In the strategic document of the African Union approved in 2013 and spanning over 50 years, known as Agenda 2063, we find a blueprint for transforming Africa into a global powerhouse of the future. Many of the themes mentioned in Agenda 2063 are also mentioned in the New Testament, such as slavery, unity, poverty, women, children, discrimination and diversity. It is therefore clear that Christianity has something to contribute to Agenda 2063. Another word used throughout the Agenda 2063 document is ‘transformation’. Concepts such as ‘transformative leadership’ and ‘radical transformation at all levels and in all spheres’ are mentioned. This contribution draws on the Agenda 2063 document to engage the missiological themes of unity, reconciliation and justice through the lens of the Belhar Confession. Deeply aware of the pain and disruption colonial Christianity has caused in many instances in Africa, the author contends that the Good News, particularly the New Testament themes of unity, reconciliation and justice, present a potentially transformative approach towards developing Africa. The research question that this article attends to is: how can the churches in Africa contribute to the aspirations of Agenda 2063 from the themes of unity, justice and reconciliation as declared in the Belhar Confession? By interrogating these key concepts of Agenda 2063 through the Confession of Belhar, the author concludes that the Belhar Confession can be regarded as a key African document, which could be explored further to facilitate unity, reconciliation and justice on the continent.
This article indicates the important relationship between church and state and the need for a partnership for the benefit of both. The need for a transforming state and a transforming church to participate in a transformed Africa is argued. The article promotes multi-, inter- and transdisciplinary aspects of studies as part of a mission praxis and application.
The research question that this article attends to is: how can the churches in Africa contribute to the aspirations of Agenda 2063 from the themes of unity, justice, and reconciliation as declared in the Belhar Confession?
It is true that African theologies have transformed the mission thinking of the colonial era, more specifically, and are still influencing and transforming missiology today. It is also true that the colonial mission has transformed Africa in many instances, in both negative and positive ways. However, transforming is not a one-way action, as Bosch (
The tremendous growth of Christianity in Africa is a well-known fact (Tarantal
Working with this presupposition, it is not only the African Union (AU)
Before attending to some of the content of Agenda 2063 and later the Belhar Confession, it is necessary to note Koopman’s (
According to the author of this research, the Agenda 2063 document, which the AU already approved in 2013, is still ‘a very new document’ to the African church community. This AU declaration, known as Agenda 2063, clearly indicates the rededication of the AU towards reaching the pan-African vision of ‘An integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven by its own citizens, representing a dynamic force in the international arena…’ Only a few church meetings have acknowledged this document, although it is in many instances aligned with the Millennial Development Goals (MDGs) and, in that sense, is not strange to church meeting agendas. From the content of Agenda 2063, it seems as if the AU does not recognise the churches in Africa as important partners to reach their transformational goals. There is no specific reference to the church; they only refer to faith-based organisations (FBOs) as partners or stakeholders, amongst others (Ndizera & Muzee
A shared strategic framework for inclusive growth and sustainable Development & a global strategy to optimize the use of Africa’s Resources for the benefit of all Africans. (African Union Commission [AUC]
The guiding vision for this article is emphasised as ‘to build an integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven and managed by its own citizens and representing a dynamic force in the international arena’ (AUC
To reach the pan-African drive, Agenda 2063 has identified the following seven aspirations (AUC
Aspiration 1: A
Aspiration 2: An
Aspiration 3: An
Aspiration 4: A
Aspiration 5: An Africa with
Aspiration 6: An Africa whose
Aspiration 7: Africa as a
In the ensuing discussions, we will again attend to some of these aspirations, what the possible role of the church may be and how the aspirations (possibly) relate to the themes of unity, justice and reconciliation as declared in the Belhar Confession. However, for now, just a brief remark on the two flagship projects identified to reach these aspirations will be made, although the projects will not be discussed further. Of particular interest to this article is the two flagship projects related to education, namely the pan-African e-university and the pan-African virtual university, as these may directly or indirectly impact theological education in Africa.
However, Agenda 2063 does not only mention aspirations but also challenges that need attention (AUC
conflict, instability and insecurity
social and economic inequalities
organised crime, drug trade and illicit financial flows
poor management of diversities: religious extremism, ethnicism and corruption
failure to harness the demographic dividend
escalation of Africa’s disease burden
climate risks and natural disasters
external shocks caused by global market forces.
Theologically well-equipped or educated churches and church leaders will enhance the participation of Christianity in more meaningful ways in addressing the challenges to transform the continent of Africa, according to the aspirations stated in Agenda 2063. It is in this regard that the author believes the Belhar Confession may help us.
