This study establishes what the Akan and Biblical concepts of a human being are in terms of origin, constitution, gender, body form, age, status, moral behaviour, ethnic affiliation, and communality. It then compares the Akan concepts with the Biblical concepts to see what the similarities are, and, what the differences are? The findings are that in terms of origin, constitution, gender, age, status, moral behaviour, ethnic affiliation and communality, the concepts are similar even though there are some differences. For example, while in both Akan and Biblical thought, the human being consists of material and immaterial components, the Akan have five components, namely, :Jkra, honhom, sunsum, mogya and nipadua, and the Biblical has three, body, soul and spirit. In terms of body form, Akan thought is completely different from Biblical thought. The presence of such differences in thought poses a problem in evangelism as it often leads to conflict. Yet this should not be for it then affects the effectiveness of evangelism. This study therefore illustrates how Akan culture, just as it is, can be interpreted by the Bible and thus establishes that it is possible to evangelise cross culturally without creating conflict so that the Christian faith can be integrated into the culture. This is possible only if evangelists know and understand the culture in which they try to evangelise, if they know what needs their beliefs and practices meet for them. The study proposes that for effective evangelism to take place, the church must take up the study of cultures seriously and provide funds for it. / Thesis (M.Th.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2000.

Ethnicity and the Church are two vital subjects in mission studies. However, the focus has always been on the latter. As a result the Church's theology of ethnicity is weak. Fear, ethnocentrism and theological blindness account for the little interest in the subject of ethnicity. However, a Church that neglects ethnicity does so at her own peril. God's dealings with IsraeL a history of the growth of the Church from one culture to another makes the study of ethnicity imperative. Failure to acknowledge and harness ethnicity can lead to ethnocentrism or tribalism which is an enemy to God's mission. God's mission essentially reconciles, unites and enriches people from different ethnic groups whilst ethnocentrism or tribalism excludes, divides and impoverishes them. The Presbyterian Church of Ghana like the wider society has to cope with ethnicity. Whereas the Church has harnessed ethnicity in her mission, she has, nonetheless, failed always to do away with ethnocentrism or tribalism. The PCG has not been faithful to her parent missionaries' strategy of planting indigenous churches among the non-Akan and non-Ga. The current PCG's strategy amounts to Akan-Ga cultural mission. Ethnicity and Christian identity are crucial to providing people with their true secure identity. A Christian always has to come to terms with his dual identity, that is, belonging to an ethnic group as well as to Christ. A theology that affirms this dual identity will be in a position to have healthy multi-ethnic churches and be effective in mission. Andrew Walls' Three Tests of Christian expansion: The Church, The Kingdom and The Gospel Tests serve as our measuring instrument. The PCG has not passed these Tests satisfactorily. She needs the Pentecost experience, that is a fresh touch of the Holy Spirit. The thrust of this thesis is that, when the PCG experiences this Pentecost, integration, reconciliation and embrace will be achievable among her multi-ethnic membership. / Thesis (M.Th.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2000.

Ephraim Amu is a distinguished musician. He is well known for his advocacy on African tradition and culture. Amu's pride in the African personality has earned him a place in Ghana's hall of fame. It was in recognition of these achievements that his portrait was embossed on Ghana's highest currency, the Twenty Thousand Cedi note. But there is more to the Amu story. In this thesis I have drawn substantially on Amu's own works to demonstrate how, in fact, he is an exemplar of mother tongue apprehension of the Christian faith in Africa. Amu showed in his songs, diaries, sermons, letters, addresses and private papers that the mother tongue, in this case, Ewe and Twi can be used to express not only Christian experience but also to formulate theological ideas in an innovative and creative ways. Amu's credentials as "African statesman" and "a self-conscious nationalist" owe not so much to Pan-African ideologies as his understanding of African culture and tradition from a biblical perspective. Amu believed that the entire universe, including the African cosmos, was created by God from the very beginning as kronkronkron (pure), pepeepe (exact), and fitafitafita (without blemish). He wrestled with the problem of (evil) and how this may have polluted an otherwise unblemished creation. Amu also wrestled with the issue of human participation in God's work of creation and the extent to which humankind may have contributed to the desecration of creation. In spite of the pollution, Amu believed that creation can be redeemed and restored to its original status by cleansing with the Word of God and the Holy Spirit. This belief led him to adopt a positive stance towards African culture and tradition. Amu demonstrated this particularly in the use of language. Most of his sermons and notable musical compositions are in Twi or Ewe. He kept a diary in his mother tongue, Ewe, for almost seventy years. Amu demonstrated that by using indigenous African languages it is possible to make a fresh contribution to theological issues and thereby present African Christianity as an authentic expression to God and capable of contributing to world Christianity. Apart from language, Amu believed that other elements in the African tradition could be employed to express the Christian faith. It is in this regard that his contribution to Christian worship, particularly the use of indigenous musical instruments, must be appreciated. Amu's realisation, that "There are deep truths underlying our indigenous religions, truths which are dim representations of the great Christian truths", led him to deal with the perception that / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2006.

