DOCUMENT RESUME

ED 271 366 SO 017 295

AUTHOR Salamone, Frank A., Ed.TITLE Anthropologists and Missionaries. Part II. Studies in

Third World Societies. Publication NumberTwenty-Six.

INSTITUTION College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA. Dept.of Anthropology.

PUB DATE 85NOTE 314p.; For part I of this study, see SO 017 268. For

other studies in this series, see ED 251 334 and SO017 296-297.

AVAILABLE FROM Studies in Third World Societies, Department ofAnthropology, College of William and Mary,Williamsburg, VA 23185 ($20.00; $35.00 set).

PUB TYPE Collected Works - General (020) InformationAnalyses (070)

EDRS PRICE MF01/PC13 Plus Postage.DESCRIPTORS *Anthropology; *Clergy; Cross Cultural Studies;

Cultural Influences; Cultural Pluralism; CultureConflict; Developed Nations; *Developing Nations;Ethnography; Ethnology; *Global Aoproach;Modernization; Non Western Civili%ation; Poverty;Religious Differences; Religious (:ganizations;*Sociocultural Patterns; Socioeconomic Influences;Traditionalism; World Problems

IDENTIFIERS *Missionaries

ABSTRACTThe topics of anthropologist-missionary

relationships, theology and missiology, research methods andmissionary contributions to ethnology, missionary training andmethods, and specific case studies are presented. The ten essays are:(1) "An Ethnoethnography of Missionaries in Kalingaland" (RobertLawless); (2) "Missionization and Social Change in Africa: The Caseof the Church of the Brethren Mission/Ekklesiyar Yan'Uwa Nigeria inNortheastern Nigeria" (Philip Kulp); (3) "The Summer Institute ofLinguistics/Wycliffe Bible Translators in AnthropologicalPerspective" (Robert Taylor); (4) "The Anthropological Perspective in'Is God an American?'" (Claude Stipe); (5) "Authority and ReligiousIdeology among the Yoruba" (J.S. Eades); (6) "The Effects ofMissionization on Cultural Identity in Two Societies" (Daniel T.Hughes); (7) "Sabbath Observance and the Social Construction ofReligious Belief in a Scottish Calvinist Community" (Peter Hewett);(8) "Jamaican & Swiss-German Missionaries in the Basel Mission in theGold Coast" (Dorothy Dee Vellenga); (9) "Perceptions of Medicine &Disease in Nigeria" (Robert Hess); and (10) "Differential Developmentand Missionaries in Nigeria" (Frank A. Salamone). (BZ)

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Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be madefrom the original document.

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STUDIES IN THIRD WORLD SOCIETIES

is devoted to the study of cultures and societies of theThird World. Each publication contains papers dealingwith a single theme or area, addressed both to scholarsand laymen as well as to teachers, students, and practi-tioners of social science; the papers should be of valuealso to applied social scientists, planners, demographers,community development workers, and other students of humancultures and societies

COPYRIGHT 1985

by

THE EDITORS

Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 84-71661

Communications concerning editorial matters, includingrequests to reprint or translate, and correspondenceabout subscriptions, change of address, circulation,and payments should be addressed to:

The EditorsSTUDIES IN THIRD WORLD SOCIETIESDepartment of AnthropologyCollege of William and MaryWilliamsburg, Virginia 23185 U.S.A.Phone: (804) 253-4522

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EDITORSVINSON H. SUTLIVENATHAN ALTSHULERMARIO D. ZAMORAVIRGINIA KERNS

PUBLISHERDEPARTMENT OF ANTHROPOLOGYCOLLEGE OF WILLIAM AND MARY

Williamsburg, Virginia 23185 U.S.A.

International Editorial Advisory Board

Teodoro Agoncillo (University of the Philippines),Carlos H. Aguilar (University of Costa Rica), MuhammadAli (University of Malaya), Jacques Amyot (ChulalongkornUniversity, Thailand), Ghaus Ansari (Kuwait University),George N. Appall (Brandeis University), Harold Barclay(University of Alberta, Canada), Etta Becker-Donner(Museum fur Volkerkunde, Vienna, Austria), Harumi Befu(Stanford University), Ignacio Bernal (Institute Nacionalde Antropologia e Historia, Mexico), Ronald M. Berndt(University of Western Australia), Fernando Camara( Institute Nacionai de Antropologia e Historia, Mexico),Paulo de Carvalho-Neto (Sao Paulo, Brazil), S. Chandra-sekhar (California State University), K.C. Chang (HarvardUniversity), Chen Chi-lu (National Taiwan University,China), -lackeny Choe (Seoul National University, Korea),George Coelho (National Institute of Mental Health,Maryland), Ronald Cohen (Ahmado Bello University, Niger-ia), Ronald Crocombe (University of the Pacific, FijiIsland), May N. Diaz (University of California, Berkeley),K.O. Dike (Harvard University), Fred Eggan (University ofChicago), S.C. Dube (India Institute of Advanced Study,India), S.N. Eisenstadt (Hebrew University, Israel),Gabriel Escobar M. (Pennsylvania State Universityand Lima, Peru) , Claudio Esteva Fabregat (University ofBarcelona, Spain), Orlando Fals Borda (Bogota, Colombia),Muhammad Fayyaz (Punjab University, Pakistan, and QueensUniversity, Canada), C. Dean Freudenberger (School of

