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A History of West Africa, Cambridge University Press, 1969, Fynn , J. K and R. Addo-Fening History for Senior Secondary schools. independent learning These Christian converts considered themselves to be holier than their traditional rulers and elders. Waterville Pub. Furthermore, mission schools discouraged traditional ways of life outside of the classroom. The Basel missionaries arrived on the shores of the Gold Coast in 1828 and Samuel Adu-Gyamfi And Benjamin Kye Ampadu, Ajayi, J..F.A and Michael Crowder History of West Africa. The Methodists, known as the Wesleyan Missionaries (after their founder), arrived in Freetown in 1811. Later that year, in recognition of his service to the Ghanaian people, President John Dramani Mahama bestowed the honor of Officer of the Order of Volta upon him. Their educational activities helped spread literacy and vocational skills training among Ghanaians. A notable example, in Ghana, was the Methodist experimental farm near Cape Coast whose crops included cotton, coffee, black pepper, mango, ginger, cinnamon and olive trees. The governor had observed the bad moral life of the Europeans in the fort. The missionaries opened schools further inland, and by 1880, the Wesleyan Mission had eighty -three schools. PROBLEMS FACED BY THE CHRISTIAN MISSIONARIES. Thus, because of the motive of proselytization, unqualified teachers, and inter-denominational rivalry, missions frequently provided poor education. Copyright 20102023, The Conversation Media Group Ltd, Bristol Archives/Universal Images Group/Getty Images, Committee Member - MNF Research Advisory Committee, PhD Scholarship - Uncle Isaac Brown Indigenous Scholarship. However, accustomed to monogamy, few European missionaries were open to such arguments. 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. Shaw, Mark. The practice of inflicting multiple wounds on the bodies of so-called spirit babies now belongs to history. The struggle over polygamy is well-known to historians and anthropologists. These commercial activities, therefore, made an important contribution to the economic development of Ghana. Ralph teaches English for Academic Purposes (EAP) online. The Basel Mission. Instead of needing to import skilled workers such as carpenters, the mission schools provided colonial governments with workers capable of building and maintaining the colonys infrastructure and basic technology, a contribution that kept the colonies running smoothly. They did a lot to impact the social and economic lives of Africans. Just look at the lyrics of this evangelizing song written in 1819 by Reginald Heber, a prolific English hymnist in the Anglican church. 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). The European Christian missions preached the Gospel, built churches, and seminaries translated the Bible to Ghanaian Languages such as Ewe, Ga, and Twi. The early European Christian missionaries in West Africa experienced a number of difficulties, some arising from factors outside their control and others of their own making. Although most people are Presbyterians, they can also go to spirit and other cults, mostly Christian and Pentecostal movements, to find cures for disease and lack of success in this world. After World War I was declared in 1914, the German missionaries were restricted in their movements by the British in the British colonies. This special relationship continued until 1960 when Fourah Bay became a college of the newly reconstituted University of Sierra Leone; the other constituent college located at Njala developed from a training college founded in 1920. There were only bush paths, and no roads in the early times. But with colonial conquest and antimalarial drugs, they moved further into the continent. WhatsApp : +233204700052 It included the opening up of Africa to forces of change namely commerce (legitimate commerce, i.e. CONTRIBUTION OF CHRISTIANITY TO WEST AFRICA. Containing 9,566 pages belonging to 77 documents housed in 6 volumes As outlined in the short history entitled. Many missionaries died because of the climate and tropical disease. The early missionaries set up craft centres as part of their educational programmes. The Committee for Women's Work was responsible for the education of native girls. Under the Basel Missions Salem system, converts were separated from the traditional society. J. G. Christaller produced a Twi Grammar and Dictionary. It also talks about all the mission societies from all denominations engaged in educational works. Although there were many disagreements between European missionaries and African populations, antagonising polygamy is probably the best-documented norm conflict. They therefore set about to achieve this through introduction of formal education among the Batswana people. Theres still so much to be learned from the history of education in Africa and its long-term consequences. Many Ghanaian communities got divided along religious lines. Specifically, it addresses the unique role of Christian missions in. West Africa