Title of Seminar Paper:

An Essay
‘Towards a Mission Model Suitable for Pentecostal Churches in Ghana’

By

Christina Tsekpoe

Oxford Centre for Mission Studies

(16 July 2014)

Introduction
The shift in centre of Christian vitality to the global south is no longer a new
phenomenon in global Christian engagement. For over three decades, scholars have
identified a shift, not only in population, but also in outlook; a dramatic shift in the
centre of vitality from Europe and North America to the south.1 Karl Rahner, in his
fundamental theological interpretation of the Second Vatican Council, an address he
delivered at the academic convocation at Cambridge on 8 April 1979, called the
attention of the Christian community to this shift. 2 Contributing to Rahner’s
observation, Robert Schreiter intoned that, ‘the dramatic growth of the Christian
community in Latin America, Africa, Asia, and Oceania during the twentieth century

1 Kim, J. F. Elijah The Rise of The Global South: The Decline of Western Christianity and the Rise of
Majority World Christianity Eugene, Oregon: Wipf & Stock, 2012; Todd M. Johnson, David B.
Barrett, and Peter F. Crossing “Christianity 2012: The 200th Anniversary of American Foreign
Missions” International Bulletin of Missionary Research 2013, 36/1, p. 28-29; Asmoah-Gyadu
Kwabena, Contemporary Christianity: Interpretations from an African Context (Oxford: Regnum
Books, 2013), p. 8; Schreiter Robert, Constructing Local Theologies (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books,
1985), p. xi
2 Karl Rahner, “Towards a Fundamental Theological Interpretation of Vatican II,” Theological Studies
40 (1979)

1
was already evident at Vatican Council II where, for the first time, a significant
proportion of the world’s Roman Catholic bishops were coming from outside the
North Atlantic community.’3 This shift became more evident within the later part of
the twentieth Century. Andrew Walls in his forward to Mission in the Spirit, by Julie
and Wonsuk Ma, contends that at the beginning of the twentieth century, the Christian
centre lay in Europe and North America, whereas by the century’s end the majority of
professing Christians belong to Africa, Asia and Latin America.4

This shift did not happen without challenges. First, it came with identification of the
fact that, Western traditional theology is unable to meet the needs of the new
Christian centres. Second, the shift has revealed the responsibility of the Christian
community to respond to new questions that arise from these centres, where the
majority of the Christians are found. According to Schreiter, ‘There was a growing
sense that the theologies being inherited from the older churches of the Northern
Atlantic community did not fit well into these quite different cultural circumstances.’5
Migliore identify that all people, ‘live in particular historical contexts that have their
own unique problems and possibilities, the changing, confusing, and often precarious
world poses ever new questions for faith, and many answers that sufficed yesterday
are no longer compelling today.’6 Kwame Bediako thinks that the shift in the centre
of Christian vitality ‘offers quite distinct opportunities for fresh Christian theological
reflection and for new understandings’. 7 This situation brought about a shift in
perspective among different theologians and missionaries. A shift that resulted in
search for new ways of answering new theological questions within new cultural
centres.

Schreiter asserts that within the Roman Catholics circles, there was the recognition for
the need to find ways by which theological reflections could fit into local
circumstances. Also within the Protestant circles there was the awareness of the need

3 Schreiter Robert, Constructing Local Theologies (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1985), p. xi.
4 Julie, Ma and Wonsuk, Ma, Mission in the Spirit: Towards a Pentecostal/ Charismatic Missiology
(Oxford: Renum Books International, 2010), p. 11.
5 Schreiter, 1985, p. 1
6 Migliore, L. Daniel, Faith Seeking Understanding: An Introduction to Christian Theology: Second
Edition, (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing Co. 2004). p. 4.
7 Bediako, Kwame, Jesus in Africa: The Christian Gospel in African History and Experience
(Akoropong-Akwapem: Regnum Africa, 2000).

2
for a kind of theology that will be meaningful to its recipients. Schreiter noted that,
this consciousness developed into the use of terms such as contextualization,
localization, indigenization, inculturation, and adaptation as attempts to make
theological expressions more relevant. The birth of liberation theology emerged from
Latin America almost at the same time, also in search of relevant theology that will fit
into their unique situation.8 Additional terminologies, such as indigenous theology,
ethnotheology, contextual theology and local theology were also being used and
sometimes interchangeably, to describe new ways of mission.9 Theologians, however,
responded variedly to these terms over the years, finding some of them inappropriate
for various reasons.10

Analysis by Mission Models

8 Schreiter,
1985, p. 2.
9 Schreiter,
1985, p. 3-7
10 See Shorter Aylward, Toward a Theology of Inculturation. London: Geoffrey, Champman, 1988;
John Herman Bavinck, An Intoduction to the Science of Mission, tans. David Hugh Freeman.
Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing Company: Philadelphia, 1960). P. 178; David J. Bosch,
Transforming Mission: Paradigm Shift in Theology of Mission (Maryknowll: Orbis, 1991), 294-95,
448-52.

3
The attempt to communicate the gospel in a culturally meaningful ways has caused
missionaries to use different mission models, either knowingly or unknowingly.
Scholars assert that the term models have been widely used in different fields over the
years.11 Scott Moreau indicates that the use of a model ranges from the physical to
the metaphoric and to the theoretical. 12 Barbour argues that a model ‘provides a
mental picture whose unity can be more readily understood than that of a set of
abstract equations.13 In his classic work on Models of Contextual Theologies, Bevans
describes a model as ‘a “case” that is useful in simplifying a complex reality, and
although such simplification does not fully capture that reality, it does yield true
knowledge of it.’14 Mission models can therefore be understood as the use of relevant
options available, usually in the form of mental images and symbols to simplify
complex missiological practices in order to provide practical ways by which mission
can be carried out in a particular cultural, historical and social context.

