Page 143 - LD215 History of the Church in Africa A4 final

CH A P T E R 8

The Gospel

and

New Beginnings

ecular historians indicate that a major change occurred in Africa
around the year 1500 (all dates from this chapter forward are
SA.D.) when the period of colonization began. One might tend to
think that since the Protestant Reformation coincided with this major
change in Africa, many missionaries should have tried to fulfill the Great
Commission in Africa. However, this did not happen. As we have already
seen, the Roman Catholic Church was more involved in missions than
Protestants.

Let us return to the analogy of the river. A mighty river of God’s
blessing for the nations was released on the Day of Pentecost. While
God wanted this river to flow everywhere, many barriers were erected
along the way, unfortunately. The horrible hierarchy and syncretism of
the Roman Catholic Church during the Middle Ages was one of these
barriers. For example, Catholicism featured ritual without real religion—
liturgy without life. These barriers created a “dam” that prevented the
river from flowing.

In His sovereignty and by His Holy Spirit, God used Martin Luther
and other reformers to break down these barriers at the beginning of

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