In the same way that Agenda 2063 put a transformational catchphrase on the front page, the consultation of the African theological and Christian networks
Do not conform to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will. (Rm 12:2)
The consultation continues to express appreciation and support:
[
However, it must be observed that although the two documents seek the same goal, their departures are different. In a sense, one could say Agenda 2063 is following the trades of the continents that are viewed as successful and prosperous, whilst the African theological and Christian networks choose a different route – not to conform to this world.
To show support and appreciation for Agenda 2063, the consultation commits to the following objectives (AACC
to engage the seven aspirations of Agenda 2063 into their core curricula (of theological education)
to promote networking at different levels through, for example, conferences offering space to study and discuss Agenda 2063
to sound transformative theological and biblical education in a curriculum that is contextual, integrative and relevant at regaining the lost dignity of continental Africa
to produce academic and popular publications at institutional and church levels to articulate the vision of Agenda 2063.
From this short summary of the consultation representing almost every church organisation in Africa,
The question that needs to be answered is whether we all want the same Africa. When Agenda 2063, an AU document, talks about ‘the Africa we want’, who is the ‘we’ that it is referring to? Is it the politicians? The African businesspeople? Or the ordinary population of Africa? From these two documents, it is clear that both the AU and the church agree that we want a transformed Africa, but are we able to transform Africa or must we become transformed first?
If we accept that churches have an important role to play in the implementation of Agenda 2063, then we need to look at the different possible understandings of transformation between church and state. Katongole is one of the African theologians who conceptualises transformation as conversion. His understanding of conversion is a clear break with the past, which implies a distinct Christian identity. However, according to Ngong (
State efficiency in Africa is not efficiency in the provision of needed means of sustenance for citizens but is rather manifested in the efficient slaughter of people, as was the case in Rwanda 1994. (p. 371)
Tarantal (
Are no longer instruments capable of serving the public good. Indeed, far from being able to provide aid and protection to their citizens, African governments and the vampire-like politicians who run them, are regarded by the populations they rule as yet another burden to bear the struggle for survival. (pp. 2–3)
Ngong then pleads for African Christians to present an alternative that needs to be found in the narrative of the church. ‘What Africa needs, … is a different form of conversion situated within the church as a political community rather than in the nation-state’ (Ngong
The church must be, as Katongole’s ecclesiology describes, a ‘demonstration plot’ of a
Do not be naïve about the politics of your nations; do not just fit in within the forms of belonging as defined by your race, ethnicity, nationality, or class, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you learn to negotiate what is perfect, true and good. (Ngong
Although conversion is a personal matter, it is never a private matter and will always result in belonging to a church, ‘which leads people to become “members of a people, with collective and public consequences”’ (Ngong
[
The question is this: what is my
The following section focuses on the Belhar Confession to provide the church in Africa with a clearer ecclesiological understanding of the implications of this new identity within the context of Africa and help relate it to Agenda 2063.
The reason for choosing the Belhar Confession to clarify what the African church should be and do is because it was born from the circumstances of Africa – more specifically, the inequalities, injustices and dehumanisation of people within the South African context. It was born from opposing nation-state politics, which became the politics of some of the churches in South Africa. Some might also argue it was (Afrikaans) church politics which became nation-state politics. Here the author specifically refers to how a theologically well-educated church, like the Dutch Reformed Church, participated in the development and maintenance of the apartheid system. However, it was some of the African churches (e.g. the Dutch Reformed Missions Church, later known as URCSA), born from the mission work of the Dutch Reformed Church, that believed that with apartheid the essence of the gospel was at stake, and therefore they needed to confess because they did not have any other choice. The Belhar Confession is nothing less than a call for the conversion of the church, the transformation of the nation-state politics and the transformation of society in general. In the accompanying letter to the Belhar Confession, paragraph two states: ‘An act of confession may only be made by the Church for the sake of its purity and credibility and that of its message’. And then paragraph three: ‘We proclaim it against a false doctrine, against an ideological distortion which threatens the gospel itself in our church and our country’.
In this regard, one needs to ask whether Agenda 2063 should not have used the same ‘strong language’ of Belhar – ‘we proclaim it against’ – when it refers to the following challenges:
conflict, instability and insecurity
social and economic inequalities
organised crime, drug trade and illicit financial flows
poor management of diversities; religious extremism, ethnicism and corruption
failure to harness the demographic dividend
escalation of Africa’s disease burden
climate risks and natural disasters
external shocks, for example, caused by global market forces.
The Belhar Confession consists of five articles referring to:
the belief in the Trinitarian God, who called his church
the belief in the visible unity of the church
the belief that God has given the message of reconciliation to his church
the belief that God revealed himself as the One bringing justice and peace amongst people
the belief that the church is called to be obedient to her master Jesus Christ.
The author will only focus on articles 2, 3 and 4 of the Belhar Confession, namely the
The further discussion of Belhar articles 2, 3 and 4 is from the conviction that the church has both a theological and sociological role to play in society.
