Inculturation Theology

The social institution of marriage, deeply established in the Nsukka cultural area long before the advent of Christianity, has undergone profound transformations due to the influence of Westernisation and Christianity. This seismic shift extends beyond marriage to impact all facets of the people's cultural life. It has permeated nearly all African societies, leaving Africans with what appears to be a solitary choice of religious and cultural syncretism. The use of syncretism to manage the conflicting interests in Christianity and traditional religions is most evident in the Nsukka cultural area, where Christian marriage rituals have become significantly intertwined with traditional marriage rites and concepts, resulting in an uneasy hybridisation. This study, employing ethnographic observation and interview methods, delves into this complex and multifaceted situation to accurately gauge Christianity's influence on marriage practice and its rituals in the Nsukka cultural area. The research findings reveal that despite the people's adoption of syncretism in their religious practices, the cultural conflict, particularly in the context of marriage, has strongly fostered inculturation within the Christian church in the area. Nevertheless, the church must aim to transition from inculturation to inter-culturation, which could serve as a new model that might pave the way for a harmonious synthesis of Western and cultural marriage practices in Nsukka Igbo.

The term Inculturation is used in Christianity, especially in the Roman Catholic Church. It is the exchange of culture or acceptance of native culture. This means Christianity in each land imbibes native culture, tradition and practices without moving away from Christian ideology and faith. By this, the Christian communities will feel uniqueness with not only other cultures but also in Christian faith. Inculturation became a worldwide practice. In each land Inculturation is done in support of native culture, customs and practices. In India Inculturation is done mainly as an adaptation of Hindu practices and customs. The concept and importance of Inculturation came after the Second Vatican council. Inculturation was emphasized in the council, for the existence of Christianity in the modern world.

Formal education has been accepted over time as being capable of enhancing unprecedented growth in societies. Considering the importance of education to the integral development of various nations, huge resources have always been channeled to boost the educational sector by various nations. In Nigeria, for instance, the educational sector is considered as one of the most essential sectors of the yearly budgetary schedule. Education in Nigeria in recent times has faced a massive decline, Students’ poor attitude towards education has been identified as one of the major causes of these decline. This seminar work aims to investigate if attitudes matter to education, X-ray students’ poor attitudes to education in Nigeria. Furthermore, take a throwback look at attitude and impact towards education in the past and in present day Nigeria, the future implications of student’s poor attitude towards education for Nigeria. These seminar challenges that even though the nation’s university education has achieved quite much, it is equally laden with weaknesses. If the future of education in Nigeria is to be revamped, then the students must have a change of attitude. The writer has also made functional possible suggestions herein to make for the amelioration of the educational system in Nigeria.

In the 1580s, when the Jesuit missionaries Michele Ruggieri (15431607) and Matteo Ricci (1552–1610) established the first Jesuit mission in China, the terms “translatability” and “cultural incommensurability” were yet to enter the European lexicon, but these questions were addressed implicitly through the translation choices employed in the mission field. For the early missionaries, translatability had immense ramifications for their missionary practice. One of the foremost challenges was how to communicate in Chinese the concept of “sanctity,” which was central to Christian soteriology. There was a range of terms in Chinese intellectual and religious traditions that the Jesuits drew upon to translate sanctus such as shengren 聖人 zhenren 真人 , and xian 仙 , but each of these terms implied a certain commensurability between Christian and indigenous Chinese conceptions of human excellence. This paper will present a microhistory of early Jesuit attempts to translate sanctus in Chinese, and reflect upon the significance of these translation choices for the development of the Jesuits’ missionary strategy.

The image of the Virgin Mary is one of the most effective instances of inculturation to be found in the Taiwanese Catholic world. This is already evident from her iconographic representation which bears many similarities to Guanyin (and Mazu), who are sometimes depicted as young women in traditional Chinese dress holding a child. This article will consider some of the similarities between these figures which have allowed Taiwanese Catholics to embrace Mary as a figure who is integrated with a certain ease into preexisting cultic beliefs and practices. At the same time, we shall consider how this process of inculturation has carried with it a certain risk of syncretism, of misunderstanding Mary's universal role in the economy of salvation, of taking the focus away from her Son as the universal Mediator (Lumen Gentium 60 and 62), a problem not unfamiliar in other parts of the world and in other times.