Indigenous Mission Models

It is argued that the challenges missionaries encounter as they attempt to
communicate the gospel to people of different cultures did not start with the current
shift of Christian vitality. Paul Hiebert, for example, reports that
During the first years of the modern mission movement, people were won to faith and
congregations planted. The question then arose as to how the mission agencies and
sending churches should relate to the new churches. It soon became clear that the
paternalistic missionary attitudes common in that day were stifling the maturation and
growth of the young churches.15

The introduction of the three-self mission principles was seen as one of the early
attempts to respond to such difficulties within the missionary enterprise. Scholars16
credited the origin of these three-self principles to two outstanding mission leaders:

11 See Bevans, 2002; Barbour, Ian Myths, Models and Paradigms: A Comparative Study in Science
and Religion New York: Harper and Row, 1974; Moreau, Scott Contextualization in World Missions:
Mapping and Assessing Evangelical Models Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 2012
12 Moreau, 2012, p. 31
13 Barbour, 1974
14 Bevans, 2012, p. 31
15 Hiebert, Paul Anthropological Insights for Missionaries (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1985),
pp. 193-94.
16 See Beaver R. Pierce “The Legacy of Rufus Anderson” International Bulletin of Missionary
Research, 3:3, (1979), p. 94-97; Shenk, R. Wilbert, “Rufus Anderson and Henry Venn: A Special
Relationship? International Bulletin of Missionary Research, 5:4, (1981), p. 168-172; Hiebert, (1985),
p. 194; Newberry, B. Warren “Contextualizing Indigenous Church Principles: An African Model”
Asian Journal of Pentecostal Studies (2005), 8/1, p. 95-115

4
Rufus Anderson 17 and Henry Venn 18 and later on taken up by John Nevius, 19 all
within the nineteenth century.20 The “three-self” mission model has since continued
to be a subject of discussion by other missiologists such as Roland Allen, 21 Alice
Luce,22 Melvin Hodges,23 Paul Pomerville,24 and Paul Hiebert.25

Pentecostals’ Contribution to Indigenous Mission Models

Pentecostals’ contribution to the discourse of indigenous principles could be credited
to the Assemblies of God missiologist, Melvin Hodges, who wrote about the
‘Indigenous Church’ in 1953.26 Allan Anderson states that Hodges work might have
been influenced by Roland Allen whose books on indigenous churches were
circulating in Pentecostal circles as early as 1921. Books and articles written by Alice
Luce (also based on Allen’s teachings on indigenous church), might have framed
Hodges missiology.27 Hodges advocates for New Testament model kind of church
that will be responsible and not depend on the mission agencies for growth and
survival. By encouraging the missionaries and mission organisation to train leaders
and allow them to govern their own churches, teach them to propagate the gospel on
their own and to support their own mission with local finance and local materials,
Hodges brought about a radical shift in Pentecostal mission models of his time.

17 Rufus Anderson (1796-1880) worked as the senior secretary to the American Board of
Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM). Even though he wanted to work at the mission field,
he did not get the opportunity but worked at the Headquarters of the Missions Board at Boston. See
Beaver “The Legacy of Rufus Anderson” (1979), p. 94-97
18 Henry Venn (1796-1873) worked as secretary to the Church Mission Society (CMS), in United
Kingdom around the same time when Rufus was secretary to the ABCFM in US. See Shenk, R.
Wilbert, “Rufus Anderson and Henry Venn: A Special Relationship? International Bulletin of
Missionary Research, 5:4, 1981, p. 168
19 John L. Nevius (1829-1893) was an American missionary to China. He received his education at
Princeton Seminary and was sent to China in 1854 under the Presbyterian Mission Board.
20 See Knight William M. A, Memoir of the Rev. Henry Venn: The Missionary Secretariat of Henry
Venn, B.D., Prebendary of St. Paul’s and Honorary Secretary of the Church Missionary society with
an Introductory Biographical chapter and Notice of West African commerce by His Sons; The Rev.
John Venn, M. A. Senior Fellow of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge and The Rev. Henry Venn,
M. A. Rector of Clare Portion, Tiverton (London: Longmans, Green, and Co, 1880); Nevius, L. John
Methods of Mission New York: Foreign Mission Library, 1895
21 Allen, Roland Missionary Methods: St. Paul’s or Ours? Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2012
22 Alice, E. Luce “Paul’s Missionary Methods ”The Pentecostal Evangel, January 6, 1921
23 Hodges, Melvin The Indigenous Church Springfield, Gospel Publishing House, 1953
24 Pomerville, Paul The Third Force in Mission Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1985, 63-78.
25 Hiebert, 1985
26 Hodges, 1953, p. 12.
27 Anderson, Allan An Introduction to Pentecostalism Maryknoll, NY: Cambridge University Press,
2004), P. 209.

5
It is obvious that the indigenous church model, does not address the issue of gospel
and culture engagement. The focus of this model is on the sustainability of the
churches the missionaries were planting. The proponents probably assume that there
is a normative model that has been established in the New Testament, which can be
followed and implemented in every culture and in every generation.

