UNIVERSITY OF GHANA COLLEGE OF HUMANITIES EDUCATION AND HEALTH IN PASTORAL MINISTRY: A STUDY OF BISHOP JOSEPH OLIVER BOWERS SVD, CATHOLIC DIOCESE OF ACCRA (1953-1971) EMMANUEL QUARSHIE DEPARTMENT FOR THE STUDY OF RELIGIONS JULY 2019 UNIVERSITY OF GHANA COLLEGE OF HUMANITIES EDUCATION AND HEALTH IN PASTORAL MINISTRY: A STUDY OF BISHOP JOSEPH OLIVER BOWERS SVD, CATHOLIC DIOCESE OF ACCRA (1953-1971) BY EMMANUEL QUARSHIE (10443561) THIS THESIS IS SUBMITTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT FOR THE AWARD OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY RELIGIONS DEGREE DEPARTMENT FOR THE STUDY OF RELIGIONS JULY 2020 ii DECLARATION I, Emmanuel Quarshie, hereby declare that this thesis is the product of my own research conducted under the supervision of Rev. Prof. George Ossom-Batsa and Rev. Prof. Fi- del Gonzalez at the Department for the Study of Religions, University of Ghana towards the award of degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Religions. SIGNATURE: EMMANUEL QUARSHIE DATE: 01/05/2020 (STUDENT) SIGNATURE: REV. PROF. GEORGE OSSOM-BATSA DATE: 01/05/20 (PRINCIPAL SUPERVISOR) SIGNATURE: REV. PROF. FIDEL GONZALEZ DATE: 1/05/20 (SUPERVISOR) iii ABSTRACT In recent years, the religious dimension of life has become a central issue in develop- ment discourse, but it has been generally ignored or dismissed by development policy- makers. Recent events, however, suggest that religion has become an important force in the world. Religion shows no sign of diminishing in public importance as some de- velopment theorists have universally claimed. In fact, in Africa, religion constitutes the foundation of upliftment and transformation of lives. In effect, evidence abounds that the religious dimension of life has contributed immensely to integral human develop- ment in Ghana, specifically in the fields of education and health. It is against this background that the study investigated how Bishop Bowers contributed to integral human development in Ghana through the establishment of educational in- stitutions and health facilities. The study employed qualitative research methods and approaches to generate novel insights into phenomena that were difficult to quantify, which emerged from data. The study area is the Accra Diocese at the time of Bishop Bowers (1953 to 1971). Data was collected and collated using the snowball technique. Focus Group Discussions were conducted at Pope John Seminary and Senior High, Koforidua (a boys’ school) and St Rose’s Senior High, Akwatia (a girls’ school) and with the Handmaids of the Divine Redeemer of Accra Convent, Agomanya (the house of elderly nuns). Archival material from Robert M. Myers Archives, Techny, USA; SVD Guest House, Accra; St. Dominikus Institut, Speyer, Germany of OP Sisters; Accra Archdiocesan Archives, and the Ghana National Archives, Accra were consulted. For personal observation, visits were paid to six schools (Pope John’s Minor Seminary and Senior High School at Koforidua, St. Peter’s Senor High School at Nkwatia, St Martin’s Senior High School iv at Adoagyiri, St. Rose’s Senior High School at Akwatia and St. Anne Vocational Insti- tute at Nuaso) and four hospitals (St. Dominic Hospital at Akwatia, Battor Catholic Hospital at Battor, St. Joseph Hospital in Koforidua and St. Martin’s Hospital at Agom- anya. The data generated from the narratives of the interviewees and archival material was analysed and organised into themes. The findings of the study reveal that Bowers’ upbringing and formative years impacted his ministry as a Bishop. This translated into his concern for the holistic development of every person and the whole person. Furthermore, the research revealed that religion is a key element in development discourse in Ghana and that religion has always af- fected the socio-economic and political life of Ghanaians. Lastly, it revealed that the Roman Catholic Church in Ghana has promoted integral human development through the establishment of educational and health facilities. Key words: Bishop Bowers, Biography, Integral Human Development, Religion, Spirituality, Pastoral Ministry, Education and Health. v DEDICATION I dedicate this work to my late parents, Madam Anna Esi Toklo and Abraham Quarshie; The Catholic Archdiocese of Accra; The Dominican Sisters of Speyer, Germany; The Sisters of the Handmaids of the Divine Redeemer of Accra; and the Society of the Di- vine Word Missionary, Accra, Ghana. vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I sincerely thank Most Rev. Charles Gabriel Palmer-Buckle, a former Metropolitan Archbishop of Accra, who granted me permission to undertake this research, and Most Rev. John Bonaventure Kwofie, CSSp, the present Metropolitan Archbishop of Accra. I am most grateful to my supervisors: Rev. Prof. George Ossom-Batsa, Univer- sity of Ghana, and Rev. Prof. Fidel Gonzalez Fernandez, Pontifical University of Ur- baniana, Rome, Italy, who did not only devote their time amidst their heavy and busy schedules, but also guided me and supervised the work to an accepted standard. My special thanks go to the Head of Department, Hajj. Mumuni Sulemana, the faculty of the Department for the Study of Religions, especially Dr Nicoletta Gatti who read parts of the work and provided technical advice, and Dr Rabiatu Deinyo Ammah, who always encouraged me on this academic journey. I recognise the love and support of all my classmates, especially Rev. Canon Joseph Ayeh and Mrs Mavis Ayeh, for the warm reception in their home during the last days of my research. I wish also to express my gratitude to Msgr. Pius Kpeglo for his fatherly love and care, Msgrs. Jonathan Ankrah, Peter Agbenu, Very Rev. Frs. Peter Badoo, Ted Nelson Ad- jakpey, Samuel Batsa, Anthony Dugay SVD, John Backes, the Dominican Sisters of Speyer Germany, and all the Priests of the Archdiocese and elsewhere, whose love and friendship have brought me this far. I am grateful to the students of St. Roses Senior High School, Pope John Minor Semi- nary and Senior High School, Dr Johann and Mrs Rebecca Richter, Fr. Peter Atsu, chaplain at Battor Hospital, Rev. Dr George Obeng Appah, all my interviewees, my sisters and brother, Ms Regina Quarshie, Ms Genevieve Quarshie, Mr Joseph and Mrs vii Cecilia Adobea Anang and Mr and Mr Emmanuel and Mrs Esther Afachao, Mr Jimmy and Mrs Susanna Aidoo, Mr Herbert and Mrs Elizabeth Bulley, my benefactors and formators, Mrs Josephine Bugeja, Mr Mario and Mrs Teresa Barbara, Mr Eugenio and Mrs Maris Apap, Ms Mary Attard Rev. Profs. Joseph Agius OP, Luke Dempsey OP, Paul Murray OP, Fredrick Blaise CSSpS., and Raymond Studzinski O.S.B. Apart from the living, I would like to acknowledge and pay my respects and gratitude to the departed who have contributed in diverse ways to this research, Most Rev. Joseph Oliver Bowers, Most Rev. Dominic Kwadwo Andoh, Msgr Blaise Zubuor, Very Rev. Frs. Pio Zerafa, and Vicente Burke and Dr Ernest Adadevoh. May their souls rest in peace! viii TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION ............................................................................................................ i ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................. iii DEDICATION ............................................................................................................... v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .......................................................................................... vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ........................................................................................... viii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ...................................................................................... xii Chapter One: Across the Great Divide: The Role of Religion in Development……….1 1.1 Background to the Study ...................................................................................... 1 1.2 Statement of the Problem ................................................................................... 10 1.3 Objectives of the Study ...................................................................................... 11 1.4 Research Questions ............................................................................................ 11 1.5 Review of Related Literature ............................................................................. 12 1.5.1 Biographical Research ................................................................................ 12 1.5.2 Religion and Human Development ............................................................. 22 1.5.3. Religion and Education .............................................................................. 25 1.5.4 Religion and Health .................................................................................... 29 1.6 Theoretical Framework ...................................................................................... 35 1.7 Methodology ...................................................................................................... 36 1.7.1 Methods of Data Collection ........................................................................ 37 ix 1.7.2 Method of Data Analysis ............................................................................ 39 1.8 Significance of Study ......................................................................................... 40 1.9 Organization of Study ........................................................................................ 40 Chapter Two: A Humble Home (March 28, 1910 - 1938)……………………………43 2.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 43 2.2 Bowers’ Early Years .......................................................................................... 43 2.2.1 Basic Education .......................................................................................... 45 2.2.2 Secondary School........................................................................................ 45 2.3 Seminary Formation and Ordination ................................................................. 46 2.3.1 Novitiate ...................................................................................................... 50 2.3.2 Major Seminary Formation and Education ................................................. 55 2.3.3 Extra-curricular Activities .......................................................................... 58 2.3.4 Assessment of Candidates to the Priesthood .............................................. 59 2.4 Ordination into the Priesthood ........................................................................... 61 2.5 Appointment to the Mission in the Gold Coast ................................................. 61 2.6 Conclusion ......................................................................................................... 63 Chapter Three: Ecclesiastical Territory of the Catholic……………………………...66 3.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 66 3.2 Demography and Political Geography ............................................................... 66 3.3 Brief History of the Catholic Diocese of Accra (1953-1971) ............................ 70 3.4 Religious Situation ............................................................................................. 74 x 3.5 Political Independence of the Gold Coast .......................................................... 83 3.6 Economic Situation ............................................................................................ 87 3.7 Socio-Cultural Milieu ........................................................................................ 97 3.8 Conclusion ......................................................................................................... 99 Chapter Four: Bowers and Education…………………………………………….....101 4.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................... 101 4.2 Education and Human Development ............................................................... 