Can a Christian Be Cursed?

Godwin O. Adeboye

Description

The belief in curses is widespread in Africa, impacting the lived reality of both Christians and non-Christians alike. In this book, Godwin Adeboye provides practical, biblical, and contextual guidelines for addressing the African conception of cursing, and for ministering to the fear and confusion such cursing elicits. He argues that African evangelical theology must begin by understanding, and valuing, the unique experiences of African Christians if it is to offer relevant answers to the real dilemmas they face. To this end, Adeboye draws on African traditional beliefs, empirical research, and the teachings of popular African pastors to provide insight into the religious and cultural contexts of the contemporary African church. Against this backdrop, he explores biblical passages on cursing and utilizes the evangelical positions on biblical authority, the atonement, personal conversion, and active mission to evaluate cultural beliefs and bring them into alignment with the gospel.
While this text is an excellent resource for students of theology, missiology, and biblical or cultural studies, it is also immensely practical and deeply pastoral. Ultimately, it is a book to empower believers
to confront their fear of curses equipped with the truth of Scripture.

Sujets

• Religion
• Christianisme
• Christian Theology
• Philosophie et théologie

Informations

• Publié par: Langham Creative Projects
• Date de parution: 06 avril 2023
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781839738272
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

Are Africans cursed or do they misunderstand curse? In this book, Godwin Adeboye has meticulously discussed the concept and phenomenon of curse in its theological, spiritual, and academic dimensions within African Christianity. The book seeks to evangelize the African mystical curses worldview and to speak out its understanding in modern African society against the mismanagement, paradox of plenty, corruption, poor interpersonal relationship, laziness, bribery, negative ethnicity, disobedience to God, unhealthy politics, insecurity, banditry, kidnapping, rape, etc. This book is therefore highly recommended to Christians, theologians, and church ministers in the contemporary African context.
George P. Atido, PhD
Professor of Missiology & World Christianity,
Shalom University of Bunia, Democratic Republic of the Congo
The subject of curses is one that troubles individuals and church denominations around the world. Though several other scholars have offered solutions to this problem, this work addresses the reality and presents a unique solution for Africa. Adeboye provides a theological response to this particular set of African Christian experiences in a timely, simple, and readable way. He shines a clear light on curses and how readers can understand and biblically respond to them. This work will enrich the international discussion on curses and help readers to better their understanding. It is essential reading for all and my honor to recommend this book for use in institutions of higher learning, churches, and society as a whole.
Stephen O. Y. Baba, PhD
Professor of Biblical Studies,
ECWA Education Director, Jos, Nigeria
In almost all African ethnic groups, people take curses seriously. Indigenous religions have elaborated at length on how to conduct oneself to avoid or limit the consequences of curses. Although Christians live within a different spiritual framework, it is not rare to observe worries, fear, and even panic when people, especially parents or elders, curse them with or without reason. Adeboye’s book provides an in-depth analysis of the phenomenon. It brings comfort through a particular focus on the sovereignty of God, who has the power to overrule any human curse. I highly recommend this book to all African believers, particularly Christian educators.
Moussa Bongoyok, PhD
Professor of Intercultural Studies and Holistic Development, and President,
Institut Universitaire de Développement International (IUDI), Cameroon
This book empowers African Christians to confront their fear of curses with thorough biblical exposition. It provides the theological grounds on which African Christians can solve their dilemma and confusion in relation to curses. The major strength of this book is the practical guidelines provided for Africans to engage their life experiences. I believe this book is a good step in the right direction for the growth and development of African Christianity.
Helen A. Labeodan, PhD
Professor of Philosophy of Religion,
University of Ibadan, Nigeria
This book scores high in its clarity and mode of expression. While the author’s interest is to make the book useful to every category of readers, he does not compromise the required academic and technical rigor. It is an invaluable resource, meticulously presented. It touches the heart of major doctrinal issues on curses in Africa. I am convinced that what African Christianity needs is contextually brewed theological responses to the living experiences of its people. Adeboye has seen this need and responded to it. This book is a gift to African Christians.