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Theology, Claremont, California), Morton H. Fried (Colum-bia University), Isao Fujimoto (University of California,Davis), C. von Furer-Haimendorf (London School of Orientaland African Studies, England), Dante Germino (Universityof Virginia), Walter Goldschmidt (University of Califor-nia, Los Angeles), Nancie L. Gonzalez (Boston University),W.W. Howells (Harvard University), Francis L.K. Hsu(Northwestern University), Charles C. Hughes (Universityof Utah Medical Center), Erwin H. Johnson (State Univer-sity of New York, Buffalo), Victor T. King (Universityof Hull), Koentjaraningrat (University of Indonesia),T.A. Lambo (World Health Organization, Switzerland),Gottfried 0. Lang (University of Colorado), Peter Lawrence(Sydney University, Australia), Diane K. Lewis (Universityof California, Santa Cruz), Dapen Liang (AsiamericaResearch Institute, California), Abdoulaye Ly (Universityof Dakar, Senegal), Robert A. Manners (Brandeis Univer-sity), Jamshed Mavalwala (University of Toronto, Canada),Eugenio Fernandez Mendez (Universidad de Puerto Rico),Alfredo T. Morales (National Research and DevelopmentCentre for Teacher Education, University of the Philip-pines), Gananath Obeyesekere (Princeton University, N.J.),Gottfried Oosterwal (Andrews University), Morris E. Op ler(University of Oklahoma), Alfonso Ortiz (PrincetonUniversity), Akin Rabibhadana (Thammasat University,Thailand), V.J. Ram (United Nations, Beirut, Lebanon),M.S.A. Rao (University of Delhi, India), I.B. Romain(CRESHS, Haiti), Renato I. Rosaldo (Stanford University),Irving Rouse (Yale University), Miguel Acosta Saignes(Caracas, Venezuela), Kernial S. Sandhu (Institute ofSoutheast Asian Studies, Singapore), Sriegal-Rosing(Rhur-Universitat Bochum, Germany), Rodolfo Stavenhagen(El Colegio de Mexico), Akira Takahashi (University ofTokyo, Japan), Reina Torres de Arauz (Institute Nacionalde Cultura y Deportes, Panama), Donald Tugby (QueenslandUniversity, Australia), Victor C. Uchencli. (University ofIllinois and Kampala, Uganda), Lionel Vallee (Universityof Mo; treal, Canada), Wrio C. Vasquez (National Office ofAgrarian Reform, Peru), L.P. Vidyarthi (Ranchi University,India), B.M. Villanueva (United Nations, New York City),Hiroshi Wagatsuma (University of California, Los Angeles),Wong Soon Kai (Kuching, Sarawak), Inger Wulff (DanishNational Museum).

CONTENTS

Publication Number Twenty-Six December 1983

Anthropologists and Missionaries: Part II

Frank A. SalamoneGuest Editor

Page

Introduction vi

Robert LawlessAn Ethnoethnography of Missionaries inKalingaland 1

Philip KulpMissionization and Social Change in Africa:The Case of the Church of the BrethrenMission/Ekklesiyar Yan'Uwa Nigeria inNortheastern Nigeria 19

Robert TaylorThe Summer Institute of Linguistics/WycliffeBible Translators in AnthropologicalPerspective 93

Claude StipeThe Anthropological Perspective in "Is God AnAmerican" 9 117

J. S. EadesAuthority and Religious Ideology Among theYoruba 139

Daniel T. HughesThe Effects of Missionization on CulturalIdentity in Two Societies 167

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Peter MewettSabbath Observance and the Social Constructionof Religious Belief in a Scottish CalvinistCommunity 183

Dorothy Dee VellengaJamaican & Swiss German Missionaries in theBasel Mission in the Gold Coast 201

Robert HessPerceptions of Medicine & Disease in Nigeria... 239

Frank A. SalamoneMissionary Education as an Indicator in SeparateDevelopment in Nigeria 287

Notes on the Contributors 303

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INTRODUCTION

FRANK SALAMONEElizabeth Seton College

The anthropological study of missionaries has matur-ed. No longer is it fashionable. much less permissible,for serious anthropologists merely to dismiss missionariesas fanatics who sought to spoil "pristine primitives"while introducing the concept of sin into the Garden.Fortunately, anthropologists have extended our method ofcultural relativism to missionaries.

In so doing we have discovered a number of surprisingfacts. Not all missionaries are alike. The differences,moreover, are significant and essential. Many mission-aries have demonstrated more real ethnological concernthan many ethnologists. Additionally, many ethnologistshave borrowed rather extensively from missionariesor, at the least, enjoyed missionary hospitality inthe field.

This collection of papers reflects this healthynew spirit in anthropological studies of missionariesand missionary endeavors. The overwhelming majority

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of the papers provide case studies used to test orillustrate basic anthropological principles and concepts.Each paper, in fact, uses an open-minded, scientific,approach to the material. Each author ties the materialinto a broader context, demonstrating an awarenessof larger anthropological and historical issues.

Lawless and Taylor, for example, in their papersexamine specific missionary groups in detail. Lawlessuses ethnoscientific techniques to understand missionariesin Kalingaland. Taylor calls our atte,ition to thesignificant debt anthropology owes to the linguisticwork of missionaries, especially to the Summer Instituteof Linguistics.

Claude Stipe's paper provides a reasoned exampleof an even-handed anthropological approach to missionstudies. It objectively reveais the flaws in the knee-jerk anti-missionary anthropology of the book Is God anAmerican? In so doing, it demonstrates the advantages ofreserving judgment in anthropology.

Equally demonstrating a balanced presentation andanalysis of care study material and missionary influenceare Kulp's and iviewett's works. Kulp's study encompasses anumber of years and people. The Church of the Brethrenmission in Northeastern Nigeria has had a long history andgreat influence on social change. Kulp brings a uniqueperspective to the study, for his father, Stover Kulp, waslong the guiding spirit of the mission and Philip Kulp wasraised on the station. Nevertheless, his study isamazingly objective and balanced.

Mewett's case study furnishes an interesting exampleof missionary work in a modern setting, Scotland.Mewett's mastery of history, economics, and anthropologyis evident in his contextual paper. Moreover, the"social construction of reality" approach providesinsight into Scots' world-view and places his studyinto a broader disciplinary setting.

Eades, Hess and Salamone, address somewhat widerareas than single communities. Eades begins with oneYoruba group but quickly discusses the broad issuesof process and continuity in conversion. Similarly,

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Hess asks what the missionary's message meant to the"target population." Rather appropriately, he focuseson the field of medicine and disease, a classic missionconcern.

Salamone directly addresses a related topic: themeaning of mission education to the Nigerian people.However, he seeks to examine missionary work a bitmore holistically through placing it in the colonialcontext and taking "power" into account. Althoughdifferential access to mission education was not theonly factor involved in Nigeria's separate development,it was a significant one.