101 4.3 Historical Overview of Catholic Education in the Gold Coast ........................ 104 4.3.1 Colonial System of Education in the Gold Coast ..................................... 107 4.3.2 Educational Development Plan in Ghana after Independence .................. 112 4.3.3 Patriotism and the Role of Ghana Young Pioneers .................................. 115 4.3.4 The Role of the Voluntary Agencies ........................................................ 117 4.3.5 Summary ................................................................................................... 119 4.4 Bishop Bowers’ View and Contribution to Education in Ghana ..................... 120 4.4.1 Bishop Bowers’ View on Education ......................................................... 120 4.4.2 Bishop Bowers’ Contribution to Education .............................................. 140 4.5 Conclusion ....................................................................................................... 164 Chapter Five: Bowers and Health……………………………………...……………166 5.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................... 166 5.2 Health and Human Development in the Roman Catholic Church ................... 166 5.3 Historical Overview of Health Services in the Gold Coast ............................. 171 xi 5.4 Health Services in the Gold Coast ................................................................... 176 5.5 Access to Health Services ................................................................................ 180 5.6 Bishop Bowers’ View and Contribution to Health Services ........................... 182 5.6.1 Bishop Bowers’ View ............................................................................... 182 5.6.2 Bishop Bowers’ Contribution to Provision of Health Facilities ............... 204 5.7 Conclusion ....................................................................................................... 218 Chapter Six: Summary, Conclusion and Recommendation……………..…………..220 6.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................... 220 6.2 Summary .......................................................................................................... 220 6.2.1 Education and Integral Human Development ........................................... 221 6.2.2 Health and Integral Human Development ................................................ 224 6.2.3 Empowerment of Girls/Women ................................................................ 227 6.3 Conclusion ....................................................................................................... 227 6.4 Recommendations ............................................................................................ 229 BIBLIOGRAPHY ...................................................................................................... 231 APPENDICES ........................................................................................................... 244 Appendix A: Coat of Arms .................................................................................... 244 Appendix B: Certificate of Honour........................................................................ 245 Appendix C: National Award ................................................................................ 246 xii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ADM Ministerial Archives Department BB Bishop Bowers CEE Common Entrance Examination CHAG Christian Health Association of Ghana CPP Convention People’s Party CT Counselling and Testing Unit DD Doctor of Divinity DHCs Diocesan Health Councils DPA Direct Productive Activities DRC Democratic Republic of Congo DVD Digital Video Disc ER Eastern Region EU European Union GDP Gross Domestic Product GH Ghana GNP Grand National Product GS Gaudium et Spes HD Human Development HDR Handmaids of the Divine Redeemer of Accra ICS Institute of Carmelite Studies IHD Integral Human Development ISI Import Substitution Industrialisation JHS Junior High School MFU Medical Field Unit NGOs Non-Governmental Organisations OH Order of Hospitallers OP Order of Preachers OT Optatum Totius PDV Pastores Dabo Vobis PHC Primary Healthcare PLWAS People Living With HIV/AIDS xiii PMTCT Programme to Prevent the Transmission of the HIV Virus from Mother to Child POJOSS Pope John Senior Secondary PP Populorum Progressio PRAAD Public Record Archives and Administrative Department RME Religious and Moral Education SHS Senior High School SMA Society of African Missionary SOC Social Overhead Capital SOEs State-Owned Enterprises SSpS Servant Sisters of Holy Spirit SSS Senior Secondary School SVD Society of Divine Word Missionaries UGCC United Gold Coast Convention WHO World Health Organisation 1 CHAPTER ONE ACROSS THE GREAT DIVIDE: THE ROLE OF RELIGION IN DEVELOPMENT 1.1 Background to the Study The religious dimension of life has become a central issue in development. Until re- cently, development policy makers “have generally dismissed or ignored the religious dimension of the lives of individuals and communities on the assumption that secular- isation is an inevitable by-product of the modernisation process.”1 Besides, “in many respects, religion has been perceived as an instrument of conflict than stability, a situa- tion that undermines development and as such would not have any development to sus- tain.”2 However, recent scholarship suggests otherwise; it indicates that: Religion has become a significant social and political force in the world. […] it is more convincing to suppose that religion will shape the develop- ment of many countries in the non-Western world in the years to come. The mere fact that religion, in whatever form it manifests itself, constitutes both a social and a political reality requires a reconsideration of its role in devel- opment.3 In Africa, the significance of religion to development cannot be overemphasised; reli- gion constitutes the foundation of the upliftment and transformation of individual lives and those of African societies. 1 G. Ter Haar, “Religion and Development: Introducing a New Debate,” in Religion and Development: Ways of Transforming the World (London: Hurt & Company, 2011), 3–25. 2 Boniface Obiefuna, and Amara Uzoigwe, “Studying Religion for Sustainable Development in Nigeria,” UJAH: Unizik Journal of Arts and Humanities 13, no. 1 (2012): 133. See G. Ossom- Batsa, N. Gatti and R. Ammah, eds., Religion and Sustainable Developments: Ghanaian Per- spectives; Grandi Opere (Vatican City: Urbaniana University Press, 2018). 3 Ter Haar, “Religion and Development,” 6. 2 A. Development in Ghanaian Perspectives Ghana, like most African countries, considers its development in terms of infrastruc- tural and economic indices. Good infrastructural and economic growths are considered indicators of the development of the nation. But economic growth must show a clear correlation between development and the human person, as pointed out by the Christian vision of development in Populorum Progressio.4 B. The Colonial Era and Development in the Gold Coast A cursory glance at development in the Gold Coast indicates that the Ghanaian percep- tion of development indices was shaped by the history of the arrival of Western Euro- pean missionaries in the 18th century. That period witnessed the establishment of schools by colonial governments and Western Christian missionaries from their colo- nial country of origin. As part of a human development plan, those schools were de- signed primarily to teach the youth to read the Bible. That was the memorandum of understanding between the Church and the state in 1887.5 The Western ministers serv- ing specifically in the Gold Coast functioned as traditional intellectuals and agents of British imperialism. They facilitated the exploitation of the West African masses, as they risked losing the mandate in the colonial master country of origin.6 Thus, the research has revealed that their influence became more profound when British imperialists declared the Gold Coast a Crown Colony in 1874 becoming independent of the governor of Sierra Leone. After that time, the Western ministers became part of England’s team and were actively involved in the so-called “scramble for Africa” which 4 Paul VI, Populorum Progressio (Rome: Vatican Press, 1967), n. 14. 5 Education Ordinance of 1882-1887, “Education Ordinance and Rules Amendment,” file GH, PRAAD, RG3, 1, 3, 1954-67, National Archives of Ghana, Accra. 6 Paul VI, Populorum Progressio, n. 7. 3 extended from 1885 to 1960. Lugard has noted that during that era, the European pow- ers were in protectorates, trustees and defence alliances with the local people to exploit the continent’s human and natural resources by trading and governing.7 As already cited, Lugard has stated that in the 19th century, what seems to have at- tracted the merest trifle of some Western Christian ministers suddenly turned out to become an influx of large numbers of ministers travelling to the African continent for evangelisation. Some of the Western ministers taught and popularised Christianity in the church/state schools, with emphasis on the claim that God has commissioned them as His chosen vessels of His mysteries in shepherding and leading the indigenes from practising their religion to the knowledge of Western European religious values. They taught and seemed to have given the impression in the church/state schools that, first, God had elevated Europeans above Africans with brains and blessings of abundant cap- ital and energy. Secondly, that they were superior in that God had charged the natives to submit to the teachings of Christ and the policies of the colonial officials for progress and prosperity.8 Let us now address ourselves to the period from 1953 to 1956, which was marked by the phase of slow maturing commercial capitalism, composed of the import and export of goods and services. That system of trade marked the transition from a relative iso- lated autonomy to full integration into and dependence on the international economy in the Gold Coast.9 7 Friedrich Lugard, “The Dual Mandate,” in Imperialism, ed. P. D. Curtin (New York: Harper and Row, 1971), 317-8. See Paul VI, Populorum Progressio, n. 11. 8 Lugard, “Dual Mandate,” 317-8. See Paul VI, Populorum Progressio, n. 11. 9 Paul VI, Populorum Progressio, no. 7, 8, 9, 80. 4 As a result of the trans-Atlantic trade, the partitioning of the African continent among the European countries initiated and reinforced that system of trade by which the pro- ductive capacity of the regions south of the Saharan was linked to the needs and de- mands of the Western industrial economy.10 Reasoning from the foregoing, the emergence of new political and administrative units on the African continent brought in colonial investment in transport and other infra- structural projects and the influx of foreign businesses. Thus, new economic structures were superimposed upon existing indigenous ones. Such foreign administrative struc- tures were largely under the control of African aliens and expatriates living in the Gold Coast. Nevertheless, the fundamental issue that underlies trade imbalances on the Afri- can continent was export and import oriented, where the prices of imported goods and services far exceeded those exported.11 C. Post-Colonial Era and development in Ghana In effect, the above-entrenched colonial administrative structure made it so difficult that in the Gold Coast when decolonisation took place between 1950 and early 1960, there was little the indigenes could do immediately to improve the existing administrative structure. That structure had undergone half a century of internal evolution and interac- tion with the Western industrial economy. Hence, the commercial activities of the co- lonial masters and their alliance did much less to ameliorate the living standards of the natives. The goals and policies of the colonial administration were to put restriction on private production and consumption in order to create public investment. That favoured the established order more than emergent local businesses of indigenous traders. Again, 10 Paul VI, Populorum Progressio, no. 7. 