owes to the Christian missionaries not only a new religious faith which has changed the beliefs and life of millions of people, but also the foundation of western education. To export a reference to this article please select a referencing stye below: If you are the original writer of this essay and no longer wish to have your work published on UKEssays.com then please: Our academic writing and marking services can help you! A tiny act of kindness is remembered by a young man in need. Further, the missionaries introduced improved methods of farming together with modern farm implements. In the 19thh century, too, Afro-Brazilians returned to Benin and Nigeria with Catholicism. Mobility depended on the . Moreover, mission education formed a poor foundation for future educational conditions in the former colonies. church were founded in south-eastern Nigeria, the chief centres being Bonny and Brass. For instance, in Ghana, it was in 1858 that Rev. 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Called the Iwe-Irohim, was published by the missionaries. Andrew Jackson Foster (1925-1987) was an American pioneer of deaf education in several countries in Africa. Their records from World War One show their distance from the war and yet that it did affect . Preventive medicine was hardly known; the result was that epidemics of different kinds were frequent. It is important to emphasize that the modern history of the Christian Mission in Africa started from the late Eighteenth Century, the Catholics had been there earlier in the first centuries of the Christian era especially during the first Portuguese adventures. The Christian missionaries of different missionary societies made a tremendous contribution to education in South Africa. senior high school economics Almost all the missions in West Africa faced financial problems in the early stages of their missionary work. For instance, on 2nd October 1792, the Baptist Missionary Society was formed followed by the interdenominational London Missionary Society which was established in 1795. Series CLS. Already have a license? Besides being an online tutor, Ralph is an author and expert digital marketer with proven skills in SEO content writing. They relied very much on their home churches for their funds. Other difficulties they faced were the problems of the many languages and dialects and their ignorance of the true meaning of the various cultures, beliefs, values and ways of life of the people whom they set out to convert to Christianity. In the case of Ghana, like other nations, the impact . Lewis, Donald M., ed. past questions For instance, in the Salisbury region of Rhodesia, it was reported in 1924 that no male teachers had educational qualifications (Bone 1969:28). Other Roman Catholic hospitals were built in all the nine regions of the country; including those at Asikuma and Foso (Central Region), Akyem Swedru (Eastern Region), Berekum (BrongAhafo), Maase (Asante Region) and Anfoega (Volta Region). The missionaries believed that in order to stabilize the faith of converts and to assist in character development, it was necessary that they should be able to read the scriptures or other books of religious instruction, translated by the missions. Through hard work and persuasion she succeeded in stopping the practice among the people of killing twins. The restrictions intensified until in the second week of 1917, when all German missionaries were rounded up, brought to Accra and deportations began on December 16. *You can also browse our support articles here >. From 1870 to 1914 the Basel Mission succeeded in extending its work from the Akwapim Ridge to Kwahu, Akim and Asante and across the Volta as far as Yendi the north in 1913. Learn how your comment data is processed. document.getElementById("ak_js_1").setAttribute("value",(new Date()).getTime()); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. CUP Archive, 1979. 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. Missionaries travelled through dense evergreen forests, crossed rivers and climbed mountains to bring the Gospel to as many Ghanaians as they could. Also, Christian missionaries in Ghana were as zealous as their counterparts in Nigeria in pioneering medical services. The resulting atmosphere of disunity enabled the European colonialists to easily achieve their goal of economic exploitation. Kalu, Ogbu. He professed vows in 1953 in Conesus, N.Y., and was ordained to the priesthood in 1961 at Techny, Ill. Success followed the efforts of the pioneer missionaries. Teaching in the vernacular had an additional use as it further strengthened colonial rule, of which missionaries were often agents, for as the Kikuyu people of Kenya were aware, [the] inability to communicate in English would be a crucial factor in the perpetuation of their subordinate status in the colony (Berman 1974:531). 