The thinking in some cultures is that because labor is difficult, having multiple wives (and thus more helping hands and more children) will help alleviate some of the work responsibility for one family.
John Mbiti writes of African culture: “Within the context of life, polygamy is not only acceptable and workable, but is a great social and economic asset.”
Here are several objections: Continue reading
As certain as the world is round, water is wet, and what goes up must come down—racism will exist in this sinful world. Unless one embraces one of several human utopias such as Marxism—which one theologian called an atheistic form of postmillennialism—there will be no complete eradication of the tangled roots of racial prejudice until Jesus comes back.
Racism is simply a lack of obedience to our Lord’s command to love one another as he has loved us. Those who continue castigating others based on their skin pigmentation are destined for perdition and will not inherit the kingdom of God (1Co. 6:9-10). All believers, regardless of race, are baptized into one Spirit (1Co. 12:13). Continue reading
As we continue our observations on various causes of poverty in rural South Africa, it is important to focus on the items we can fix. Poverty through natural disasters or crimes by former regimes is out of our control. As Wayne Grudem has said, the main drawback with blaming outside factors for poverty (e.g. colonialism, banks, rich nations, etc.) is that it does nothing to solve the problem.
The young people in our village need black heroes they can emulate. Walter Williams is one such example. He is an economist and author of several books, including The State Against Blacks, Race and Economics and South Africa’s War Against Capitalism. He also writes a weekly column addressing issues on race, poverty, and economics. Continue reading
My recent post on various causes of poverty in rural Africa stemmed from Scripture and my own experience in the village setting.
My point was that while there are many villagers who are honest and hardworking and have survived terrible crimes in the past (e.g. apartheid), the predominant cause for poverty in the rural areas is one of morality, not victimization. Ultimately, it is only the gospel of Jesus Christ and the principles within the Word of God that can free people from their poverty, either in this life or the next. Continue reading
Between Two Cultures 