11 Ibid., no. 7, 8, 9, 80. 5 the colonial regime ensured its influence on wage bargaining. It controlled employment and attempted to divert and alter the traditional land tenure system.12 The regime con- tinued to rely more on expatriate civil servants in the large colonial state apparatus. Above all, its underlying value system was permeated with racism and more bias against the indigenes than the European personnel,13 some without the requisite quali- fications and businesses in the distribution of earnings and income.14 The above-structured economic systems, which were beneficial to the established order, needed restructuring after independence. Eventually, the economy produced a small privileged class of elites who formed the embryonic bourgeoisie such as professionals, teachers, lawyers and wealthy farmers who were more commercially oriented. That high class in society set and propelled the process of decolonisation. However, the colonial administration’s acceptance of the decolonisation of the econ- omy was tantamount to its acknowledgement of the shortfalls of certain elements in the colonial economy, which had enjoyed the support and patronage of the state in the past. Those colonial personnel would become redundant or expendable and would have to be replaced at some point by native Africans who would aspire to assume their roles. The decolonisation of the economy suggested why there was capital outflow from co- lonial Africa in the late 1950s and early 1960s as a result of repatriated savings of ex- patriates to the country of origin.15 12 Cf. Paul VI, Populorum Progressio, no. 7. 13 Ibid. 14 Ibid., no. 63 15 Ibid., no. 8. 6 D. Post-Independence development in Ghana Some scholars, notable among them Allman, have observed that an election won in 1951 in the Gold Coast granted the indigenes control over the colony’s internal affairs but stopped short of full independence. However, two subsequent elections in 1954 and 1956 paved the way for the Gold Coast to emerge as the independent nation of Ghana in 1957.16 During that period, the indigenous government inherited a 10-year development plan which was drawn by the colonial Governor, Sir Charles Arden-Clarke, but the govern- ment reduced it into five years and implemented its provisions between 1951 and 1956. The ‘First Development Plan’ allocated most of the budget to infrastructure and social services (39 per cent each), with only nine per cent allocated to the ‘productive sector’ of the economy. Further, Nugent has commented that after a two-year consolidation period, the govern- ment launched the Second Development Plan in 1959. The emphasis on infrastructure and social services was carried over from 1951, with 80 per cent of the Second Devel- opment Plan allocated to the non-productive sector of the economy.1718 In analysing this approach of prioritised social overhead capital (SOC), which included health and education, as well as infrastructure, Killick has concluded that the govern- ment was of the conviction that that would induce the growth of directly productive activities (DPA). Further, he has argued that the funds earmarked for DPA in the 1950s 16 Jean Marie Allman, “On the Reasons for the Multiple Elections,” in The Quills of the Porcupine: Asante Nationalism in an Emergent Ghana (Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1993). 17 Paul Nugent, African Since Independence: A Comparative History (New York: Houndmills, Basing- stoke, 2004), 169. 18 Nugent, African Since Independence, 27-29; 169. 7 targeted agricultural development rather than industrialisation, as recommended by economic advisors, especially W. Arthur Lewis.19 Furthermore, in its implementation of the Second Development Plan in 1959, the gov- ernment was optimistic for national development. Fitch and Oppenheimer have com- mented that the government’s optimism did not last long. Although the 1951 and the 1959 plans produced respectable economic growth of five per cent yearly, the returns failed to balance the budget. As a result, spending under the Second Development Plan far exceeded income and produced a deficit of £53 million or 12 per cent of the Gross National Product (GNP) by 1961.20 To help remedy the budget deficit in development, the Catholic Church in Ghana had no choice but to take up its prophetic role given to it by its founder, “who cited the preaching of the Gospel to the poor as a sign of His mission (Luke 7: 22), the Church has never failed to foster the human progress of the nations to which she brings faith in Christ. Her missionaries have built not only churches but also hostels and hospitals, schools and universities”.21 These are the components which foster the holistic human development of any nation. During the first three or four decades of the emergence of the concept of development, it was primarily conceived of in terms of economic growth. Nonetheless, Stephen Ellis and Gerrie Ter Haar held the view that “neither economic growth nor even state building should be thought of as goals in themselves, although both are crucial aspects of a better future for Africans.”22 But, then, more 19 Tony Killick, Development Economics in Action: A Study of Economic Policies in Ghana (London Heinemann Educational Books Limited, 1978), 44-5. 20 Robert Fitch and Mary Oppenheimer, Ghana: End of an Illusion (New York: Berkley, 1966), 90-91. 21 Paul VI, Populorum Progressio, no.12 22 Stephen Ellis and Gerrie Ter Haar, “Religion and Development in Africa” (2004): 2, https://open ac- cess.leidenuniv.nl/bitstream/handle/1887/12909/ASC-071342346-174-01.pdf?sequence=1 https://open/ https://open/ 8 recently, the concept of human development has come into vogue, empha- sising aspects of people’s lives that go beyond the economic dimension, such as health and education. Human development constitutes the foundation on which social, economic and political development is based. Ter Haar makes the following submission on the role of religion in human development: Any development enterprise must begin by considering how people's full range of resources, including their spiritual or religious resources, can be used for their general well-being. Religious resources do not consist only of networks of people who relate to each other through religious practice or adherence. Religious resources can be considered under four headings: ideas; practices; organisations or institutions; and experiences.23 The above submission corroborates the story of the Roman Catholic presence in the Greater Accra Region, which dates back to 189324 when Fr. Augustine Moreau, the first Society of the Missionaries of Africa (SMA) missionary, arrived in Accra from the Cape Coast Prefecture, and subsequently the Society of the Divine Word (SVD), which took over the territory, which later became the Catholic Diocese of Accra, from the SMA in January 1939.25 The early missionary presence demonstrates both the mission- aries’ interest and activities in the lives of the people in terms of the holistic develop- ment of the human person, particularly in the domain of health and education. The researcher’s aim of choosing this topic: “Education and Health in the Pastoral Min- istry: A Study of Bishop Joseph Oliver Bowers, SVD, Catholic Diocese of Accra (1953- 23 Ibid. See also, Gerrie Ter Haar, “Religion: Source of Conflict or Resource for Peace?,” in Bridge or Barrier: Religion, Violence and Visions for Peace, eds. Gerrie Ter Haar and James J. Busuttil (Boston: Brill, Leiden, 2005), 3-34. 24 Alphonse Elsbern, The Story of the Catholic Church in the Diocese of Accra (Accra: Catho- lic Book Centre, 2000), 17. 25 Elsbern, Story of the Catholic Church, 40. 9 1971)” was to highlight the role of religion in Ghana’s development with particular focus on the contributions of Bowers to integral human development. The study examined the work of Bowers, an SVD missionary. It illustrated how, through religion, Bowers, a citizen of the Dominican Republic and missionary in Ghana, contributed to human development in Ghana. Notably, on Friday the 14th of October 2011, the government of the Republic of Ghana gave out some national honours and awards to some 106 people, both indigenous Gha- naians and foreigners, who in various ways had contributed to improving the lives of the people of Ghana. The President, His Excellency Prof. John Evans Atta Mills, was himself present at the ceremony, held at the Accra International Conference Centre, to present the awards in a short but beautiful and meaningful ceremony. Bowers was one of the recipients of this meritorious award. The citation states: In recognition of your dedicated service to humanity and your love and de- votion to meeting the spiritual and temporal needs as well as nurturing the intellectual development of the people of this Nation, especially, the youth, the Republic of Ghana confers on you: Most Rev Joseph Oliver Bowers, the State Honour of COMPANION OF THE ORDER OF THE VOLTA.26 The above recognition motivated our choice to study Bowers’ contribution to human development in Ghana. Bowers was one of the first SVD missionaries of African de- scent who arrived in the Gold Coast in 1940.27 He contributed to human development and epitomised the role of religion in development. Little, however, has been written on his pastoral activities and vision. We are aware only of three short biographies, two 26 See appendix C for the complete document, 261. 27 Elsbern, The Story of the Catholic Church, 47. 10 by Ghanaian priests, Duah-Prempeh and Agbenohevi,28 and a third by a priest of the Dominican Republic.29 The latter wrote on Bowers to mark his centenary birthday in 2010. Bowers’ contributions to human development in the area of education and health were not without challenges and consequently research into these aspects will enhance the discourse on religion and development. 1.2 Statement of the Problem In a sense, religion has become a significant social and political force in the world. It is anticipated that religion will shape the development of many countries, especially those in the non-Western world, in the years to come. In Ghana, religion shows no sign of diminishing in public importance, as development theorists have globally perceived. This growing phenomenon in Africa in general and Ghana in particular is contrary to the position of the European Union (EU) which has normally excluded consideration of the religious dimension in formulating development policies towards Africa.30 Be- sides, it is widely debated in the literature on development to consider ways in which religious ideas may be relevant to development thinking. But why would this be the case on a continent that has been acknowledged as having a full range of resources, including spiritual or religious resources, particularly in the 21st century? Moreover, evidence abounds that the religious dimension of life has contrib- uted immensely to human development in Ghana, specifically in the scope of health and education. 31 Against this background, the study investigated how Bowers 28 John Duah-Prempeh, Most Reverend Joseph Oliver Bowers SVD (Accra: Catholic Book Centre, n.d); cf. Isaac Agbenohevi, An Imperishable Wreath (Unpublished work). 29 Clement S. Jolly, On the Road of History: The Life and Times of Bishop Oliver Bowers, SVD (Commonwealth of Dominica: Paramount Printers Ltd., 2014). 30 Paul VI, Populorum Progressio, no. 41. 31 Sylvia Owusu-Ansah, “The Role of Interreligious Collaboration in Conflict Prevention and Peaceful Multi-Religious Co-existence: A Case Study of Northern Ghana,” in G. Ossom-Batsa, N. Gatti and R.D. 11 contributed to integral human development (IHD) in Ghana through the establishment of educational institutions and health facilities. 