Request Permissions. Kuhne , his fellow captive and co-author joined him at the mission as a trader in cotton, an activity which was part of, and a means of, financing the mission. This chapter traces the origins and long-term development of African mass education in colonial sub-Saharan Africa. In this respect the Christian religion therefore differed from the traditional religions of West Africa, which along with an acceptance of one Supreme Being worshipped a hierarchy of gods. Ramseyer had at first not intended a missionary sojourn in Ashanti. Before 1925, there were only three secondary schools and three teacher training colleges in Ghana. Despite the skills and opportunities mission schooling afforded, many Africans were not willing to pay the price. self help The vast majority of the people of The Gambia are Moslems; but a sizeable percentage of the population, especially in and around the capital Banjul, are Christians. We're here to answer any questions you have about our services. While living at the Divine Word Residence in Bordentown, N.J., he often visited parishes and schools to talk about missionary work. These contradictions are surprisingly absent from contemporary research. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations in the name of Father Burke can be made for the care of elderly and infirm missionaries and sent to The Rector, Divine Word Residence, 1901 Waukegan Road, P.O. The activities of the early Christian missionaries negatively affected the development of African traditional political institutions. Prior to the advent of western education, Ghana's traditional social structures had inbuilt opportunities for mobility. However, with time, they brought some crops, which they cultivated and which sustained them. Among several others, the native Bishop Ajayi Crowther produced the first translation of the Bible in Yoruba. The Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Methodist and Anglican missions all made a major contribution to education in Ghana and Africa as a whole. Almost all the missions in West Africa faced financial problems in the early stages of their missionary work. Ayandele (1966:283), writing in the 1960s, says, By their [the missions] efforts the main languages of Nigeria have been preserved as a lasting legacy to the Ibo, Yoruba, Efik, Nupe and Hausa. However, this practice was in fact probably more due to stereotypes of African ignorance than an interest in being culturally respectful: missionaries may have believed that it would take too long to teach a superior European language to the unintelligent natives when the natives souls were in such desperate need of saving. It was however in the coastal territories filled with mulattos and other European trading communities that Christianity won some of its early success. Lastly, the missionaries were not used to eating our local foods. When he arrived in Nkwatia-Kwahu to teach English at St. Peters Secondary School, the town had yet to benefit from electricity and running water. Establishment of Christian Churches In Ghana. However, the discovery of quinine and other curative medicines in the late 19th century made the history of the missionary work in West Africa a different thing altogether. Furthermore, each denomination had differing policies on education, so standards in education fluctuated across each colony, depending on what denomination had schools in each area. Among the first missionaries was the Rev. Again, the missionaries helped to pacify Africans while their rich natural resources were being plundered by the colonial government. In addition to promoting a monogamous lifestyle in their schools, missionaries often insisted on divorces before polygamists or their children could even enrol. But Annor (1989) writes that before Europeans came to colonize Africa, Africans had a way of producing artifacts. These trends occasionally brought kings into conflict with the missionaries and their converts. How to Get Involved in Church Missions: The Ultimate Guide, 16 Causes of Crime Essay (with Solutions), Justify the Title of the Novel Second Class Citizen, The Role of Ghana in the Formation of the OAU, Economic Developments in Ghana Before Independence, 11 Causes of the Rise of Nationalism in Africa, Importance of the Odwira Festival in Ghana. Government & Politics There were no Bibles in local languages, likewise grammar books were scant, so the missionaries had to spend time learning local languages, and translated the Bible and wrote series of grammar books. In conclusion, the educational enterprise of the Christian missionaries in the British and Italian colonies of Africa during the mid-nineteenth to mid-twentieth centuries was primarily negative for the African pupils. Father Jean Marie Coquard, operating in and from Abeokuta for forty years, was renowned among the Egba as a priest and surgeon in the second half of the nineteenth century. They had to speak through few interpreters who did not have sufficient education to interpret correctly. It is much easier to interact on an equal basis or even challenge the authority of another group when one is able to communicate in that groups language, instead of having to rely on an interpreter or non-verbal gestures, which undermine ones ability to show authority or express ones beliefs. B. et al. Baker Pub Group, 1996. Before we examine the contribution of Christian missionaries in Ghana, we need to identify the missionaries that came to Ghana. In fact, Jacobus Capitein, a former Ghanaian slave who became a priest in the