Browsing by Author "Owino, Kennedy Onyango."

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4

The Catholic Church and governance: an exploration of the relevance of the Ohacracy indigenous model of participatory governance in Igboland of South-Eastern Nigeria.
(2019) Anyanele, Chikadi John.; Kumalo, Simangaliso Raymond.; Owino, Kennedy Onyango.
More than half a century ago, the Vatican II ecumenical Council took place to redefine the influence of the Roman Catholic Church in the modern world. Ecumenical as the Council is known; the Vatican II theology re-established the Church anew as to be relevant in the contemporary world, thereby opening doors for lay participation in the Catholic Church governance. Despite the Council and its leaning towards lay participation in the universal Catholic Church, the Catholic communities in the Igbo Ohacracy of the South-eastern Nigeria and the larger Nigerian communities continue to battle towards the determination and realization of the roles or duties of the laity. A Church identified to be communal, consultative; and collegial in its ecclesiological understanding applies the image of a Family of God’s People envisions a participatory Church which the Vatican II had proposed. This is yet to be fully achieved especially among the Igbo Ohacracy people. This study is located between two opposing ideologies of governance: It therefore investigates the centralized system of governance of the Roman Catholic Church and the decentralized Igbo Ohacracy order. The study also analyses the collective lay participation in the common governance of the Catholic Church as recommended by Vatican II council. It also examines authority, the laity, participation of women and inculturation to interrogate governance in both the Catholic Church and Igbo Ohacracy systems of governance. Indeed, this study reveals that in order for the Catholic Church tradition to continue to make sense and meaning, the values of dialogue, listening and consensus decision making should guide its style of governance in dealing with the Igbo Ohacracy people of South-eastern Nigeria. The Igbo Ohacracy form of indigenous governance is the inspiration behind the study. The study focuses on the Roman Catholic Church among the Owerri-Okigwe Igbo of Southeastern Nigerian communities. As a theological project, this study is located within the field of ecclesiology under the discipline of Practical Theology. Church as home for millions of Roman Catholic adherents around the world can no longer remain isolated and less concerned in matters related to governance which the Church in general has inspired all around the world; not just among the Igbo Ohacracy people of South-eastern Nigeria. Each day, human beings experience governance in various ways as it affects them; whether in the family, the community, place of work, in the Church or society at large. This study has applied both “Large Ears” and “Inculturation” theoretical frameworks. The former refers to the ‘Manja Metaphor’ used in the Central African Republic. It signifies the eldest brother as the one who has developed the greatest capacity for ‘listening’ to the will of the ancestors and to the conversations going on in the family community Uzukwu (1996:143). As a major theory for this study, it represents dialogue, consensus and communal participation in the common ownership of community activities and decision making. The latter, inculturation remains a term used to signify the movement which takes local cultures and their values as basic instruments and powerful means for presenting, reformulating and living; Christianity Waliggo, (1991:506). It describes the contextual or cultural application in understanding and practising the Christian values. This study investigates how both the centralized model of the Roman Catholic Church governance and the decentralized Igbo Ohacracy indigenous orders affect the Igbo people who are caught up in between these two influential systems. It is therefore meaningful to note that this study shows the Vatican II Council’s recommendation and opens doors for lay participation in the governance of the Catholic Church. The Igbo Catholic communities are yet to realize this vision fully for its Catholic adherents. Surprisingly though, through the Ohacracy institutions as analysed, this study has demonstrated a high level of individual and group participation among the Igbo governance order. From all indications of the analysis of both the centralized Catholic Church and the decentralized Igbo Ohacracy orders, it reveals that though these two systems are directly opposed to each other, the receptive nature of the Igbo culture has rather encouraged coexistence of the two. Moreover, the aggressive, dynamic and vibrant developmental pursuit nature of the Catholic Church (for example, Western education and medicine) has also propelled the Igbo Ohacracy communities’ receptivity of the ways and activities of the Roman Catholic Church among them. Finally, the study concludes that true and meaningful co-existence is highly probable between two traditions. With the aid and application of listening, dialogue and consensus in decision making (“Large Ear Theory”) between these two systems, peaceful co-existence and progress/development will continue to be achieved. The respect of both traditions among the Igbo communities through the utilization of the values of inculturation in the Catholic Church as fully described in this study will go further to propagate the realization of value and cultural insights that have emerged in this study.
Examining the social, religious and cultural discources on "maleness" and its possible influence on domestic violence in South Africa : a critique of some expressions of evangelical theology.
(2009) Owino, Kennedy Onyango.; Phiri, Isabel Apawo.
My journey in writing this dissertation has been both intellectually and emotionally challenging keeping in mind firstly that I am a male scholar (an “outsider”) responding to issues related to maleness, the abuse and oppression of women. Secondly, that I have a personal “sacred story” of the effects of abuse and violence in the home where I grew up; and thirdly, that am strongly a conservative evangelical by faith. However, these three aspects interplay in contributing to my motivation of seeking for a mended world especially for professing Christian women within the evangelical context. The focus of this study is: Examining the social, religious and cultural discourses on “maleness” and its possible influence on domestic violence in South Africa: A critique of some expressions of evangelical theology. The study argues that the predominant social, religious and cultural discourses portray some expressions of evangelical theology. It maintains that our distorted perceptions of God (how we have imagined God as “male”)—hence maleness, has influenced male paradigm of domination among partners. As a result, this has possibly influenced and contributed to domestic violence (DV), abuse and oppression of women within some evangelical context in South Africa. Hence, the prevalence of abuse and oppression of women in the evangelical context, the battle for the humanity and dignity of women as human beings created in God’s image and that female and male are equal in God are motivations that made me pursue this study. Having evaluated the theology and the inherited evangelical traditions, it becomes certain that transformative praxis that counteracts abusive and oppressive ideologies against women among evangelicals is imperative. To achieve this, the study has used an already published case study on interviews conducted among Christian women in the Full Gospel Church (FGC) in Phoenix, Durban. This has been used to facilitate theological observations. In seeking to answer its research question the dissertation examines and critiques the predominant discourses portrayed as some expressions of evangelical theology in chapters four, five and six as analysed from the said case study. The study achieves this purpose by engaging a theological reflection as its methodology through applying a “feminist theology of praxis” as its theoretical framework. Hence, the study proposes alternative evangelical theological discourses and resources for transformative praxis as its focus. The findings are tentative and require future empirical research. Arguing that “Theological statements contain as much truth as they deliver practically in transforming reality” (Sölle quoted in Ackermann 1996:42), the dissertation concludes with addressing the implications of this study by proposing practical ways for transforming men, aiming at deconstructing abusive and oppressive male paradigms.
