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Thứ Sáu, 25 tháng 7, 2014

African Ministries; An In-Depth Analysis

By Sharron Cantu


The African continent in its current state has 54 recognized states and is recognized to be the most populous continent. Its reputation also includes a number of war torn countries, massive rates of unemployment, poverty and many more/other problems associated with under-development everywhere in the world. However the inhabitants are very religious from years of missionary activity and this is reflected in the high number of African Ministries in the continent and their huge role in challenging the said problems.

The two main categories of ministries found in Africa are the religion related and the government based. Both kinds of ministries are different mainly due to their structures of leadership and the kinds of roles they are meant to perform. These organizations in Africa play a significant role in spearheading development in various sectors and thus have their work interdependent on each other.

The two types of ministries differ in a number of ways. These variances are such as leadership structures where a church ministry are led by clergy men while government type are led by elected leaders and while the structure of church allows for direct involvement with the society the government ministry structure is more disconnected from the community. Individually they perform different roles.

Governmental based ones play only legally stipulated and accepted roles formed after consensus is made by the citizen representatives. Is could feature responsibilities such as, distribution of national resources evenly geographically, running of beneficial projects, ensuring security of the people within their borders and the protection of human rights. It is of key concern that governmental bodies serving the people ensure that they are free and fair.

Church ministry has various diverse roles assigned to each depending on the aim of the church. The common ones include offering a voice for the community to be heard, partnering with international donors, and financial administration of aid to local groups in addition to assisting in development of regions. The activities however consider the law of the land.

The current kinds of religious agencies differ and most often based geographically. Northern Africa being primarily Islamic has few Christian based ministries as they operate a lot on Islam based laws while the eastern as well as the western regions of the continent have both protestant and catholic ministries as is the case in the south. They all tend to provide different services in their areas of operation depending on the available needs.

Work done by religious organizations to transform lives of a community can be religious based or development based. Religiously they involve spreading Christianity to new areas, offering prayers and hope to the sick and also training local religious leaders. Development wise they construct schools, mission hospitals, housing complexes and offering bursary opportunities to kids. They assist in areas where the governments fail to reach.

Despite the trials faced, work done by the ministry is important and the two key players will continue working hand in hand for a better Africa




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