Page 68 - LD215 History of the Church in Africa A4 final

A History of the Church in Africa

After exploiting Nubia’s gold since at least 2000 B.C., Egypt
conquered its southern neighbor, also known as Cush, during the
New Kingdom. When political turmoil later gripped Egypt, the
Nubians marched in and ruled—until the Assyrians pushed them
back south in the seventh century B.C. (45)

Egypt was also conquered by Alexander the Great in the fourth century
B.C. Not surprisingly, Alexander founded the city of Alexandria in Egypt.
Greeks had lived in Egypt since the
seventh century B.C. We have noted
that Rome ruled the world at the time
of Christ and the Day of Pentecost.
Not even Cleopatra with all of her
splendor and resources could resist
the Roman armies of Octavian. She
committed suicide in 30 B.C., and
Egypt became part of the Roman
Figure 4.1—The Great Sphinx of Egypt Empire. In the fullness of time,
under the sovereignty of God, Egypt
and Africa in general were prepared for the coming of the gospel.

A number of strong influences prepared the way for the coming of the
gospel. As noted in chapter two, the Greeks, Romans, and Jews provided
providential bridges for the spread of Christianity to Africa. Before the
coming of Christianity, the Egyptians were very religious; however, their
traditional religion concentrated on the veneration of many gods—a
religion of the Pharaohs. Shaw describes the impact of Judaism on Egypt:

Judaism was a strong force in urban Egypt at the time of Christ.
Philo, a hellenized Jew of Alexandria, estimated that a million
Jews lived in Egypt during this time (out of a total population
of approximately 8 million). Many of them lived in Alexandria,
where they dominated two quarters of the city. Jewish Scriptures,
synagogues, monotheism, and messianic prophecies undoubtedly
played a central role in the early reception of Christianity in
Egypt. (1996, 23)

Christianity began in Egypt in the context of the Greek culture among
the many Hellenized Jews who were living in that area of the Roman

::: 58 :::