics that address the evolution of theology in Africa, the grassroots and social impact of theology, spirituality, healing, music, identity, culture, comparative, and interfaith studies. These themes compel a reinterpretation of African theology by a new generation of theologians that must now re-imagine theology in a contested, complex, and challenging postcoloniality where citizens yearn for a rejuvenation of an ecclesial praxis that is grounded on a rigorous theological imagination and praxis."

Elias Kifon Bongmba,

Harry and Hazel Chavanne Chair in Christian Theology and Professor of Religion, Rice University, USA

Peter White and the other contributors toFaith, Spirituality and Praxis present a tapestry of African grassroots theologies that testify to the of the lived experiences (praxis) of African Christians in different parts of Africa. Their reflections on grassroots African theologies from the perspectives of the Bible, the continued legacies of missionary Christianity in the present, and the possibilities such theologizing holds for faith and spirituality in the future helps to bridge the distance between indigenous knowledges and so-called formal Western education by their appreciation for the wisdom embedded in the diverse local African contexts. The book also engages critically with dehumanizing beliefs and practices that undermine the dignity and value of African Christians.

Daniel Andrew, African Christian Theology, Vol. 2, No. 2 (2025). Full review available here.