I’ve been wondering what a post-colonial church would look like. What would it look like if Christian communities freed themselves from western cultural captivity. Any thoughts?
Postcolonial Church???
Posted byDrew G. I. Hart, PhDPosted inChurch, Contextual, Critical Reflection, Dominant Culture, Kingdom of God, Missional, Subdominant CultureTags:Church, doctrine, emerging church, evangelical, Faith, God, Jesus, Missional, orthodoxy, post-colonial, racism, Religion, Theology
Published by Drew G. I. Hart, PhD
Rev. Dr. Drew G. I. Hart is an associate professor of theology at Messiah University and has 10 years of pastoral experience prior to teaching. He currently directs Messiah University's "Thriving Together: Congregations for Racial Justice" program and co-hosts Inverse Podcast with Jarrod McKenna, an award-winning peace activist from Australia. Hart is the author of Trouble I've Seen: Changing the Way the Church Views Racism (2016) and Who Will Be A Witness?: Igniting Activism for God's Justice, Love, and Deliverance (2020). And he is also a co-editor and contributor to the recently published book entitled Reparations and the Theological Disciplines: Prophetic Voices for Remembrance, Reckoning, and Repair (Nov. 2023). Hart received bcmPEACE’s 2017 Peacemaker Award, the 2019 W.E.B. Du Bois Award in Harrisburg, PA, and most recently in December 2023 Life Esteem Ministries recognized him in Harrisburg with the Harambee Award for the Nguzo Saba Principle of Umoja—Unity for his faith-based activism and public scholarship in the community. Drew and his family live in Harrisburg, PA. View more posts
Drew G. I. Hart 
That is a big question. A big part of a post-colonial church would include power/control being equally distributed between people of various cultural backgrounds. And the expression and perspective of faith from cultures must be normed; I like to say we have to establish a culture of multi-culture. One of the elements in that would be a better understanding what is means to worship – in more than just musical difference – , style would become less important (though creating different emotions/experiences) and posture of our hearts and minds would be the emphasis and litmus. Missions would also become more like partnerships (something that is beginning to happen). There is so much more, but those are my initial thoughts.