Examining women’s agency with respect to the appropriation of runyoka in Johane Masowe Zambuko Apostolic Church in Zimbabwe.
(2020-11) Mapangisana, Calvin Justice.; Owino, Kennedy Onyango.
Recent studies reflect increasing subjugation of women within African independent churches. Women within these churches fall victims of deeply entrenched patriarchal hegemony that renders these women voiceless and powerless. This study therefore examines how women’s agency through the appropriation of Runyoka can bring about the desired situation that enables women not only to flourish, but also usher in the desired transformation within the African Independent Churches in regards to gender relations. The study offers a critical interrogation of the socio-cultural factors that may have necessitated the appropriation of Runyoka by women within the Johane Masowe Zambuko Apostolic Church in Zimbabwe. In order to understand the agency of women within the Johane Masowe Zambuko Apostolic Church in Zimbabwe, this study applies Nego-feminism as a theoretical framework utilised to analyse the appropriation of Runyoka by women. Nego-feminism as theoretical framework interrogates how women respond to cultural practices that makes them vulnerable and disempowered, based within the complexity of negotiation and compromise in the context of African cultures. In other words, Nego-feminism is a feminist theory that implicitly acknowledges the capabilities of women in dealing with patriarchy. As a descriptive qualitative study, phenomenology and interpretive document analysis were used as research Methodologies. The focus of phenomenology is on understanding the unique lived experiences of individuals by exploring the meaning of a phenomenon. This study utilised secondary data in seeking to understand the ritual of runyoka in Johane Masowe Zambuko Apostolic Church and thematic analysis was used as a method of data analysis. Thematic analysis as a method of making sense of the data gathered for the purpose of interpretation was adopted for this study based on its theoretical flexibility.
"Godly manhhood" : evangelical constructions of masculinities in a South African context - a case study of the Mighty Men's Conference (MMC).
(2014) Owino, Kennedy Onyango.; Phiri, Isabel Apawo.
Men and masculinity studies is a significantly developed field of research in Western scholarship and has gained increased interest in Africa, particularly in South(ern) Africa. This study: “Godly Manhood”: Evangelical Constructions of Masculinities in A South African Context – A Case Study of the Mighty Men’s Conference (MMC) is one that seeks to make a contribution in this field of research from a religion (Christian theological) and gender perspective. The study investigates how faith discourses within the Mighty Men’s Conference (MMC) shape perceptions and constructions of masculinities within contemporary Protestant (mainly, Charismatic, Evangelical and Pentecostal Christianity) in post-apartheid South Africa. The study sought to analyse the extent to which Angus Buchan and the MMC’s call for men to return to ‘godly manhood’ either re-inscribe patriarchal conservatism or contribute towards gender-social transformation. In seeking to examine what it means to be ‘Mighty Men’ and “godly men,” the study illustrates how faith discourses within the MMC as a Charismatic, Evangelical and Pentecostal religious grouping inform representations of masculinities. As the study reveals, Charismatic Evangelical theology, beliefs, and gender traditions/ideologies presented by Buchan in his MMC informs perceptions of what is understood as an ‘ideal’ Christian man. These, as the study shows, influence constructions of masculinities achetyped in patterns of ‘godly manhood’ as a process of “recreating Christian masculinity.” The study applied drawing on intersectionality as a conceptual framework. The study showed how religion intersects with other socio-cultural, political and economic factors that necessitate changes as Christian men seek to make sense of their masculine self at the cross-roads of various socialisations. Such changes seem to contribute to representations of emerging masculinities within this context of study. The study adopted a qualitative, multi-methods research design and in addition to my personal observations from the conferences, semi-structured interviews were conducted with thirty four men who have been attending the MMC. Analysis of findings reveals that there are multiple representations and constructions of contradictory and conflicting representations of masculinities within divergent voices of what it means to be ‘Mighty Men’ and practice ‘godly manhood.’ Although certain core commonalities regarding the concept of ‘godly manhood’ emerged from the thirty four men interviewed across the three shades of conservative, Charismatic and Pentecostal Evangelicals, this study makes two important conclusions. First, it indicates that ascriptions to “godly manhood” inculcated by Buchan and the MMC not only portray patterns of traditional and conventional masculinities, but also remain a patriarchal motivation for restoring Christian male supremacy, control and domination. Second, the study illustrates that while Charismatic Evangelical men have a desire to change, their ascription to ‘godly manhood’ is characterized by struggle between traditional/conventional male practices and a need to embrace egalitarian views of gender relations. Such results indicate the extent to which contemporary Charismatic and Evangelical Christianity portray expressions of masculinities which are ambivalent. The study concludes questioning whether Jesus Christ can be a resource for transforming religiously constructed masculinities. The study proposes alternative Christological discourses as counter-models to traditional and patriarchal masculinities.