Dutch Reformed Church in the 18th century was on record to have defended the practice of slavery. Even when governments discouraged domestic industries, graduates of vocational schools contributed to the economy of the colonies -and therefore indirectly the mother countrys as well. African Drama 26. Operational Christianity started 267 Years ago. During the first half of the 19th century they targeted healthier places, with relatively lower malaria-risk, where European missionaries could survive and train local African missionaries and teachers (Jedwab et al. Many Ghanaian communities got divided along religious lines. The result is that today, many Africans are alienated from their authentic ways of life. 2023 Society of the Divine Word. Was this information useful? According to the Head of the Methodist Church in Ghana, Mmofraturo was established in Kumasi, 'when it dawned on the early Wesleyan Missionaries that when the girl child was educated, she could grow up to face the challenges of the fast-changing world. Apart from giving to the converts a new religious faith which they consider is superior to the traditional religions, the Christian missionaries did pioneering work in introducing new crafts, industries, Western education and modern health services. Box 2 of the papers relating to the Society's activities in West Africa. Ghana sits on West Africas coastline along the Gulf of Guinea, bordered by the Ivory Coast and Togo to the west and east and Burkina Faso to the north. As much as the governments liked to assign blame to the missions, they were also accountable for the poor education through their educational policies. Then lets begin straightaway. Early missions conducted by Roman Catholics were short-lived. This box contains: the correspondence of Bishop See thematic groupings of our digital collections, See all of our digital collections in one place, Ghana in Records from Colonial Missionaries, 1886-1951, Copies of letters received, 1890-1927; West Africa, vol. 2: Trans-Saharan Trade. His viewing and wake service took place on Sept. 26 at the chapel in the Divine Word Residence at Techny. The common response among traditionally polygamous people is well illustrated by a passage in Jomo Kenyattas famous book on the Gikuyu in colonial Kenya: This [the insistence on monogamy] caused a great confusion, for the African could not understand how he could drive away his wives and children, especially in a community where motherhood is looked upon as a religious duty; the children are regarded as part and parcel, not only of the father, but of the whole clan (mbari), and without them the mbari is lost. senior high school government The Society of the Divine Word is the world's largest Roman Catholic order of priests and brothers who focus on missionary work. I also matched up locations that differed in proximity to the mission stations, but otherwise had similar preconditions for educational development. On the opposite side, the coming of the Christian missionaries brought in its wake certain negative developments like disregard for African culture and rebellion against traditional authority. After an unsuccessful beginning by the society of African Missions (SMA), this missionary body moved into other territories in what is now Liberia, Ghana and Nigeria. He told me that that amount of money could pay for school fees for five students in secondary school in Ghana.. Groundless fears that the converts would become contaminated with paganism led some of the Christian missionaries, notably the Presbyterians, to separate the Christians from the rest of the township. In addition, while missionaries did run many academic primary schools, they provided little secondary education, a practice which prevented natives from becoming too educated (Ayandele 1966:286) and potentially subversive. The positive contribution of Christian missionaries in Ghana can be felt in such areas as education, local language development, stoppage of outmoded cultural practices, agriculture and commerce. Joseph Dunwell. Two other training colleges opened by the missionaries, in the early days, were the Wesley College in Kumasi (1922) and the Roman Catholic Training College at Amisano, near Elmina (1931) which in 1936 moved to the campus of the newly founded secondary school, St Augustines College at Cape Coast. Furthermore, they were skilled farmers that could grow cash crops to be consumed back in the mother country, such as cocoa from Ghana (Foster 1965: 153). Non-African Poetry others adopted a system of education varied from one and the other hence, lacking consistency in the educational sector [3]. They were to spread the message of the Gospel, render social services to the people and to assist in the suppression of slavery and the slave trade. Today, local communities and ethnic groups that were more exposed to mission schools, still achieve higher levels of education, when compared to communities where there were no schools. The original Yaba College in Lagos has grown into a polytechnic. Study for free with our range of university lectures! They constitute the benefits that the missionaries brought to Africa as a whole. With the arrival of more missions into the country came an explosion in mission schools across southern Ghana. As founder and director at CEGAST, he has successfully coached thousands of students in English, Literature, and related subjects for major international examinations. ]v#5%{,%Y{iKsZ|Cm7NismGmg_zxKYh?>bQ?ni8G.wx:qAm$ eb!