The article offers a reading of the parable of the good Samaritan from the perspective of the Gre... more The article offers a reading of the parable of the good Samaritan from the perspective of the Greco-Roman progymnastic exercise of syncrisis. It argues that in its original context, Jesus’s representation of the good Samaritan as a moral examplar, vis-à-vis the image of the priest and the Levite, was critical to the realisation of social harmony and camaraderie among the socially differentiated members of Christ-groups. By introducing the term “neighbour” into the fictive language of the early Christian movement, the parable challenged both Jewish exclusive understanding of neighbour and the system of kinship and reciprocity that characterised Greco-Roman social relations. Through this analysis, the article presents new dimensions to the interpretation of the parable of the good Samaritan.
The Bible, Quran, and COVID-19 Vaccines : Studies on Religion-based Vaccine Perceptions (Africa – Europe – Middle East)
This volume of the BiAS/ ERA series chooses a multi-religious approach to the religio-cultural as... more This volume of the BiAS/ ERA series chooses a multi-religious approach to the religio-cultural aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the attempts to overcome it by vaccination. The book includes contributions focusing on African Traditional Religion, several branches of Christianity in Africa, and Islamic denominations. In contrast to other volumes, BiAS 37/ ERA 12 is not limited to a specific country – not even to the African continent. It gathers papers from the international and multi-religious workshop “COVID-19 and Religion” (November 2021, University of Bamberg) and some additional articles. The contributions to BiAS 37 focus on the vaccination debate. “Why should God, Scripture, and Church be against vaccination?” is the main question, and there are some indications that social and political factors that regulate the cultural application of religion might be more important for vaccinophobia than faith itself.
This essay is a critical reflection on Numbers 27:1-11 as a model for understanding God’s percept... more This essay is a critical reflection on Numbers 27:1-11 as a model for understanding God’s perception of rights justice toward the woman, especially a Malawian woman’s rights. It argues that Zelophehad’s daughter’s understanding of their covenantal status, their collective voice and a firm but non-confrontational approach to fighting patriarchy was instrumental to the success of their cause. This provides a paradigm for the women’s rights movement in Africa and Malawi in particular. Apart from adding a theological and biblical slant to the discourse on women’s rights in Malawi, the essay contributes to the development of an African theology of women’s rights.
The dissertation argues that the Sermon on the Plain is best interpreted from the perspective of ... more The dissertation argues that the Sermon on the Plain is best interpreted from the perspective of the Greco-Roman paradigm of praise and blame. In the first chapter, the dissertation outlines the historical challenges in the interpretation of the Sermon and proposes panegyric praise and blame as a plausible framework for its reading. In the second chapter, the thesis argues that Greco-Roman makarisms and woes have their context in praise and blame. The (established) affinities between Greco-Roman and Lucan makarisms and woes, therefore, provide a basis for interpreting the latter from the perspective of praise and blame. The third chapter takes up the analysis of the function of praise and blame in the Greco-Roman context. It argues that in the Greco-Roman world, panegyrics served, inter alia, in the integration of victors and the re-enforcement of community values. These core functions provide the methodological framework for the interpretation of the Sermon. In chapter 4 the thesis...
This article offers a reading of the parable of the Dishonest Steward from the perspective of Gre... more This article offers a reading of the parable of the Dishonest Steward from the perspective of Greco-Roman status concern. It observes that the parable has a long and complicated history of interpretation. The different approaches in the reading of the parable reveal the unresolved quest in scholarship to establish a reading of the parable that takes into account both the steward’s act of generosity towards his master’s debtors and the praise that follows this action. This article proposes the Greco-Roman status concern as a framework for understanding the meaning of the parable in its original context. Status concern was the spirit of tenacity in maintaining one’s status and honour against all odds characteristic of Greco-Roman honour and shame culture. The article argues that when the parable is read within its literary context, it reveals that at the heart of Jesus’ message in the parable is the theme of persistence as an attribute of authentic discipleship. This understanding of ...
The paper is an analysis of Jesus and human development in the gospel tradition. It argues that w... more The paper is an analysis of Jesus and human development in the gospel tradition. It argues that while human development is a modern term, Jesus’ life and work, death and resurrection represented an embodiment of the term in all its totality. Through conscientisation Jesus was able to both make the poor conscious of the human propensity to do wrong and influence masses and individuals to adopt new ways of looking at themselves and others. This transformed the circumstances of both the poor and the rich. Through this analysis the paper contributes to the body of knowledge on the relevance of Jesus’ message to human development. Key words : gospel tradition, Jesus, human development, conscientisation
This article argues that Luke’s characterisation of Zechariah and the other ordinary priests in A... more This article argues that Luke’s characterisation of Zechariah and the other ordinary priests in Acts 6:7 represents the most striking characterisation of the priesthood in the Gospels. This positive depiction, seen against the generally stereotypical image of chief priests in the Gospels, makes Zechariah’s image that of a model priest. Such characterisation demonstrates that despite Jewish hostility towards early Christianity, not all Jewish priests were against early Christianity. Through this, the article presents a fascinating and obscure dimension of the Jewish priesthood and, therefore, helps uncover the hidden voices in the gospels’ representation of Jewish priesthood.
