Abstract
African Initiated Churches (AICs) are not yet recognised as relevant actors of community development interventions. While it has been acknowledged that many of them provide coping mechanisms in adverse environments, support in social transformation and social capital, little information is available on their role as development actors. In this article, we evaluate the potential of AICs as partners of international development agencies for community development. We draw on interviews and focus group discussions with leaders of various AICs conducted in South Africa in February and March 2016. In particular, we examine the churches’ understanding of development, their view on the separation of spiritual and development activities and their priorities. Moreover, we outline the development activities which they are currently engaged in and analyse the structures they have in place to do so. Our findings indicate that AICs are increasingly active in community development and offer various entry points for possible cooperation.
Highlights
In the past years there has been a growing interest in the relation between religion and development
African Initiated Churches (AICs) provide multiple mechanisms of dealing with the challenges people experience in their daily lives
AICs offer a platform to reach a high number of people, they know the needs of the communities, and they have already started engaging in development activities they know to be relevant for the communities
Summary
In the past years there has been a growing interest in the relation between religion and development. It is precisely because they see the person as a whole and include the spiritual dimension as part of development in order ‘to change the whole person’ (as one church leader noted) that their activities bear the potential to yield great sustainable impact in the long-term. We conclude that international development agencies should engage with AICs. Such cooperation can be of high mutual benefit.
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