^Kr$,.9Qq^|1. In conclusion, the converts tended to look down upon many things in their ancestral culture. Johann Christaller produced a similar work in Twi. In 1954, he became the first Deaf African American to earn a bachelor's degree from Gallaudet University, the American university for the Deaf, and the first to earn a master's degree from Eastern Michigan University.He earned a second master's degree from Seattle Pacific Christian . It would be wrong, however, to blame all these ills on the Christian missionaries alone. I compared data on the historical locations of mission stations since 1924, in 26 sub-Saharan countries with recent education data between 2008 and 2018. Wed love to get to know you and discuss how God is calling you. For instance, the Basel Mission established Basel Mission Trading Company (UTC) in 1859. The tropical climatic condition in the country was not favourable to the early missionaries who came to the shores of West Africa. Thus, despite what the images of suffering African children on websites such as that of Compassion Canada might lead one to believe, it is time for Africans to educate their own, without any interference. To apply, students simply fill out a quick form. Here you can choose which regional hub you wish to view, providing you with the most relevant information we have for your specific region. 522 0 obj <>stream New missionary societies (the LMS, the CMS, the Holy Ghost Fathers, the White Fathers, etc.) senior high school history station in 1858, it was not until 1889 that the missionaries entered Hausaland, which was predominantly Muslim. Renewed evangelism started when the Basel (later known as Presbyterian) missionaries started work at Osu (Accra). As one Eritrean student remarks, Our sisters [the Italian Sisters] would have undoubtedly taught better and more, but the Italian government in the colony did not permit Eritreans to get good instruction (T.T. For instance, in Nigeria in 2006, approximately only 51.2% of primary school teachers of either gender were trained as teachers, and the enrolment rate in primary education for both genders in 2000 stood at about 62.7%, compared to 99.5% in Canada (UN Data 2010). Like the Methodists, the Roman Catholic missionaries spread the faith notably in the interior, which later became Protectorate. The Journal of Negro Education (JNE), a scholarly refereed journal, was founded at Howard University in 1932. Clarke, Peter Bernard. 517 0 obj <>/Filter/FlateDecode/ID[<2E41B338ACB2B2110A00B08D5A5CFE7F>]/Index[503 20]/Info 502 0 R/Length 86/Prev 357984/Root 504 0 R/Size 523/Type/XRef/W[1 3 1]>>stream Besides being an online tutor, Ralph is an author and expert digital marketer with proven skills in SEO content writing. In the later 19th century, the immense African interior remained the principal object of the Catholic Priests, and from 1867 until his death in November 1892 Cardinal Lavigerie planned the planting of churches in Africa South of the Sahara. However, as Jonathan Miran (2002) argues in his work on the roles of missionaries and the Italian state in Eritrean education, missionaries should not be held solely accountable for the poor standards of education. For several years they paid attention to slave trade rather than evangelization and Christianization of the people of West-Africa. Given their priorities, it should thus come as little surprise that missions often provided poor education to the African pupils. If you need assistance with writing your essay, our professional essay writing service is here to help! Mission societies often expanded into territories before colonial powers did, and providing education only cost them a little more. In 1989-90, the government banned the activities of several religious organizations, including the Church. At the time of its inception, however, there was no publication that systematically or comprehensively addressed the enormous problems that characterized the education of Blacks in the United States and elsewhere. Human Zoos: Untold History of Suppression, The Legend of King Ulu (Ancient Thai Folklore), The Kingdom of Saud of The Arabs (Saudi Arabia), The Wesley Brothers of Oxford University (1700s), Razia Sultan of Medieval India (786 Years Ago), The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade (The Revelation), Education in Africa: The Impact of Colonialism, Why The Legendary Geneva Bible was Banned. This finding was supported by two types of analysis. As happened in Ghana, the development of training colleges in Nigeria was slower than secondary schools, though the C. M. S. had opened the first training college at Abeokuta as far back as 1849. The Basel Mission. ABWE is also at work in countries that restrict evangelism. Moreover, mission education formed a poor foundation for future educational conditions in the former colonies. From the second half of the eighteenth century, a fervent wave of evangelical spirit developed in the United Kingdom, Europe and the New World which inspired men and women with the missionary fervour to found religious societies whose members would go out to Africa and the other lands. Also, Christian missionaries in Ghana were as zealous as their counterparts in Nigeria in pioneering medical services. A second reason for the poor education of the mission schools was that in many cases the teachers in mission schools were unqualified as teachers, but were instead preachers by training. He was followed, three years afterwards, by the Rev. Introduction, spread and effects, 6: Christian Missionary Activities in West Africa, 7: Scramble for and Partition of West