This article argues that Luke’s characterisation of Zechariah and the other ordinary priests in A... more This article argues that Luke’s characterisation of Zechariah and the other ordinary priests in Acts 6:7 represents the most striking characterisation of the priesthood in the Gospels. This positive depiction, seen against the generally stereotypical image of chief priests in the Gospels, makes Zechariah’s image that of a model priest. Such characterisation demonstrates that despite Jewish hostility towards early Christianity, not all Jewish priests were against early Christianity. Through this, the article presents a fascinating and obscure dimension of the Jewish priesthood and, therefore, helps uncover the hidden voices in the gospels’ representation of Jewish priesthood.
This article argues that Luke’s characterisation of Zechariah and the other ordinary priests in A... more This article argues that Luke’s characterisation of Zechariah and the other ordinary priests in Acts 6:7 represents the most striking characterisation of the priesthood in the Gospels. This positive depiction, seen against the generally stereotypical image of chief priests in the Gospels,makes Zechariah’s image that of a model priest. Such characterisation demonstrates that despite Jewish hostility towards early Christianity, not all Jewish priests were against early Christianity. Through this, the article presents a fascinating and obscure dimension of the Jewish priesthood and, therefore, helps uncover the hidden voices in the gospels’ representation of Jewish priesthood.
The paper is an analysis of Jesus and human development in the gospel tradition. It argues that w... more The paper is an analysis of Jesus and human development in the gospel tradition. It argues that while human development is a modern term, Jesus' life and work, death and resurrection represented an embodiment of the term in all its totality. Through conscientisation Jesus was able to both make the poor conscious of the human propensity to do wrong and influence masses and individuals to adopt new ways of looking at themselves and others. This transformed the circumstances of both the poor and the rich. Through this analysis the paper contributes to the body of knowledge on the relevance of Jesus' message to human development.
Religious and Cultural Studies, Issue No.2, Mzuzu University, Apr 2015
The paper analyses the mission of the African church in the context of globalisation. With partic... more The paper analyses the mission of the African church in the context of globalisation. With particular reference to Malawi, it argues that Africa’s changing economic, political and cultural dynamics presents new complexities to the mission of the church in Africa. Among the new realities brought about by globalization is the growing disparity between the rich and the poor, the growing weakness of the nation state amidst a growing secularisation agenda, the democratization of knowledge and knowledge avenues and intensification of religious pluralism. While these challenges present new complexities to the mission of the church, they also present opportunities for the African church’s self redefinition in its attempt to serve its 21st century context. The paper proposes that the church needs to create a gospel-based plausibility structure through which it can continue to influence public meaning in both the society and the marketplace. This would ensure the African church’s continued relevance in the increasingly globalised world. In this way the paper underscores the role of the African church in responding to the effects of globalization.
Published in Religion and Culture, Issue 2. April 2015, Mzuzu University.
The paper explores religious diversity in Malawi and its impact on interreligious relations. It a... more The paper explores religious diversity in Malawi and its impact on interreligious relations. It argues that religious diversity in Malawi has resulted in an unhealthy ambivalence of both disintegration and harmonization in interreligious relations. As the paper shows, the church struggles to come to terms with the growing significance of other religions in the nation’s religious space. This is especially more pronounced in the church’s response to “Islamic revivalism” in Malawi. The paper proposes that a traditional African model of interreligious relations can help the church positively engage with other religions leading to positive and enduring interreligious relations and nation building in Malawi. Through this the paper contributes to theological discourse on interreligious relations in Africa and its impact on nation building.
Published in the Journal of Theology in Southern Africa, No.152 July 2015. pp114-131
37-51 Journal of Gender and Religion in Africa Vol. 19 No. 2 (November 2013)
This essay is a critical reflection on Numbers 27:1-11 as a model for understanding God’s percept... more This essay is a critical reflection on Numbers 27:1-11 as a model for understanding God’s perception of rights justice toward the woman, especially a Malawian woman’s rights. It argues that Zelophehad’s daughter’s understanding of their covenantal status, their collective voice and a firm but non-confrontational approach to fighting patriarchy was instrumental to the success of their cause. This provides a paradigm for the women’s rights movement in Africa and Malawi in particular. Apart from adding a theological and biblical slant to the discourse on women’s rights in Malawi, the essay contributes to the development of an African theology of women’s rights.
