By Samuel Koranteng-Pipim, PhD
My plea in this article is that, in our well-meaning effort to do something about the plight of our continent, we must first correctly diagnose the problem. Failure to do so will result in offering “monkey solutions.”And “monkey solutions” are more deadly than the problems they seek to solve. Let me explain.
Monkey Solutions
I derive the expression “monkey solution” from a story I heard from one of Ghana’s pre-eminent statesmen—an Oxford-trained social anthropologist, a prolific author, and a theologian. His name is Dr. Peter Kwasi Sarpong, the Archbishop Emeritus of the Catholic Church in Kumasi, Ghana.
The Retired Archbishop was the special Guest of Honor on the opening night of a 3-day “African Must Think” lectures I was conducting in Kumasi, Ghana’s second largest city. His assignment was to give a short introductory speech to set the tone for my first presentation. As he concluded his insightful address, he told the story of some monkeys to...
Introduction
Racism is ugly. It is the cancer in the soul of human society. No one is completely immune from it or from its deadly effects. For it infects the highest of the high and the lowest of the low—whether or not they reside in the White House or the “What House” (anyone’s house). Racism is even found in the Prayer House, whether that be a church, a mosque, a temple, or a shrine of a secular ideology—and the believer can be hooded, clean-cut, or bearded.
The problem of racism is not that it resides in a house or a hut, but rather that it seeks permanent residency in the heart. The human heart. My heart and your heart. For, in the matter of racism (as is often the case in all human relations and conflicts) the heart of the problem is the problem of the heart. Pride.
But since the human heart is “deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked” (Jeremiah 17:9), racists do not admit the reality of ugly racism. They disguise or rebrand it into something else to make it more...
“Is your father still alive? Have you another brother?... Is your father well, the old man of whom you spoke? Is he...
The Inauguration of "Dunia ya Heri"
Report by Samuel Koranteng-Pipim, Ph.D
On the weekend of June 9-11, 2017, I was privileged to be a special guest at the inauguration of “Dunia ya Heri” Children's Home (or Orphanage) in a small rural village called Yale Yale Puna, in the Kigamboni District of Tanzania. The newly constructed Children's Home for 20 children was officially opened on Sunday, June 11, 2017, by Dr. Ulisubisya Mpoki, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health in Tanzania. The facility is the first phase of the "African Family & Health Care" project.
“Dunia ya Heri” is a Swahili word that means "Land of Blessing" or “Blessing to the World.” Besides other government officials, the mayor of the region, the local chief of the area, and the news media, friends of “Dunia ya Heri” from several countries (e.g., Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, USA, etc.) were present to grace the occasion. It was a pleasant surprise to hear from the Permanent Secretary, Dr. Mpoki, that...
A Report on Africa Arise Conference & AU's Prayer Breakfast for African Heads of State (January 24-30, 2017).
By Samuel Koranteng-Pipim, PhD
Just in case you miss the thrust of my report, this is what I want to say: “Success without a successor is failure. True leaders train others to succeed them; but great leaders develop others to supercede them.”
The above is a summary of the burden I shared in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where I was invited to the Africa Arise Conference and the African Union’s Prayer Breakfast for the African Heads of State (January 25-30, 2017). Now in its 9th year, the Africa Arise Network is a movement of African leaders who are committed to combatting Africa’s unique challenges from a Biblical perspective. The conference is a yearly event that is conducted by the “Africa Arise Network” alongside the annual African Heads of States Summit in Ethiopia.
I was one of the moderators to this year’s Africa Arise Conference conference, which focused on “Bridging the...
[Click on Above Title Link for Clearer View]
A Tribute To Dr Raoul Dederen (1925-2016)
By Samuel Koranteng-Pipim, PhD
[NOTE: Dr. Raoul Dederen (1925-2016) was my “doctorvater,” theological and spiritual mentor, pastor, father, and role-model in research and teaching. I learned from him humility in service, simplicity in lifestyle, and graciousness to those who hurt us. Through him I not only discovered the joy of teaching, but also the fact that teaching is, perhaps, the highest office in the ministry. Below is my tribute at his funeral on Friday, October 28, 2016, in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Below is my tribute at his funeral on Friday, October 28, 2016, in Ann Arbor, Michigan,[1] The tribute does not reflect his stature as one of our Church’s most distinguished theological giants. (At the appropriate time, I will do so). Rather, in presenting him as a man who was “formed of steel, but coated in clay, the tribute captures some of my personal interactions with him during the last five...