Finally, Hughes and Vellenga offer another aspectof the anthropological endeavor: explicit comparativework. Hughes views ccnvert,ion in the broader contextof identity change. Exploring that concept, he offersthe controlled comparison of conversion in Ponape and thePhilippines. Valenga also provides a comparison.In her case, however, it is that between missionariesfrom two different ethnic groups: Jamaicans and Swiss-Germans.

All the papers are concerned with change and ident-ity. Each of the authors has sought to bring scientific.'etachment to the study and to leave parochial squabblesbehind. In that regard, the papers have profited fromexposure at one of the following professional meetings:The International Conference of Anthropological andEthnological Sciences in Quebec (August 1983) or theAfrican Studies Association in Boston (December 1983).

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AN ETHNOETHNOGRAPHY OF MISSIONARIESIN KALINGALAND

ROBERT LAWLESSUniversity of Florida

The activities of Christian missionaries amongthe Kalingas of the North Luzon Highlands are the generaltopic of this paper. More specifically I focus on theKalingas in the Pasil River drainage area and on theteachings and behaviors of both Protestant and RomanCatholic missionaries. Most cf my field data come frominformants in a village named Balatok on the upper levelsof the Pasil River -- one of the few Kalinga villages thathas entertained both Protestant and Catholic mission-aries. Since all the missionaries had left before I cameinto the area, all of my data comes from information thatthe Kalingas themselves had "gathered" before I arrived.Hence the notion of this paper as an "ethnoethnography."

ETHNOGRAPHIC BACKGROUND

The Kalingas live in the north central sectic..of the North Luzon Highlands on the largest islandin the Philippines. Sometimes referred to as the Cordill-

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era Central, these highlands are a rugged and sharplydissected block of mountains averaging about 65 kilometerswide between 120 degrees and 122 degrees longitude andstretching north from approximately 16 degrees northlatitude for about 320 kilometers. This massive mountain-ous area, the largest in the Philippine archipelago,contains several peaks over 2740 meters in its southernareas. Kalinga territory (Kalingaland) extends perhaps 30kilometers north-south and 80 kilometers east-west aroundthe 17 degrees north latitude mark where the peaks areabout 2400 meters. With a population of approximately72,500 the Kalingas constitute one ethnolinguistic groupamong perhaps eight in the North Luzon Highlands.

Subsistence among the Kalingas is based on a ricestaple raised both in permanent irrigated rice terracesand in swiddens. In addition to rice a variety of rootcrops, legumes, and vegetables is grown in the swiddens.Animal protein is derived mainly from the meat of domesti-cated pigs and water buffalos, though in the forestedareas Kalingas consume a variety of wildlife, such asdeer, wild pigs, bats, lizards, and birds.

Kalinga kinship structure is normatively bilater-al, matrilocal, conjugal, and monogamous. Devoid ofcorporate and descent groups, Kalinga social structureexpresses itself in such units as the kindred (oftenincluding siblings, first, second, and third cousins,and the ascendants and descendants of these up throughthe great grandparents and down through the great grand-children), the household (generally the nuclear familycentered on a single hearth), the extended household(usually a few households linked by married siblings), thework exchange group (containing several householdsorganized around planting and harvesting requirements),the settlement (a mobile location for households), and theregion (the largest indigenous unit among the Kalingas, anendogamous deme containing 60 to 1000 households).

HISTORY

Ferdinand Magellan discovered the Philippines forSpain in 1521, and the first Spanish contact with Northern

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Luzon was in 1572 when Juan de Salcedo, the grandson ofMiguel de Legazpi (who occupied the Manila area in 1565)explored the !locos coast. He learned about the goldmines in the North Luzon Highlands, which initiated theSpanish interest in the southern areas of the mountains.These areas are, however, quite removed from Kalingaland,and Kalingas have been rather isolated from moderngovernments well into the 1970s.

The rare pre-19th century encounters of the Kalingaswith Spaniards resulted primarily from the Spanish postsin the province of Abra to the west of Kalingaland. Thevillage of Bangued, Abra Province, was established as aSpanish military outpost in 1598. In 1614 the firstmissionary Juan de Pareja went into Western Kalingaland(Schmitz 1971:45), but not much missionary work was doneuntil the 1800s when the Augustinian Order establishedmissions among the Western Kalingas and among the Apayaos,the Kalingas' northern neighbors. These missions have abloody history, being burned down with all the Spaniardsbeheaded, being re-established by the Spaniards, andthen being destroyed again. In 1898 the Roman Catholicchurch was expelled from Abra Province by Philippinerevolutionaries., and then it was reestablished underAmerican rule by Dutch and German Catholics, the Societyof the Divine Word.

Most of the Spanish missionary efforts followedthe sword and were concentrated in the sou' . of theNorth Luzon Highlands among the Ibaloys and the Kankanayswhere there were known gold and copper mines and amongthose groups more easily accessible, such as the Ifugaoson the east . round Kiangan, the Apayaos along the Cagayanand Abu lug Rivers, and the Western Kalingas (sometimesreferred to in the literature as Tinguians) on the riversflowing into the !locos Coast, especially the Abra River.The Southern Kalingas, of whom the Pasil Kalingas are onepart, were in isolated, rugged interior mountains, areasnever conquered and occupied by the Spaniards, and theSpanish missionary efforts were little felt there.

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SPANIARDS IN SOUTHERN KALINGALAND

The first contact between Spaniards and SouthernKalingas came in 1835 when Guillermo Galvey made anexpedition deep into Abra Province to the village of Baaywhere some people from the major Pasil cultural area ofGuinaang came to meet him. Three years later Galveyestablished a military post in Bukay, Abra Province, avillage probably settled by people from Guinaang. In 1842Jose Maria Penaranda attacked villages in the Banao Regionaround Balbalasang to the north of the Pasil River area,and two years later he made an expedition against Guinaangitself. Except for this one punitive expedition in 1844,apparently no Spaniards entered the Pasil area until thelatter half of the 19th century when a horse trail wasbuilt from Abra Province through Kalingaland to CagayanProvince and a military post was established at Guinaangto mai stain this trail -- parts of which are still intact.