The book's central argument is that the best way to interpret the Sermon on the Plain in Luke 6 i... more The book's central argument is that the best way to interpret the Sermon on the Plain in Luke 6 is to read it as a Greco-Roman panegyric, whose function was the integration of new members and the inculcation of commonly held values. The Sermon's makarisms and woes and their juxtaposition of poverty and richness, and exhortation are Luke's attempt to construct a new socio-economic identity of Christ-followers by supplanting the values of the dominant culture with a new set of values adopted from the status of destitution for both the rich and the poor. This results in their common dependence on the Lord for their daily provisions. Such reliance on the Lord allows for the koinonia between the rich and the poor among the first-century Christ-followers. This socio-economic motif is replicated throughout the Third Gospel and typifies Luke's concept of salvation as a holistic one.
The Author Louis Ndekha is a lecturer in Biblical Studies at the University of Malawi. He has a PhD in New Testament Studies from the University of Gloucestershire in England. He is an Alexander von Humboldt's Georg Forster Fellow at the University of Bamberg, Germany (2022-2024). He is also a Research Associate at the University of Pretoria and an ordained minister in the Africa Evangelical Church in Malawi.
The article offers a reading of the parable of the good Samaritan from the perspective of the Gre... more The article offers a reading of the parable of the good Samaritan from the perspective of the Greco-Roman progymnastic exercise of syncrisis. It argues that in its original context, Jesus’s representation of the good Samaritan as a moral examplar, vis-à-vis the image of the priest and the Levite, was critical to the realisation of social harmony and camaraderie among the socially differentiated members of Christ-groups. By introducing the term “neighbour” into the fictive language of the early Christian movement, the parable challenged both Jewish exclusive understanding of neighbour and the system of kinship and reciprocity that characterised Greco-Roman social relations. Through this analysis, the article presents new dimensions to the interpretation of the parable of the good Samaritan.
The Bible, Quran, and COVID-19 Vaccines : Studies on Religion-based Vaccine Perceptions (Africa – Europe – Middle East)
This volume of the BiAS/ ERA series chooses a multi-religious approach to the religio-cultural as... more This volume of the BiAS/ ERA series chooses a multi-religious approach to the religio-cultural aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the attempts to overcome it by vaccination. The book includes contributions focusing on African Traditional Religion, several branches of Christianity in Africa, and Islamic denominations. In contrast to other volumes, BiAS 37/ ERA 12 is not limited to a specific country – not even to the African continent. It gathers papers from the international and multi-religious workshop “COVID-19 and Religion” (November 2021, University of Bamberg) and some additional articles. The contributions to BiAS 37 focus on the vaccination debate. “Why should God, Scripture, and Church be against vaccination?” is the main question, and there are some indications that social and political factors that regulate the cultural application of religion might be more important for vaccinophobia than faith itself.
This essay is a critical reflection on Numbers 27:1-11 as a model for understanding God’s percept... more This essay is a critical reflection on Numbers 27:1-11 as a model for understanding God’s perception of rights justice toward the woman, especially a Malawian woman’s rights. It argues that Zelophehad’s daughter’s understanding of their covenantal status, their collective voice and a firm but non-confrontational approach to fighting patriarchy was instrumental to the success of their cause. This provides a paradigm for the women’s rights movement in Africa and Malawi in particular. Apart from adding a theological and biblical slant to the discourse on women’s rights in Malawi, the essay contributes to the development of an African theology of women’s rights.
The dissertation argues that the Sermon on the Plain is best interpreted from the perspective of ... more The dissertation argues that the Sermon on the Plain is best interpreted from the perspective of the Greco-Roman paradigm of praise and blame. In the first chapter, the dissertation outlines the historical challenges in the interpretation of the Sermon and proposes panegyric praise and blame as a plausible framework for its reading. In the second chapter, the thesis argues that Greco-Roman makarisms and woes have their context in praise and blame. The (established) affinities between Greco-Roman and Lucan makarisms and woes, therefore, provide a basis for interpreting the latter from the perspective of praise and blame. The third chapter takes up the analysis of the function of praise and blame in the Greco-Roman context. It argues that in the Greco-Roman world, panegyrics served, inter alia, in the integration of victors and the re-enforcement of community values. These core functions provide the methodological framework for the interpretation of the Sermon. In chapter 4 the thesis...