1.3 Objectives of the Study The main objective of this research is to examine the role of religion in development. Using the contributions of Bowers as a case study, it specifically examines the mission- ary’s contribution to human development, particularly in the spheres of health and ed- ucation. In order to meet this broad objective, three specific objectives were set for this study. These are: a) To analyse the relevance of religion to the development of Ghana. b) To examine specific ways in which Bowers translated the Gospel message into practice in his pastoral ministry. c) To explore Bowers’ strategies for the empowerment of girls/women. 1.4 Research Questions To investigate the impact of Bowers’ pastoral ministry in education and healthcare pro- vision on integral human development, the following questions were asked: The main question was: How did Bowers contribute to holistic human development in Ghana? Sub-questions considered include: a) How did Bowers conceive education and health as tools for pastoral and social development in Ghana? Ammah, eds., Religion and Sustainable Developments: Ghanaian Perspectives; Grandi Opere (Vatican City: Urbaniana University Press, 2018), 124. 12 b) How did the Pastoral Ministry of Bowers champion women’s empowerment in Ghana? c) In what ways can the ministry of Bowers inspire contemporary religious lead- ers? 1.5 Review of Related Literature This section reviewed and organised pertinent literature into the following themes: Bi- ographical research, Religion and development, Religion and education and Religion and health. Furthermore, the literature was divided into two main areas, namely meth- ods and content. Regarding methods, the researcher examined publications on bio- graphical research to analyse the scholarly debate on its aim and purpose. On the con- tent, the researcher reviewed works on religion and (Human) development, religion and education and religion and health. 1.5.1 Biographical Research Some scholars, including Capps, have asserted that biographical narrative research is a wide field of different approaches and research strategies, with blurred borders and in- tersecting areas.32 Therefore, it is necessary to be oriented to this vast area of empirical strategies and conceptual ideas on biographical research. To do so would demand spe- cific approaches of biographical narrative research with a clear theoretical conceptual background and a well-developed pragmatic instrument. However, it is not necessary that the study follow a specific approach absolutely.33 32 Eugene TeSelle, “Augustine as Client and as Theorist,” in The Hunger of the Heart: Reflections on the Confessions of Augustine, eds. Donald Capps and James E. Dittes (West Lafayette: Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, 1990), 203-205. 33 John Murphy, “The Voice of Memory: History Autobiography and Oral Memory,” in Historical Stud- ies 22 (1987), 155-176. 13 Some scholars, notably Schütze, Rosenthal, et al., have explained that the aim of bio- graphical research is to produce a rich description of a person.34 Basically, Weinreich has pointed out that biographical research should be based on the assumption that the link between structure and individuals could only be understood sufficiently by analys- ing the development of the individual personality in the life course. Thus, excessive analysis of the single case will be emphasised, and the discovery of the issues not men- tioned in the interview, but which are important for a sufficient case analysis.35 In other words, the core idea is that during the life course, individuals accumulate di- verse biographical experiences into a coherent description of their life course. Our ex- periences are present in the knowledge we use in everyday life, sense-making, as well as our life stories. Our self-presentation or sacred stories are linked to the experiences, which are not totally free from our past story (life history). The link between the past and the present gives us the possibility to do research on the past life history and devel- opment of today’s self in the present perspective. A. Biographical Data Collection Writing on the subject, Soffer has observed that it has become necessary for scholars of biography to keep an extensive data bank of recorded interviews, significant source of funding and numerous reputable professionals who have become partners in oral tradition.36 This assumption is based on the premise that memory, oral tradition and archival material should be seen as inter-dependent, rather than opposed to each other. 34 Gabriele Rosenthal, “Biographical Research,” in Qualitative Research Practice, eds. Clive Gobo, Giampiro Grubrium, F. Jaber and David Silverman (London: Sage, 2004), 48-64; See Fritz Shütze, “Bi- ographieforchung und narratives Interview,” Neue Praxis 3 (1983), 283-294. 35 P. Weinreich, “Variations in Ethnic Identity: Identity Structure Analysis,” in New Identity in Europe, ed. K. Liebkind (Worcester: Billing & Sons), 41-75. 36 Jonathan Soffer, “Oral History and the History of American Foreign Relations,” The Journal of Amer- ican History 82 (September 1995): 607-616. 14 Hamilton has argued that by this assumption, forgotten sources will be recovered and, through such methods as oral tradition and memories, which may otherwise be forgot- ten, salvaged.37 The salvaged data from oral tradition and memories will provide the sources for this research, with the assistance of hermeneutical approach in the process of interviews and interpretation of archival document. In view of this, Fari et al. have highlighted the vital advantage of these two methods, oral and archival data, as being far better and fuller record for research than can be found in the books of biography. Oral tradition and archival documents shall become the sources for study and process of psychology of remembering in the social, cultural and religious contextual theologising. One of such schools of thought, represented by Ricoeur, has identified a distinction between the hermeneutics of tradition and suspicion. His argument is that hermeneutics of tradition aims at listening attentively to what is communicated, to the extent that the listener discovers the hidden meaning underneath the message as it is being unrav- elled.38 Contributing to the debate, Hamilton has pointed out that “Hermeneutics is a dialogical process in which the understanding of data is initiated through the development of agreed interpretation between the author of the data and the interpreter.”39 Some scholars have explained that testimony is the result of two processes; the first is the retrieval of memories by the biographer, which are blended into the responses to 37 Paula Hamilton, “The Knife Edge: Debates About Memory and History,” in Memory and History in Twentieth-Century Australia, eds. Kate Darian-Smith and Paula Hamilton (Melbourne: Oxford Univer- sity Press, 1994), 10-12. 38 William Pouthwaite, “Hans-George Gadamer,” in The Return of Grand Theory in the Human Sciences, ed. Quentin Skinner (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994), 24-27. 39 Paula Hamilton, “The Knife Edge,” 10-12. 15 each question in the interviewee. The second process is the hermeneutical dialogue be- tween the interviewee and the biographer, which is the recorded testimony, an agree- ment on interpretation. Biographies are specifically more focused on an individual member of a church than the collective members of a church, such as religious bodies and religious institutions, and so make use more of oral tradition than doctrinal issues. In biographical data collection, Grele has argued that some documents of oral sources reflect the artefacts of the time of their creation and not the period under discussion.40 However, McMahan has commented on Christopher Thorne that he challenged the po- sition taken by Grele and instead has stated that since biographers “cannot unlearn what they have come to know subsequently of what came after the moment or period about which they are being questioned,”41 there must be no distinction drawn but should be considered as one long process. De Hart has also suggested that the “collection and use of oral evidence can enable us to see more clearly how relational and fragmentary in its representation of historical reality is all the information available to us”.42 This de- mands that the biographer be meticulous in his/her syllogism in piecing data together for sense-making. 40 Ronald Grele, “Movement Without Aid: Methodological and the Problem in Oral History,” in Enve- lopes Sound: The Art of Oral History, eds. Ronald Grele and Studs Terkel (New York: Greenwood Pub- lishers, 1991), 127-145. See, Jonathan Soffer, “Oral History and the History of American Foreign Rela- tions,” The Journal of American History 82 (September 1995): 608. 41 Eva McMahan, Elite Oral History Discourse, McMahan, Eva M. Elite Oral History Discourse: A Study of Cooperation and Coherence (Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press, 1989), 5; G. Seldon, “Interviews,” in Oral History: An Interdisciplinary Anthology, eds. David K. Dunaway and Willa K. Baun (Nashville: America Association for State and Local History, 1987), 326-32. 42 Jane Sherron De Hart, “Oral Sources and Contemporary History: Dispelling Old Assumptions,” Jour- nal of American History 80 (September 1993): 594-595. 16 Also, Grele has observed that the intentions which form and inform every oral tradition criticism of biographical writings fall into these three categories of research; interview- ing, standard of preparation and methodology.43 He explained that in the past, oral tra- dition was considered a very valuable archival data. It was considered to hold memories which were electronically recorded, videotaped and in a written text, and therefore, protected and preserved from any form of deterioration and corruption. However, we wish to submit that, from experience in the past and even now, in certain parts of the world some oral traditions are not recorded and preserved from deterioration and cor- ruption, as Grele has claimed. Additionally, Thomson, an oral tradition expert, has also pointed out a very important advantage of oral tradition over written notes of the interviewer. He has contended that oral tradition has immediacy and actuality of evidence and that material from such in- terviews is by far a better option and a more complete record. In this view, the recording of an interview is the most accurate data.44 Furthermore, Murphy has described oral tradition as ‘cultural and historical artefacts’, and besides these modes of description, ‘metaphor’ is seen to be a more dominant mode in which oral tradition functions and serves as the main lenses through which culture is read and understood, the past remembered and presented. Again, Murphy has argued that oral tradition uses the figurative, rather than the specific, mode of remembering the summary of the past to understand the meaning in the given language in order to inter- pret and understand the present. Hence, metaphors interpret the meaning derived from 43Ronald Grele, “Movement Without Aid: Methodological and the Problem in Oral History,” in Enve- lopes Sound: The Art of Oral History, eds. Ronald Grele and Studs Terkel (New York: Greenwood Pub- lishers, 1991), 127-145. 44 Paul Thomson, The Voice of the Past: Oral History (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000), 222- 224. 