ACTEA eNews, No. 35 (February 2010)
The mission of ACTEA
is to promote quality evangelical theological education in Africa
by providing supporting services,
facilitating academic recognition, and
fostering continental and inter-continental cooperation.
In this edition of ACTEA eNews:
1. Updates on ACTEA institutions
2. Opening for TCZ President
3. Books for Africa by Richard Gehman
4. BookNotes for Africa review
5. Contacting ACTEA
1. Updates on ACTEA institutions
Since the last issue of ACTEA eNews, ACTEA is happy to announce changes
in the status of several institutions, listed below. These
institutions are to be congratulated for their significant achievements
in the accreditation process.
Accredited:
EGST (Ethiopian Graduate School of Theology) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia,
for the programmes of Post-Graduate Diploma (PGD), Master of Arts in
Biblical and Theological Studies (MABTS), Master of Arts in HIV/AIDS in
relation to theological studies (MAHA) and Master of Arts in Leadership
and Management (MALM).
EGST becomes the fifth post-graduate institution to gain ACTEA
accreditation, along with Université Shalom de Bunia (DR Congo), NEGST
(Nairobi Evangelical Graduate School of Theology) and NIST (Nairobi
International School of Theology) in Nairobi, Kenya, and Nigerian
Baptist Theological Seminary in Ogbomosho, Nigeria.
Candidate:
Baptist Theological Seminary (Lusaka, Zambia)
Several other institutions are expected to enter this category soon, so look for an update in the next issue of ACTEA eNews.
Affiliate:
Ethiopian Full Gospel Theological College (Addis Ababa, Ethiopia)
Theological College of Zimbabwe (Bulawayo, Zimbabwe); also see #2 below.
Several other institutions are also in the process of becoming affiliates.
2. Opening for TCZ President
The Theological College of Zimbabwe is an ACTEA candidate for
accreditation and is currently searching for a new president to replace
Dr. Victor Naka. Queries should be addressed directly to TCZ and
not to ACTEA (see details below).
Theological College of Zimbabwe
Gwanda Road at Riverside Road, P.O. Box AC 587 Ascot
Bulawayo, Zimbabwe
Telephone: (263-9) 287032
14th January 2010
To Whom It May Concern:
Reference: Vacancy for the Position of President of the Theological College of Zimbabwe
The Theological College of Zimbabwe (TCZ) was established over 30 years
ago under the auspices of the Africa Evangelical Fellowship (AEF),
spent several years under the leadership of the Evangelical Fellowship
of Zimbabwe (EFZ), and has been under an interdenominational Board of
Trustees since 1998. The college holds to a statement of faith
based on the World Evangelical Fellowship (WEF) statement of
faith.
TCZ exists to develop Christian leaders for effective leadership and
ministry in both the church and society. The college has over 200
alumni serving all over the globe, most of who are still faithfully
engaged in Christian leadership and ministry in Africa.
TCZ currently has an enrolment of approximately 60 students in
full-time programmes like the 3 year Advanced Diploma in Theology, and
Bachelor of Arts in Theology (BATheo); and Part-Time, Women’s Ministry,
and BATheo Honours students. The college is formally Accrediting
Council for Theological Education in Africa (ACTEA) Correspondent and
steadily progressing toward accreditation with ACTEA. TCZ is also
in the process of introducing a masters programme.
Over the past three decades five Godly leaders in the position of
Principal or President have led the college. Based upon the
experience of these leaders and the vision of the Board of Trustees for
the future, the college is advertising for the position of President of
the Theological College of Zimbabwe effective January 2011. The
prospective incumbent would be considered suitable for exhibiting the
following qualities:
1. Must be a visionary and able to communicate the vision to others.
2. Should be a strong leader but definitely a team player.
3. Be a totally committed evangelical with a deeply acknowledged faith,
4. Preferably should have a Ph.D., or at least a Masters degree and working toward a doctorate.
5. Be a good administrator with good people management skills.
6. Be strong in educational issues, especially Christian education,
7. Have both oral and written communication skills.
9. Have good teaching skills.
10. Good PR person, including fund raising skills.
11. Experience in pastoral work and church administration.
12. Have the ability to lead a multi-racial multi-faceted institution.
13. Should be passionate about leadership training, especially theological training.
14. Be mature and have a well-balanced character
Applications for the position are to be submitted by the end of
February 2010. The package for the position will be commensurate
with the responsibilities of the position, and will be discussed with
serious applicants.
Applications can be addressed by email to:
Rev. Jake Shenk
The Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Theological College of Zimbabwe
<ku...@yoafrica.com>
(Please do not post applications by mail).
3. Books for Africa by Richard Gehman
Dr. Gehman taught in Kenya for many years and is a long-time friend of
ACTEA. Note his most recent contributions to the ongoing work of
African leadership.
NEW PUBLICATION ON LEADERSHIP
Learning to Lead: The Making of a Christian Leader in Africa
By Dr. Richard J. Gehman
(Author of African Traditional Religion in Biblical Perspective)
This new publication is a 335-page textbook on Christian leadership
based on the practical experience of African leaders. More than 175
African Christian leaders were interviewed by the author to gain their
perspective on the reasons for success and failure in Christian
leadership. This publication has grown out of thirty-six years of
ministry in Kenya.
Dr. Fabian Maganda writes: “To Dr. Gehman’s eternal credit, his book
brings to light the reality of struggles which African church leaders
face. It provides a biblical blueprint for much-needed further work on
the issues affecting Christian church leaders in Africa…I highly
recommend this book to African pastors, students and lay leaders
because its argument is based on biblical principles and lived
experiences of African church leaders.”