The Fourth-Self (Self theologizing)

In reaction to the weaknesses in the “three-self” model, Hiebert proposed the “fourth-
self” – “self-theologizing”. The purpose of this, he suggests, is to address the question
of whether the young churches have the right to read and interpret the Scriptures for
themselves. 28 The fourth-self principle deals with how the national church leaders
would be allowed to develop theologies that they think are more relevant to their
cultures. This also raises the question of the extent to which the missionary should
give freedom to the national church leaders. Does the missionary need to supervise
the theologizing process or leave it? If he should leave it, what is the guarantee that it
will not be syncretic? And if he should supervise or guide would he not commit the
same error of imposing his culture on the people? It is worth mentioning that the
introduction of the “fourth-self” and the attempt by other scholars to add other “selfs”,
such as “self-missionizing” and “self-caring”,29 to the list, is a confirmation of the
fact that the “three-self” models are not adequately meeting the local theological
needs of the new Christian centres. As a result, some missiologists have questioned its
effectiveness and considered it outmoded. 30 In spite of that some mission
organizations, including the Assemblies of God and the Church of Pentecost, still
promote its use within recent times.31

Models of Mission

28 Hiebert, 1985, p. 196

29 See Newberry, B. Warren “Contextualizing Indigenous Church Principles: An African Model”
Asian Journal of Pentecostal Studies (2005) 8/1, p. 95-115
30 See Reese Robert “The Surprising Relevance of the Three-Self Formular” Mission Frontiers (2007)
p. 25-27
31 In a paper presented at the Mission Leaders Forum of the world Assemblies of God Fellowship
congress, Delonn Rance admonished AoG missionaries to practice the missiology of the indigenous
church since it has been the standard for the church almost from the beginning.

6
Two major contributions on mission models that are widely used by scholars within
recent times are: Schreiter’s Constructing Local theologies, and Bevan’s Models of
Contextual Theology. Schreiter’s work, for examples, proposes the use of translation,
adaptation and contextual32 approaches as classifying principles for his work. To him,
‘these approaches advocate not only a relation between a cultural context and
theology, but also something about the relation between theology and the community
in which it takes place.’ 33 He explains that these three approaches could be
understood as models for engaging local theology. 34 His work can be seen to
concentrate more on the shift in perspective from Western or traditional theology to
local theologies emerging at that particular time. These models, however, do not take
into consideration the possible changes that take place within a particular local
community over a period of time. Culture is dynamic. There is no local theology that
can be relevant to a particular local community forever. A theological model that
worked for a particular community at a particular time may not be relevant for the
same community all the times since new generations emerge within each community
with their peculiar culture and unique inclinations. New generations will always raise
new questions that will always demand new answers.

Building upon Schreiter’s work, Bevans proposed Models of Contextual Theology. He

‘proposed a way to think more clearly about the interaction of the gospel message and
culture, and about honouring tradition while responding to social change.’ 35 He
identified six models to which mission can be intentionally pursued and these are; the
Translation Model, the Anthropological Model, the Praxis Model, 36 the Synthetic
Model, the Transcendental Model 37 and the Countercultural Model. The use of
examples and practical missiological practices and events makes it easy to understand
how each of the models Bevans brings on board operates. His models can be used as a

32 This model’s concentration is on the cultural context in which Christianity takes root and receives
expression. This model recognises that since culture is dynamic and rural communities are becoming
urban, it is not ideal to base local theology entirely upon patterns in traditional religion of any sort.
33 Schreiter, 1985, p. 6
34 Schreiter, 1985, p. 6
35 Schreiter made this statement in his foreword to Beveans’ Models of Contextual Theology.
36 The emphasis of this model is on the identity of Christians within a context, particularly as that
context is understood in terms of social change.
37 The emphasis of this model is that the theologian, who is producing a particular theology, operates
as an authentic, converted subject. It believes that ‘there are some things that we cannot understand
without a complete change of mind.

7
guide for both researchers and missionaries who are interested in gospel and culture
encounter discourse. I have attempted to discuss some of these models for the purpose
of my research

Translation Model
Schreiter sees the translation model as a two-step procedure where in the first step, the
mission practitioner tries as much as possible to free the Christian message from its
cultural deposits. In the second step, attempt is made to translate this message into a
new situation. In this model therefore it can be said that the Christian message is freed
from its previous cultural context and translated it into a new setting. 38 It also
involves vernacular Bible translation, which has been an essential aspect of mission
work. Bevans maintains that, the translation model is presented as a model that views
the message of the gospel as unchanging message. Translation here is not limited to
the translation of words or grammar or even a language, but the translation of the
meaning of doctrine into a cultural context. Even though the translation might
transform the doctrine quite from their original identity, it is still the product of a
given message. The model is interested in the preservation of Christian identity
through a given message within a particular cultural context.39 In spite of weaknesses
in this model, such as the possibility of a superficial understanding the new culture, it
could be understood that within the African context, the translation of the Bible,
hymns and liturgy was very important aspect of the mission work.

Adaptation Model
This model tries to solve the difficulties of the translation model by seeking a more
fundamental encounter between Christianity and culture. Schreiter identified three
adaptation models that are commonly used. The first stage is where expatriates
attempt to develop a philosophy of the worldview in consultation with local leaders.
This did not seem to work well since the outcome was a parallel Western kind of
theology. It was refined into the second stage where the local leaders were trained
either in the West or were expected to use Western categories to shape their local
theological expressions. This one too, even though it takes culture seriously, could not

38 Schreiter, 1985, p. 8.
39 Bevans, 2002, p. 37-53.

8
meet the desired result since it only tries to force culture into foreign categories.40 The
third form of adaptation model takes into account the importance of both the Christian
message and the culture of the people. It takes the local culture with its own
categories and allows for the development of a local theology. 41 This situation
however does not seem to exist since the mere contact of culture with an external
Christian tradition seems to impose some elements on it right from the beginning. It
also made mission communities a sub-culture within the indigenous culture.