17 the familiar to interpret the unfamiliar in order to reconstruct and express a creative intent.45 Analogically, Merle has practically demonstrated but Eugene TeSelle has theorised that a meaning shrouded in a language needs to be “constructed out of the relations of sim- ilarities”46 or differences between signifier and metaphorical relations are not simply found naturally but by relation constructed linguistically for social purposes __ for the conveyance of meaning. In other words, metaphors convey similarities of accepted ex- pressions rather than discovering and representing them. Metaphors express new and accepted practice, which can be expected to reveal both individual and social experi- ences.47 Nevertheless, TeSelle has argued that it is the responsibility of the researcher to study the context of metaphor and the personality who made use of it in order to gain an insight into the person’s theology.48 Firstly, in that regard, McMahan has emphasised that an interview has two functions: remembering and reconstruction. Some scholars, commenting on McMahan’s asser- tion, have noted that remembering and reconstruction define the cognitive domain of the creative and constructive process, rather than simply the retrieval of information.49 Secondly, Dunaway has observed that studies which have heavily relied on oral sources give room for storytelling, seeking anecdotes told in colourful language to embellish 45 John Murphy, “The Voice of Memory: History, Autobiography and Oral Memory,” Historical Studies 22 (1986), 164-166. 46 Gabriel Merle, “What I Know of George Simson: Scrappy Notes for a Distant Biography,” in Biog- raphy: An Interdisciplinary Quarterly Festschrift for George Simson, ed. Noel Annan, Michael Holroyd (Honolulu: University of Hawai Press for the Biographical Research Centre, 1999), 1-13. 47 Merle, “What I Know of George Simson,” 1-13. 48 Eugene TeSelle, “Augustine as Client and as Theorist,” in The Hunger of the Heart: Reflections on the Confessions of Augustine, eds. Donald Capps and James E. Dittes (West Lafayette: Society for the Sci- entific Study of Religion, 1990), 203-205. 49 Murphy, “The Voice of Memory,” 164-166. 18 the information. The result is that empiricist schools of thought turned to search for accurate and verifiable facts on oral sources. Hence, human experience was seen as the basis for meaning in life and that one of the ways to express and remember this is by the process of telling stories. Thirdly, the use of oral testimony in the writing of contemporary biography can be largely influenced by the history and socio-cultural milieu of the era under discussion. Shapiro has asserted that all biographies have ethical and valuation issues, since “no man is an island” and there is no neutral life. Every life must be lived within a commu- nity and the members of the community either support or challenge this life. Having studied the testimony from interviews, scholars have discovered a process which seeks to understand the structural relationship between the mind of the informant and the outside world in which he/she was enmeshed. Also, the process of the interview influences the degree of caution on the part of both the biographer and the interviewee. During an interview session, there comes into play a complexity of interaction between individual memories and personal agendas, leading to a kind of transactional process of recording and transcript. During the session, the interview assumes a hermeneutical conversation based on a mixture of highly competitive and cooperative agendas be- tween the participants in the interview. Many factors come into play at the cognitive domain, be it personal or political, and intellectual agendas are further influenced by such factors as psychology of memory and recall, the intellectual and sensitivities of the issues raised and even the physical process surrounding the interview. Agendas subsequently influence memories, which are selected and traded during the discussion between the questioner and the respondent. These memories are later evaluated and certified by the recorder of the interview. 19 The partners in the discussion seek to discuss ways of giving a new meaning to the biographical record. Therefore, testimonies from an interview are considered a joint process of brainstorming. The biographer is not an observer but a participant. He/ She does not only collect archival material but also plays an active and important role, alt- hough with an open mind devoid of prejudices, in order to be a catalyst in the conver- sation. After all, it is by the biographer’s initiative that the interview takes place; there- fore, he/she is the agent of catalyst in the interview. Sometimes the role of the biographer can be described as ‘the devil’s advocate’ who seeks to provoke and incite with questions on certain aspects of the life of the one under investigation which may be taken for granted. In this regard, David Dunaway has de- scribed the initial stages of an interview as conflictual. The narrator has a hazy chro- nology of events he has witnessed in his/her memory. Hence, the interviewee may not have the events of which he/she is a witness synchro- nised; besides, he/she would have to recall events of many past years. However, and this is very rare, he/she might have consulted secondary sources, which are informed and formed by the historical interpretation of significant events in the life of the biog- rapher. We must note that in oral biography, at the starting point the mismatch of past events and different perspectives of present events converge. Therefore, there is the need for reconstruction. A study of biographical works shows that this tension between the past and the present exists in the frame of reference of most transcripts.50 In any case, an interviewer may come with a preconceived frame of mind to the interview session and 50 David K. Dunaway, Oral History (Nashville: American Association for State and Local History, 1987), 261. 20 this can affect the questions and interpretation of the responses. This, according to Dunaway, is a challenge to the biographer to investigate whether there are inconsisten- cies in the interview by the same method used to evaluate written sources. As an aid to the interpretation, the following processes are used to evaluate a source of instinctive response. First, when the response is beyond instinct, biographers rely on validity. In other words, they investigate how the testimony corresponds to other sources. Second, whether the source is reliable; this is done by examining whether the same question is answered the same way more than once by the source, and third, by verifiability; that is, whether the testimony can be authentic.51 Dunaway, among other scholars, have defined an interview as a “dialectical experience between tradition and creativity. Tradition is each individual’s particular understanding of an event and creativity is the fusing of different interpretations between the historian and the subject”. Hermeneutical dialogue takes place when conflicts in the past, present and future interpretations of reality “evolve through communicative interactions that adhere to the dialectical process”.52 Reasoning from the foregoing, the dialectical process demands the use of hermeneutics as a tool involved in the transmission and translation of cultural values. The process of translation may lead to the discovery of something which, otherwise, would remain hidden and taken for granted in the use of everyday language. For instance, there are barriers among cultures, perspectives and persons which make understanding 51 Dunaway, Oral History, 260-261. 52 Culpepper E. Clark, Michael J. Hyde and Eva McMahan, “Communication in the Oral His- tory Interview: Investigating Problems of Interpreting Oral Data,” International Journal of Oral History 1 (February 1980), 33. 21 problematic.53 However, translation does not only require the sensitivity of those in- volved in an interview in the language used but must also take cognisance of the phys- ical and psychological expression of hermeneutics. The above assertion is reason enough in saying, in biographical research, the collection of data by conducting a narrative course of conversation allows the biographer’s per- spective and subjective relevance to become apparent and to generate texts that give the researcher the opportunity to reconstruct past experiences. The procedure of biograph- ical case reconstruction makes a strict distinction between the present perspective of the biographer and his/her perspective in the past. The constrictive comparison between life history and life story helps trace the rules differentiating the narrated from the ex- perience, the difference between biographical self-presentation at the time of narration and the experience in the past. Here, the general concern of biographical research is to understand religious, social and philosophical phenomena and explain them in the con- text of the process of their creation, reproduction and transformation. In this tradition the phenomena on which the research question focuses are examined, both from the subjective perspective of the individual and in the overall context of the biographer’s life and the structuring of its process. This makes it possible to discover the latent and implicit structuring rules. It is noteworthy that the life history, the inter- pretative review of the past and the manner of presentation of the life story are all con- stituted through the dialectic of the individual and the social. Biographical research al- lows us to reconstruct the inter-relationship between the individual experience and the collective framework, so when we reconstruct an individual case, we are always aiming 53 Clark, Hyde and McMahan, “Communication in the Oral History,” 33. 22 at making general statements. Thus, the goal of biographical research is not only to understand individual cases in the context of individual life histories but also to gain an understanding of societal realities or the inter-relationship between society and life his- tory.54 Finally, Rosenthal has proposed to researchers that when they analyse the experiences and attitudes of an individual, they will generate data which are elementary facts but not exclusively limited to this individual’s personality but can be treated as mere in- stances of more or less general classes of data or facts and could be made use of and serve as a source for the determination of the laws of social and religious progress. 1.5.2 Religion and Human Development Contributing to the debate on Religion and Development, Ossom-Batsa has traced how development came to be associated with economics or the acquisition of wealth. He has observed that the history of development theory originated after World War II.55 The devastated effect of the war on human beings, infrastructure and society in many na- tions meant the reconstruction of infrastructure and the rehabilitation of the human per- son. But the focus shifted more to the reconstruction of the economies of nations. The wealthy nations provided aid for those nations who were worse affected by the war. The aid was referred to as development aid. In the view of Speckman, that set the tone for the process of development theories into action. The first theory that emerged was referred to as “Dependency Theory”.56 Further, the same author has stated that that 54 See, G. Rosenthal, “Surviving together and living apart in Israel and West Germany: The Genzor fam- ily,” in Holocaust in Three Generations, ed. G. Rosenthal (Berlin: Barbara Budrich, 2010), 62. 55 George Ossom-Batsa “Engaging Religion in a Holistic Development,” in Religion and Sustainable Development, 1. 