Everyone seeking to serve in the Church in Africa today will profit
from learning the qualities of church leadership found in this book.
This book is available in Kenya from the CLC Christian BookLink Kenya
Ltd., The Whitehouse, Gitanga Road, PO Box 26665 – 00100, Nairobi. Tel.
254 (0)20 3592913 or 3861850. Contact person: Edith Wamalwa.
<edi...@cblafrica.com>
This book is also available in Nigeria – <cew...@gmail.com>;
In Sierra Leone – <jus...@yahoo.com>
In Ghana – <c...@africaonline.com.gh>
And in Uganda – <steve...@yahoo.com>
ANNOUNCING THE REPRINTING ON PUBLIC DEMAND
WHO ARE THE LIVING DEAD?
By Richard J. Gehman
This book poses the question, “Who are the Living
Dead?” - those ancestral spirits which are such an important
component of the traditional African’s belief. The author sets out to
answer this pivotal question, and in so doing opens up the whole area
of traditional African religion to the scrutiny of Scripture. The
author contrasts the deep-seated fear of death which is common to most
people – even many Bible-believing Christians – with the hope and
assurance which can be experienced by those who fully understand what
God’s Word teaches about death and life after death. The book lays out
the biblical solution to the problem of the fear of death and the
living-dead.
This book is available from Evangel Publishing House, PVT BAG 28963, Nairobi, Kenya.
Tel. (254-20) 8560839 or 856204; Fax (254-20) 8562050; Email: <in...@evangelpublishing.org>
Available on-line from Barnes and Noble; and Amazon.com
4. BookNotes for Africa review
Dedji, Valentin Reconstruction and Renewal in African Christian Theology (Nairobi: Acton, 2003. 284 pp, pb, c. $10)
This path-breaking study of contemporary African Christian theology is
the revision of a doctoral dissertation completed at the University of
Cambridge. Dedji, a Methodist scholar from Benin. offers an in-depth
comparative assessment of four prominent figures in modern African
theological discussion, namely: Jesse Mugambi of Kenya; Kä Mana of
Congo (DRC), Kwame Bediako of Ghana, and Jean-Marc Ela of Cameroon.
Dedji’s central thesis is that the cultural identity stream in African
theology represented by Bediako, and the liberationist stream
represented by Ela, need now to be superseded by the reconstructionist
emphasis first launched by Mugambi in the early 1990s, and now best
exemplified by Kä Mana. The main body of the book is a presentation and
assessment of each of these four theologians. What distinguishes
Dedji’s project is his attempt to expound each person’s contributions
complexly, with measured, courteous assessment. Here is an impressive
and attractive example of African theology maturely comparing,
evaluating, and critiquing itself. The exposition begins with Mugambi,
and his 1991 call for a new direction in African theological
reflection, away from liberation themes derived from the Exodus motif
toward reconstruction themes drawn from Nehemiah. Mugambi argues that
addressing Africa’s desperate need for social reconstruction should
become the defining mission of the African church and of African
theology. But in Dedji’s view it is Kä Mana who now represents the most
promising version of this reconstructionist agenda, in part because Kä
Mana is utterly realistic about the crises gripping Africa and about
Africa’s own accountability in that crisis, and in part because Kä Mana
deploys a complexly nuanced multi-disciplinary interpretation of these
realities and how they may be addressed. Dedji expounds Bediako with
much sympathy, but Bediako’s preeminent concern with contextual
identity both Kä Mana and Dedji himself judge as no longer appropriate
amidst the continent’s harrowing cultural, economic and political
disintegration. In such an Africa a dignified African Christian
identity will only become achievable when African Christianity gives
full priority to societal transformation. Also Ela’s powerful cry for
liberating justice is exemplary, but Dedji wants a turn away from a
justice always projected in terms of oppressed/oppressor, towards a
justice that makes full space for accountability, repentance,
forgiveness and reconciliation. It must be admitted that Dedji’s
exposition sometimes seems overwhelmed by the data, and his obvious
rhetorical skills are sometimes allowed to do duty for interpretive
skills. Dedji has made a distinguished contribution that merits close
attention. Nevertheless, it is nothing less than extraordinary and
sobering that the biblical perception of the core human predicament and
the Divine initiative in remedy is virtually undetectable either within
the varied theological views expounded or within Dedji’s assessments.
Here is seemingly a critical challenge to African evangelical
Christianity, an absent voice yet needing to be heard.
[Review supplied by "BookNotes for Africa", a specialist journal that
offers 40+ such reviews per issue on recent Africa-related publications
relevant for theological educators and libraries in Africa and
elsewhere. The subscription rate within Africa is US$8 for four
issues (airmail) or $12 to overseas addresses. Send inquiries and
orders to: BookNotes for Africa, PO Box 250100, Ndola, Zambia, or email
Stue...@post.harvard.edu]
5. Contacting ACTEA
General ACTEA correspondence can be sent to Rev. Joe Simfukwe,
ACTEA Director, at <actea....@gmail.com> or PO Box 250100,
Ndola, Zambia. Accredited institutions may send their annual reports to
the same address or contact the Deputy Director for Administration, Dr.
Rich Stuebing, through email at <adm.as...@gmail.com>.
Enquiries regarding Affiliate or Candidate institutions can be sent to
Dr. Stephanie Black, ACTEA Accreditation Officer, at
<drstepha...@gmail.com>. Correspondent schools should send
information to the ACTEA Administrative Assistant, Ms. Sarah Fundulu,
at <adm.as...@gmail.com>.
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