Synthetic Model
The synthetic model, according to Bevans, attempts to balance the insights of the
translation model, the anthropological model, the praxis model as well as the counter-
cultural model and at the same time reaches out to insights from people’s context.
That is to say that this model creatively uses the wisdom in whatever model available
to contextualise a unique theology.42

Countercultural Model
This model pays a closer attention to the culture in which theology is taking place but
with suspicion. It identifies that all human beings and all theological expressions take
place within a situation created by historical and cultural conditions. The model holds
that the culture needs to be attended to with a high level of suspicion because the
Christian message needs to redeem the culture. 43 By suspecting the culture, the
missionary or the expatriate may not allow the ‘grain of wheat’ to fall into the earth
and die as in John 12:24, for a locally germinated plant to grow. It is true that every
culture has aspects that need to be redeemed but for this to happen, there is the need
for local theology to be developed.

Incarnational Model
Unlike the countercultural model, which is suspicious of the culture, the incarnational
model sees mission as God speaking from a particular culture to people in ways that
they can understand and respond. This model is developed from the doctrine of God

40 Schreiter, 1985, p. 10
41 Schreiter, 1985, p. 11-12
42 Bevans, 2002, p. 88-102.
43 Bevans, 2002, p. 117-37.

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in Christ as presented in John 12:24. The missionary’s work represents ‘the grain of
wheat’ which must fall into the culture (soil) and ‘die’ for a true local theology to
develop. The incarnational model can therefore be seen as a cultural model. The use
of terms such as acculturation and transculturation to describe this model have been
seen as inadequate since it presents one culture as a strong culture which tends to
assimilate a weaker one. To overcome this problem, Shorter uses the term
inculturation. He postulates that ‘enculturation (sometimes spelt ‘inculturation’) is a
sociological concept which has been used analogously by theologians for the
theological notion of inculturation.’ 44 He further contends that ‘in order to
differentiate between the sociological and theological uses of this term, it is better to
preserve the spelling ‘enculturation’ for the sociological context and ‘inculturation for
the theological context.’ 45 On his part Ben Knighton sees inculturation as a
misspelling of enculturation. He argues that in attempt to argue a case for
inculturation, Shorter is bound to the very tradition he is trying to amend. Knighton
further contends that Christian enculturation is a term that can be intelligible to others
besides interested Christians.46 Again in his work on ‘Christian Enculturation in the
Two-Thirds World’ Knighton argues that ‘Christian Enculturation is presented as a
missiological model which can foster the confidence or morale of Two-Third World
churches to work out their own salvation. It is not only individuals that are
enculturated into society, but also religious traditions.’47 Enculturation can be seen
not only as a common process, but also a life-long one since individuals are not the
only innovations into culture; societies enculturate as well.

Mission Models Approximate to McKeown and the CoP

Walker’s Ph.D research identified five evangelistic methods within the CoP, which he
calls, CoP mission models. 48 This research however, did not follow the wider
discourse of mission models as discussed above. By employing economic market
principles like competition, monopoly, oligopoly, and comparative advantage, Walker

44 Shorter Aylward, Toward a Theology of Inculturation. London: Geoffrey, Champman, 1988, p. 5

45 Shorter,1988, p. 5
46 Knighton, Ben ‘Christian Eenculturation in Karamoja, Uganda,’ Ph.D thesis, University of Durham
1990, p, 53.
47 Ben Knighton ‘Christian Enculturation in the Two-Thirds World’ in Wijsen, Frans & Schreiter,
Robert (eds) Global Christianity: Contested claims 2007, p. 63
48 Walker, Daniel ‘The Pentecost Fire is Burning: Models of Mission Activities in the Church of
Pentecost’ Ph.D Thesis, University of Birmingham, 2010

10
concluded his work by developing an economic mission model for the CoP, which he
argues, ‘can be used to measure the other models in the church.’ 49 This model
however does not appear to be a mission model because it seems to be promoting
competition among churches in an era where ecumenism is being encouraged.

Before Walker’s work, Onyinah Opoku, in a paper presented at James McKeown’s

Memorial lectures,50 submits that McKeown’s mission practices were rooted within
the indigenous church policy of self-supporting, self-propagating and self-governing.
To a large extent it can be agreed that the CoP has been self-supporting and self-
propagating right from the beginning for two reasons. First, the church does not
depend on financial support from any external mission organisation. Second, ordinary
church members have always carried out the propagation of the gospel both in Ghana
and outside the country. 51 On the other hand, whether the church was also self-
governing during McKeown’s time is a matter of further investigation since
McKeown held on to the leadership of the church in Ghana until he was 82 years.52 It
can also be understood that by aligning himself with the three-self principles in Ghana
at a time when the Africans were engrossed in nationalistic feelings of self-expression
and independence, could endear McKeown to the Ghanaians and this might have
contributed to the seeming success he enjoyed in his missions work.

