Africa Matters

Friends,

I’m grateful to announce the upcoming release of my newest book, The Sacrifice of Africa. It will be due out from Eerdmans at the end of November, and is available for preorder.

Here is the publisher’s description:

“Christianity is rapidly expanding in Africa — but so also are the vexing realities of war, civil unrest, corruption and violence. What are the connections between these two faces of Africa? Can Christianity become the much-needed social force for a new future in Africa? How would such a future come about, and what would it look like?

These questions lie at the heart of The Sacrifice of Africa by Emmanuel Katongole. A Catholic priest from Uganda, born in 1960, who lived through the reign of Idi Amin and who has seen firsthand the problems that ravage his home country and its neighbors, Katonogole argues that recurring civil war, violence, corruption and instability are wired within the imaginative landscape of modern Africa, are set within the founding narratives of Africa’s inception into the modern world through colonialism and its successor institution, nation-state politics.

In the face of these entrenched political imaginations, the most critical social challenge is one of “daring to invent” the future through new foundational narratives that reflect and nurture a fresh, different vision for African politics and social life. This is the primary political difference that Christianity can make in Africa.

The stories of three African Christian leaders and their work — Bishop Paride Taban and the Holy Trinity Peace Village in Southern Sudan; Angelina Atyam in Uganda and the Concerned Parents Association in Uganda; and Maggie Barankitse and Maison Shalom in Burundi — cap off Katongole’s inspiring vision of hope for Africa.”

I have particularly enjoyed reading Jake Meador’s chapter-by-chapter engagement with the book. Jake is doing amazing work at Notes from a Small Place – a collection of notes on faith, place, and community. So far, he has reviewed the book in three installments:

Introduction

Chapter 1 (a)

Chapter 1 (b)

Besides featuring interesting writing, Jake’s blog addresses crucial themes of place and identity and their relationship. Be sure to keep reading as he posts his way through Sacrifice for Africa, and beyond!

Thank you for all who have supported me through the process of preparing this book! I look forward to the conversations it will generate.

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