spirit and healing in africa - University of the Free State

precisely because they are so close to the experienced reality. The existence of the devil, a God
who is able to intervene in daily life, and the human being who is continuously searching for
wholeness and blessings (even in material ways), are the main characters of the bible as well as
of everyday life. Asamoah-Gyadu (2007:314) states that “healing, exorcism and deliverance are
important for us first because they were critical to the ministry of Jesus Christ. He so integrated
these ministries into his work that it is difficult to separate them from evangelism that is done in
the way Jesus wanted it to be done”. According to the African Christian belief, the proclamation
of salvation and that of healing complement each other on biblical grounds (cf. Omenyo 2000:
247f).
Jesus’ own healing ministry, as recorded extensively in the gospels, is perceived as the most
important example of how the church should understand her authority to proclaim salvation, and
of how the church can be meaningful for people seeking restoration in daily life. Jesus’ battle
against the devil and demons represents the battle many believers face: spiritual warfare is an
integral part of Christian faith, just as the biblical stories witness. Church-based healing,
therefore, is rooted in Scripture, and is initiated by Jesus. That is how his commission to the
disciples to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick (through the power to drive out all
demons and to cure diseases) provides the foundation for present-day church-based healing.
Many African Christians are of the opinion that the church cannot ignore her task of miraculous
healing, exorcism and the curing of diseases, because restoration and wholeness constitute the
core of Christian faith. In this light, and based on the argument that Jesus himself was an exorcist
and that exorcism was mentioned explicitly when sending out his disciples, people in some
Christian circles wonder why exorcism is not considered as a sacrament 31 .
31. It is also important to mention here that, even though exorcism and deliverance practices are often perceived as
an essential part of the church’s healing ministry, they also lead to debate in Reformed circles, where exorcism and
deliverance ministries do not belong to the heart of church life. The issue at stake here is the issue of worldview.
Mainline theology has developed a particular view on the realities of evil forces, demons, possessions and
exorcisms, and this view diverges from the (traditional) African worldview. Andrew Walls (2006:75f) contends that
“Western models of theology are too small for Africa. Most of them reflect the worldview of the Enlightenment, and
that is a small-scale worldview, one cut and shaved to fit a small-scale universe. Since most Africans live in a larger,
more populated universe, with entities that are outside the Enlightenment worldview, such models of theology
cannot cope with some of the urgent pastoral needs”. Jacques Theron (1996:84) also refers to the gap between
Western worldview and other thought systems, when he gives a critical overview of the church’s ministry of
deliverance from evil spirits. Theron makes the interesting observation that the Western understanding of reality is
currently in a state of transition or paradigm shift due to the rise of postmodernism. He anticipates that this paradigm
shift allows for the subject of demons to be discussed, and for the ministry of deliverance to function within Western
societies. Perhaps in this light the article by J. Janse van Rensburg (2010:679-697) can be seen as a contribution to
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