A comparative study of Isaiah Shembe and Immanuel Millingo's ministries and their contribution to African Christianity.

Abstract

This dissertation looks into the ministries of Isaiah Shembe and Emmanuel Milingo to examine their contributions to African Christianity. It also seeks to investigate their endeavours at 'affirming African identity in the process of inculturating Christianity into the African culture. Their contexts are, respectively, South Africa and Zambia. The dissertation also seeks to find a model that could help the mainline churches refer to in the quest of assuming a true African church that addresses the questions of Africans within their world view. The first chapter serves as an introduction to the study. The second and third chapters look into the profile of both Shembe and Milingo and also examine the context that influences their ministries. They also bring to the fore the neglect that has set in due to missionary teaching eventually leading to the current problems besetting the mainline churches owing to ignoring the African world view. The chapters four and five discuss the healing ministries of the two leaders and the patterns of inculturation emerging from their ministries. These chapters show how healing forms an integral part of the African society and cannot be ignored, and the essence of inculturation in the African church as demonstrated by Shembe and Milingo. The final chapter discusses a model of the church that emerges from Shembe and Milingo' s ministries which can serve as something the main line churches can learn from in order to affirm their ministries.