The theory of reward for the good and retribution for the evil (善恶报应) was one of the key issues in the dialogue between Catholicism and indigenous religions in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. Under the monotheistic framework, Catholicism advocates supernatural God for rewarding good and punishing evil, thus it had a more logical and rigorous theological arguments. It had exchanges and dialogues with Chinese native religions on the standards of good and evil, who has the rights to reward and punish, and the results of reward and retribution and so on. This article firstly analyzes the Confucian theory of stimulus-response between the heaven and human beings (天人感应). It secondly illustrates the view of the theories of reward for the good and retribution for the evil in Buddhism and Taoism. Then it discusses the Catholic views on rewarding good and punishing evil during late Ming and early Qing, and it also reviews the responses of the native religions in China to Catholic view of rewarding good and punishing evil. Finally, it summarizes the sameness and differences of the theories of reward for the good and retribution for the evil between Catholicism and Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism. As to the intentional to do goods, there were some commonalities between Catholicism and Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism in the movement of promoting good deeds during late Ming and early Qing. However, there were distinct in the perspective of the standards of good and evil, the subjects of retribution and the roles of individuals in retribution, which caused the conflicts between Catholicism and its opponents in China. The introduction of Catholic theory of reward for the good and retribution for the evil undoubtedly further enriched Chinese religious thoughts since the late Ming dynasty.

This article traces the development and enforcement of racialised doctrines and practices of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) in regards to Indigenous Australians. It seeks to contextualise and expand upon assumptions about the Priesthood bans in the Church, and how these were adapted to the local proselyting environment in Australia.

Liturgical inculturation is not a novelty in the Church, even in Africa. As the years go by, the call for better inculturation remains valid and salient. The challenge for contemporary African liturgy is to re-present the beauty of the liturgy in ways that remain faithful to the rich liturgical history, but makes meaning today. It must be liturgy that is not based exclusively on pentecostalist or secularist tendencies.

Poor government decision-making and policies can have a more significant negative effect on the poorest segment of a population. These decisions often create a society replete with violence as people seek means to overcome their vulnerable conditions. This phenomenon, exhibited by the banning of motorcycle taxis-a major source of survival for "existentially immobile young men" (ix)-in northern Nigeria is what drives Daniel Agbiboa, in Mobility, Mobilization, and Counter/Insurgency, to provide extensive research and a compelling argument to explain how mobility and mobilization have contributed to terrorism, insurgency, and counter insurgency in the Lake Chad Basin of Africa. The author seeks to emphasize the aspect of mobility within the patterns of armed conflicts, using Boko Haram as a case study. An underlying goal of this text is to challenge Western representations of movement in Africa, which he carefully examines in stages throughout each chapter.

To believe that everyone created by God bears a spark of Divinity should be a criterion to believe that no one is deficient of Divine gifts to engender human flourishing, social transformation, and economic development and growth. This is the position of Pope Francis when he drew the attention of the host communities and countries of migrants and refugees to their enormous potentials to help the society in his message of the 108th World Migrant and Refugee Day (Vatican, May 12, 2022). In light of this, Pope Francis believes that the situation and the condition that led people to be migrants and refugees did not deplete their God given talents, gifts, and potentials. To this end, he advises the host communities and countries to see them as a resource for building the economy and the future of their society. This is what this paper sets to advance, as I understand equally that anyone irrespective of his or her background, conditions, and status can drive human flourishing, social transformation, and economic growth and development. Thus, migrants and refugees should be respected by their host communities and hence, be given an opportunity to develop their potential as people with a common humanity. God never created anyone tabularized!