Africa, 9: Problems of Independent West African States, 10: West Africa and International Organizations, 11: Women and Authority in West African History, 12: The Environment in West African History. Roman Catholic and Anglican missionaries came to the Gold Coast from the 15th century. Called the Iwe-Irohim, was published by the missionaries. grammatical name Another important German missionary was Wilhelm Johannson, better known by the English version of his name, William Johnson, who is revered in the history of the CMS in West Africa. missionaries was the development of literature in Yoruba. Longman Nigeria Plc., 1994, Boahen, A.A. et al Tropics in West Africa History. The missionary and colonial education aimed at character training and civilization resulted in cultural annihilation and religious, and linguistic hegemony. Third, rivalry between the various Christian denominations also contributed to the poor standards of education. The country has diverse geography, people groups, and languageswith English as the common language, and more than 11 others with state recognition. A.G. Frazer, did much to encourage the promotion of indigenous culture, but by and large the colonial authorities contributed to dwindling a good deal of our cultural heritage. The study examines the historical foundations of Western education in Meru and factors that influenced its development. Henry Townsend who went from Sierra Leone to Badagry in 1842 in his company was the Rev Ajayi Crowther. Etherington, Norman. We shall begin with the positive contribution of the Christian missionaries in Ghana. Within a short time the missionaries spread their activities inland. In Sierra Leone, among the earliest higher institutions which the C.M.S. English No plagiarism, guaranteed! But that increase was greater in monogamous societies. personal development Another missionary whose memory is revered in Nigeria was Mary Slessor, she arrived in the country in 1876, and for many years worked assiduously as a missionary nurse. Mission schools were popular because of the new skills and opportunities they offered. However hypocritical, government support for the schools should not be surprising, considering the benefits the colonial governments stood to gain. Similar developments were carried out by the missionaries in other Nigerian languages, Efik, Kanuri, Igbo, etc. The European missionaries believed that European culture was superior to African culture. Initially,. Another contribution of missionaries to the development of Ghana was their pioneering role in writing many local languages. For instance, in southern Nigeria, the CMS policy was to teach in the vernacular at the primary level, while the Roman Catholic Missions policy was to teach in English (Bassey 1991:42). It was only after the Second World War that the colonial governments started to show a real interest in the promotion of formal education in West Africa. Longman Publishing Group, 1980. Another reason why the Europeans came to spread the Christian religion in Ghana was to pave their own way into eternal glory. They impressed it upon their converts not to have anything to do with these traditional practices. These included the Basel Missionary Society, founded in Switzerland, and the Breman Mission formed in Germany. Free resources to assist you with your university studies! Soon after, in 1835 they moved up to Akropong on the hills in Akuapem, where the pioneer missionary the Rev. Debate Speech: Religion Has Failed Society, A Speech Outlining the Achievements and Problems of Your School, 7 Factors Accounting for the Shortage of Capital In West Africa, The Resurrection of Jesus According to Marks Gospel. In 1880, two Roman Catholic priests of the Society of African Missions (S.M.A. Required fields are marked *. Literature 2 (1983): 116-143. The missionaries also greatly improved the health services. These commercial activities, therefore, made an important contribution to the economic development of Ghana. There were several reasons for this poor education, some intentional and some not. The latter, non-academic form of education provided by the missions has stimulated much interest among scholars, who are particularly interested in the failure of many of these schools and the hypocritical government support for the schools, seeing as the import of cheap goods from the mother countries caused many vocational school graduates, such as seamstresses, to be unemployed (Ayandele 1966:296; Foster 1965:134). independent learning It is possible to hear the tune of this missionary hymn. Through academic lessons and lessons on Western etiquette and hygiene, mission students were isolated from their traditional cultures, a traumatic experience that would continue to trouble many students for the rest of their lives. The Christian missionaries have been credited with the discontinuation of some obnoxious traditional practices among Ghanaians. Christian missions also took a leading role in the campaign to end the slave trade and to suppress slavery. cited in Miran 2002:128). We were expected to accept the European language as the superior one, and this was reinforced throughout my school career (Abu cited in Berman 1974:536). The original letters from abroad cover West Africa from 1899 to 1933. As happened in other colonial territories, the government did not show great interest in the provision of education in Ghana until the missionaries had extended their services throughout the country and had set up primary schools and a few secondary schools and training