On another note, a closer observation of his mission practices suggests a combination

of other mission models in line with Schreiter-Bevans’ taxonomy of mission models.
For example, the claim that McKeown allowed the Ghanaians to use their local
languages, songs, drumming and dancing as well as the use of Akan traditional
appellation to pray, suggest that his mission praxis approximates to what Bevans calls
the Synthetic Model; creatively using the wisdom in whatever model available to
contextualise a unique theology. Secondary sources seem to suggest that McKeown

49 Walker 2010, p. 229

50 Onyinah Opoku (ed) “James McKeown Memorial Lectures: 50 years of The Church of Pentecost,
2004
51 See Walker, 2010
52 Thus, 2 years with Peter Anim’s group (now Christ Apostolic Church), 14 years with the Apostolic
Church and 29 years with the Church of Pentecost, making a total of 45 years of missionary work in
Ghana

11
strived to use the Primal 53 resources of the Ghanaian people to achieve his aim,
accusing other missionaries for westernizing their churches in Ghana. 54 Scholars
identify that Primal resources are very valuable materials for Christian usage. We see
especially in Africa that the names used for God in the Christian bible were mostly
derived from the primal religions. Songs, proverbs, poetry, riddles, stories, myths, and
idioms are important primal materials that have made African Christianity fresh and
original. Kabiro wa Gatimu states:
Gikuyu Christians use their primal resources not for academic reasons, but because the Bible is
their guide to sound living … The use of primal resources has indeed helped Gikuyu Christians to
attest to the sacred character of primal religion and world-view and to reclaim a relevant
spirituality, which is vital in biblical hermeneutics.55

For example, apart from allowing the Ghanaians to use their local drums and dances
to praise the Lord during worship, McKeown is also reported to have allowed Afua
Kuma 56 to use primal religious praise in poetic forms 57 to praise the Lord Jesus
Christ. Kwame Bediako indicates that, “what is so striking about Madam Afua
Kuma’s prayers and praises is how intensely they reflect a well-known and important
feature of African primal religion.’ 58 Few of the prayers have been selected for
consideration in this presentation:
Jesus of the Deep Forest: Prayers and Praises of Afua Kuma59
All-powerful Jesus who engages in marvellous deeds, he is the one called Hero - ᴐkatakyi!
Of all earthly dominions he is the master; the python not overcome with mere sticks,
The Big Boat, which cannot be sank.
Wonder worker, you are the one who has carried water in a basket
And put it by the roadside for travellers to drink for three days.

He is the Thumb, without which we cannot tie a knot.

53 The term primal is used here, not in the derogatory sense but in the sense of basic, or fundamental to
describe the pre-Christian culture of the African. Even though primal may not be an ideal term, it is
less objectionable among Ghanaians and more universal in usage than other terms known
54 Leonard 1989, p. 69; Onyinah (ed) 2004, p.71
55 Gatumu, Kabiro, Using Primal Resources to Appropriate the Bible: A paradigm Shift for Biblical
Hermeneutics, Journal of African Christian Thought, Vol. 12 No. 1 (June, 2009), p. 16.
56 She is an illiterate Ghanaian Christian woman, Christina Afua Gyan, commonly referred to as Afua
Kuma, a native of the forest town of Obo-Kwahu on the Kwahu mountain ridge in the Eastern Region
of Ghana and a member of the Church of Pentecost. She was a peasant farmer and also practiced as a
traditional midwife. Even though her prayers and praises of Jesus are, in her mother-tongue, the Akan
language, they have been translated into English by Fr. Jon Kirby, to give the reader a good indication
of their depth of Christian experience conveyed in the thought-forms and categories of the Akan world
view in her rural setting.
57 The forms are the same as are used by the Akan to give appellation in praise of their chiefs.
58 Bediako, Kwame Jesus in Africa: The Christian Gospel in African History and Experience
Akropon-Akuapem: Regnum Africa, 2004, p. 9
59 Kirby, John Jesus of the Deep forest: Prayers and Praises of Afua Kuma, Accra: Asempa
Publishers, 2006, p. 5-7

12
 O You-who-show-the-way; Akyerεkyerεkwan!
You teach us how to prophesy.
Supporter-of-friends, who come in glory and strength!
Source-of-great-strength: Okuruakwaban

The mmoatia60 he has cut to pieces;

He has caught Sasabonsam61 and twisted off its head.
He is the Hunter gone to the deep forest
Sasabonsam, the evil spirit has troubled hunters for many years.
They ran in fear, leaving their guns behind.

Jesus has found those same guns, and brought them to the hunters to go and kill the elephant.

For the Ghanaian, these prayers and praises relate to their worldview and reveal who
Jesus is just as the Psalms will reveal God to the first Century Palestinian. Also, the
popular traditional dance among the Ewes of the Volta Region is called agbadza. The
traditional mainline churches in those days would not allow its use in the church since
such things are considered pagan.62 Sources claim that McKeown allowed for its use
in the church. Generally, most songs and hymns sang in the church of Pentecost are
not translated English songs but locally ‘received’63 indigenous songs.64

It however appears that as McKeown tried to make the Christian message meaningful
to the people, his mission models tend to lean more towards adaptation and
countercultural models because even though he seems to have taken Ghanaian culture
serious, it can be recognized that he was sometimes suspicious of it and as a result, his
measure of what is acceptable in the CoP, was based on the received faith – the Bible.
As characteristic of the adaptation model, there are quite a number of parallels that
still exist today between the UK Apostolic Church and the CoP in Ghana. For
example, comparing the tenet of the UK Apostolic Church in 193765 to the revised

