OKH Journal: Anthropological Ethnography and Analysis Through the Eyes of Christian Faith

How God Becomes Real: Kindling the Presence of Invisible Others. By Tanya Luhrmann

Christopher Valencia — Thu, 25 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0700

Crossing Cultures with the Gospel: Anthropological Wisdom for Effective Christian Witness. By Darrell L. Whiteman

Robert Canfield — Thu, 25 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0700

British Social Anthropologists and Missionaries in the Twentieth Century

Timothy Larsen — Thu, 25 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0700

Since 1980 there has been an open discussion on the hostility that anthropologists typically have for missionaries. A consensus in this conversation has been that anthropologists dislike missionaries because they are engaged in cultural imperialism. This article, however, explores another hidden factor: the professionalization aspirations of those self-identifying with anthropology as a discipline which created a strong desire to eliminate missionaries as potential rivals. Missionaries indisputably acquired a deep knowledge of indigenous languages and cultures which made it all the more important to dismiss them as biased amateurs lest they should be accepted as competing experts. This dynamic is documented and explored across the twentieth century in the context of British social anthropologists. One particularly telling example is evolving critiques of missionaries in regards to fieldwork as the practice of anthropologists themselves changed in this regard from armchair anthropology, through survey work, to intensive participant observation.

A Centenary Retrospective

Vincent Gil — Thu, 25 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0700

This retrospective provides a brief history of Christian medical missions as the critical backdrop to understanding how missions in the 19^th and 20^th centuries paved the way for ethnographic work among non-Western culture groups, as well as provided insights into other cultures’ health and healing practices. Medical missions also brought biomedicine into the care systems of non-Western cultures and set the stage for understanding the importance of cultural knowledge in determinants of health and disease. These endeavors cannot be discounted as motivators for anthropologists to further engage the work of health and healing as these worked to understand other cultures and their needs. This retrospective also explores how the subdiscipline/specialization of medical anthropology became formalized, applied; and how critically important it became in contributing to medical knowledge and practice cross-culturally. Examples of modern-day giants of medical anthropology bring our attention forward and underscore their lasting contributions. The retrospective ends by encouraging Christian anthropologists to consider specializing in medical anthropology. For those in practice, it asks where they ‘abide’ today: where they can be located, given that there is no formal organization unique to them.

Anthropological Insights and the Early Voices of Ethnodoxology

Elsen Elcio Portugal — Thu, 25 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0700

“Whither Bound in Missions?”— In Which Direction is the Missions Movement Going? Missiologist Daniel Fleming formalized this question in his book, Whither Bound in Missions?, published in 1925. This and several other publications in the early to middle of the 20^th century demonstrate the engagement of the missiological community with anthropological perspectives seeking to understand and support the direction of missions for the upcoming century. In doing so, they have contributed as well to practiced anthropology through missions.

This article explores the contributions of three authors who were learning the value of incorporating anthropological perspectives into the missionary enterprise. They were also forerunners of the discipline of ethnodoxology, encouraging the application of local music and art for the communication of the Christian faith when the topic was not yet of great concern within the broader missiological movement. They often demonstrate a perception ahead of their time, and courageously call on their constituency—and even on us in the 21st century— to learn and apply principles that can strengthen the Mission of God in the long run.

The Christian Missionary Enterprise and Its Effects on Idemili (Igbo, Nigeria) Culture

Kanayo Louis Nwadialor, Roseline Nonye Ewelukwa — Thu, 25 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0700

This study examines the impact of Christian missionary enterprises on the socio-cultural settings of Idemili, Anambra State, Nigeria. The study employs qualitative research methods such as interviews, observations and literature review to collect data; a phenomenological approach is used to analyze the data. Through an analysis of primary and secondary sources, the research highlights ways in which Christian missionaries influenced the beliefs, practices, and values of the Idemili people. Through their efforts, Christianity spread, leading to the establishment of schools, hospitals, and other institutions that brought about social and economic development. However, there have also been conflicts with traditional cultural practices and divisions among family members. The findings suggest that the introduction of Christianity led to the transformation of the socio-cultural landscape of the Idemili, resulting in a blend of traditional and Christian beliefs and practices. The study concludes that while Christian missionary work has brought many positive changes to Idemmili, it is important to also preserve and respect the people’s cultural heritage.

Response to Timothy Larsen’s “British Social Anthropologists and Missionaries in the Twentieth Century”

Lindy Backues — Thu, 25 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0700

The Anthropologist in the Evangelical Cinematic Gaze

Naomi Haynes — Thu, 25 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0700

Response to Timothy Larsen, “British Social Anthropologists and Missionaries in the Twentieth Century”

Brian Howell — Thu, 25 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0700

From Dim Past to Bright Future

Derrick Lemons — Thu, 25 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0700

Pressures, Practicalities, and the Presence of God

Jenell Paris — Thu, 25 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0700

On Social Anthropologists and Missionary Ethnographers

Dana L. Robert — Thu, 25 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0700