Kalingas in their 60s and 70s well remember theirolder relatives telling stories about the small Spanishpost at the village of Guinaang. Several old men who diedin the 1970s claimed to have gone to "school" in Guinaangand could count to ten in Spankh to prove it. The schoolwas probably a small operation for cargaderos, andSpaniards or lowland Filipinos could have conceivablytaught the Kalinga employees a few Spanish commands.

The primary interest of the Spaniards, then, centeredon the gold and copper mines in the southern areas of theNorth Luzon Highlands. In 1668, however, they finallygave up the notion of direct occupation -- after greatcosts to both the Spaniards and the Mountaineers.Thereafter Spanish interest in the North Luzon Highlandscentered on toeir attempt to control trade between thehighlanders and the lowlanders for the protection of theSpanish tobacco monopoly. The Spaniards were not verysuccessful in this endeavor either. After the tobaccomonopoly was abolished in 1882 the Spaniards paid littleattention to the highlands.

Throughout this period the Spanish missionariesenjoyed very little success in the highlands exceptin the foothill areas bordering on Spanish controlledterritory. None of the early Spanish missionaries

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ever stayed in the North Luzon Highlands more thanten years, and more than a few of them lost their heads intheir work. As far as I can determine, no missionariesentered the central Kalinga areas before the twentiethcentury. There is certainly no record of any stayingthere for an appreciable length of time.

AMEIMANS IN THE NORTH LUZON HIGHLANDS

After accepting the surrender of the remnants of theSpanish forces and then destroying the army of theirerstwhile Philippine allies the Americans took over ascolonial masters of the Philippines. They set up theircivil government in 1902 and proved much more successfulthan the Spaniards in establishing administrative controlthroughout the North Luzon Highlands. Until their spiritand funds were dampened by the Great Depression of the1930s, Americans expended much time and effort in thePhilippines in spreading their particular notions ofcivilization.

One aspect of this large-scale effort at accultur-ation was the dividing up of the Philippines into spheresof missionary influence. The Western Kalingas, as I havementioned, were given to the missionaries of the Societyof the Divine Word, who first arrived in Bangued, AbraProvince, in 1909 (Schmitz 1971:16). A variety ofProtestants soon also followed in Abra Province mostpredominantly the United Brethren church, along withMethodists and Baptists.

The bulk of the North Luzon Highlands fell admini-stratively into the old Mountain Province, which wascomposed of the subprovinces of Benguet, Ifugao, Bontoc,Kalinga, and Apayao, each of which became a separateprovince in 1967 (with Kalinga and Apayao combined). In1907 this entire territory was given over to the Congre-gacion de Immaculada Corazon de Maria, sometimes known byits English translation, the Congregation of the Immacu-late Heart of Mary -- or as they are commonly called inthe Philippines, the Be Wen Fathers. Initially sevenmissionaries cam.:, and at first the missions were inBenguet Subprovince to the south where the effect of theSpaniards had been most heavily felt. Next, missionary

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activity followed the American flag north when theAmericans established their administrative headquarters inBontoc Town, just south e Kalingaland.

MISSIONARIES IN KALINGALAND

The most important Roman Catholic missionary for theKalingas was Father Francisco Billiet. He initiallyworked in Benguet Subprovince Ltarting in 1911, and thenin 1916 he was assigned to Bontoc Town. Billiet firstcame through the Pasil River area in 1918, and in 1919 hebought two houses in the villages of Guinaang and Pugong,according to several informants, though written accountssay he started his missionary work among the Kalingas in1920 (Billiet and Lambrecht 1970:iv). In 1924 Billiet waspermanently assigned to the village of Lubuagan, a villagenear the confluence of the Pasil and Chico Rivers that theAmericans had chosen in 1908 as the administrativecenter for Kalinga Subprovince.

In addition to the Belgian Fathers a variety ofProtestant missions soon appeared. The United BrethrenChurch started its work in 1904 in Baguio City and foundedthe Kalinga Academy -- now under the United Church ofChrist :n the Philippines -- in Lubuagan Poblacion in1927. In fact both Roman Catholic and Protestant mission-ary groups set up schools in Lubuagan Poblacion since ithad assumed an importance for the colonial administrationof Kalingaland. St. Theresita's is the one operated bythe Belgian Fathers. The Episcopal Church began mission-ary activities in Bontoc Town in 1903 and about 20 yearslater established a mission among the Kalingas in thevillaga of Balbalasang. The Philippine Lutheran Missionestablished a mission in 1906 at the Kalinga village ofBasao. An official of the United Church of Christ in thePhilippines lived in Dangtalan, a Pasil village, for awhile sometime before World War II. And the New TribesMission, a U. S. funded Protestant organization, put anAmerican missionary in the Kalinga village of Butbut inApril 1974.

Missionary activity among the Southern Kalingashad been rather sporadic and not particularly stronglysupported by the Kalingas themselves. For example,

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the United Church of Christ in the Philippines triedto reestablish the mission in the village of Dangtalanin 1959. Three successive lowland Filipino deaconesseswere sent there over the next several years, and allcomplained of lack of support from the local popula-tion. The Dangtalan mission closed in 1968 due to thislack of village support and also apparently to a lackof missionary funds. In Tulgao, a major cultural centerto the south of Pasil, an anthropologist reported theabandonment of the Catholic chapel in 1968 (von Furer-Haimendorf 1970:197).

MISSIONARIES IN PASIL

For the most part, then, missionary activity haddeclined by the mid 1970s when I did my fieldwork inKalingaland. In only two out of the 13 villages in thePasil River area are the chapel houses actually maintainedand visited occasionally by a priest or minister. One ofthese villages is Balatok, and the other is Guinaang. Inthe rest of the Pasil villages the chapel sites areabandoned. Many of the activities of past missionariesare, however, well remembered by Kalingas.

First, I will focus on missionary impacts on childhood(or prestige) ceremonies among the Southern Kalingas.Next I will dic.cuss the Kalinga interpretation of Chris-tian teachings and the differential effects of Protestantand Roman Catholic missionaries in the village of Balatok.