Dans ce travail, nous proposons une réflexion sur la notion d'identité à partir de la théorie sémiotique. Pour cela, nous prenons en considération le mouvement de transition entre l'identité attribuée aux peuples indigènes brésiliens par le biais du pouvoir et l'identité spécifique qu'ils sont en train de construire eux-mêmes. À cette fin, nous analysons les jeux de vérité utilisés dans la construction des discours identitaires et stéréotypés, ainsi que ceux produits par les influenceurs indigènes dans les médias. Pour ce faire, nous nous appuyons sur les notions de contrat véridictoire ainsi que sur la notion de camouflage. Pour conclure, nous indiquons aussi la façon dont les sujets de ce groupe minoritaire ont revisité les catégories qui leur ont été assignées par l'histoire, en créant ainsi des espaces de disputes discursives.

Evangelio en familia: una experiencia de pastoral familiar para repensar la catequesis infantil Resumen: El presente artículo recoge una experiencia pastoral denominada Evangelio en familia¸ que es un intento de reforma misionera de la tradicional catequesis de infancia, orientándola hacia una pastoral familiar, con otros acentos teológicos y pastorales: como el primer anuncio, la celebración y una pedagogía de la interioridad, mayéutica y del aprendizaje colaborativo.

Lingyan lishao 靈言蠡勺 [LYLS] (Humble Attempt to Discuss the Soul, 1624) by the Calabrian Jesuit Francesco Sambiasi (1582–1649) and the Chinese mandarin Xu Guangqi 徐光啓 (1562–1633) was the first Chinese‑language treatise on the scholastic Aristotelian soul and a pioneering work in Sino–Western intellectual exchanges. Until now, the dominant assumption has been that the first volume (juan) of this work is simply an adaptation of the Coimbra commentaries on De Anima [DA] and Parva Naturalia [PN]. This article demonstrates, however, that while most of the first juan is based on these Coimbra commentaries, its treatise on the substance of the soul was likely derived from another source, namely the Enchiridion, a 16th century confessional manual by the Spanish Augustinian Martín de Azpilcueta (1492–1586), or Doctor Navarrus. Through a close textual comparison, this article shows how LYLS adopts the same structure, content, and citations of the Enchiridion to construct an accessible and concise theological definition of the soul that was better suited for the Chinese missionary context than the dense philosophic definitions of the Coimbra commentaries.

La catechesi è in cerca di una sua identità nella missione della Chiesa e
soprattutto nei contesti di Nuova Evangelizzazione. Sono arrivato alla conclusione che il suo compito prioritario – ma non l’unico – sia quello di favorire l’accoglienza della proposta cristiana a partire dai dinamismi culturali propri delle persone e dei gruppi umani. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++Catechesis is looking for its identity in the mission of the Church and above all in the contexts of New Evangelization. I have come to the conclusion that its priority task - but not the only one - is to encourage the acceptance of the Christian proposal starting from the cultural dynamisms of people and human groups. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ La catéchèse cherche son identité dans la mission de l'Église et surtout dans les contextes de la nouvelle évangélisation. J'en suis arrivé à la conclusion que sa tâche prioritaire - mais pas la seule - est de favoriser l'acceptation de la proposition chrétienne à partir des dynamismes culturels spécifiques aux personnes et aux groupes humains. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ La catequesis busca su identidad en la misión de la Iglesia y sobre todo en los contextos de la Nueva Evangelización. He llegado a la conclusión de que su tarea prioritaria -pero no la única- es favorecer la aceptación de la propuesta cristiana a partir de los dinamismos culturales propios de las personas y de los grupos humanos.

This article attempts to explain sociologically why the Catholic Church's popular theological concept of inculturation is difficult to operationalize or provide empirical indicators, that is, to make it more observable and measurable for social scientists, missionaries, and inculturation practitioners. Using some secondary data and peer-reviewed literature, it explores how the following major hurdles inhibit the clear conceptualization and operationalization of inculturation projects, namely: (1) the lack of unified definition in the Church for culture, (2) plurality of the meaning of inculturation, (3) the ambiguity of the extent of the cultural change in inculturation that results in unsettled levels and units of analysis in measuring it, as well as (4) the lack of social science training and expertise of Catholic theologians, clerics, and missiologists, leading to the neglect of empirical studies that operationalize inculturation in the mainstream research and literature. This study recommends intensified social science training for missionaries and clerics in the Catholic Church and active dialogue between inculturationists and social scientists to enhance the empirical dimension of inculturation in research and literature.