56 M. Speckman, Development, the Bible and the Role of the African Church, in Anthropology of African Christianity, eds. I. Apawo Phiri, D. Werner, C. Kauda and K. Owino (Oxford: Regnum Books Interna- tional, 2016), 1085-1091. See also J. Ogbonnaya, “The Prospects of Humanising Development Discourse https://www.jstor.org/publisher/bbpub 23 theory metamorphosed into another theory, known as the “Alternative Theory to De- velopment”. Here, the paradigm shift was on the potential of the human person and the reconstruction of the socio-economic structure of nations.57 In this theory, economic growth was calculated more in terms of infrastructural development, the physical con- struction than the rehabilitation of the human person. This theory also gave birth to the “Asset-Based Approach to Development”, hence development was seen through the lenses of assets acquisition. All this while, according to Ver Beek, religion was either sidelined or relegated to the list of less important items on the scale of preference of the development agenda or perceived altogether as an impediment to development.58 In the course of history, some development theorists and religious communities theorised that religion was indispen- sable to development. Pope Paul VI, who pointed out the Christian vision62 of human development, championed this theory. Thus, the Pope did not only assert this vision but also opted for the poor as the central theme (Luke 7:22),59 as mandated by Jesus Christ. According to the Pope: “We do not believe in separating the economic from the human, or development from the civilisations in which it exists. What we hold important is man, each man and each group of men, and we even include the whole of humanity”.60 in Africa through Christian Anthropology,” HTS Teologiese Studies /Theological Studies 72 (2016), a3423,http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/hrs.v7214.3423. 57 Speckman, Development, 1086. See also P. Ekins, A New World Order, Grassroots Move- ments for Global Change (New York: Routledge, 1992); F.H. Cardaso, Dependency and De- velopment in Latin America (Berkley, CA: University of California), 1979. 58 Cf. K.A. Ver Beek, “Spirituality: A Development Taboo,” Development in Practice 10 (2000), 1, 31-43. Based on a content analysis of the article published between 1982 and 1998 in three leading development studies journals, Ver Beck argued that religion constituted a “ta- boo” in the theory and practice of development. In fact, during the study-period, there was no single article which had the relationship between development and religion as the main theme. 62 Paul VI, Populorum Progressio, no. 14. 59 Ibid. no. 12. 60 Ibid., no. 14. See also L.J. Lebret, Dynamique concrete du dévelopement, Economic et Humanisme (Paris: Les Edition Ouvrières, 1961): 28. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/hrs http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/hrs 24 Thus, the Pope interpreted human development in terms of the fact that every person, irrespective of social class, economic standard and family background should benefit from development, according to the common good principle. In view of the common good, the gift of faith is paramount. Hence, the Second Vatican Council, Gaudium et Spes, has taught that there is the need for an action plan based on a new humanism and the universal purpose of created things. Taking the Bible as the point of reference, the human person has been entrusted with the earth and the respon- sibility to develop it (Gen 1:28). In effect, it is by his/her intellectual activities and by means of his/her labour to bring it to perfection for his/her use. If the purpose of the Creator is to furnish each individual with the means of livelihood and the instrument for his growth and progress, then each human person has the right to unearth in the world what is necessary for himself/herself. In this regard, the Second Vatican Council has stated: “In his use of things, man should regard the external goods he legitimately owns not merely as exclusive to himself but common to others also, in the sense that they can benefit others, as well as himself.”61 In the light of the above, Vatican II has explained that the right to property must never be exercised to the detriment of the common good. Hence, Pius XI has commented that if there should arise a conflict “between acquired private rights and primary community exigencies, it is the responsibility of public authorities ‘to look for solution, with the active participation of individuals and social groups.”62 61 Vatican Council II, “Gaudium et Spes: Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World,” in Vatican Council II: Conciliar and Post Conciliar Documents, ed. Austin Flannery (Dublin: Dominican Publications, 1992) n. 69, § 1. 62 Pius XI, Encyclical Letter: On Social Reconstruction: Quadragesimo Anno (Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1931), II: 1. See Leo XIII, Encyclical Letter: On the Condition of the Working Classes: Rerum Novarum (Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1942), n.19. 25 Therefore, it is incumbent on developed nations to show human solidarity with devel- oping nations.63 It is the obligation of every nation to ensure that its citizens attain a truly human standard of living and contribute to the common development of the human race. It is the social responsibility of the developed nations to share their wealth, pro- fessionals and technology and their scholars to put their skills at the disposal of less fortunate people.64 If the rich nations fail in their social responsibility, this will call down on them the judgement of God and the wrath of the poor nations, with conse- quences no one can foretell. The present situation confronting the world calls for concerted efforts in planning. A planned programme is far better and sustainable. This calls for a careful study, the se- lection of ends and the choice of means, as well as a reorganisation of efforts to meet the needs of the present and the demands of the foreseeable future. Moreover, an im- portant concerted plan has advantages that go beyond the field of economic growth and social progress. In addition, it gives importance and value to the work undertaken. While developing the world, it focuses on the human person as the higher value.65 1.5.3. Religion and Education As cited above, that the human person is of higher value, Giardini, among other schol- ars, have asserted that the goal of religious formation of the student is the personal maturity of his/her Christian life. Using education as the means to achieve this aim,66 Erikson has considered the inner growth, the development of the personal ego and the culture milieu. For him, the development of the individual is not only a matter of inner 63 Vatican Council II, “Gaudium et Spes,” no. 85, § 2. 64 Paul VI, Populorum Progressio, no. 48. 65 Ibid., no. 50. 66 Fabio Giardini, Counselling: Humanistic and Christian (Rome: Millenium Romae, 1997), 45. 26 growth. The development of the personal ego is greatly influenced by the type of culture within which a person develops. The religion of the individual is not his personal mak- ing. It does not just come from the inside of the person. Religion is conditioned, to a large degree than we realise, by the particular culture in which we live.67 Despite the ongoing debate among psychologists, notably Fichter, on the nature-nature controversy,68 Erikson and others, on the other hand, have largely agreed on the fact that both genetic and environmental factors play an essential role in the religious de- velopment which takes place in an individual.69 However, at times the religious person tends to minimise the effect of the biological dimension of the human person. Psychologists show that this dimension is basic to any human person. For religion to be meaningful, it must help the human person interpret and make sense of his or her inner strivings, desires, passions, inclinations and emo- tions. Complete religious expression allows the human person to utilise these dimen- sions in their proper form. A close examination of Religious and Moral Education (RME) reforms in Ghana re- veals that the subject is structured to appeal not only to the human person’s mind but also his or her biological and emotional needs. Thus, RME utilises the arts of music, painting, architecture and theatre in its appeal to the entire human person. Religious feelings are not to be considered lower expressions of religion than religious thinking. 67 Erik Erikson, Identity and the Life Cycle (New York: International University Press, 1950, 1963). 68 Joseph H. Fichter, Sociology (Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 1957), 1. 69 Erikson, Identity and the Life, 2. 27 According to Erikson, each person has his or her own unique social history and iden- tity.70 Often, we tend to put people into groups or categories. This is true in so far as there are similarities among persons. But each person has created his personal and so- cial identity within the particular culture in which he or she was reared and the particular type of relationships which he or she has had. This creates a difficult problem for teach- ers. It means that serious RME cannot be mass production. It must include real rela- tionships among persons, and this is exactly what the educational reforms have pro- vided for. In view of the above observation, Erikson has recommended that teachers need to be aware of their own development personalities if they are to effectively teach others. They must be aware that their own personal and social identities are not to be set up as model which students are to emulate and copy. Teachers must respect the development of each student. According to Erikson, there are various types of religious personalities.71 One person may be of a mystical bent, interested in personal prayer and religious experience. The social activist thrust within religion may impress another. Teachers should also be aware that their students may have another thrust. Truly, effective teachers are sensitive to the fact that the religion class must allow for all types of expressions of religious faith. In exam- ining how effective the RME teacher can be, Bernard, among other things, has sug- gested motivation as one of the greatest factors or ingredients for students to achieve higher spiritual attainment.72 70 E. Erikson, Child and Society (London-New York: W.W. Norton &Company Inc., 1963), 133-157. 71 E. Erikson, Identity Youth Crisis (London-New York: W.W. Norton & Company Inc., 1968). 72 R. Bernard, Equity and Excellence (London: Falmer Press, 1972). 28 In his contribution to the debate, Trevor has commented on the classroom interaction and asserted that the religious educator must bear in mind that in this area of religious education, controversy is inevitable. For him, controversy is useful in the classroom because it does not only show that issues are lived but also helps people with different viewpoints to express their own views and respect other people’s views as well, thereby creating an opportunity for growth.73 For religious education to be worthwhile, it must seek to raise the moral standard, in- tellectual prowess and human maturity of the human person. Opoku puts it this way: “…Observation of Africa and its society will reveal that religion is at the root of African culture and it is the determining principle of African life. It is no exaggeration, there- fore, to say that in traditional Africa, religion is life and life, religion.”74 In view of the above explanation on religion and education, we can now surmise the importance of religious education, for, as William Shakespeare has it: “There is no art to find the mind’s construction in the (person’s) face.”75 In other words, the interior disposition of the human person rests within him or her and is, therefore, impossible to comprehend, unless the human person concerned decides, with the help of divine inter- vention, to convert. The above saying is true of every candidate aspiring to graduate in any sphere of aca- demic endeavour in any part of the world. Since there are no certain criteria to deter- mine a genuine desire, which is interior and abstract, except to rely on the outward expression of the candidate, the only human criterion is his or her academic 73 K. Trevor, Teaching Religious Education (London: Macmillan Education Press, 1984). 74 K.A. Opoku, West African Traditional Religion (Accra: FEP International Private Ltd., 1978), 1. 75 William Shakespeare, Shakespeare’s Macbeth, ed. W.W. Livengood (New York: America Book Com- pany, 1910), 24. 