African Theological Education: Retrospect and Prospect — An Anglophone Perspective

Christian theological thinking and vocation has a long and illustrious history on the African continent, dating back to prominent theologians in Roman North Africa and Egypt. To appraise the prospects of theological education in Africa against its complicated and fraught background, I will discuss two issues of primary importance: 1) the need for theological education (programs, research, and institutions) to deeply engage African realities and context; and 2) why overcoming the debilitating effects of captivity to the Western theological/intellectual tradition will be Africa’s greatest gift to the global church. These issues are primary because they will largely define or determine the prospects of African theological education for the next generation and beyond.