The second half of the 19th century was characterised by the spread of Christian ethos in Southern Africa. This state of affairs also permeated the Zimbabwean soil, and in the Presbyterian Church of Southern Africa in Zimbabwe (PCSA) missionaries disseminated Reformed teachings, among other things, to proclaim the gospel of Christ. This article argues that Presbyterian teachings influenced the socio-political and economic development of Zimbabwe. It is a historical analysis illustrating how Reformed theological perspectives influenced the socio-political and economic development of Zimbabwe through the work of the PCSA. It is not the intention of this article to get into theological debates but to show the impact of Reformed influences, mainly through John Calvin, on the expansion of Presbyterianism in Zimbabwe.

There is an interesting inscription in one of the side altars of the
Cathedral of Mary our Queen in Baltimore, “where Peter is, there is the Church” an inscription adopted from the early Christian community of Milan elaborated by St. Ambrose in reference to the primacy of the see of Peter. But I want to replace it with “Where Man is, there is the Church” for at the assumption of our flesh, Christ divinized our humanity and made us all temples of the Holy Spirit, giving us the mission of the new Incarnation of Christ here on earth. This reflection will focus on Man as the Church. It will be divided into three parts, Church as Ecclesia, as Corpus, and as a Missio

La  riflessione  sulla  Catechesi  Missionaria  (=  CM)  della  Facoltà  di  Missiologia della  Università  Urbaniana si  inserisce all’interno della formula  “catechesi evan­gelizzatrice"  (cf. Puebla  8)  che  in  buona  sostanza  univa  le  due  strategie fonda­mentali  della riflessione precedente e  iniziata all’inizio del XX secolo:  recupe­ro  della  fonte  biblica  e  attenzione  alle  situazioni  di  significato  della  vita  dei destinatari.  Su  tali  basi  si  sviluppa  la  riflessione  intesa  a  inserire  i  temi  della inculturazione,  del  dialogo  interreligioso  e  delle  pratiche  missionarie  del  pri­mo annuncio e del catecumenato. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ The reflection on Missionary Catechesis (= CM) of the Faculty of Missiology of the Urbaniana University is part of the formula "evangelizing catechesis" (cf. Puebla 8) which essentially united the two fundamental strategies of the previous reflection which began at the beginning of the 20th century: recovery of the biblical source and attention to the situations of meaning in the life of the recipients. On this basis, the reflection is developed aimed at including the themes of inculturation, interreligious dialogue and the missionary practices of the first announcement and the catechumenate. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ La reflexión sobre la Catequesis Misionera (=CM) de la Facultad de Misionología de la Universidad Urbaniana se enmarca en la fórmula "catequesis evangelizadora" (cf. Puebla 8) que unía esencialmente las dos estrategias fundamentales de la reflexión anterior iniciada a principios de El siglo XX: recuperación de la fuente bíblica y atención a las situaciones de sentido en la vida de los destinatarios.Sobre esta base, se desarrolla la reflexión encaminada a incluir los temas de la inculturación, el diálogo interreligioso y las prácticas misioneras del primer anuncio y el catecumenado. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ La réflexion sur la Catéchèse Missionnaire (= CM) de la Faculté de Missiologie de l'Université Urbaniana fait partie de la formule « catéchèse évangélisatrice » (cf. Puebla 8) qui unissait essentiellement les deux stratégies fondamentales de la réflexion précédente commencée au début de le XXe siècle : récupération de la source biblique et attention aux situations de sens dans la vie des destinataires. Sur cette base, la réflexion se développe visant à inclure les thèmes de l'inculturation, du dialogue interreligieux et des pratiques missionnaires de la première annonce et le catéchuménat.

O presente trabalho tem como objetivo compreender a dinâmica em torno da Missa da Terra sem Males, celebrada na Catedral da Sé, em São Paulo, para relembrar a resistência dos povos indígenas aos conquistadores. A partir da análise de publicações, relatos, documentários, músicas e vídeos sobre a missa, o artigo busca fazer um diálogo antropológico entre o momento vivido há 42 anos e as reflexões sugeridas pelo Papa Francisco para os tempos atuais. Ademais, destaca-se a importância desse diálogo nos 50 anos da fundação do Conselho Indigenista Missionário (CIMI), especialmente em um contexto de pandemia, quando vivemos, intensa e conjuntamente, em busca de uma terra sem males.