60 Dwarf or fairy
61 Forest monster
62 A typical example is the “firing” of Aphraim Amu when he introduced Ghanaian music and
drumming into the Presbyterian Church, and also put on the traditional cloth to preach at Church.
63 These songs are not composed. They are believed to be prophetically received from the Holy Spirit.
This is commonly practiced in the CoP up till today. Whoever received the song, either during prayer,
worship or during the delivery of sermon, sings the song during the service there and then. After it is
sang over and over for about two or three times, the congregation listens and join to sing
spontaneously. Most of these are in the local languages and later translated into English.
64 Leonard, Christine. A Giant in Ghana: 3000 Churches in 50 years – The Story of James McKeown
and the Church of Pentecost. Chichester: New Wine Press, 1989; Onyinah, 2004
65 See Fotokum, Samson Adetuji ‘A Pentecost from Wales to the Uttermost Parts of the World: The
Apostolic Church’s Global Mission 1991 to Date’ Swedish Missiological Themes (2008) 96/4, p. 395-
416

13
CoP tenet of 2008 66 reveals a strong resemblance with little modifications. This
suggests that the theology of the CoP, even as it stands now is rooted in the Apostolic
Church doctrine. Other resemblances include the use of the fivefold ministries,67 the
ministers vow, non-ordination of women as pastors, official attire of the clergy,
wedding ceremonies, and suspension of people who ‘fall into open sin’ 68 among
others.

Also, as typical of the countercultural model, McKeown could be said to be

suspicious of the Ghanaian culture, because before he allows any traditional practice
in the church, he will first request for the essence in order to be sure before allowing
it.69 It was said that he did not allow adowa70 dance in the church because he thought
it was immoral.71 Also, it is not clear why McKeown stayed in Ghana for 45years
without speaking any of the Ghanaian languages, even though he allowed all the
numerous tribes in Ghana to use their vernacular languages. It is also not too clear
how McKeown responded to the numerous customs and festivals celebrated by the
various tribes in Ghana. As at now, members of the CoP would not want to be part of
festivals such as Homowo, Aboakyire, Hogbetsotso, Ngmayem/ Dipo, Asafotu-Fiam,
Adae/ Akwesidae, and Odwira within their local communities.72 At this point, it is
important to find out whether McKeown sowed ‘a grain of wheat’ and allowed it to
die73 in the African soil for a new plant with true African identity to sprout or he
transplanted a ‘British seedling,’ in the African soil.

The success of the CoP mission has been mainly measured in terms of church
membership growth, number of congregations planted, chapels built, pastors trained
and few social services. In his Ph.D research on ‘Church Membership Trends in
Ghana’, Foli identified that ‘The Church of Pentecost has more than half the total

66 The Church of Pentecost Ministers’ Handbook (Edited by the National Literature Committee, 2008)
67 Apostles, prophets, evangelists, teachers and pastors.
68 A terminology used to describe a situation where the sin an individual commits become public
or know to others with evidence.
69 Onyinah (ed) 2004, p. 74
70 A very popular Akan dance normally performed by women.
71 Informal conversation with some of the old members of the church
72 These are just few of the numerous festivals celebrated by the people of Ga Traditional Area,
Winneba (the Central Region), Ewes (Volta Region), Krobos (Eastern Region), Ada (Greater Accra
Region), Ashantis (Ashanti Region and Akropon-Akuapem (Eastern Region) respectively.
73 John 12:24

14
number of churches (congregations) coming under the Ghana Pentecostal Council.74
Membership growth has consistently been rapid with about 65 per cent being women.
The church is heavily present in the cities as well as in the rural areas. Today, the CoP
is considered the largest Protestant denomination, claiming about 8 per cent of the
Ghanaian population.75 The question however is whether the CoP mission has so far
been able to disciple any culture as in Matthew 28:19 is also a matter for further
investigation.

Pentecostal Mission in Ghana

Before the emergence of Pentecostalism in Ghana, much missions work had been
carried out by the early Christian missions.76 In spite of the successful attempts these
early missionaries made in preaching the gospel, translating the bible into local
languages, planting churches, establishing schools and hospitals among other things,
some theologians accused them of imposing their Western culture on the African
people and demonizing African culture.77 The period between 1920 and 1930 gave
birth to a number of African Independent Churches (AICs),78 commonly known as
sunsum sore 79 in Ghana. The origin of this strand of Pentecostals in Ghana is
attributed to the missionary work of the itinerant preacher, Prophet William Wade
Harris, from Liberia who came to Ghana in 1914.80 Prophet Harris did not establish
any church but his converts such as Sampson Oppong, John Swatson, Grace Tani and

74 Foli, 2001, p.
75 Ghana Evangelism Committee National Church Survey, 1989 & 1993; Mandryk Jason Operation
World Seventh Edition Colorado: Biblica Publishing, 2010, p. 365; Foli, 2001, p. 65
76 Debrunner, Hans W A History of Christianity in Ghana Accra Waterville Publishing House, p.
1967:13-18, 23-78; Onyinah, Opoku Pentecostal Exorcism: Witchcraft and Demonology in Ghana,
Dorcest: Deo Publishing, 2012; Clark B. Peter West Africa and Christianity London Edward Arnold
Publishers Ltd, 1986; Larbi E. Kinsley Pentecostalism: The Eddies of Ghanaian Christianity Accra:
Centre for Pentecostal and Charismatic Studies, 2000, p. 6; Sanneh, 2009; Anim, 2003; Kalu, 2007;
Anderson, 2004; Atiemo, 1993; Bediako, 2004; Walls, 1996
77 Bartels, F. L The root of Ghana Methodism Cambridge Cambridge University Press: 1965; Onyinah,
Opoku Pentecostal Exorcism, 2012, p. 104-108.
78 The acronym AICs also means African Initiated Churches, African Instituted Churches or African
Indigenous Churches.
79 An Akan name, meaning ‘spirit churches’ normally used to describe the African Initiated Churches,
also known as aladura in Nigeria and similar to South Africa’s Zionist churches. See Asamoah-Gyadu,
Kwabena African Charismatics: Current Developments within Independent Indegenous Pentecostalism
in Ghana. Leiden: African Christian Press, 2005.
80 Asamoah-Gyadu, 2005, p. 19; Onyinah, p. 114-5

