Tuesday September 12, 2006
At the Luanda airport waiting to travel back to Johannesburg
Sandra R. Gourdet

At 8:00 a.m, we were ready to leave the Continental Hotel for our 2 pm flight back to Johannesburg. The one question that ran through everyone’s mind was “Why do we have to leave so early for an afternoon flight”? When it was time to check in and we saw the long line of people behind us, and remembered the long wait at immigration when we arrived in the country, we were extremely happy to have come early enough to have the privilege of relaxing in the waiting room.

The time was used well. Some shopped, others read, and a few of us sat spellbound as we listened to a “lecture” on Angola church history from the Reverend Jose Chipenda. Chipenda, who must be well over 70 years in age, is an icon in the Protestant church in Africa. He served as general secretary of the Evangelical Congregational Church of Angola before serving as general secretary of the Christian Council of Churches in Angola. He is probably best known for his service with the All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC) as general secretary.

Chipenda shared some of his thoughts on the state of the church today and its future. Mainline churches in Africa, according to him, have been taught a theology that may have been good many years ago but is not in keeping with today’s reality. Churches in Angola continue to spend time on developing the soul and defining sin, whereas the real needs of the people are neglected. The prosperity theology that is developing in US churches is bringing a different view of the church to Angola which is not healthy as its focus is on money – something that the majority of people in Angola do not have. And yet, these churches have been successful because they offer a message that is different from the traditional, conservative theology that continues to be preached in churches. Protestant churches must learn that they must be “churches without borders so that others will come in”.

Globalization has its positive side. However the negative effects are often the ones felt in many African countries. Chipenda feels that “those who hold the future are not those over 50 but those who are between 15-25 years of age”. He went on to say that it is time to reflect on “the church of the future” and “the future church” and how that relates to partnership. It can not be based on the tenets of globalization or “I am the one who holds the gold” and “you are the receiver of gold”. We must develop the handles together that are to be used for the future. Chipenda made it clear that it is not a question of “Who has power?”, but rather “How to empower impoverished people”?

Thoughts on war

Chipenda went into a long discussion of the civil war in Angola that raged for 3 decades with very short gaps during those years. He explained how the three major mainline Protestant churches became involved – the Baptists with one opposition movement (FNLA), the Methodist with another opposition movement and the Congregational church supporting yet another opposition group (UNITA). Chipenda’s comment was “while the Protestants fought, the Catholics ruled”. He further commented that genuine reconciliation has not yet taken place in the country. There are many who are still hurting and have not found real peace. Reconciliation is when everyone eats what’s available, whereas in the present situation only the rich are able to eat and decide. “What needs to be done has not yet started”, said Chipenda.

On Partnership and Critical Presence

Chipenda started by asking a question, “Do we understand partnership as sharing and accompanying or being a Santa Claus? Since we can’t go back to the past, we must go forward.” We sometimes marvel at our partners, said Chipenda, because there are those “who speak a lot and do nothing whereas others actually do a lot”. Partnership means being like an affluent. Right now, we are all different and have many churches whereas we should have one church. We should be like an affluent with many streams that go to one sea.

To be critically present works both ways. To be present means to be counted. If you are absent, you don’t know what it is to be present. It means being aware of the world globally. It means asking the questions, Why am I here? How can I help those around me? To be present is to make a difference. Just as the world is globalized with evil, we must move in a global way of acting with a difference. Critical presence is to be present with a difference.

One comment that Ed Morris shared with me from his time with Rev Chipenda was quite interesting. When asked about “hope” for the future, Rev Chipenda looked at Ed and said, “Hope?. Hope for the future? I am a dreamer and I work towards developing the dream and putting people in place to carry out the dream. I don’t worry about “hope”, I leave that for the people who remain behind.”

The time with Rev Chipenda flew by all too quickly as we scrambled to grab our things and rush out to the waiting aircraft. It was refreshing and very thought provoking and a rare moment to treasure.