Childhood Ceremonies

The most common childhood ceremony is called Gabbokand is performed when the child begins to contributeeconomically to the family. It is believed that thisceremony will help the child to grow bigger. The ceremonyrequires a medium and slaughtering of a water buffalo,though a pig is acceptable. Dancing and oratoricalcontests usually accompany this village-wide ceremony,which is the only one still performed regularly in manyparts of Southern Kalingaland and performed occasionallyin the Pasil River area. A ceremony called Inom isperformed by a medium when the child or mother is sick.

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It is similar to a qabbok ceremony though the contests maybe eliminated if the sickness is regarded as serious.Tanqkil is performed for a child who continually cries.It requires a mejium and the butchering of two chickens orone pig. Uliqinq may be performed any time and consistsof praying by the medium and the slaughtering of manychickens and some pigs. Its purpose is to assure thatthe child will not have any lame parts. Ganqqanqao isa general ceremony that can be performed for any numberof reasons, such as the child's first word. It requires amedium and generally considerable slaughtering of waterbuffalos and pigs.

For the most part only wealthier households conductedthese ceremonies. The portions of the slaughtered animalswere distributed to everyone in attendance, and asconsequence many poorer households received meat. By the1920s f.%ese childhood ceremonies had become expensive dueto the rising costs of livestock. The nominal acceptanceof the missionaries seems closely related to the eagernessof the richer households to drop the childhood ceremoniesby interpreting the teaching of the missionaries as beingagainst the ceremonies. Such a connection has alsobeen suggested by Fred Eggan for the Kalingas in AbraProvince (1974:16).

In the Pasil River area the heads of wealthy house-holds apparently had difficulty getting the missionariesto go against these childhood (or prestige) ceremonies.Seasoned missionaries such as Father Billiet were noteager to speak against local customs. When questioned onthis point, most of my informants of lower socioeconomicstanding said something like this: "The missionaries didnot speak directly against the customs but simply taughtChristianity, and we learned the good way and stopper' ourold practices." Informants of high socioeconomic standingsaid something like this: "The missionaries weren'tfamiliar with which of our customs were bad and which weregood, and the people couldn't really understand theteachings of the missioner;es. We had to explain to boththe missionaries and the people the true meaning ofChristianity for Kalingas."

It seems clear that the socioeconomic elite wereclosely monitoring the activities of the missionaries

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and were interpreting the meaning of the presence ofmissionaries for their own benefit. In a time of con-stricting opportunities to gain and maintain wealth thesocioeconomic elite could no longer afford to practiceceremonies that brought them nothing and only distributedmeat to the people and payments to the mediums. Thepresence of the missionaries was never interpreted by thepower elite as a signal that those slaughtering ceremoniesincumbent upon all, for example, funerals, should bedropped, since the elite used these ceremonies as amechanism for gaining land by lending the necessary waterbuffalos to those too poor to own livestock and takingtheir land as collateral.

Kalinga Cosmos

Before moving on to the topics of Christian teachingsand the differential impact of Protestant and RomanCatholic missionaries as perceived by the Kalingasthemselves we need to have some idea of the socio-cultural setting -- beyond the bare ethnographic outlinethat I have gave -- into which these missionaries moved.The Kalingas have definite notions of just what consti-tutes religion and religious persons and just whatqualifications an ethical and moral leader should have.

Most articulate Kalingas, when asked about theessential characteristics of a proper people, replymost often using terms that refer to honesty, honor,and hospitality. Kalingas live in a world in whichall things, inanimate and animate, must be given duerespect and all things must be honored for what theyare. Kalingas are furthermore not only individualswho both give and receive honor and respect, they arerepresentatives of their families and regions, responsiblefor assuring hospitality to deserving others. Kalingastherefore receive honor and respect and deserve hospital-ity only when they themselves display these qualities withappropriate honesty and sincerity. Although Kalingas mayexpress their individuality to its fullest extent, theymust pull themselves up short when their behavior wouldbring any sort of dishonor or disrespect upon their familyor upon their region (cf. Magannon 1972 and 19731.

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Within this cosmos important and honorable activitiesinclude hunting, story-telling, ceremonial slaughtering ofanimals, labor-group reciprocity, and the sharing ofpossessions and experiences with others. In the past anenormous amount of prestige was gained through headtaking,an activity that has declined recently. Oratoricalability is now much admired. In addition Kalingas placeconsiderable emphasis on the ability to hike at a rapidpace over mountains; people who slip on the trail, lagbehind, or lose their way are said to be poor warriors.

A Western educated Kalinga writing on religionhas noted, "In many religions the world over thereis hierarchy of power and authority in the priesthood.Such, for instance, is the case among the priests of theIfugaos. Some are higher in rank equivalent to thechristian archbishops and bishops; others are lower inrank, again similar to the ordinary priests in thechristian churches. Among the media of the... Ka lin-gas, such hierarchy of power and authority is absent"(Magannon 1972:51).

This general description applies for the most part toall Kalingas, though certainly the religion of theKalingas is not homogeneous; the Western Kalingas arepreoccupied mainly with non-human malevolent spirits;Northern Kalingas have little in the way of elaboratefuneral ceremonies; Scuthern Kalingas are concerned withancestral spirits, but this concern has not developed intoan ancestral worship as with the $fugaos (see Barton1946).

Christian Teachings

I have already illustrated how missionary teach-ings were used by the elite in manipulating publicattitudes toward childhood ceremonies. Certainly vastdifferences exist between the elite and the lay publicin their knowledge and understanding of the theology ofChristianity. There is also a considerable differencebetween the village elite and those of the elite whohave attended missionary schools in Lubuagan Pobla-cion. For example, village elders who initially presentedthemselves and their village to me as Roman Catholic were

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usually unable to name more than three of the sevensacraments, while the few younger people of these familieswho had been sent to St. Theresita's could easily name allseven. Later in my fieldwork after I had established somerapport these village elders and other members of thevillage elite would readily admit to me that there isreally very little that is Christian about their villageand that the people educated in the missionary schools arealways the youngest, least influential members of house-holds.