29 qualification. As I have said, the authentic human criterion of accessibility and suita- bility of a candidate for admission to any educational institution, and for that matter future employment, is his academic qualification because, after all, the human person is not only a body but a composition of body and soul with intellect, will and memory as spiritual faculties. Hence, it is the teaching of the Roman Catholic Church, which Bowers represents, that the faith of any student should be developed by intellectual activities for the will to make the right choice in life and the memory to hold God. This is the reason for the Catholic Church’s stance on using educational qualification as a criterion for admission and assessment of a student. This calls for the establishment of educational facilities as a means of educating the youth who have expressed their desire and demonstrated to be studious.76 Nevertheless, in addition to academic quali- fication, there should be a background check to ascertain the moral suitability of the candidate from the head of institution. 1.5.4 Religion and Health Given the fact that health existed before medicine, which is an invention of medical science, Sokolowski has observed that the restoration of health or healing of the human life was one of the ways of evangelisation Jesus used as the Son of God in the early Church, saying: “The bodily and psychological cures in the Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles may well serve as an indication that the act of healing is one of the first of the human activities that can be informed by grace.”77 76 Emmanuel Quarshie, “The Effects of Senior Secondary School (SSS) Educational Reforms on the Formation of Minor Seminarians: A Study of Pope John Junior Seminary and SSS” (Postgraduate Di- ploma, A Project Work Presented to the Faculty of Education, University of Cape Coast, January, 2005), 1-2. 77 Sokolowski, Christian Faith, 246. 30 Generally, Shults and Sandage have argued that most people intuitively seek spiritual help for healing. The daily demands and responsibilities of life put so much stress on any person, and religion and spirituality offer remedies to deal with the challenges of being healthy under stress.78 During Bowers’ tenure in office, it was common for sick people to consult medicine men for spiritual protection. The hospital was always the last resort for these people when the condition grew worse. Grube, among other scholars, have observed that the above scenario was the same for ancients who sought explanation of the incomprehensible by resorting to external and transcendental mediators for answers; the neighbour was suspected of making use of charms to cause spiritual illness.79 This was the worldview, and the invisible spirits were appeased by sacrifices to take away their guilt. Thus, certain illnesses in the pri- meval era were attributed to spirits and especially wounds sustained in battles were seen as an enemy’s attack. The antidote to these wounds, they believed, lay in placating a particular spiritual enemy. Therefore, knowledge of early medicine was the monopoly of soothsayers, priests of the gods and the medicine men who knew the right rituals and incantations. The prehistoric person relied on his or her intuition and failed to apply the faculty of reason for the cure of diseases. In the absence of reason, intuitively they found remedies for diseases. In Africa, for example in Egypt, it was discovered that in the 16th century, by use of reason, a tech- nique was developed as an antidote to diseases and high social hygiene was maintained 78 Leron F. Shults and Stephen J. Sandage, Transforming Spirituality: Integrating Theology and Psy- chology (Grand Rapids, MI: Turner and Stauth, 1988), 187. 79 George M.A. Grube, “Greek Medicine and Greek Genius,” in Phoenix Classical Association of Canada 8, n. 4 (Winter, 1954): 123. http://www.jstor.org/stable//1086122 http://www.jstor.org/stable/1086122 http://www.jstor.org/stable/1086122 31 and Egypt was one of the healthiest nations on earth. Yet even there, medicine was subordinate to religion. However, Grube et. al. have pointed out that the Greek medical schools broke the mys- tery surrounding health and healing. This was as a result of rationalisation of the causes of diseases. The myth surrounding human freedom, which was severely hampered by nature and psychological and social forces and considered to be outside human man- oeuvrings, was unravelled. Homeric gods of medicine were reported to have said: “When you die is a matter of fate, but how you die and what kind of man you were while you lived are your own responsibility.”80 In other words, the human person would have to examine his or her conscience while he or she lives. Later, Asclepius, who also became the god of medicine, and Homer treated the wounded in a way which could not be associated with magic and incantations. This was the beginning of the introduction of rational thinking into the history of medicine and humanity. Against this background of our historical sketch of the development of religion and health, we will examine the definition of health given by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity.”81 Yet, this definition did not reflect the worldview of Western culture of health as the absence of diseases and illness until recent years.82 Hence medicine, which was com- monly referred to as “biomedicine”, had its origin in religion and spirituality but has been truncated since the times of Descartes and Newton. As Daniel Callahan has 80 Grube, “Greek Medicine.” 81 World Health Organisation, Basic Documents, 39th edition (Geneva: WHO, 1992). 82 Shults and Sandage, Transforming Spirituality, 190. 32 cautioned in his analysis of the WHO’s definition of health, “it makes the medical pro- fession the gatekeeper for happiness and social wellbeing.”83 Nevertheless, Turner and Stauth have observed that we are witnessing the crumbling of this wall of separation, as scientific research has indicated “the significance of prayer, spiritual discipline and religious commitment in promoting overall health, preventing illness and enhancing recovery from surgery.” 84 This, for some scholars, notably Turner, is a good reason for Western biomedicine to rediscover its roots by reintroduc- ing religion and spiritual issues in the treatment of patients. Reiterating her point, Emblen has examined the use of the terms religion and spirituality interchangeably, which reflect the historical roots of Western medicine and hospitals. She notes that in the United States, religious influence declined, and the country became more of a secularised state in the 1960s to 1970s, giving preference to the use of the term spirituality over religion. But Shults has given the date of profound secularisation of spirituality as the 1950s. Concurrently, in the West, there was debate on the dualism of body and spirit, while the Eastern view of perceiving the human person holistically did not change. This view concerning the spirit as an essential component of the human person declined in the Western world and the United States in the field of nursing. Therefore, nursing was approached with humanistic values, which ultimately led nursing care to focus on the personal needs and relationships of the patient. Emblen has concluded that by the 83 Daniel Collahan, What Kind of Life: The Limit of Medical Progress (Washington, DC: George Town University Press, 1995), 34-40. 84 Bryan Turner and George Stauth, Nietzsche’s Dance (Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1988); Shults and Sandage, Transforming Spirituality,185. 33 end of the decade, the paradigm of nursing had shifted to spirituality, which made use of terms such as transcendence and relationships.85 In view of the shift in meaning, Emblen approached her understanding of religion from the doctrinal point of view, which was essentially a set of beliefs and practices that expressed and fostered a relationship with God, as presented in a particular organised religion. She also approached the term spirituality from an anthropological point of view by widening its meaning as an animating and unifying principle of one’s life in the light of which a person contemplates and responds to issues of meaning and purpose of life, which undergirds and flows into a person’s relationship with self, others and the transcendent. To distinguish between religion and spirituality in health care, Emblen has pointed out that the confusion in the minds of patients over the conceptual definition can lead to unanswered questions on their minds. Hence, she has argued, if the two terms are not clearly understood, inappropriate care may be offered to patients: Sometimes patients indicate that they have no spiritual need – meaning no religious need - (because they are not members of any organised religious group). But some of those patients have desperate needs for help in working through some of their transcendent and relationship needs arising from their illness.86 In addition, Emblen has categorised religious care as keeping to a patient’s belief sys- tem, worship and practices, and spiritual care as helping a patient in order to identify 85 Julia Emblen, “Religion and Spirituality: Defined According to Current Use in Nursing Literature,” in Journal of Professional Nursing 8, no. 1 (1992): 40. 86 Emblen, “Religion and Spirituality,” 41. 34 meaning and purpose in his or her life, maintain personal relationship and transcend his or her condition in a given moment. With renewed and intensive research in nursing, awareness has been created of the need to integrate spirituality into health care. Spirituality is now concerned with the universal human question concerning the meaning of life and how it is to be lived in the face of suffering, dying and death. Seen as such, spirituality can serve as the theoretical frame- work within which to situate matters of health and illness, so that healthcare providers can situate their own medical activities and healthcare recipients can locate their own response to medical treatment.87 The reviewed literature above reveals that religion is indispensable to integral human development. It further suggests that peoples’ religious beliefs impact their lives and deeds. This, therefore, provides the context to explore how Bowers’ religious formation and beliefs impacted his pastoral ministry in the area of education and health, contrib- uting to the human development of the whole person and every person. Furthermore, the reviewed documents of the Roman Catholic Church from Pope Pius XI to Pope Paul VI and the recent publications on the topic indicates that while the Roman Catholic Church and scholars such as Ter Haar, Speckman, Ossom-Batsa, Gatti and Am- mah have argued that religion has an important place in development that embraces the totality of the human person, other scholars such as Karl Marx and Friedrich Engles are of the view that religion breeds more conflicts which does not support development. 87 Emblen, “Religion and Spirituality,” 41. 35 Reasoning from the literature reviewed, the major question now is: has religion con- tributed to development in Ghana? This research attempted an answer using Bowers as a case study. 1.6 Theoretical Framework Pope Paul VI’s encyclical letter, Populorum Progressio (PP),88 one of the documents reviewed in the literature, provided the theoretical framework of this thesis. In PP 14, Pope Paul VI pointed out clearly the Christian vision of human development when he wrote: We do not believe in separating the economic from human, nor develop- ment from the civilisation in which it exists. What we hold important is man, each man and each group of men, and we even include the whole of humanity. Human development cannot be limited to mere economic growth. In order to be authentic, it must be complete: integral, that is, it has to promote the good of every man and of the whole man.89 In response to its mandate, the Church has ever since remained true to the teaching and example of its divine founder, who mandated the Church to preach the Gospel to every person and particularly the poor, as His central theme (Luke 7:22).90 The Church has never failed to obey Him and promotes human progress of the nations to whom it brought faith in Christ. Thus, for the development of the whole person, missionaries have built, not only churches, though this is an essential part of its mission, but also hostels, hospitals, schools and universities. They also educate the local community on the means of deriving the best advantages from their human and natural resources. Where necessary, the missionaries have 88 Paul VI, Populorum Progressio, no. 12. 