VALLEY FORGE, PA (ABNS 10/12/06)-At a joint conference of the All Africa Baptist Fellowship (AABF) and the Baptist World Alliance (BWA) in Kenya, pastors and educators invoked the Baptist conviction of religious liberty-saying mutual recognition, dialogue, and tolerance are needed to stem the tide of rising religious and ethnic conflict across the continent of Africa.
"There are some who ask, why should we deal with others who don't believe in Jesus Christ?" said Rev. Sam Brickson of Sierra Leone, as he spoke about Baptists in his country leading religious dialogue. "We are not trying to exchange beliefs," Brickson said the leaders told him, "We are trying to find ways to co-exist."
Peaceful co-existence was on the mind of Brickson and dozens of Baptist leaders at the joint general assembly of AABF and "Living Water" evangelism conference of BWA. Attendees at the meeting in Limuru, outside of Nairobi, Oct. 8 to Oct. 13, 2006, include Charles Jones, Acting Executive Director and a delegation from International Ministries, ABCUSA.
In a session held Wednesday, Oct. 11, participants sought both to witness to the gospel of Jesus Christ and to defuse situations all over the continent plagued by religious tension, conflict, and violence.
"We have to educate people about the issues at stake and train leadership," said Dr. Fola Lateju of Nigeria. "Change will not come when only one or two people are qualified to lead," Lateju said.
Lateju, who has a doctorate in Muslim studies, runs the Centre for Interfaith/Relations and Cross Cultural Outreach in Ogbomoso, Nigeria. Lateju explained that from the period of independence until the 1970s, much of what people in the West see as Christian-Muslim conflict in Nigeria did not exist. However, in the late 70s, Lateju said there was a rise in conservative Christian groups, particularly on college campuses, which led to the proliferation of churches in the mainly Muslim North part of the country. The activities of these groups, often backed by Western conservative Christians, led to a reaction among Muslims. Lateju said that fundamentalist Muslim groups arose, claiming their parents and earlier Muslims had compromised key practices of the faith. These younger Muslim leaders sought financial support from Arab countries to build Mosques and other programs.
"How could they justify getting the money?" asked Lateju. He explained that Muslims would tell their benefactors, "the Christians were posing a challenge to the propagation of Islam, and show them churches that were not there five or ten years ago."
Lateju said those who follow the conflict in the West are not aware that most people do not want to live in religious violence. "In the majority of the people there is that sense of belongingness and wanting to lead a tolerant lifestyle, but it is some people for whom [conflict] is beneficial," he said.
The same challenge of leaders provoking conflict exists when the tensions are ethnic, not religious. Rev. Felicien Nemeyimana, of Rwanda, is executive director of Peacebuilding, Healing, and Reconciling Programme (PHARP), which he and others helped form in the aftermath of the Rwandan genocide.
Nemeyimana said problems in his country started at the leadership level. When President Juvenal Habyarimana was killed in April 1994, Hutus saw this as an attack on them and the military leadership used this immediate incident as a provocation to launch a program of genocide against Tutsis which had been planned for months, even years, according to subsequent United Nations investigations. Now, more than a decade later, Nemeyimana said the people of Rwanda "want to go beyond ethnicity and come together. The leadership-church and political-is not focused on ethnicity, and that is where I can see change taking place."
Leaders encouraged multi-ethnic ministry and programs that involve a wide variety of people. They also said leaders should be open to criticism, and realize that the best witness to the Gospel may be in works, not words.
"We don't preach against Islam, we preach Jesus Christ. That is the mistake some pastors are making" said Brickson, who pastors Victory Baptist Church in Freetown, and is director of the AABF youth fellowship.
"Most of the time our testimony will speak. Our testimony is very important," Brickson said. "We are compassionate, we are friendly. We forgive."
Andrew C. Jayne American Baptist Churches, USA Mission Resource Development http://www.abc-usa.org/