Bochum, Universiẗat, Diss., 2003.

Thesis (S.T.M.)--Trinity Lutheran Seminary, 1980. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 122-125).

Traditionally, the history of Christianity has been written from a white, missionary perspective and in many ways it has portrayed them as the heroes of Africa. Such information has neglected the hard work of their African counterparts, many of who interpreted and organized evangelistic meetings among the indigenous people. Its history has primarily reflected the opinions and interests of Western missionaries. The white missionaries' information relied almost exclusively on written sources. The missing link: Indigenous agents in the development of the Iringa diocese of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania (1899-1999), tries to recover the silenced voices of the Christian people particularly the men and women who played a crucial role in the development of the church in the Iringa diocese. The study has attempted to give an historic account of the recovering of the African perspective and counterbalance a presentation dominated by a missionary perspective and bringing to a fore all the actors by drawing attention to the role and importance of the African agents in the development of the church. In this study, oral history methodology has been used in analyzing and interpreting the history of the Iringa diocese from an African perspective, while at the same time bringing into focus the indigenous actors: teachers, evangelists, women and youth. There would have been a serious gap in Christian knowledge if such information were not available. The study has established that from the inception of the planting of the Lutheran church in the Iringa diocese in 1899 both the missionaries, Tanzanian clergy, and agents worked with determination for the church to take roots. From that time, the church gradually expanded by way of increase in the number of stations and converts. What cannot be ignored is the fact the indigenous agents were instrumental in the planting and consolidation of the gains of the Lutheran church in the Iringa diocese in Tanzania. The determination, with which the "fathers" saw to injecting Christianity in Tanzania, has been continued by the generations after them. From the foregoing, the point that Africans have always heard the gospel principally from other Africans in Africa should not be belabored. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2002. / Evangelical Lutheran Church of America.

Mission is a central phenomenon in Christianity and Islam. The presence of the two religions relies heavily on extension of their faith through propagation. Christian and Islam are faiths that claim that their message is universal. Due to this fact they thrive to spread their tenets all over the world. Christianity, especially the Lutheran Church, and Islam have similar understanding and emphasis on the theory of the priesthood of all believers. Nevertheless, they differ in its implementation. Islam is a layperson's religion. Its rapid growth and spread is caused by the participation of the community of the faithful (Umma). On the contrary the Lutheran Church theoretically insists on the priesthood of all believers, while practically it is clergy dominated. Official and traditional church personnel dominate Christian mission and ministry. Christian mission and ministry is an ongoing process. This process accompanies changes according to the context. Transformation is an imperative move in the expansion of Christian community. The first Christian community (i.e. in the first century) witnessed the formation of movement formed by Jesus Christ. This energetic movement facilitated the growth and expansion of Christian faith from its origin in one culture, tribe and nation into a universal religion. The number of Christian missionaries and ministers increased according to the needs. This faith spread from Jerusalem to Africa, Asia Minor, and Europe and to the whole world. Self-supporting Christians carried it out. In Tanzania, Islam was the first foreign faith to be propagated. Businessmen brought their religion with them; it was an unprecedented event. On the other hand, Christianity i.e. the Lutheran Church came through institutional personnel. Its work depended on patronage from the North Atlantic Churches. This nature of missionary strategy has effects on the present Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania, Iringa Diocese. The lack of practising the theory of the priesthood of all believers makes Christian mission and ministry to be confined to official places. The current socio-economic situation limits the growth and extension of the Lutheran Church. This is a challenge facing this church today. This crisis has to be addressed. One of the reliable and appropriate alternatives is to employ self-supporting ministry. This was the norm of the first Christian community. Muslims also practise it. The application of tentmaking ministry creates ample opportunities. The priesthood of all believers becomes a responsible principle for the proclaiming of faith. This work aims at investigating reasons behind Islamic growth in Tanzania, and challenges facing Christian mission and ministry in the above-mentioned church. The priesthood of all believers is presented to indicate the possibility of transforming and strengthening Christian mission and ministry. This point is based on the belief that tent-making ministry and the priesthood of all believers is a biblical principle. Thus it concurs with the doctrine of the Lutheran Church that prioritises the Word of God. / Thesis (M.Th.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2002.

