A Christian Expression of African Spirituality: The Case Study of Three African Initiated Churches in Ghana
Ernestina Afriyie
Issue: Vol.9 No.6 June 2023 Issue Article 3 pp. 221-237
DOI : https://doi.org/10.38159/erats.2023963 | Published online 20th June 2023.
© 2023 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
There is a view that African Instituted Churches (AICs) are Christian churches with a spirituality which is similar to traditional spirituality. Scholars have claimed that AICs came up as a response to the spirituality of the churches started by missionaries from the West. The latter churches seemed to ignore the spiritual world, the activities of the Spirit and also the fact that physical occurrences have spiritual causes. As such, the spiritual needs of African converts were not being met. In research to ascertain the validity of this assertion, this researcher looks into the circumstances surrounding the founding of AICs in Ghana, paying particular attention to the Church of the Twelve Apostles, the OSSAH-Madih Church, and the Musama Disco Christo Church. The research was done through participant observations in the AICs mentioned. Secondary data was gathered from articles, books and other research materials written by members of AICs. The research concluded that while some AICs may have started as a reaction to the operation of the mission churches, the spirituality expressed is not a “copying” of African spirituality, but one that comes about with the awareness of the existence of the spiritual realm.
Keywords: Spirituality, African Instituted Churches (AICs), Zionist, Aladura, World View, African Traditional Religion (ATR)
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Rev. Dr. Ernestina Afriyie is currently a Lecturer at the Trinity Theological Seminary, Legon, Accra, Ghana. Her research focuses on African Christianity.
Afriyie, Ernestina. “A Christian Expression of African Spirituality: The Case Study of Three African Initiated Churches in Ghana,” E-Journal of Religious and Theological Studies, 9 no.6 (2023): 221-237. https://doi.org/10.38159/erats.2023963
© 2023 The Author(s). Published and Maintained by Noyam Journals. This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
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