La interculturalidad —entendida como una forma dialógica e intercambio de códigos y símbolos entre grupos y/o individuos culturalmente distintos— ha sido un elemento fundamental en el desarrollo y puesta en marcha de la acción pastoral católica y no católica en Latinoamérica, sobre todo en contextos indígenas. La base de esta práctica pastoral o teopraxis es la inculturación de la teología, la cual no sólo anhela lograr en el contexto sociorreligioso una interacción efectiva entre culturas distintas, sino una suerte de asimilación y encarnación religiosa a través de un proceso de vernaculización del cristianismo. En este artículo se busca discutir en torno a la interculturalidad y su desarrollo o búsqueda en la pastoral cristiana para lograr la denominada teología de la inculturación. Por medio de dos casos, resultado de una investigación antropológica en diferentes escenarios sociorreligiosos, tanto en Chiapas, México como Totonicapan, Guatemala; se pretende esclarecer cómo los pro...

Zheng Manuo (Weixin), better known from extant historical sketches as Emmanuel de Sequeira (Chinese: 鄭瑪諾, Portuguese: Emmanuel de Sequeira, 1633-1673), was the first Chinese clergyman and a member of the monastic Congregation of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits). Zheng Manuo was one of the first Chinese in history to travel to Europe to study. In addition to successfully absorbing the theological and philosophical disciplines taught in Italian and Latin, upon graduation and ordination he became the first Chinese professor to begin teaching theology to European society. After his return to China, he skillfully applied the knowledge acquired in Europe, building a strategy of enculturation of Christianity, considering the cultural and religious peculiarities of his own people and transmitting the basics of Catholic doctrine in his native language. This article attempts to analyze the experience of cultural interaction between China and Europe in the life of Zheng Manuo based on the reconstruction of the few archival records of the Jesuit Congregation that have survived. Unfortunately, his name is practically not mentioned in Russian religious studies and sinology, and, consequently, his activity and contribution to the development of intercultural interaction between China and Europe remains understudied, thus acquiring its novelty.

The purpose of this article is to study the spatiality of the Divine Holy Spirit Festival in Manicoré/Amazonas through the symbologies of the festival and the devotees' spatial relationships with the place. In this way, the aim is to understand the affective relationships, the diversity of perceptions gauged and present significant points, addressing the relationship of the subjects in their living space. From a phenomenological perspective based on Relph (1978), the study was carried out through fieldwork and interviews, which formed part of the research methodology. Thus, the Divine Holy Spirit Festival can be understood as more than just a festival, but as resistance to the popular tradition that holds it, a sense of the sacred and of life itself.

Girl-child marriages have been an ongoing practice in many traditional and modern societies. It is a common practice which exists in Asia, Africa, Europe and the Americas. Presently, girl child marriages predominate in developing countries, most of which have not accepted or domesticated the Child Rights Acts which aims to legalize the protection of children from different kinds of abuses. The media are expected to play roles of advocacy by setting agenda on such issues as child marriages by providing adequate coverage through news reports, editorials, interviews, features and other kinds of contents. This paper is a systematic critical analysis which relied on secondary data to examine issues explored. The study is underpinned by the mutedgroup and spiral of silence theories. While the latter examined communication patterns and social representation of non-dominant cultural groups like women and other minorities, the spiral of silence theory posits that the mass media work simultan...

The current paper tells the story of a paradigm transmutation from inculturation to interculturality. Interpretive paradigm shifts frequently occur in scholarly circles, but a paradigm transmutation could be a rare phenomenon. The paradigm transmutation from inculturation to interculturality, currently happening in Africa, is unique. Using an African narratological approach, because “one who sees something good must narrate it” (Ganda proverb), this approach will tell stories of inculturation and interculturality paradigms as they unfold through the writings of some theologians.