Abstract
Christian mission in African context, especially in the post-colonial era, can no longer afford to turn a blind eye to the fact that it co-exists with the African traditional religion(s). This article deals with the creative tension that exists between Christian mission and African worldview(s) in the area of life after death. In this article we presuppose more than a mere dialogue between ideas or individuals or denominations, but the encounter of different praxes. This article concludes that the dead in the worldviews are not dead; they continue to live in a different form and they continue to speak from the grave even though their praxes differ.
Highlights
There is no dead-end to human life
While we acknowledge this commonality among many religions in the world, we explore in a comparative way the encounter between the African and Christian worldviews notwithstanding different praxis that exists within these worldviews
Children are not important in the two worldviews with regard to death, life after death and ancestry; a male child is appreciated in the African traditional religion (ATR) for selfish purposes whilst the Christian faith completely excludes children from fellowship except for those who administer infant baptism
Summary
There is no dead-end to human life. The notion of life after death is embraced by many religious communities in the world. African communities have wrestled with these questions and have developed ideas, myths and rituals to deal with them These questions remain relevant today in a generation where a substantial number of African Christians, when faced with crises, turn to their ancestors rather than to Christ as the first instance of appeal (Nürnberger 2007:68). This article is an attempt to open a door for further engagement as far as life after death is concerned within the above-mentioned worldviews It seeks to answer the questions: How can Christian churches in mission, in their encounter with the adherents of ATR(s) or African Religion (AR) on the question of life after death and ancestry, tap into the indigenous knowledge system?
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