Ghana Journal of Religion and Theology

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    Poverty and Slothfulness: A Reading of Proverbs 6:6-11 In The Ghanaian Context
    (Ghana Journal of Religion and Theology (GJRT), 2012-12-04) Ntreh, B.A.; Okyere, K.
    Poverty is inimical to human progress. It is pervasive and wreaks damage in societies. Poverty in Africa is particularly alarming, since the continent is home to a sizeable number of the world's poor. Yet talking about poverty in Africa is contestable, especially when it is about its causes. However, ascertaining the causes of poverty is a positive step in addressing this menace. Apart from the ideological character of many of the discussions on the causes of poverty in Africa, many times, discussions are carried out in the ivory towers of scholars, far removed from the understanding of many ordinary people. Too often then, what ordinary Africans think and the explanations that can be gleaned from their cultural traditions are sidelined. To effectively combat poverty, however, we need to approach the task of delineating its causes from a holistic perspective, one that takes seriously mainstream factors as well as what happens at the margins. One such cause which needs consideration is slothfulness. This paper looks at slothfulness, from the perspective of intra-cultural criticism, as a contributory factor to poverty in Africa and Ghana in particular. On this basis, the paper reads Proverbs 6:6-11 as an illustration of one of the ways ancient Israel dealt with the problem of poverty resulting from slothful attitude. It concludes that the text and indeed a number of proverbial sayings in the Old Testament cohere with Ghanaian proverbial tradition to identify slothful attitude as a promoter of poverty.
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    Reading the Gospel of Mark with African Eyes: A Fresh Look at the Exorcism and Healing Passages in Mark
    (Ghana Journal of Religion and Theology (GJRT), 2012-12-04) Frimpong, E.
    This article examines the Exorcism and Healing passages of the Gospel of Saint Mark. It is based on a research, conducted with Ghanaian worshipers from twenty two London based Ghanaian churches on their reading of those passages. It unearths explanations and applications that are quite different from conventional ones found in Western European scholarship. The findings have deep implications for hermeneutics and cross cultural interpretation of the Gospel
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    The Death Penalty: An African Perspective
    (Ghana Journal of Religion and Theology (GJRT), 2012-12-04) Agbanu, H.L.K.
    Global debates about whether the death penalty should be abolished or not typically revolve around three main questions: (1) what are the legitimate purpose of punishment (the purposes argument), (2) whether any acts are so heinous that their perpetrators truly deserve to die (the desert argument), and (3) whether the fact that a community continues to use capital punishment is generally expressive of virtuous, or vicious, character traits among . its citizenry (the character argument). This article contends that because the different concerns of these three arguments are not always fully appreciated, abolitionists and retentionists often talk past one another. To illustrate this, we explore the implications of each type of argument in the context of indigenous African morality, showing how each argument takes on new meanings with different degrees of explanatory force. While we do not propose a specific resolution to the global death .penalty debate, we do reach conclusions about how participants in this global conversation ought to proceed.
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    The Use of Indigenous Musical Genre in Christian Worship: A Case of Ebibindwom (Akan Sacred Lyrics) in the Methodist Church - Ghana
    (Ghana Journal of Religion and Theology (GJRT), 2018-12-04) Amuah, J.A.
    The expression Ebibindwom (Akan Scared Lyrics) are traditional songs used in Christian worship specifically in the Methodist Church-Ghana. The paper unravels the circumstances that led to the institution of this traditional musical genre in the Methodist Church. It also attempts to provide an understanding and direction as to how Ebibindwom, a traditional musical genre, has been performed in and outside the church settings. The paper further provides the distinctive stylistic and expressive idioms that have impacted on the general liturgical and musical outlook of Methodism in Ghana, to serve as an aid to the younger generation who look down upon traditional musical genres, to participate in, and sustain the singing of Ebibindwom.
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    The Law as Our Disciplinarian: A Critical Study of Galatians 3:24 In The Dangme Translations of the Bible
    (Ghana Journal of Religion and Theology (GJRT), 2012-12-04) Kuwornu-Adjaottor, J.E.T.
    Galatians 3:24 has to do with the function of the law before Christ came. The understanding of the word paidag6gos and the phrase eis Christon are crucial to the translation, exegesis and interpretation of the verse. The way the verse has been rendered in the Dangme translations of the Bible does not bring out the full meaning of the law as our paidag6gos - "disciplinarian," " guardian," "custodian," "trainer" - before Christ came. This may promote antinomian ism among Dangme Bible readers. It is being argued that the verse should be re-translated in the Dangme to bring out its full meaning.