Due to the lack of missionaries in Kalingalandwhen I was there and due also to the lack of prestigeof the students then enrolled in missionary schoolsI found it more interesting to concentrate on the non-elite, lay interpretation of past missionary teach-ings. In other words, as a continuation of my ethno-ethnography of missionaries I am now attempting togain some insight into the Kalinga folk model of Christ-ianity.

I should mention that the version I received of theKalinga interpretation of Christianity was always anedited version colored by their perception of my motivesin questioning them. The elite were usually interested inpresenting an idealized version of Kalinga society andtheir presentation of the ICalinga reaction to Christianitywas -- at least initially -- that of acceptance andcompliance. Members of the lay public were less inter-ested in impressing on me the alleged acculturation ofKalinga society.

On my third and last trip to Balatok, which occurredalmost a year after my first trip, I was struck by whathad changed from a picture of enthusiastic acceptance ofChristianity on the part of my Kalinga informants to oneof a vaguely incredulous reaction to Christian teachingsand mild amusement toward the missionaries themselves. I

regard this Inter information as more accurately reflect-ing the true Kalinga folk model. Part of the reason forthe change in information was due to the general estab-lishment of better rapport and part of it was due to mysuccess, or at least partial success, in convincing theBalatok Kalingas that I was not a Christian even thoughI was an American -- two facts that appear somewhat

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incongruous within the historical context of the AmericanChristian mission in the Philippines.

Among Kalingas only a dim perception exists ofthe enormous resources and institutional structuresbehind these missions. Protestant missions were veryclosely identified with the United States and withthe corresponding notions most Kalingas have of Americaas a rich and powerful nation. This identificationcomes from both the fact that most Protestant mission-aries were Americans or American-trained lowland Filipinosand the fact that Protestantism was usually explicitlypresented as an American religion. In a vague wayKalingas seem aware of the often discussed aspects ofAmerican Christian Protestant theology (e.g., Albanese1981:251-263) such as equality, denominationalism,reductionism, anti-intellectualism, ahistoricism, andmoralism.

The egalitarian approach of Protestantism appealedto the egalitarian-oriented Kalingas, whose own elitehas traditionally changed membership rather rapidly.They find the notion of the hierarchical leadershipstructure of Catholicism disturbing, though they admittedtheir notion of this structure comes more from thestudents in school in Lubuagan Poblacion than fromthe teaching of the Catholic missionaries. One BalatokKalinga claimed, "The Protestant missionaries toldus that every man could speak to God directly withoutgetting anyone's permission. The Fathers said we had toget his permission first and then he had to contact hissuperiors." The individualistic Kalingas, who speakdirectly to a large number of spirits in their indigenousreligion, seem confused by Roman Catholic concepts ofleadership.

In discussing the leadership aspects of Catholic-Protestant differences Balatok Kalingas often mentionedthat the Catholics emphasized a woman, Mary, as theleader of their religion, and the Protestants empha-sized a man, Jesus, as their leader. Kalingas seem tobe able to accept the notion of a virgin birth on thepart of one leader and the rising from the dead onthe part of the other since such notions are expl:cablein terms of Kalinga beliefs (I came across at least two

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cases of Kalinga women who had been impregnated byspirits). Kalingas did find it difficult, however,to understand how Christians could believe that a person-age with the alleged power of Jesus -- the son of God --would allow himself to be killed by mere mortals. Apragmatic people, the Kalingas assume that such a person-age would use his power against his enemies. Many seem toregard the "suicide" (an often repeated interpretation) ofJesus as a serious flaw in the teachings of Christianmissionaries. They think either that the missionariesactually do not understand their own religion or that thisparticular teaching is part of an as-yet-unexplained trickon the part of the missionaries. At any rate, neitherJesus nor Mary appear to Kalingas to be likely candi-dates for religious leadership.

Balatok Kalingas continue to seriously questionthe Protestant missionaries' understanding of religionfor at least three reasons: (1) The perceived simplicityof Protestant doctrine seems to Kalingas reflective ofmissionaries with a simple-minded concept of religion. Inother words, they are sure there must be more to Protes-tantism than the missionaries told them. (2) An intenselycurious people, Kalingas are negatively impressed with thelack of interest Protestant missionaries displayed inKalinga culture -- in contrast to the intensive interestdemonstrated by Roman Catholic priests. They assume thata lack of curiosity reflects an anti-intellectualism -- orat least a certain amount of intellectual passivity -- notassociated with the Kalinga notion of a religious leader.(3) Kalingas are disappointed with the barrenness ofProtestant ceremonies, and, again in contrast, they findthe rich symbolism of Catholic rituals rather pleasing.

In addition to the differences between Catholicismand Protestantism, Balatok Kalingas are aware of differingbrands of Protestantism since they have been proselytizedboth by missionaries of the United Brethren Church and byvisitors from the Episcopal Church. One interpretation ofdenominationalism relates it to a perceived lack ofhistorical depth and tradition in Protestantism. OneBalatok Kalinga said, "Protestantism must be very newbecause they haven't developed all the rituals of Cathol-icism." Another observed, "Since the Protestant mission-aries are always disagreeing with each other, it must mean

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that they haven't been around long enough to settle the 4-differences, even though they always talk about thesame book."

Kalingas are indeed often amused by the Protestantemphasis on the Bible; the notion of dependence ona book is incomprehensible to a nonliterate peoplewho view books as a source of cigarette wrapping paper.They somehow associate the perceived rigidity of Protes-tant teachings as related to this dependency. SeveralBalatok Kalingas commented that the Protestant teachingsleft no room for humanness, no allowance for fallibility,which even the Kalinga gods exhibit. This adherence tomoralism was contrasted unfavorably with the situationalorientation of Catholic teachings and the perceivedtolerance of Catholicism for behavioral deviations.