J. B. Lawal, PhD
Professor of Christian Apologetics and Ethics, and Former Provost,
ECWA Theological Seminary Igbaja, Nigeria
The issue of curses and related problems examined and presented in this publication is serious and critical for the advancement of the gospel in Africa. Evangelical faith which flourished from the 1950s to 1970s in Nigeria has been influenced from the 1980s onwards by the prosperity gospel movement, with a lot of emphasis on dramatic religious experiences over and against correct biblical and Christian living. The author brings a fresh and bold analysis of African reality from the perspective of biblical revelation. The publication is a beautiful juxtaposition of biblical hermeneutics and theological methodology. This is a book that all church and denominational leaders, other gospel ministers, theological educators, and ministers in training need to read. I am pleased to recommend it.
Rev. Emiola Nihinlola, PhD
President, Nigerian Baptist Theological Seminary, Ogbomoso
Chair, Association for Christian Theological Education in Africa (ACTEA)
Adeboye has offered a fresh and invaluable contribution towards our understanding of biblical Christianity in Africa. The fear of curses is widespread on the African continent. To the best of my knowledge, this book is the first attempt to engage this fear from in-depth theological and cultural perspectives. Although it exhibits solid academic research and novel theoretical grasp, it also possesses a strong degree of empathy. These make the book useful for both professional and lay theologians. I enthusiastically commend this book to all.
Babatomiwa M. Owojaiye, PhD
Senior Pastor, First ECWA Ilorin, Nigeria
Fellow, Research & Innovation Centre, ECWA Theological Seminary Igbaja, Nigeria
CEO, Centre for Biblical Christianity in Africa
Godwin Adeboye’s book tackles a difficult subject of huge relevance to the everyday lives of Christians in Africa. For this is a context where the believers struggle against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms is very clear and intense. The fear of curses, and especially generational curses, runs deep even among Christians. Adeboye explains that this is because not enough effort has been made to interrogate the reality of Africans lived experiences of curses within a biblical theological framework. Adeboye states, “The best antidote to the hermeneutical anomolies and theological syncretism of curse preachers and teachers in Africa is to produce healthy doses of biblical theology based on excellent exposition of texts that are then applied properly to to African lived reality in ways that are both biblical and contextual.” (p. 146) This he proceeds to do. Adeboye explains that Christian moral responsibility is vital because curses are a form of moral evil. He discusses how to distinguish which of lifes misfortunes are caused by curses, the importance of true conversion and Christian faith, and how to pray in a New Testament way for deliverance from spiritual principalities who respect only the name of Jesus, rather than in the way of the Old Testament’s imprecatory psalms. Combining biblical theology with practical and pastoral help, this careful, detailed, and wide-ranging book will be useful for pastors, preachers, theologians, seminary students, and lecturers, and all Christians in Africa.
Patrick Sookhdeo, PhD
Executive Director, Oxford Centre for Religion and Public Life, UK
International Director, Barnabas Aid, UK
In this well-researched and intentionally easy-to-read book, the author provides an evangelical response to the belief in curses in contemporary African Christianity. Many African Christians live in fear because they believe that they have been cursed. Some have sought the help of traditional healers while some have fallen into the hands of misleading preachers who often take advantage of such desperate people. The book provides a deep description of the problem but doesn’t stop there. It provides a carefully crafted prescription of remedies to it. I don’t think I have seen a book that addresses this issue with such depth. This is a gem for the African church and the academy. I highly recommend it to every serious African pastor, theologian, and lay Christian. Every African theological library must have a copy of this book.
Rev. David Tarus, PhD
Executive Director,
Association for Christian Theological Education in Africa (ACTEA),
Nairobi, Kenya

Can a Christian Be Cursed?
An African Evangelical Response to the Problem of Curses
Godwin O. Adeboye

© 2023 Godwin Adeboye
Published 2023 by HippoBooks, an imprint of ACTS and Langham Publishing.
Africa Christian Textbooks (ACTS), TCNN, PMB 2020, Bukuru 930008, Plateau State, Nigeria
www.actsnigeria.org
Langham Publishing, PO Box 296, Carlisle, Cumbria CA3 9WZ, UK
www.langham.org
ISBNs:
978-1-83973-826-5 Print
978-1-83973-827-2 ePub
978-1-83973-828-9 Mobi
978-1-83973-829-6 PDF
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All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan.
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ISBN: 978-1-83973-826-5
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