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. hR]0+^$%K{_"/HevgV+bH6L %)`\ #\E*63Z_TsxlRZj:[/\IL-1b-i 'In view of this idea, Mmofraturo, the first girls boarding school in Ashanti was officially . At the end of the eighteenth century, the Evangelical Revival began to bring to Africa an influx of missionaries whose laoburs would produce the first fruits of an enduring Christian presence in Sub-Sahara Africa. B. et al. These new movements considered such ventures to be their contribution to Europes reparation for centuries of exploitation of Africans, reparation for the centuries of exploitation which the Trans Atlantic slave trade had caused to African society. While living at the Divine Word Residence in Bordentown, N.J., he often visited parishes and schools to talk about missionary work. senior high school government Within ten years the C.M.S had opened twelve more schools in what is today Cross Rivers State. Initially, a majority of the missionary journeys was done with English-Speaking Protestants and later, in the 1820s and 1830s, they were joined by continental Protestantism from Germany, Switzerland and France. Missionary, educator contributed to building independent Ghana. More women than men attend church, and the more strict churchgoers tend to be wealthier and of higher social status than less churchgoers or non-Presbyterians. C.M.S. By using postcolonial theory as a framework for analysis, it is evident that the Western formal education introduced to the people of the Gold Coast by the Christian missionaries and the British Colonial government did not serve the indigenous population well. Thus missionaries, by imparting education that promoted dependence on colonial rule, arguably contributed to the political instability that continues in the present day in many former African colonies, such as Kenya and Eritrea. They were closed down in 1852 in favour of schools opened in Lagos which, in 1851, had one time British control. By February 2, 1918, all Basel missionaries had been deported from the Gold Coast. It was difficult for the European missionaries to communicate freely with the local people. 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. For the West Africans, the acceptance of Christianity meant the total rejection of most of the cherished institutions upon which their society rested. West Africa and Christianity. He was followed, three years afterwards, by the Rev. The missionary activities in Nigeria, especially their educational programs helped to whip-up the consciousness of a shared identity and helped to train a new set of elite that championed the course of nationalism and constituted a virile leadership for the young nation at independence.Click to see full answer What is missionary education?A mission school or [] Kalu, Ogbu. Establishment of Christian Churches In The Gambia. began work in many parts of Africa. Contribution of Christian Missionaries in Ghana, Reasons Why Christian Missionaries Came to Africa, Discontinuation of Outmoded Cultural Practices, Negative Effects of Missionary Activities, Negative Impact on Traditional Authorities, Limited Support for The Production of Local Food Crops. 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. 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. For example, the missionaries preached against certain aspects of African culture they considered barbaric or satanic or both. Not only did mission education strengthen colonial rule, but it also weakened traditional societies and implemented poor standards of Western education. In this essay on the impact of Christian missionary activities on Ghanaian society, we shall examine the role of the missionaries in the development of Ghana and the rest of Africa. For instance the scholar E.A. Wed love to get to know you and discuss how God is calling you. First, I looked at how educational outcomes depended on the distance to historical missions. 4; img 109. His work, however, did not extend much beyond Cape Coast and the neighbouring area. 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. 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. The academic education purposely did not train Africans for the higher level positions of colonial administrations, which were mostly reserved for Europeans (Ayandele 1966:295; Sheffield 1973:42), a practise which created dependency on the colonizers, as without them the colony did not have qualified administrators. In addition, the contributions of celebrity missionaries, such as Christian Schwartz, William Carey, Alexander Duff, and James . His viewing and wake service took place on Sept. 26 at the chapel in the Divine Word Residence at Techny. Another contribution of missionaries to the development of Ghana was their pioneering role in writing many local languages. crs questions and anwers Christianity in West Africa: The Nigerian Story. 