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    Physical and Spiritual Purity as Basis for Healing and Holiness in Mark 7:1-7
    (Ghana Journal of Religion and Theology (GJRT), 2012-12-04) Oderinde, O.A.
    This paper explores the significance of purity for healing and health. Despite all the exploits that the world has witnessed in the field of science and technology, sicknesses and diseases still pose a serious threat to the existence of man on earth. Many new contagious, incurable, terminal diseases are being discovered almost on daily basis and the medical sciences seem not to have solution to most of these health challenges. It has been discovered however that the choice of personal lifestyle is crucial to health and illness. The link between lifestyle and health is a major area of interest in public health today. Man 's lack of clean habits has been identified as the major cause of contagious diseases. In most cases, poor personal hygiene and public sanitation a id the spread of infectious diseases. I n this regard, physical and spiritual purity as basis for healing and holiness is examined through an exegetical analysis of Mark 7 to actualize the theological meaning of the text in today's context and, engender commitment to personal and societal transformation. The paper adopts both the historical critical method and historical materialist sociological method. It is believed that the control of most of the contagious diseases depends largely on high standard of personal and environmental hygiene and holy living.
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    Nyame Ne Aberewa: Towards a History Of Akan Notions Of 'God ‘
    (Ghana Journal of Religion and Theology (GJRT), 2012-12-04) Platvoet, J.G.
    In the late nineteenth century, missionaries and other Westerners who were curious to learn what notions the Akan of the Gold Coast, now Ghana, entertained about the 'Creator of the Universe' , were told the following story: Long. long ago, Onyankopon-' lived on earth, or at least he was quite close to us. He was that close that Old Lady [AberewaJ constantly hit him when she pounded herfufit: Onyankopon therefore told her: 'Why do you always do this to me? Because you treat me in this [uncivil] mann e/~ J will retire to on high [soro]'.
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    Marriage Without Sex? Same-Sex Marriages and Female Identity Among the Nankani Of Northern Ghana
    (Ghana Journal of Religion and Theology (GJRT), 2012-12) Amenga-Etego, R.M.
    Marriages, same-sex or otherwise, are undertaken for varied purposes. Yet, like many other African societies, the preservation 01 lineages has remained a core factor for contracting marriage among the Nankani of Northern Ghana. Woman to woman marriage among the Nankani is one of the practices set in place to sustain genealogies or the immortality 01 one 50 ancestry. Although situated within the traditional religio-cultural system of the people, woman to woman marriage which is the only overt form of same-sex marriage, contravenes both the projected religious and moral code. This raises critical concerns. Among these are the current discourses around the role of women in African religions, the role of women in sustaining patriarchy, the place of same-sex marriages, sex, and female identity in traditional African societies. This essay examines the aforementioned concerns From a Nankani daughter and woman ~'perspective.
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    Between Englishness and Ethiopianism: Making A Space for Intercultural Theology
    (Ghana Journal of Religion and Theology (GJRT), 2012-12) Young, R.F.
    Originally an address delivered to open the 2010-11 academic year at Princeton Theological Seminary, the essay grounds itself in the Ephesians vision of a New Humanity and articulates a theological orientation that discourages trivialization of cultural particularities. It then opens a conversation on the necessity of intercultural theology. As theological curricula are usually overcrowded, a case is argued that to make space, someone (a discipline, etc.) will have to yield space. To envision the possibility, I use a Ghanaian novel, Ethiopia Unbound (1911), as evidence of the creative power unleashed, theologically, when the practice of having cross-cultural interlocutors is fostered in students.
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    Paul and the Environment: An Investigation of His Christology and Eschatology
    (Ghana Journal of Religion and Theology (GJRT), 2008-12-03) Togarasei, L.
    The role that Paul has played in shaping Christianity cannot be overemphasized. His influence continues even in contemporary Christian communities. This paper attempts to show how the teaching of Paul can be used to address the present ecological crisis. Specifically it looks at the Pauline doctrines of eschatology (1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:3 and 1 Corinthians 15) and Christology (Romans 8:18-23). It underlines that since Paul considered the eternal world to be here on earth, his teaching can be used to promote environmental conservation. The same is true of his Christology which equates human beings with all the other created order.