This article offers a reading of the parable of the Dishonest Steward from the perspective of Gre... more This article offers a reading of the parable of the Dishonest Steward from the perspective of Greco-Roman status concern. It observes that the parable has a long and complicated history of interpretation. The different approaches in the reading of the parable reveal the unresolved quest in scholarship to establish a reading of the parable that takes into account both the steward’s act of generosity towards his master’s debtors and the praise that follows this action. This article proposes the Greco-Roman status concern as a framework for understanding the meaning of the parable in its original context. Status concern was the spirit of tenacity in maintaining one’s status and honour against all odds characteristic of Greco-Roman honour and shame culture. The article argues that when the parable is read within its literary context, it reveals that at the heart of Jesus’ message in the parable is the theme of persistence as an attribute of authentic discipleship. This understanding of ...
The paper is an analysis of Jesus and human development in the gospel tradition. It argues that w... more The paper is an analysis of Jesus and human development in the gospel tradition. It argues that while human development is a modern term, Jesus’ life and work, death and resurrection represented an embodiment of the term in all its totality. Through conscientisation Jesus was able to both make the poor conscious of the human propensity to do wrong and influence masses and individuals to adopt new ways of looking at themselves and others. This transformed the circumstances of both the poor and the rich. Through this analysis the paper contributes to the body of knowledge on the relevance of Jesus’ message to human development. Key words : gospel tradition, Jesus, human development, conscientisation
This article argues that Luke’s characterisation of Zechariah and the other ordinary priests in A... more This article argues that Luke’s characterisation of Zechariah and the other ordinary priests in Acts 6:7 represents the most striking characterisation of the priesthood in the Gospels. This positive depiction, seen against the generally stereotypical image of chief priests in the Gospels, makes Zechariah’s image that of a model priest. Such characterisation demonstrates that despite Jewish hostility towards early Christianity, not all Jewish priests were against early Christianity. Through this, the article presents a fascinating and obscure dimension of the Jewish priesthood and, therefore, helps uncover the hidden voices in the gospels’ representation of Jewish priesthood.
This article argues that Luke’s characterisation of Zechariah and the other ordinary priests in A... more This article argues that Luke’s characterisation of Zechariah and the other ordinary priests in Acts 6:7 represents the most striking characterisation of the priesthood in the Gospels. This positive depiction, seen against the generally stereotypical image of chief priests in the Gospels, makes Zechariah’s image that of a model priest. Such characterisation demonstrates that despite Jewish hostility towards early Christianity, not all Jewish priests were against early Christianity. Through this, the article presents a fascinating and obscure dimension of the Jewish priesthood and, therefore, helps uncover the hidden voices in the gospels’ representation of Jewish priesthood.
This article argues that Luke’s characterisation of Zechariah and the other ordinary priests in A... more This article argues that Luke’s characterisation of Zechariah and the other ordinary priests in Acts 6:7 represents the most striking characterisation of the priesthood in the Gospels. This positive depiction, seen against the generally stereotypical image of chief priests in the Gospels,makes Zechariah’s image that of a model priest. Such characterisation demonstrates that despite Jewish hostility towards early Christianity, not all Jewish priests were against early Christianity. Through this, the article presents a fascinating and obscure dimension of the Jewish priesthood and, therefore, helps uncover the hidden voices in the gospels’ representation of Jewish priesthood.
The paper is an analysis of Jesus and human development in the gospel tradition. It argues that w... more The paper is an analysis of Jesus and human development in the gospel tradition. It argues that while human development is a modern term, Jesus' life and work, death and resurrection represented an embodiment of the term in all its totality. Through conscientisation Jesus was able to both make the poor conscious of the human propensity to do wrong and influence masses and individuals to adopt new ways of looking at themselves and others. This transformed the circumstances of both the poor and the rich. Through this analysis the paper contributes to the body of knowledge on the relevance of Jesus' message to human development.
Religious and Cultural Studies, Issue No.2, Mzuzu University, Apr 2015
The paper analyses the mission of the African church in the context of globalisation. With partic... more The paper analyses the mission of the African church in the context of globalisation. With particular reference to Malawi, it argues that Africa’s changing economic, political and cultural dynamics presents new complexities to the mission of the church in Africa. Among the new realities brought about by globalization is the growing disparity between the rich and the poor, the growing weakness of the nation state amidst a growing secularisation agenda, the democratization of knowledge and knowledge avenues and intensification of religious pluralism. While these challenges present new complexities to the mission of the church, they also present opportunities for the African church’s self redefinition in its attempt to serve its 21st century context. The paper proposes that the church needs to create a gospel-based plausibility structure through which it can continue to influence public meaning in both the society and the marketplace. This would ensure the African church’s continued relevance in the increasingly globalised world. In this way the paper underscores the role of the African church in responding to the effects of globalization.
