“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters”. So, goes the scripture. For many, that darkness continued and ever lasted even long after that light was casted upon the cosmos. the shadow needs to be lifted, by all means necessary. Christianity present on the African continent since literally the 1st century. Notable vestiges in Ethiopia and parts of Northern Africa. A long way to come for a religion that originated in Jerusalem (1). However, with time this same religion grew to be an faithful accomplice to colonialism in our human societies and in occurence our African civilizations. Not enough Africans question the fact that somehow Africans are now the strongest worshipers of a religion born in the Middle East represented with face of the white man as its savior. Not enough Africans ask what our ancestors practiced before colonization if they are aware we had a time before colonization. “where were your African gods during slavery?” they ask. “Why didn’t they save you?” they add. Fair questions, where were they indeed? But is it really the point? Was the wisdom of Nyame from the Ashanti used against us? was the philosophy of Maat corrupted, twisted and used to sire our minds into giving up our own land? No, I don’t believe so.
They did not use our gods against us for a specific reason. It was important to them that we looked up to a god of their European resemblance. That we saw god the way they did, by their perception. Christianity was so tied to their European culture, mindset and lifestyle that it was detrimental we adopt their lifestyle (1). The colonizers could not make us believe otherwise because just like them, our spirituality was a strong anchor to our African ancestry, our land and our culture. In 1455 the Pope Nicolas V himself blessed and granted the enslavement of Sub-Saharan Africa and the pope after him Alexander VI in 1493 gave authority to enslave and convert American natives while endorcing slavery in Africa both in the hope to save us from what they believed to be our Barbaric ways (2 , 3) . And as time went by, came imperialism with the Berlin Conference in 1884 where each European power used every tool at their disposal to alienate us including forcing Christianity on us but this is another (5).
I’m not here to count and retrace the history of Christianity, at least not that side. What I want to talk about is the current social state of it.
I am intrigued. As of why only this shinny and glorious side is displayed. The salvation, the promise of eternal life and preaching love. Far from me the idea that I took time out of my precious day to discredit this religion. In fact, I do not even care that their disciples pretend not to see the truth, the blood, the fire, the crimes that were perpetrated. But when the thunder strikes too close, you must speak up. I am tired of the lies, the masquerade, the false lifestyle exhibited by some of their members. This absurd sense of forgiveness even for those who violate us in the cruelest way. This idea of accepting any harm and foul that comes to us without any form of justice for our tormented soul. no more.
The false pastors and prophets who abuse those women, polluting their bodies and souls for the promise of salvation hidden in their ranks. Children who are lost and see their innocent exploited for the sickening perversion of corrupted clergymen. But never mind that, for they are “men of God”. They clearly see the sins and shames of others. First one to judge our impulses, condemn vices and police our body with a bastardized morality.
They create a circle of predatory men within the institution where the worst of them are sent to serve in Africa (4). A congregation of rapist, abusers and charlatans. Those women, those children, they cannot cry for help due to the immunity from which those miscreant benefit by the very people who follow them (6).
As I said early, the thunder struck too close. So close that I hear a woman confide in me in tear as she tells me how her priest raped her while she was only a child. So close that my soul shattered as I listen to a survivor who remember a time not so long ago when someone she trusted as brother in a congregation controlled her into abusing her when she came to him with a God-fearing heart. I cannot stand another day to hear in the news about clergymen using their own fellow women for their paraphilia (7). This circle is so tight that atrocities go unnoticed.
I can never oppose myself against anyone that choses to practice a religion especially if they found peace in the confines of their practice. We all have our freedom, liberty and arbitrary to choose the faith that brings us the most peace. I can handle the criticism, I can handle how quick they are to judge what others do even tough they often carry the darkest of hearts and the most obscene lifestyles. I am even accustomed to their ability to forsee my fate in the eternal fires of Hell forgetting that their sins will also lead them to the same place.
I can never stand-by and allow myself to believe that in the name of religion women and children abused by the perpetrators go unpunished in the name of a so-called divine justice with a simple “God will take care of it, we will pray”. I can no longer stand to hear the cries of those people assaulted by the one they literally trusted with their soul. “The devil made me do it” they say as they walk free letting the tortured soul live the trauma. All excuses and no accountability. How can we allow ourselves to let this institution police the body of our women and our sexuality when they apparently incapable to keep themselves in check? Creating a lens where we grow to hate our own body and its expression. They horde the vulnerable ones only to exploit them.
We want justice, we want reparations and we want those religious criminals to face the real consequences of their actions. Their victims should not suffer more by having to forgive their abuser and pray for them. They need to see the blood they have shed and the fire they have spread. The colonial church will be accountable, not by god but our human justice even if we must attack this corrupted institution the same way they attacked us. Putting an end to the colonial reign. Justice, justice, justice.
Post Scriptum. In the interlude. You have no right to criticize the life and practice of others. No one gives you the authority to make judgments about the sexuality, habits and bodies of others. Your bible that you are struggling yourself to follow is not a maxim for everyone around you. Be loving and benevolent, let us denounce the evil that exists amongst us and that each predator regardless of their circle can answer for the same justice. Let us grant the criminal justice that some of those predators deserve. No one has an obligation to accept your savior so do not persuade us that we are lost without him. Understand that the Bible that brings you this comfort was used to bring a thousand torments to others so be respectful of their experiences.
If love is our common religion, let’s know how to spread it to everyone and not just those who share our faith. Because in the end, everyone should have not the luxury but the right to have the peace that you Christians enjoy. Understanding that whatever path we choose for our, our peace, our soul, it remains an entirely individual path
If love is our common religion, let’s know how to spread it to everyone and not just those who share our faith. Because in the end, everyone should have not the luxury but the right to have the peace that you Christians enjoy. Understanding that whatever path we choose for our, our peace, our soul, it remains an entirely individual path
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