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. Henry Townsend who went from Sierra Leone to Badagry in 1842 in his company was the Rev Ajayi Crowther. Porter, Andrew. This post may contain affiliate links. Another negative impact of mission education was that it weakened traditional societies, which in many ways further served the colonial cause. Given their priorities, it should thus come as little surprise that missions often provided poor education to the African pupils. Despite the skills and opportunities mission schooling afforded, many Africans were not willing to pay the price. These missions significantly influenced the systematic educational development in the Gold Coast. Some of these effects are still with us today. Missionaries continued to be the main providers of education even after colonial powers established control during the so-called Scramble for Africa which occurred between 1884-1914. Being ignorant of the significance of certain institutions and practices of the people of West Africa, and occasionally being misled by their over-zealous followings into wrongly interpreting the peoples heritage, the missionaries compelled pupils in their schools and docile adult converts to shun their own ancestral practices. missionaries was the development of literature in Yoruba. 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). English comprehension Purchase a license below to view the full collection. Therefore, considering that the impact of mission education continues to have serious repercussions today, one must question whether the First World should continue to interfere in African education. It was not until 1909 that the government opened a teacher training college and a technical school in Accra. First, alignment can help you communicate your . In addition to studying the impact of these struggles on education, we also need to understand how they influenced gender inequality. hb```,,g@( B(Pi xD r[e}v'$ImK *e()dP#jjTNl=VtN(%!30p0040tt0B GGc2m2@M``a$]x2\YkvIaB1b`h6f` (eAKPU d WAEC Among several others, the native Bishop Ajayi Crowther produced the first translation of the Bible in Yoruba. The late Eighteenth Century witnessed the rise of Christian groups in Europe that resorted to the evangelization of Africa. Mission Statement Today almost all of the population is Presbyterian, although the ancestral royal cult and many spirit cults still flourish. Furthermore, missionaries, believing in the civilizing mission, attempted to disintegrate traditional society through education by choosing academic subjects, such as the histories of the Western colonial powers, that illustrated the superiority of the Western culture, as well as by teaching about the superiority of the West in non-academic matters such as hygiene. It was also terribly hard for a woman to be driven away, and to lose her status in the society where she is respected as a wife and a mother. However, attending mission schools also meant exposure to colonial indoctrination. Mr. Henry Kwadwo Amoako is a Ghanaian Social Scientist, Researcher and Acclaimed Historian for over two decades. 4>Ofv}TMdQ! Upon completing his degree, Father Burke received his first assignment abroad: Ghana, the first Black sub-Saharan country in Africa to gain independence from a colonial power. If you need assistance with writing your essay, our professional essay writing service is here to help! Secondary Schools in the Protectorate started later, following the establishment of Bo Government Secondary School in 1906. Consequently, they couldnt do much to promote the cultivation of food crops like maize, cassava, cocoyam and plantain. As happened in other territories, the Christian missionaries did not confine their work to the spread of the gospel alone. Besides education, they cared for the sick. Thomas Thompson, arrived in Cape Coast in 1752. This involved learning to read in the vernacular (Hadfield cited in Bone 1969:7). They impressed it upon their converts not to have anything to do with these traditional practices. Finally, education affects many other aspects of peoples lives, including economic opportunities and political attitudes. The next major Christian missionaries to go out to Sierra Leone were the Roman Catholics. Some earlier scholarship on mission education has taken this as a positive impact of the missionaries. A new era began with the settlements of Black Christians from Nova Scotia in Sierra Leone in 1787 and the missionary advance inland from Cape Town beginning with the arrival there of J. T. van der Kemp in 1799. education was an important means for mission evangelization. The reservation of high-level positions in the colonial administrations for Europeans and the corresponding mission education that provided education fit only for lower positions meant that the withdrawal of European rule could cause serious political instability in the newly independent colonies. Mission schools provided a steady stream of educated Africans capable of filling the lower levels of the colonial administration and operated vocational and agricultural schools (Ayandele 1966: 295; Foster 1965: 90-91; Sheffield 1973: 10-11). Clarke, Peter Bernard. Our academic experts are ready and waiting to assist with any writing project you may have. In the field of education, however, the missionaries had to adjust their programmes to fit in with the policy of assimilation. We're here to answer any questions you have about our services. The foreign exchange earnings helped to develop Ghanas infrastructure. The Society of the Divine Word is the world's largest Roman Catholic order of priests and brothers who focus on missionary work. 