Published in Religion and Culture, Issue 2. April 2015, Mzuzu University.
The paper explores religious diversity in Malawi and its impact on interreligious relations. It a... more The paper explores religious diversity in Malawi and its impact on interreligious relations. It argues that religious diversity in Malawi has resulted in an unhealthy ambivalence of both disintegration and harmonization in interreligious relations. As the paper shows, the church struggles to come to terms with the growing significance of other religions in the nation’s religious space. This is especially more pronounced in the church’s response to “Islamic revivalism” in Malawi. The paper proposes that a traditional African model of interreligious relations can help the church positively engage with other religions leading to positive and enduring interreligious relations and nation building in Malawi. Through this the paper contributes to theological discourse on interreligious relations in Africa and its impact on nation building.
Published in the Journal of Theology in Southern Africa, No.152 July 2015. pp114-131
37-51 Journal of Gender and Religion in Africa Vol. 19 No. 2 (November 2013)
This essay is a critical reflection on Numbers 27:1-11 as a model for understanding God’s percept... more This essay is a critical reflection on Numbers 27:1-11 as a model for understanding God’s perception of rights justice toward the woman, especially a Malawian woman’s rights. It argues that Zelophehad’s daughter’s understanding of their covenantal status, their collective voice and a firm but non-confrontational approach to fighting patriarchy was instrumental to the success of their cause. This provides a paradigm for the women’s rights movement in Africa and Malawi in particular. Apart from adding a theological and biblical slant to the discourse on women’s rights in Malawi, the essay contributes to the development of an African theology of women’s rights.
The book's central argument is that the best way to interpret the Sermon on the Plain in Luke 6 i... more The book's central argument is that the best way to interpret the Sermon on the Plain in Luke 6 is to read it as a Greco-Roman panegyric, whose function was the integration of new members and the inculcation of commonly held values. The Sermon's makarisms and woes and their juxtaposition of poverty and richness, and exhortation are Luke's attempt to construct a new socio-economic identity of Christ-followers by supplanting the values of the dominant culture with a new set of values adopted from the status of destitution for both the rich and the poor. This results in their common dependence on the Lord for their daily provisions. Such reliance on the Lord allows for the koinonia between the rich and the poor among the first-century Christ-followers. This socio-economic motif is replicated throughout the Third Gospel and typifies Luke's concept of salvation as a holistic one.
The Author Louis Ndekha is a lecturer in Biblical Studies at the University of Malawi. He has a PhD in New Testament Studies from the University of Gloucestershire in England. He is an Alexander von Humboldt's Georg Forster Fellow at the University of Bamberg, Germany (2022-2024). He is also a Research Associate at the University of Pretoria and an ordained minister in the Africa Evangelical Church in Malawi.
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Papers by Louis Ndekha
Christianity. Through this, the article presents a fascinating and obscure dimension of the Jewish priesthood and, therefore, helps uncover the hidden voices in the gospels’ representation of Jewish priesthood.
Published in Religion and Culture, Issue 2. April 2015, Mzuzu University.
Published in the Journal of Theology in Southern Africa, No.152 July 2015. pp114-131
Bible in Africa Studies by Louis Ndekha
The Author
Louis Ndekha is a lecturer in Biblical Studies at the University of Malawi. He has a PhD in New Testament Studies from the University of Gloucestershire in England. He is an Alexander von Humboldt's Georg Forster Fellow at the University of Bamberg, Germany (2022-2024). He is also a Research Associate at the University of Pretoria and an ordained minister in the Africa Evangelical Church in Malawi.
Christianity. Through this, the article presents a fascinating and obscure dimension of the Jewish priesthood and, therefore, helps uncover the hidden voices in the gospels’ representation of Jewish priesthood.
Published in Religion and Culture, Issue 2. April 2015, Mzuzu University.
Published in the Journal of Theology in Southern Africa, No.152 July 2015. pp114-131
The Author
Louis Ndekha is a lecturer in Biblical Studies at the University of Malawi. He has a PhD in New Testament Studies from the University of Gloucestershire in England. He is an Alexander von Humboldt's Georg Forster Fellow at the University of Bamberg, Germany (2022-2024). He is also a Research Associate at the University of Pretoria and an ordained minister in the Africa Evangelical Church in Malawi.