This thesis is a theological and practical challenge to the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Angola (IELA) on the issue of social development after the civil war, especially in the Cunene Province among the Ovawambo community. The thesis briefly examines the history of the Angolan civil war, and of the IELA. It notes the key development concerns facing the Ovawambo community. The focus of the thesis is centres on three themes namely: reconciliation and peace; reconstruction; and sustainable development strategies. The thesis argues that it is the responsibility of the IELA in the first place through its ministry of reconciliation to contribute to rebuilding the nation that has been destroyed by the civil war. In the second place it argues that since much of the social frame works have been changed due to civil war, a reconstruction approach is needed. In the last place, it argues that IELA should contribute fully to providing fruitful strategies for the sustainable development for the better life of the future generation. / Thesis (M.Th.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2003.

Thesis (M.A. (Religious Studies))--University of South Africa, 2002.

This study examines the issue of ethnocentrism that has become so detrimental to Christian unity within the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Cameroon, as it is pulling apart Christians of different ethnic groups. The study puts forward the indigenous practice of Mang-Djala as a possible indigenous resource that can be used as an added value not only in enhancing the Christian understanding of unity, but also in advocating for peace, justice and reconciliation in ordinary social life. In this regard, the study investigates the possibility of Mang-Djala functioning in the secular sense as social contract and in a religious sense as covenant. The study argues that the rejection of African cultures by the colonisers and the first missionaries was a big mistake, and that the Gospel needs to be incarnated in every culture and context. Contextualization therefore needs to be used to integrate African cultures and the Gospel. Hence, the study posits that Mang-Djala is a preparation for the Gospel, which can be defined as anything within a culture that can become an entry point, facilitating the transmission, clarifying the understanding of the Gospel and allowing the openness of the local people to that Gospel. The basic research question of the study is: in view of the challenges being presented to church and society by ethnic diversity in Cameroon is there a possibility that the indigenous concept of Mang-Djala may act as a reconciling or unifying agent? The study suggests that the concept of Mang-Djala should be introduced into the church at different levels via its structures in order to popularise it and integrate it into the church‘s theology and practice. In this way, the ethnic groups that are not accustomed to the concept will come to understand and appropriate it, as a new paradigm of understanding and living the Gospel of unity. The problem of ethnicity and the possibility of using Mang-Djala as a possible antidote needs to be introduced as part of the training of the clergy. Other institutions in the church where it could be introduced are The Women for Christ Fellowship and the Christian youth organisation. It should also be introduced at synodical level. More importantly, the study suggests that the Church should create and insert in its constitution a clause that should declare ethnocentrism a sin against which every Christian should stand because it promotes discrimination which is against God‘s commandment of love. The study also acknowledges, however, that Mang-Djala should not be considered as an ultimate solution to the problems posed by ethnocentrism. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2013.

This dissertation is an ethnographic description of how pastors (and other ministers) in the Northern Diocese of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Tanzania understand and carry out their ministry: How they reflect, mediate, and influence local Christian practice and identities; how theology and theologizing forms an integral part of their social worlds; and how navigating and maintaining relationships with Christian mission partnerships (including “short-term mission”) becomes an important part of their ministry. Drawing from fieldwork conducted between June 2014 and September 2015, I present an account of Christianity that adds to anthropological scholarship by emphasizing the role of theology as a grounded social practice, and considers the increasingly divergent character of Christian mission and its role in modern Tanzanian Christianity. Additionally, I offer a contribution to existing scholarship on Christianity by focusing on pastors as a central mediating figure in Christianity, showing how, in their work, Christian practice, theology, and mission are experienced in social relationships. I demonstrate how theology and theologizing directly address local negotiations of Christian identity and practice, I examine the articulation between theological debates and Tanzanian experiences of mission, and I describe how mission in Tanzania has been and continues to be contextually understood with reference to the local practice of Christianity.

Thesis (Ph. D. in Missiology)--Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, 2005. / Abstract and vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 350-360).

Thesis (Ph. D. in Missiology)--Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, 2005. / Abstract and vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 350-360).