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. Some of the positive development outcomes of former British colonies are arguably the result of a permissive attitude towards mission schools. This company promoted the import and export trade in Ghana. Again, the missionaries persuaded Africans to abandon the practice of tribal marks. (As at December 2020). I will earn a commission if you follow a link to purchase a product. Email: henrydonsco@gmail.com With the exception of the first two volumes, marked "West Africa", these items are drawn from the volumes Series CWW. James Fieldhouse, produced a Wolof Grammar in 1876. Among the early Protestant evangelical societies founded in Great Britain were the Baptist Missionary Society, the Church Missionary Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, the Wesleyan Missionary Society and what became known as the Presbyterian Missionary Society of the Church of Scotland. One of their scholarships is a drawing for $2,500. As happened in other West African countries, many more mission-sponsored hospitals were founded in the course of the twentieth century. Call: +233558280780, Your email address will not be published. Amidst much honest missionary activity in the country for two centuries, prosperity gospel teachers have also gained influence, and numerous indigenous cults have arisen with distinct appeal and just enough truth to create confusion and syncretism. The consequences of norm conflicts are likely to manifest beyond educational pursuit. The Rev. DISCLOSURE. The Journal of Negro Education (JNE), a scholarly refereed journal, was founded at Howard University in 1932. Unsurprisingly, the level of education increased as one moved closer to the missionaries. primarily purposed to outline the contributions of religion and education to national development in Ghana. The home page of Compassion Canada is that of a stereotypical Northern charity: showing pictures of suffering children alternating with those of post-intervention, happy children. By 1885, the church had spread further inland, thanks to Father Joseph Lutz who started work around Onitsha in 1886 and spread the gospel in many parts of the present day Imo and Anambra States. In 1989-90, the government banned the activities of several religious organizations, including the Church. Was this information useful? Study for free with our range of university lectures! Box 2 of the papers relating to the Society's activities in West Africa. 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. Ekechi, Felix K. Colonialism and Christianity in West Africa: The Igbo Case, 19001915. The Journal of African History 12, no. House, 1967. This item is part of a JSTOR Collection. 26. Any opinions, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of UKEssays.com. All the three secondary schools in Cape Coast were mission institutions. Third, rivalry between the various Christian denominations also contributed to the poor standards of education. In short, it was a very successful mission in making us little black Anglo-Saxon Protestants. For example, they made our people view polygamy and puberty rites as pagan practices. She succeeded in stopping the killing of twins in the areas where she served. Last, missionaries provided a very poor education, causing their students to be ill-equipped for social or material success, as they believed education to simply be a means for proselytization, were unqualified teachers, and allowed inter-denominational rivalries to interfere. Among his pioneering achievements, he arranged for three youths to be sent to England for training as evangelists. ), Father Auguste Moreau and Father Eugene Murat, arrived at Elmina and revived the Roman Catholic Church in Ghana. Burns & Oates, 1979. Before 1925, there were only three secondary schools and three teacher training colleges in Ghana. Please click this link to download the chapter. Until almost the end of the colonial period education was still largely in the hands of the churches. They even considered traditional drumming and African clothing as practices that were not worthy in the sight of the Lord. However, the early missionaries established medical centres, at first at their mission posts, and later far and wide, to attend to the sick. In the British colonies, as elsewhere, religious missions were instrumental in introducing European-style education. All work is written to order. 2 Longman Group Ltd. London 1974, Ampadu B.K Notes on History of Ghana for Senior High Schools. Foremost in the contribution of the early Christian missionaries to the development of Ghana is their efforts to bring Western education to Ghanaians. In 2006, Father Burke was appointed lecturer at the newly founded Catholic University College of Ghana in Sunyani. We've received widespread press coverage since 2003, Your UKEssays purchase is secure and we're rated 4.4/5 on reviews.co.uk.