15
John Nackabah did. 81 Prominent among these churches are the Twelve Apostles
Church, Mozama Disco Christo Church, Africa Faith Tabernacle, Saviour Church of
Ghana and Apostles Revelation Society.82 Their mission activities were considered to
be indigenous and therefore very appealing to the African people. As a result, they
attracted quite a number of followers. They were reported to heal, cast out demons,
burn idols and baptized converts.83 History however revealed that as a result of lack
of theological framework and questionable character of some of the leaders, this
ministry attracted criticism and decline.84

The second category of Pentecostalism in Ghana is classical Pentecostalism. The

Classical Pentecostals also attempted to indigenise their mission practices but unlike
the AICs, they were cautious of the African culture. The first Pentecostal mission
agency to serve in Ghana (then Gold Coast) was the Assemblies of God (AoG) church
from America and they arrived in 1931, setting up their mission station in the
Northern territories. Before the arrival of the AoG, Peter Anim, a former member of
the Presbyterian Church had organised an independent group after reading a magazine
called The Sword of the Spirit from the Faith Tabernacle Ministry in 1917.85 Peter
Anim’s movement, which developed into a church, subsequently affiliated to the UK
Apostolic Church, which led to the sending of the first Bradford Apostolic missionary
to the Gold Coast in the person of Revd James McKeown. The activities of Peter
Anim and James McKeown resulted into the emergence of three Classical Pentecostal
denominations, namely: Christ Apostolic Church, the Apostolic Church and the
Church of Pentecost (CoP).86 Meanwhile the AoG has also grown to become a vibrant
Classical Pentecostal church in the country. As the case has been with most
Pentecostals, the classical Pentecostals in Ghana were said to have a narrow
understanding of mission as evangelism or making converts. Taking their reference

81 Some of them were traditional priest, but converted to Christianity and later founded African
Independent Churches in Ghana.
82 Onyinah, 2012, p. 114-5; Asamoah-Gyadu, 2005, p. 20; Larbi, 2000
83 Larbi E. Kinsley Pentecostalism: The Eddies of Ghanaian Christianity Accra: Centre for Pentecostal
and Charismatic Studies, 2000; Asamoa-Gyadu, 2005; Onyinah, 2012.
84 Asamoah-Gyadu, Kwabena African Charismatics: Current Developments within Independent
Indegenous Pentecostalism in Ghana. Leiden: African Christian Press, 2005, p. 20-23; Onyina, 2012, p
123-124; Larbi 2001, p. 32
85 Larbi, Kingsley “Dictionary of African Christian Biography” Available at
www.dacb.org/stories/ghana/anim Accessed on 26.05.14 at 19:25.
86 Debrunner, 1967; Onyinah, 2002; Larbi 2001; Asamoah-Gyadu, 2005, p. 19-29.

16
from Acts 1:8, Pentecostals see themselves as a movement that would undoubtedly
take the gospel of Christ ‘to the ends of the earth.’ They also understood the ‘pouring
out of the Holy Spirit upon all flesh’87 on the Day of Pentecost as evidence of the last
days and the imminent return of the Lord Jesus Christ. They therefore carried out
mission assignment in haste because ‘Jesus is coming soon’. As a result of this
understanding, the classical Pentecostals have little or no place for the things of the
earth but concentrate on ‘saving souls’. As a result of this they have been accused of
being inward looking, triumphalistic, and seemingly unconcerned with serious issues
of their socio-cultural contexts.88

A third category of Pentecostals in Ghana is the Neo-Pentecostal, or what is generally

referred to in Ghana, as the Charismatic Ministries. They emerged in the 1970s
having been influenced by their counterparts in Nigeria and America. 89 The first
Charismatic Ministry to be established in Ghana is the Christian Action Faith
Ministries led by Archbishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams 1979. 90 Other prominent
Charismatic Ministries in Ghana include: Royal House Chapel International,
International Central Gospel Church, Light House Chapel International and the Word
Miracle Church. This strand of Pentecostalism has also been accused of perpetuating
prosperity gospel in Ghana. The trend of growth in Ghanaian Pentecostalism is
similar to what has been going on in other African countries.91 Today, as shown in
global statistics and in other parts of Africa, Pentecostalism in Ghana has become the
fastest growing strand of Christianity but not without challenges. Hedlund asserts that
as a result of unfulfilled eschatological prophecies within the Pentecostal cycles, some

