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Main Article Content
A scriptural, theological and historical analysis of the concept of the Zambian Christian nationhood
Abstract
Zambia officially became regarded as a ‘Christian nation’. The current article proposes that a country cannot attain its Christian nationhood by presidential decree, but only by means of cultural determination. However, an extensive evaluation of the culture concerned is needed in
order for the task to be theologically feasible. To achieve a comprehensive analysis of the current situation, the article takes into consideration some of the historical paradigms and models of
regions which were once Christian, but which have since failed to stand by such principles. The point of the present argument is that religion emanates from the culture of the people and not from a declaration that is made about them. The article also takes into consideration Niebuhr’s
fivefold typology of models of the relationship of Christ with culture, to which this article refers as that existing between church and state. The ultimate conclusion is that the declaration of Zambia as a ‘Christian nation’, despite being a unique concept, must be both theologically and
ethically sound if, indeed, it is to become more than just a slogan and a single-line entry in the preamble of the country’s constitution.