This investigation into a process of transformation was intended to explore the institution of African sacral rule in its relation to the Christian church and to provide a theological model, which could be used to establish a new mission field. The bulk of the work has been conducted through anthropological and historical methods crossing international boundaries and cultures within both sacral rule and the Christian church in Africa. The specific case studies have been the sacral rule of Grassfields people in Cameroon and the Akan in Ghana with focus on the Basel Mission and resulting churches. On the one hand, this comparative approach brought to light in-depth knowledge of the sacral ruler's encounter with the institution of the Christian church and its representatives. On the other hand, the investigation shows that with some preconceived ideas of sacral rule inherited from the missionaries who had established themselves in deliberate rejection of the existing system of government and the people involved, the African church leaders were put at a disadvantage. However, it has been demonstrated that in the process of struggle for survival and change, each institution has been partially assimilated by the· other. Those who have helped these two institutions to deepen their relationship through a genuine dialogue are outstanding Christians who occupied the position of sacral rulers in both Cameroon and Ghana. They have provided historical material on which an understanding of the cultural changes within sacral rule as well as the Christian church was based. The previous religious experience and knowledge of the sacral rulers are invariably used as a frame of reference for their understanding and interpretation of the Bible and their relationship with Christ. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2003.

The purpose of the study is to show the presence of Christ in Fanteland by treating five Fante ancestral and current narratives as analogues of Genesis XIV and interpreting the resulting interpenetrating Scripture and Fante narratives sensus plenior in the manner of Hebrews VII for Fante Christians, revealing the hidden presence of Christ in them. This is made possible by a postulate of an affinity between the Hebrew world view and that of the Fante. What is considered right behaviour in Fanteland is also resonant with the ethics in Hebrews. A section on ethics arising out of the presence of Christ in the narrative follows in each case. The first chapter is introductory giving the aim and objectives of the study the justification, scope and limitations. This is followed by the intellectual framework from secondary sources and the methodology used. In Chapter II there is a comparison of the world view of Hebrews and of Fanteland with a view to seeing their affinity. Chapters III -V give the literary and historical background to each narrative, the narratives themselves and a theological and ethical meditation. In conclusion the fruit of these meditations is summarized and an evaluation is made. / Thesis (M.Th.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2005.

Christian religious experience whether it occurs in the second century or in modem Africa is one and the same, and although the experiences may differ it is possible to draw correlations to suggest that such experiences bear witness to a common reality. St. Ignatius of Antioch who lived in the second century and Afua Kuma who hails from Kwahu in the Eastern Region of Ghana, are used to demonstrate this reality. My sources for Ignatius' are the seven letters he wrote, six to churches he visited and one to his friend Polycarp of Smyrna, whilst he was on his way to martyrdom in Rome. As bishop of Antioch he is concerned about the unity of the church and consequently focuses attention on false doctrines and the development of what was becoming "orthodox" tradition. A number of peculiar images referring to Christ emerge in his work, such"as apXEta (archive), 8upa (door), xapaK1"rlp (stamp) and 8t)(:nacr'trlpwv (altar). This picturesque and vivid imagery is traced to his propensity for rhetoric, which, though Asian, bears resemblance to the Greek and Roman folkloric traditions. The Apae or the courthouse praise poetry of the Akan folkloric tradition is the vehicle that Afua Kuma employs to express her faith in Jesus. A crisis in Madam Kuma's life must have led her to fathom the depths of her traditional background and upbringing and this she feeds into her understanding of Jesus. In her poetry Jesus is imaged as Adontehene, Benkumhene, :Jkatakyie, :Jkokodurufo, Okuruakwaban, and Adubasap::m and is made to perform all the functions associated with regal authority. She also shows awareness of modem political and social structures in these images. This thesis shows that it is the fruit of the Christian imagination born in the context of praise and worship, which ought to feed and nourish academic theology so as to keep it in touch with the spiritual vitality experienced in the community of faith. / Thesis (M.Th.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2000.