89 Ibid., no. 14. 90 Ibid., no. 12. 36 intervened and protected the indigenes from the greed of foreign investors. Undoubt- edly, the Church, being a human and divine institution, sometimes in the discharge of its duties, has seen its missionaries’ human natures overshadow the divine nature of the Church. That is, their human imperfections have sometimes blurred the announcement of the authentic Gospel message. Sometimes they infiltrated the Gospel in many ways with their thinking and acting which were characteristic of their countries of origin and planted the Gospel in the native land without recourse to the worldview of the natives. However, it is worth noting that for the progress of all nations, some missionaries were also able to develop and foster institutions for human development. In many missionary territories, they were the pioneers in material progress, as well as in cultural advance- ment. It is necessary to pay tribute to these pioneers who have too often been forgotten, but who were urged on by the love of Christ, just as we honour their imitators and successors who today continue to put themselves at the generous and unselfish service of those to whom they announce the Gospel.91 1.7 Methodology This study employed qualitative research methods and approaches.92 It is a qualitative research method that is concerned with the reconstruction of life histories and constitu- tion of meaning based on biographical narratives and documents. According to Fischer- Rosenthal,93 it involves two approaches: 91 Paul VI, Populorum Progressio, no. 12. 92 Bridget Young and Darko Hren, “Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods,” http://mir- rorejd.eu/wp-content/uploads/sites/34/2017/03/Introduction-toqualitative-research-methods.compresse d.pdf. According to Albert Einstein, “not everything that can be counted, counts; not everything that counts can be counted.” 93 Wolfram Fischer-Rosenthal, “Biographical Work and Structuring in Present-day Societies,” in The Turn to Biographical Methods in Social Science, eds. Prue Chamberlayne, Joanna Bornat, and Tom Wengraf (London-New York: Routledge, 2000). http://mirrorejd.eu/wp-content/uploads/sites/34/2017/03/Introduction-toqualitative-research-methods.compres http://mirrorejd.eu/wp-content/uploads/sites/34/2017/03/Introduction-toqualitative-research-methods.compres 37 Firstly, the biographical identity or biographical structuring that emphasises the recon- struction of the single case and the development of the ‘personality’ in the life course. It assumes that the link between structure and individuals could only be understood sufficiently by analysing the development of the individual personality in the life course. Secondly, the biographical action research that emphasises problem-specific action modes and is more concerned with the systematic comparison of different action modes than general personality structures. It is more concerned with action modes in specific societal areas or how individuals respond to certain problems with the reconstruction of the whole identity. Further, the research was limited to the Catholic Diocese of Accra from 1953 to 1971. That period covered the tenure of office of Bishop Bowers. Six schools sited in the Eastern Region and four hospitals founded by him were used for the study. Gender balance, cognitive, affective and psychomotor dimensions or intellectual and attitudinal differences, respectively, of the researcher informed this selection. Three of the hospi- tals were in the Eastern Region and one in the Volta Region. The research embarked upon a thorough investigation of the problem of integral human development. The choice of these selected schools and hospitals means that the study’s findings may not be generalised. However, it will provide the basis for studying similar cases and how the problem studied will manifest in other situations. 1.7.1 Methods of Data Collection A combination of qualitative research methods and approaches characterised this study. These methods were used to generate novel insights into phenomena that are difficult to quantify which emerged from documentary evidence on Bowers’ biography. 38 Interviews were arranged with 25 participants who knew Bowers personally and worked with him. Three focus group discussions were organised with students from Pope John’s, St. Roses’ Senior Hight School and elderly sisters of Handmaids of the Divine Redeemer. Each group consisted of 13 participants. Video recordings were some of the approaches used to explore Bowers’ Pastoral Ministry and how that impacted on the integral human development of Ghanaians in general and the Catholic faithful in particular in the provision of religious education and health. To elicit the necessary information for the research, data was collected from two main sources: archival documents (surveys, diaries, memoirs, sermon notes and letters) and narratives. Altogether, five archives, in three continents, were visited for materials on the biography of Bowers: the Robert M. Myers Archives of the Society of Divine Word Missionary (SVD) at Techny, USA and the SVD Guest House, Accra, Ghana; the St Dominikus Institut of the Dominican Sisters at Speyer, Germany; the Accra Archdioc- esan Archives, Accra, Ghana, and the Ghana National Archives in Accra, Ghana. A pilot study was done using selected age groups and gender in Accra, the Yilo Krobo Traditional Area, Koforidua, Kwahu Nkwatia and Akwatia in the Eastern Region as witnesses of Bowers and beneficiaries of his pastoral ministry. The methods employed for data collection and analysis were qualitative. Basically, the data was from primary sources. The categorized data collection produced information on issues on education and health care in his pastoral ministry. Also, the research employed the snowball method of data collection on the biography and contributions of Bowers. The purposive sampling interview session was chosen to observe, learn, report and an- alyse the views of the interviewees on Bowers’ contribution to integral human devel- opment. 39 Again, regarding schools and hospitals, six schools and four hospitals established by Bishop Bowers served as our pilot study. These institutions and facilities are situated in the Eastern and Volta regions of Ghana. The researcher paid visits to all the schools and hospitals for personal observation. The rationale behind the selection of schools was to ensure gender balance, while the hospitals have different sister religious congre- gations as their foundation. Those who were interviewed formed the population. Owing to the large number of witnesses and beneficiaries of Bowers’ pastoral ministry, the study was conducted with sample of 9464, which comprised 9 Catholic priests, 9 nuns, 7 lay faithful, three sets of focus group discussions which comprised 13 people each, making a total of 39 people; old nuns in residence at the HDR old sisters’ home. Beneficiary students at the Pope John’s Minor Seminary and Senior High School and the St Rose’s Senior High School formed the focus group discussion. It was difficult to have focus group discussions of witnesses due to old age and proximity. In all, 20 men and 44 women in the 70-80+ age range participated in the research. These were people who personally knew and/or worked for Bowers. The youth who are beneficiaries were also included. 1.7.2 Method of Data Analysis Empirical data from the field (interview reports, focus group discussions, personal ob- servations) were first categorised into themes relating to Bowers’ family background, education, seminary formation, ordination into the priesthood and pastoral ministry. Information on the different themes was examined using the content analysis approach. The veracity of content was checked against archival materials and other available 94 Dairo Afolorunso Olalekan, Statistics and Data Analysis for Research in Humanities (Lagos: Graceway Publishing House, 2015), 37. 40 documents such as personal letters, memoirs, baptismal registers and diaries. An en- gagement of the synthesis with scholarly works (books and peer reviewed journals) provided the resources for elaborating the thesis of our project. 1.8 Significance of Study The study contributes to biographical study, a rarely explored discipline in Ghana. Stud- ying the lives of heroes and heroines can generate knowledge for the benefit and devel- opment of the Church and the country at large. Furthermore, the study advances insights into the ongoing debate on the relevance of Religious and Moral Education on the school curriculum of the Ghana Education Ser- vice. As the adage goes, Lex orandi, lex credendi, lex operandi, which translates: As you pray, so you believe and so you work. When students are given good religious and moral education, they pray better, are convinced of their faith and translate that into hard work. 1.9 Organization of Study The work is divided into six chapters. Chapter One is the general introduction and back- ground to the study. It includes the statement of the problem, objectives of the study, research questions which guided the study, review of related literature of works of scholars on biographical research, religion, education and health, theoretical frame- work, methodology, significance of the study, and the organisation of various chapters. Chapter Two, which is entitled: Brief Historical Overview of Bishop Joseph Oliver Bowers: ‘A Humble Home (March 28, 1910-1938), aims at a biographical presentation of Bowers till the end of his seminary formation. It is concerned with Bowers’ early years: Parents, basic education at the Dominican Grammar School in the Dominica, 41 secondary education, seminary formation at Chicago, Techny, St. Augustine’s Major Seminary: novitiate, daily schedule, spiritual formation, philosophical and theological studies and ordination into the priesthood and appointment to the mission in Ghana. Chapter Three surveys the ecclesiastical territory of the Catholic Diocese of Accra (1953-1971) under the administration of Bowers. It begins with the introduction, the demography of the Catholic Diocese of Accra and the political geography of the diocese in the era under investigation, a brief history of the Catholic Diocese of Accra and the religious situation. It also continues with the examination of the political independence of the Gold Coast and the socio-cultural milieu in the Gold Coast/Ghana. Chapter Four examines Bowers’ contribution to Catholic education. It gives a prelude to Catholic education and human development. Also, it examines the background to Catholic education in the 1920s and the colonial system of education in the Gold Coast. It also looks at the introduction of the Seven-year Accelerated Development Plan after the country gained independence. At that time, there was an increase in the number of schoolchildren, without a corresponding increase in infrastructure and staff, leading to a low standard of education. Therefore, there was the need to provide quality education with trained teachers. The chapter explores the roles played by patriotism and the Young Pioneers and the need for voluntary agencies. It also examines the roles of the Catholic Bishops in general, and Bowers in particular, in the provision of quality edu- cation. Bowers’ efforts can be appreciated better with a perusal of his correspondence. In conclusion, Bowers founded many schools, hospitals and a diocesan congregation of African nuns to teach in some of these schools. Chapter Five discusses Bowers’ contribution to healthcare delivery. It inves