colleges. As happened in other West African countries, many more mission-sponsored hospitals were founded in the course of the twentieth century. Johannes Zimmermann wrote a grammar of the Ga language and translated the entire Bible and a Bible history into Ga. Then in 1874, the Rev. His work, however, did not extend much beyond Cape Coast and the neighbouring area. A notable example was the Asafo Company, a purely military and social organisation of the peoples of Ghana, which was condemned by the early missionaries because of its presumed connection with fetish practices. The government gave grants according to the strength of the staff and the efficiency of the school judged by inspection reports and the results of public examinations. Being able to speak and write in the colonisers language was considered a privilege. Their converts increased steadily in numbers until 1821 when a section broke away to form the first independent African, Christian church in West Africa, called the West Africa Methodist Church. The Christian Connector Scholarship. further studies Earlier in 1846, the Rev. famous poems As a member of the Church of England, it interests me to see echoes of Christian educational efforts by organizations such as Compassion Canada in the educational efforts of the missionary branch of the Anglican Church, the Church Missionary Society, or CMS. 2236624), The beginning of Africanisation : the dawn of the missionary motive in Gold Coast education, Early colonial and missionary records from West Africa, West Indies material in the archives of the USPG, 1710-1950. senior high school economics He worked zealously as an evangelist and schoolmaster in the Castle School until his death in 1816. The mission schools trained Africans to be able to work as translators, messengers and office clerks for the colonial government. The first batch, who came out between 1804 and 1806, included pioneer missionaries like Renner and Nylander. If your specific country is not listed, please select the UK version of the site, as this is best suited to international visitors. Similar developments were carried out by the missionaries in other Nigerian languages, Efik, Kanuri, Igbo, etc. In 1845 the C.M.S. While the Evangelical Presbyterian missionaries were the First to develop literature in Ewe, the Roman Catholics were responsible for Nzima literature. They were followed in turn by the Methodists and the Roman Catholics. She succeeded in stopping the killing of twins in the areas where she served. The Methodist Church Ghana came into existence as a result of the missionary activities of the Wesleyan Methodist Church, inaugurated with the arrival of Joseph Rhodes Dunwell to the Gold Coast (Ghana) in 1835.Like the mother church, the Methodist Church in Ghana was established by people of Anglican background. A history of African Christianity 1950-1975. In the Gambia, the Methodist missionary and first principal of what later became known as the Gambia High School, the Rev. Some of these new crops were grapes coffee, mango, ginger, and olives. In 1858 the Rev. Indeed, in some situations the converts were taught to feel that they were absolved from obeying their own traditional rulers and certain laws of the state. The Roman Catholic Sisters provided medical care in the Upper and Northern Regions of the country before the government started to provide hospitals and clinics in the regional and district headquarters. The quest for an all-inclusive development model of Ghana and other developing nations, therefore, calls for an insight into the role and responsibilities of religion toward education. A special memorial Mass was celebrated at the Holy Spirit Cathedral in Accra, Ghana, on Oct. 9. After World War I was declared in 1914, the German missionaries were restricted in their movements by the British in the British colonies. For the West Africans, the acceptance of Christianity meant the total rejection of most of the cherished institutions upon which their society rested. The missionaries condemned African religion, music, art, festivals and customary practices. Discipleship and leadership development are needed in order to support local churches and their growth in Ghana. Despite their significant contributions to education, local language development, agriculture and the economy as a whole, the missionaries have been criticized severally. Included on the website is information about the charitys programs, such as their Leadership Development Program in which participants earn a degree in their chosen field of study, and participate in Christian leadership training, enabling them to become a fully developed agent of change in their nation (Compassion Canada 2011). Another important missionary doctor was J. R. Stephen who for many years headed a missionary hospital at Ilesha. Lack of transport from the coast to the interior parts of West Africa was one of the major difficulties encountered by the missionaries. ABWE first began work in Ghana with a goal to reach unchurched Ghanaians in the Volta Region with the gospel and then to expand evangelism efforts to other parts of the country. The study traces the his tory of colonial education and the tremendous contributions of missionaries in the establishment of formal education in the region. bible knowledge In my study, I explored how colonial era conflicts and disagreements over marriage norms lastingly affected educational development. The greatest problem faced by the early European Christian missionaries was, the tropical climate and health Hazards.