Koopman (
[
The use of unity in the Belhar Confession must be understood as
Sympathy is a spontaneous affective reaction to another’s feelings experienced on the basis of perceived similarity between observer and observed. Empathy is an intentional affective response to another’s feelings experienced on the basis of perceived differences between the observer and observed. Interpathy is an intentional cognitive and affective envisioning of another’s thoughts and feelings from another culture, worldview and epistemology. (p. 37)
Unity alone is not enough; we need to create spaces where this threefold pathos is developed amongst people who live in different contexts, who are from different backgrounds, who hold different views and who are strangers to each other.
Agenda 2063 is viewed as a continuation of the pan-African drive over centuries for unity, self-determination, freedom, progress and collective prosperity. Reading just Agenda 2063, one might think that self-determination, freedom and progress are the opposites of unity and collective prosperity, whilst unity, as declared in the Belhar Confession, might help Africa, giving us tools and language to discuss how this unity might happen not only as ‘a gift but also as an obligation’. It further encourages Africa not only to talk about unity but also to make unity visible. It is in this regard that the church may set some examples.
When the Belhar Confession talks about reconciliation, it also refers to the calling of the church to witness by word and deed to the new heaven and the new earth. When (not if) the church takes this witness as being serious enough to convert herself, she will be able to contribute to the transformation of Africa and Agenda 2063, especially considering the challenges mentioned. Belhar article 3 reads:
We believe that God has entrusted the church with the message of reconciliation in and through Jesus Christ; that the church is called to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world, that the church is called blessed because it is a peacemaker, that the church is witness both by word and by deed to the new heaven and the new earth in which righteousness dwells; that God’s life-giving Word and Spirit has conquered the powers of sin and death, and therefore also of irreconciliation and hatred, bitterness and enmity …
Reconciliation in the Belhar Confession embraces ‘different races, tribes, nationalities, socio-economic groups, genders, sexual orientations, age groups, and “normal” and disabled people’ (Koopman
Belhar article 4 confesses:
We believe that God has revealed Godself as the One who wishes to bring about justice and true peace on earth; that in a world full of injustice and enmity God is in a special way the God of the destitute, the poor and the wronged and that God calls the church to follow in this; that God brings justice to the oppressed and gives bread to the hungry; that God frees the prisoners and restores sight to the blind; that God supports the downtrodden, protects the strangers, helps orphans and widows and blocks the path of the ungodly; that for God pure and undefiled religion is to visit the orphans and the widows in their suffering; that God wishes to teach the people of God to do what is good and to seek the right …
Justice as described in the Belhar Confession is compassionate justice, which includes both sacrificial and forensic justice. Koopman (
Throughout the history of Africa and colonialism, Africa has struggled with the issue of human rights. Although colonialism has passed, Africa is still struggling with the issue of human rights, for example, xenophobic attacks, gender issues, religious extremists, etc. Agenda 2063 does not give enough attention to human rights as the foundation for all the aspirations mentioned in the document. It is in this regard that Belhar ‘provide[s] the framework for what we can call the discourse on solidarity and cohesion, the discourse on embrace and participation, and the discourse on compassion and human rights’ (Koopman
Both Agenda 2063 and the Belhar Confession are documents from different bodies, the AU and the church, that create hope and describe transformation for a better Africa. There are many contact points between the two documents, but for either one – of the AU or the church – to be successful, they need each other as partners. The church needs the AU to create an environment and make available resources such as a pan-African e-university and the pan-African virtual university, where the church and other institutions can train leaders to act with integrity in an ever-changing environment to reach the aspirations of Agenda 2063.
However, the AU also needs the church to reach people at the grassroots level and create a safe space for people from every tribe, race and nation in Africa, both the rich and the poor, the marginalised and the leaders – a safe space where everyone is equal in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ because all are saved by his grace; a place where all are reconciled into a unity that works for the justice of all. It is in this regard that theological education – studying the Bible, different confessions and the context – may help the church to contribute to the transformation of Africa. The most important role the church can play is that of a servant, a servant leader, who creates a space where human rights may be recognised and everybody is welcomed. Maybe, in such a space, we will find the Africa that God intended and what we want.
The author declares that he has no financial or personal relationships that may have inappropriately influenced him in writing this article.
J.J.K. is the sole author of this article.
This article followed all ethical standards of research without direct contact with human or animal subjects.
This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.
Data sharing is not applicable to this article as no new data were created or analysed in this study.
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any affiliated agency of the author.
The African Union is a continental union consisting of 55 member states located on the continent of Africa.
The African theological and Christian networks report was captured by the AACC that’s why the reference is AACC.
The consultation included almost all different church denominations and organisations: ‘[