A History of the Church in Africa

by Bengt Sundkler and Christopher Steed

The Western church and missions need to fully awaken to the church in Africa. Historically, the Western church seems like a teenager in contrast to the long and complex history of the African church.

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000, 1,232 pages, £100.

— Reviewed by Allison Howell, senior research fellow on secondment from SIM Ghana to the Akrofi-Christaller Memorial Centre, Ghana.

The Western church and missions need to fully awaken to the church in Africa. Historically, the Western church seems like a teenager in contrast to the long and complex history of the African church.

Moreover, many Western Christians are ignorant of the role that Africans have played in spreading the gospel in the world. Bengt Sundkler’s work attempts to correct this misunderstanding. He takes seriously the generally overlooked African role in world Christianity. He has a rich stock of stories of uprooted people, refugees and migrants sharing their new faith. Consequently, missionaries arrived to discover small groups of praying and praising Africans. Sundkler highlights the vital role of young African men in the nineteenth century and of women in the twentieth century church.

Sundkler does not, however, withhold reference to Western missionaries where relevant. But he tends to place more emphasis on the main denominations (Catholics, Anglicans, and Lutherans) than on the evan-gelicals or Pentecostals. The first two chapters of the book cover 1,700 years of history. Then follows an overview of the nineteenth century which deals with the themes of the study. Next, he takes a short excursion into African religion and a look at the relationship between the West and Africa, and ends with a brief survey of nineteenth century missions. The remainder of the book is divided into three time periods. Although every country is covered, this division makes it difficult to follow through the story of specific countries or church groups in the area. This difficulty is also reflected in the bibliography which, although in alphabetical order, gives no indication of primary and secondary sources. A grouping of the themes or regions would provide lead-ins to specific areas. However, the extensive index covers many topics and themes. This is useful for finding information in the book.

Available material on the different countries varies in both depth and quality. This could suggest Sundkler’s variety of experiences and interests. It may also reflect an imbalance in the focus and importance given to the countries. Although dealing with such a broad topic, Sundkler gives insight into the lives and work of individuals (both African and Western) and groups of people in the history of the African church. The book is readable, in spite of its size and massive details.

This book is a testimony to Sundkler’s long commitment to the church in Africa. He did not complete the work prior to his death in 1995, and it was finished by Christopher Steed in 2000. More significantly, this book is a testimony to God’s presence and work in a fluid context, often marked by suffering. It is an important resource for anyone serious about ministry in Africa, and also for African Christians now documenting the stories of African Christians in world Christianity.

Check these titles:
Hastings, Adrian. 1994. The Church in Africa, 1450-1950. Oxford, England: Clarendon Press.

Isichei, Elizabeth. 1995. A History of Christianity in Africa. From Antiquity to the Present. London: ISPCK.

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