Wow, are we ever confused. We thought things down in Africa are bad.. Maybe it's the other way around..

Learning from Africa

The Washington Post has an interesting editorial by Uzodinma Iweala entitled "Stop Trying to Save Africa" The author rants about Western attitudes toward Africa and the widespread feeling that the West needs to "save" Africa. He chides us that our attitudes have really not traveled much of a distance from the colonial mindset.

In many ways I agree with Iweala's position. Unfortunately we haven't learned how much we have to learn from Africa, particularly from our brothers and sisters in Christ in places where Christianity is thriving despite persecution and suffering. I think about an email my friend David sent to me from the Sudan a couple of years ago while he was their teaching pastors at a seminary, many of whom had walked for miles for days just to get there. He said:

There is a woman here who pastors a remote Anglican church in the North which her husband founded and pastored until his death. Earlier this year she watched from the bushes as her son was mutilated by machete—right in front of her husband—as Muslims tried to force the son to recant Christianity. After her son was dead, they started in on her husband, taking limb after limb, and he stood strong until he died also, refusing to recant. While she is uncomfortable pastoring the church as a woman, she says that there has been no one else to lead and "if this church dies, my family and my heart have died in vain." She has named her church, "The Church of the Agony."

As I told these people that we would be praying for their church, they told us that THEY WOULD BE PRAYING FOR OURS IN AMERICA EVEN MORE. As we pray for peace for them, they will pray that "the confusion would be cast out from our midst, so that we may clearly see the Savior in America." They say they have heard of the state of our churches, and have been faithfully praying for us already.

The point isn't that we shouldn't help in situations where God shows us to help. I think the point is more about our attitude. All of us, Africans, Americans, Europeans, etc... we are all in need of saving. We need to see that there is only One, truly able to save. I pray along with my African brothers and sisters that "the confusion would be cast from our midst so that we may clearly see the Savior in America." And I pray that God would show us ways to humbly partner with our brothers and sisters in Africa to help in ways that are effectual and that don't reek of condescending pride.