A Christological Reflection on Akan Hamartiology and Reconciliation
Abstract
Sin is a universal phenomenon observed across all societies, no matter their level of development. Each society prescribes moral conduct that prohibits sin and serves to regulate human behavior. Unfortunately, there is a growing tendency to trivialize sin in contemporary Akan (Ghanaian) society, leading to a proliferation of social vices. The erosion of moral values has resulted in a distortion of right and wrong which further exacerbates societal decay. This situation has generated a fresh scholarly interest in the doctrine of sin and how sinful humanity can be reconciled with the divine. For the Akan society of Ghana, such a discourse needs to explore the relationship between sin in African Traditional Religion (ATR) and Christianity because ATR still significantly influences many Akan/African Christians despite the unprecedented numerical growth of Christianity in Africa in recent decades. Through descriptive and comparative research methods, this study sought to understand the concept of sin—its origins, nature, consequences, and remedies—in both Christianity and Akan Traditional Religion. The paper is divided into three parts. The first part introduces the concept of sin in both Akan and biblical traditions. Following this, the subject of reconciliation in both traditions is explored. Lastly, the paper critiques aspects of the Akan doctrine of sin and provides a Christological direction for addressing the inadequacies of the Akan belief about sin and reconciliation. The paper contributes to African Christian hamartiology and Christology.
References
Akpanika, Ekpenyong Nyong and Eyo, Ubong Ekpenyong. (2020). “A Comparative Study of the concept of sin in Christianity and Efik Traditional Religion of South-South, Nigeria.” LWATI: A Journal of Contemporary Research, 17(3), 126 -148.
Alexander, Denis. (2014). Creation or Evolution: Do We Have to Choose? 2d ed. revised, Oxford: Monarch Books.
Aquinas, Thomas. (2006). Summa Theologiae: Volume 25, Sin: 1a2ae. 71-80. edited by John Fearon. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
Antwi, Eric Baffoe. (2016). Creation in the Image of God: Human Uniqueness from the Akan Religious Anthropology to the Renewal of Christian Anthropology. Doctoral dissertation, Duquesne University [Retrieved from https://dsc.duq.edu/etd/1509]
Asamoa, E. A. (1955). “The Christian church and African heritage, international review of Missions.” International Review of Mission 44(175), 292–301.
Asante, Emmanuel. (2001). “The Gospel in Context.” Interpretation: A Journal of Bible and Theology 55(4).
Asante, Emmanuel. (2014). Soteriology: A Discourse on Salvation. Accra: Pinpoint Media Company Limited.
Awulalo, J. Omosade and P. Adelumo Dopamu (1979). West Africa Traditional Religion. Ibadan: Onibonoje Press & Book Industries (Nigeria) Limited.
Calvin, John (1960). Institutes of the Christian Religion, 2 vols, ed. John T. McNeill, trans. Ford Lewis Battles, Library of Christian Classics, 20–21. Philadelphia: Westminster, 1960.
Childs, Brevard. (1993). Biblical Theology of the Old and New Testaments. Minneapolis: Fortress.
Christaller, JG. (1933). Dictionary of Asante and Fante Language Called Tshi (Twi). Basel: The Basel Evangelical Missionary Society.
Gehman, R. J. (2001). African Traditional Religion in the Light of the Bible. Bukuru: ACTS
Groenhout, Ruth (2006). “Not Without Hope: A Reformed Analysis of Sickness and Sin.” Christian Bioethics, 12(2): 133–150.
Gyekye, Kwame. (1995). An Essay on African Philosophical Thought: The Akan Conceptual Scheme Revised edition. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.
Hodge, Charles. (1995). Systematic Theology, 3 vol., Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing.
Langston, James. (2018). Real Answers to Life's Tough Questions. Durham, NC: Lulu Press, Inc.
McFarlan, Ian A. (2016). “Original Sin.” T&T Clark Companion to the Doctrine of Sin. Edited by Keith L. Johnson and David Lauber. pp. 303-318. Bloomsbury: Bloomsbury T&T Clark.
McKim, Donald K. (1996). Westminster Dictionary of Theological Terms. Westminster: Westminster John Knox Press
Obeng, Pashington. (1996). Asante Catholicism: Religious and Cultural Reproduction Among the Akan of Ghana. New York: E.J. Brill.
Opoku, Kofi Asare. (1978). West Africa Traditional Religion. Accra: FEP International Private Limited.
Opuni-Frimpong, Kwabena. (2012). Indigenous Knowledge and Christian Missions. Accra: SonLife Press.
Ostring, Elizabeth Ellen (2016). "Be a Blessing: The Theology of Work in the Narrative of Genesis." Eugene, OR: Wipf&Stock Publishers.
Owiredu, Charles. (2020). “Sin as a spoilt substance: Akan metaphors for sin in the Bible.” Trinity Journal of Church and Theology. vol. 20 no. 2, 69-91.
Peprah, A.K. (2022). “Hamartiology: An Akan Perspective.” E-Journal of Religious and Theological Studies, 8 no.7, 191-200. https://doi.org/10.38159/erats.2022872
Peprah, Augustine Kojo and Richmond Osei Amoah. (2022). “The Akan and the Catholic Concept of Sin and Reconciliation Compared.” ERATS, Vol.8 No.5, 129-136.
Sklar, Jay. (2016). “Pentateuch.” T&T Clark Companion to the Doctrine of Sin. Edited by Keith L. Johnson and David Lauber. pp. 5-25. Bloomsbury: Bloomsbury T&T Clark.
Strong, A. H. (1907). Systematic Theology, 8th ed. Old Tappan, NJ: Revell.
Warford, Malcolm L. (2009). Becoming a New Church. Eugene, OR: Wipf andStock
Grudem, WA 2011. Systematic Theology: Introduction to Christian Doctrine. Nottingham: InterVarsity Press.
Wiley, H. Orton. (1952). Christian Theology, vol. 2. Kansas City, MO: Beacon Hill.
Williamson, S. G. (1965). Akan Religion and the Christian Faith. Edited by K. A. Dickson. Accra: Ghana Universities Press.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Copyright for this article is retained by the author(s), with first publication rights granted to the journal. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