From an enormous amount of notes on many inter-views with many individuals I have tried to reconstructKalinga perceptions of Christianity as an alien religion.In their conversations with me on this topic, however,Balatok Kalingas made no real attempt on their own toseparate Christian teachings from missionary person-alities. Kalingas have a great interest in individualidiosyncracies, and the behaviors and activities of theseveral missionaries that lived in Kalingaland have becomethe stuff of stories and legends. In the last section ofthis paper I will try to give just the flavor of thispersonal aspect of the ethnography of missionaries. I say"just the flavor" because for the most part the BalatokKalingas' characterization of Christian missionaries ishighly unflattering, and I do not want to give so manydetails that actual individuals might be recognized.

Missionary Behavior

Kalingas are acute observers of human behaviorand the Balatok Kaangas have many amusing and involvedstories about particular missionaries including suchdetails as how one gentleman constantly picked at hisnose, a behavior that any number of Kalingas woulddelight in mimicking. I believe, however, that thisethnoethnography will gain more from a more abstract level

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of description and from a continuation of the comparisonof Protestant and Catholic missionaries.

T. 0. Beidelman writes, "Historical accounts describeintense conflict between competing Christian missions... This animosity was (and is) particularly intense

between Evangelical Protestants and Catholics.... Thiswas embarrassing to missionaries and administrators alikesince colonialists sought to present Africans with theillusion that Europeans formed a solid front toward theindigenous population" (1982:12). Americans had this sameconcern in the Philippines, but since they divided thecountry among different missionaries, the competition wasnot quite so striking at least initially.

There is, however, general agreement not only inBalatok but also among all my informants throughoutthe villages in the Pasil River area on several easilyobservable differences in behavior between the Protes-tant and Roman Catholic missionaries. The Protestantsusually stayed in the nearby administrative centerof Lubuagan Poblacion and visited the villages in therelatively isolated Pasil River area only rarely, whilethe Catholic priests either stayed in the villages orvisited them regularly. Also, the Catholics appointedindigenous teachers to spread the doctrine, while theProtestants sent lowland Filipinos, generally Ilocanos, asteachers, and these teachers stayed in the villages foronly brief periods. Neither group of missionariesintroduced any new foods; the Catholics ate native foodsand the Protestants kept their imported canned foodsstrictly to themselves. The topic of missionaries and thelack of their contribution to food and food production is,in fact, a somewhat bitter one to many Balatok Kalingas.

When Kalingas honor anyone for what they perceivethat person to be, hospitality plays an important part inthe evaluation. Part of this hospitality comes from beingable to provide food beyond what is consumed by themembers of the household. Missionaries had no observablemeans of support, and more than one Kalinga mentioned theword dishonest to describe the notion that the villageshould somehow support missionaries who did not own landand did not work the fields. In Dangtalan in the 1960sthe missionaries expected to receive at least one handful

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of rice each month from each household, though theyrarely got this much rice. The common explanation forignoring missionaries goes something like this: "Whyshould we pay any attention to people who cannot supportthemselves and do not offer hospitality to others?"

One of several requirements for leadership amongKalingas does indeed involve the ability to behaNifeas a proper host, but there are additional avenuesto respectability. Missionaries, however, rarely engagedin activities that would allow them to show skills thatwould be appreciated by Kalingas, such as hunting, rapidhiking, ceremonial slaughtering of animals, and labor-group reciprocity. Some missionaries did tell stories,but for the most part the Kalinga style of oration isessentially foreign to Western and even lowland Filipinomissionaries. It is extremely dramatic and uses word playto a highly developed degree not easily managed byforeigners.

The only missionary that the Balatok Kalingas cameclose to considering a leader was the Roman Catholicpriest Father Billiet, who was essentially a scholar ofthe Kalingas and was well versed in their customs andlived with them until his death in 1978. None of myinformants could even recall the names of the manyProtestant missionaries coming through their villageusually from the Episcopal station at Balbalasang, the NewTribes station at Butbut, or the United Church of Christin the Philippines station at Lubuagan.

Interestingly this Kalinga perception of the mission-aries reflects the Protestant and Catholic conceptions ofa religious leader as a priest or minister. Unlikeministers, especially those in evangelical groups, allpriests must have the equivalent of a college degree, andmany of them are regarded as scholars or at least special-ists in some area of knowledge. Protestants -- both intheir leadership styles and in their evaluation ofreligious conversion -- tend to emphasize zeal andsincerity as demonstrated through a puritanical code ofconduct rather than skill or knowledge, even knowledge ofritual. Priests therefore generally tend to have agreater educational and social commitment than do mostministers.

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A final point on differences between Roman Catholicand Protestant missionaries in Balatok relates to the factthat Protestant missionaries may be married while Catholicones will not be. My Balatok informants recall oneProtestant missionary who was there in the early 1950s.He was a lowland Filipino with a wife and two smal!children. Balatok Kalingas were impressed most with twothings. First, the wife did almost nothing during theentire six months or so that they were in Balatok. And,second, the missionary seemed to be highly concerned withthe sexual vulnerability of his wife, never allowing herto be alone with Kalinga men -- behavior unoerstandableamong lowland Filipinos, but behavior regarded by Kalingasas silly at its best and at its worst as neurotic.

Although missionaries are not trained as agricul-tural extensionists, and the ones in Kalingaland certainlyhad no ',:nowledge of agriculture, the topic of most concernto most Kalingas in this highly dissected mountain regionis that of land use. My Kalinga info.mants expressedextreme disappointment that the missionaries displayed nointerest in agriculture. Balatok Kalingas claimed thatneither group of missionaries had any impact whatsoever onland usage, though I am aware that missionaries did picksome of their better students to go to government agri-culture schools. Several of these are now employed by thegovernment in agricultural development, but all of themare le,,ated in the lowland areas of Kalinga-ApayaoProvince -- in the broad, potentially important CagayanRiver valley where the government has recently focusedits attention -- and they have no contact and no effecton the agriculture of the Kalingas.

NOTES

An earlier version of this paper was read at the XlthInternational Congress of Anthropological and Ethnolog-ical Sciences, Laval University, Quebec City, August1983.

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REFERENCES CITED

Albanese, Catherine L.1981 American Religions and Religion.

California: Wadsworth.

Barton, R. F.1946 Religion of the lfugaos.