87 Joel 2:28-28; Acts 2:17

88 Hedlund, 2005, p. 87
89 Gifford wrongly added this group to the AICs. Wrong because they are different in outlook and are
better identified as Charismatic Ministries in Ghana. See Gifford, Paul Ghana’s New Christianity:
Pentecostalism in a Globalising African Economy London: Hurst, 2004, p. 20-21
90 Darkwa, J. Amanor “Pentecostalism in Ghana: African Reformation” Cyber Journal for Pentecostal
– Charismatic Research www.pctii.org/cyberj/13/amanor.html (assessed 15/06/2014)
91 See Kalu, Ogbu African Pentecostalism: An Introduction NY: Oxford University Press, 2008; Larbi,
Pneuma (2002) 24/2; Anderson, Allan “African Pentecostals in Mission” Studies in Missiological
themes (1999) 87/3

17
Pentecostals lean more towards this worldly.92 This is now seen as a dominant feature
of neo-Pentecostalism in Ghana, where emphasis is laid on the here and now.93

The Pentecostals’ believe in Holy-Spirit empowerment and the demonstration of

power, casting out demons and healing diseases made the movement appealing to the
African society where evil spirits are considered to be life-threatening forces,
responsible for destroying people’s lives. Even though this can be said to contribute to
the growth of Pentecostal mission in the country, Onyinah contends that the practice
of healing and deliverance ministry by the Pentecostals give opportunity to charlatans
and unemployed who have strong personalities to easily claim spiritual encounters
and begin churches with the aim of getting money for a living. On his part Hedlund
intones that there is the need for critical evaluation of evangelistic ministries that lead
to self-aggrandizement and financial gain of the preacher, often at the expense of the
poor.94

Conclusion
To some extent it can be said that Pentecostal mission in Ghana has been successful
owing to the large number of members claimed. It is however obvious that no matter
how successful the old answers have been, new questions keep arising within
Ghanaian Christianity that cannot be ignored. On the other hand, there is the need for
Pentecostal theologians to be bold in highlighting the challenges of the movement and
forecast corrective measures to deal with such challenges as they encourage the
strengths of the movement in order to promote and not slow down the current growth.
One general observation made about African Christianity is its inability to affect the
everyday life of people.95 Even though I may not agree with Gifford on a some of
issues raised in his critique of Christianity in Ghana, 96 it is obvious from the
newspaper headlines he pointed out that there are enormous moral and ethical

92 Hedlund, E. Rodger “Critique of the Pentecostal Mission by a Friendly Evangelical, Asian

Pentecostal Journal, 8:1, 2005, 88.
93 Gifford, Paul African Christianity: Its Public Role London: C. Hurst & Co, 1998
94 Hedlund, (2005), p. 87
95 Gifford, Paul African Christianity: Its Public Role London: C. Hurst & Co, 1998
96 Gifford selectively picked out churches and stories that could meet his pre-conceived idea of
Ghanaian Christianity. For example he isolated a newspaper report of one factory turned into a church
to claim that factories are being turned into churches. He also left out the CoP, which can be found in
both cities and rural Areas and concentrated on churches that are in the cities only. This may not
adequately represent Ghana’s new Christianity as he claimed. See Gifford, 2004, p. 156-157

18
challenges in the church that demand theological response. 97 Again, the various
investigations and findings of Anas Aremeyaw Anas, 98 reveal the extent to which
corruption and abuse of human right is bulging in most organizations in Ghana and
this makes it worth researching about the extent to which Christianity affected the
everyday life of the average Ghanaian.99

There is no doubt that something is lacking in Ghanaian churches today, perhaps a

new approach to mission. It is important to heed to the call, not to detach the
‘discipling the cultures’ from the ‘going’ and the ‘baptizing’. Mission should also
encompass what concerns the converts and their environments. All together make the
great commission.100 It is also important for us to identify that Christians can never be
separate from the world while they are into it – from its society, economics, politics –
in short, from particular culture, as the Bible plainly shows.101 Walls argues that Jesus
did not tell us to “Make some disciples in each nation” but we are to ‘disciple the
cultures.’102 He stresses that ‘Discipleship … involves the word of the master passing
through the disciple’s memory and into all the mental and moral processes; the ways
of thinking, choosing and deciding.’103 Pentecostal missiology in Ghana must now
address pertinent issues that serve as danger sign for the future of the mission by
developing models that can shape the future of the mission. There is the need for
mission models that will not only appeal to the Ghanaians and attract them but also
pass through their mental and moral processes; the ways of thinking, choosing and
deciding, penetrating their cultures and discipling them.

97 Gifford, 2004, p. 191

98 A Ghanaian undercover investigative journalist
99 Anas has investigated the mining industry in Ghana, the Ghana Electricity Company, Customs
Exercise and Preventive Service, Ghana Police Service, the Driver and Vehicle Licencing Authority
and Ghana Prisons Service. Other issues include child trafficking, murder of children, abuse and
cruelty at Osu Children’s home among others. His video documentary findings have been shown on
Television stations such as GTV, Metro TV, TV 3, and Joy News in Ghana. Other known TV stations
that show Anas’ documentary or interviews him include Aljazeera, CNN, Sky TV and Sahara TV.
Besides these, his findings become front page banner headline in Ghanaian newspapers such as the
Daily Graphic, Ghanaian Times, Daily Guide, The Catalyst, The Enquirer, The Democrat, The
Crusading Guide and The Chronicles.
100 Ma, Julie & Ma, Wonsuk (2010), pp. 40-41.
101 Knighton, Ben Christian Eenculturation in Karamoja, Uganda, Ph.D thesis, University of Durham
1990, p. 516
102 Walls, Andrew The Missionary Movement in Christian History: Studies in the Transmission of
Faith Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 1996, p. 48
103 Walls, Andrew The Missionary Movement in Christian History: Studies in the Transmission of
Faith Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 1996

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