African Pentecostalism, the Bible, and Cultural Resilience


Book Description

"This volume, based on a PhD thesis submitted to the University of Zimbabwe, investigates the resilience of Shona religion and culture among ZAOGA Pentecostal Christians. Whereas the Pentecostal ideology suggests that 'old things' have passed away, it appears that 'old things' continue to have high significance for the 'new'. The book demonstrates how belief in avenging spirits, witches and witchcraft, value of words spoken prior to death, the role, status and significance of women, belief in unnatural events, liturgy and salvation have remained relevant to the lives of ZAOGA Shona converts. The patterns of continuity, discontinuity, extension, collaboration, contradiction, re-interpretation and rejection between Shona traditional religion and culture and ZAOGA are explored, challenging the framing of African Pentecostalism as a mere imitation and parroting of US theology. The conclusion is that while ZAOGA self-consciously presents itself as a sophisticated, trans-national and progressive Pentecostal movement, members continue to wrestle with Shona indigenous beliefs and practices. An African womanist framework is adapted to challenge ZAOGA to promote the well-being of women." --




Abundant Life and Basic Needs


Book Description

"Western neglecting traditional religion is an important factor for the failure of many developmental strategies towards Africa. Therefore, religion(s) of the indigenous peoples must be given the neccesary attention. The book presents the example of the Shona religion playing a critical role in the life of the Zimbabweans. If incorporated, it will contribute to the better success of development initiatives." --back cover




Offering the Gospel ADAPANON


Book Description







Sankofa


Book Description




Nehanda


Book Description




Hesed and Ikharari


Book Description




At the Crossroads


Book Description




Ancient Hebrew Dictionary


Book Description

Whether you know Hebrew or not, this book will provide you with a quick reference resource for learning the meaning of many Hebrew words that lie beneath the English translations, which will open new doors for you into Biblical interpretation. The Hebrew language of the Bible must be understood from its original and Ancient Hebrew perspective. Our interpretation of a word like "holy" is an abstract idea, derived out of a Greco-Roman culture and mindset, which is usually understood as someone or something that is especially godly, pious or spiritual. However, the Hebrew word קדוש (qadosh) means, from an Ancient Hebrew perspective, unique and is defined in this dictionary as: "Someone or something that has, or has been given the quality of specialness, and has been separated from the rest for a special purpose." With this interpretation, we discover that the nation of Israel is not "holy," in the sense of godliness or piety, but is a unique and special people, separated from all others to serve God. This Biblical Hebrew dictionary contains the one thousand most frequent verbs and nouns found within the Hebrew Bible. Each word is translated and defined from its original concrete Ancient Hebrew perspective, allowing for a more accurate interpretation of the text. In addition to the one thousand verbs and nouns, the appendices in the book include a complete list of Hebrew pronouns, prepositions, adverbs, conjunctions and numbers.