American Anthropological

Beide !man,1982

Pelmont,

Menasha, Wisconsin:Association.

T. O.Colonial Evangelism: A Socio-Historical Studyof an East Af -ican Mission at the GrassrootF.Bloomington: Indiana University Press.

Billiet, Francisco, and Francis Lambrecht1970 The Kalinga Ullalim. Baguio City: Catholic

School Press.

Eggan, Fred1974 Among the Anthropologists. In Annual Review

of Anthropology, Vol. 3. Bernard J. Siegel,Alan R. Beals, and Stephen A. Tyler, eds.Palo Alto, California: Annual Reviews.

Von Furer-Haimendorf, Christoph1970 Culture Change and the Conduct of Conflicts

among Filipino Tribesmen. Modern AsianStudies 4:193-209.

Magannon,1!

Esteban T.Religion in Kalinga Village: Its Implicationsfor Planned Change. Quezon City: CommunityDevelopment Research Council, University ofthe Philippines.

1973 Basic Concepts and Ideas in the Religion ofthe Lubo Kalinga. Manusai Dan Masyarakat2:15-26.

Schmitz, Josef1971 The Abra Mission in Northern Luzon, Philip-

pines, 1598-1955. Cebu City: University ofSan Carlos.

28

MISSIONIZATION AND SOCiAL CHANGEIN AFRICA:

THE CASE OF THE CHURCH OF THE BRETHRENMISSION/EKKLESIYAR YAN'UWA A NIGERIA

IN NORTHEASTERN NIGERIA

PHILIP M. KULPShippensburg University

RESUME

Increasing attention has been given in the literatureto the role played by expatriate communities in thesocial change of modernizing nations. One such communityis that of Western missionaries and the impact theyhave on the societies they have invaded. This studystands in a line of others made Ly Ayandale, Boer,Beidleman, Fashole-Luke, Jules-Rosetts, Roteberg, Sala-mone, et al. Using as a case study the EkklesiyarYan'uwa a Nigeria, the indigenous church that resultedfrom the Church of the .rethren Mission in Nigeria(1923-1983), this research 4 focuses on the developmentof the mission, the activity of missionaries in thefield, a few of the social changes and the Nigerianresponse.

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INTRODUCTION

Religion has always been an important, if not aprominent, concern in the social sciences. A studyof the world view of a people is necessary to understandtheir value system, and hence what looms as paramountfor any given society. Recent studies within the areas ofanthropology, history, psychology, and sociology haveshown an interest in the correlation between change inreligious perceptions and changes in the socio-culturalmatrix of a society. Therefore, there has been a growinginterest in the contribution that Western Christianmissionary activity has made to the process of moderni-zation referred to by Balandier as the "colonial situa-tion."

Anthropological research devoted to socialchange has almost never taken into account thecolonial situation as a particular conjunctiveimposing a certain orientation to agents andprocesses of transformation... the colonialsociety is of European origin and constitutesa numerical minority of a bourgeois character,which believes in a notion of heroic superior-ity (Balandier 1965:36,39).

The purpose of this study, which has been in progressover the past five years, has been to analyze the activityof one such expatriate missionary community and to seekthe evaluation or response of those m;ssionized. Thestudy focuses on the Church of the Brethren Mission inNortheastern Nigeria from 1923-1983. There are severalreasons for choosing this particular group.

In the first place, this researcher, having beena pert of the group under discussion, has access toprimary and secondary resources. The mission was co-founded by H. Stover Kulp, my father. I was born inLassa, Nigeria, which now occupies a place on the worldmap because of the infamous Lassa fever (Fuller: 1974).

My unique position was further enhanced by the fact that I

was frequently referred to as Yerima Lassa ('Prince ofLassa"), mal,ing possible a rapport difficult for mostresearchers to achieve.

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Secondly, having been employed as an educator by themission from 1958-1963, I was in a position to understandthe missionary. Finally, these two factors provided mewith access to people, materials, and resources availableto few others. This paper represents a part of thisresearch which is the result of previous studies made withthe help of several informants and a recently completedsabbatical field study. I am grateful to the more thanone hundred informant:, who helped reconfirm previouslystated assumptions.

The approach of this research is that of a socialscientist, and there is no attempt to employ the fieldsof church history or theology, or a philosophy of missionsin the broader context. This approach is better coveredby others such as C. H. Kraft, E. A. Nida, W. A. Smalley,et al.

It is my sincere hope that those who read thiswork will accept it in the spirit in which it is written.There are critical evaluations that are not intendedto condemn anyone, but to point out areas where onesown socialization and ethnocentrism, albeit clothedin well-meaning, resulted in a lack of sensitivitybetween two diverse cultures. There was a failureto communicate on both the side of the missionariesand of the Nigerians. It is hoped that this studywill further such a communication.

THEORETICAL CONSIDERATIONS

That the Western missionary was an integral partof the colonial society requires no debate, missionarydisclaimers notwithstanding. The missionaries attemptedto maintain their distance from other members of thecolonial society. They tried to demonstrate that therewas a difference despite the similarity in culturalbackgrounds. Several notations in the personal journalof one missionary expressed bewilderment over the factthat non-missionary colonials could claim to be Christianand still behave the way they did (Kulp, H.). The samejournal contains reservations about the actions of severalof his colleagues, as well. The missionary was willing,however, to utilize the colonial infrastructure for

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supplies, permits, and information, and to requestofficial favors in order to expedite mission objectives.On the other side, colonial officers on tour acceptedinvitations to meals and lodging with mission staff. Itis interesting to note, however, that the Nigerians madelittle or no distinction between missionary and colonialservants.

One incident which reveals the ambiguous relationshipbetween the two expatriate communities is found incorrespondence between Kulp, who was the Field Secretaryof the Church of the Brethren Mission, and the HomeBoard of the denomination. The Church of the Brethrenhas as one of its beliefs that all war is sin, andthat a true Christian cannot participate in militaryaffairs. However, this pacifism was not highly visiblein the mission teaching outside of the more basic loveethic.

In 1940, when the mission was requested to nameone of its number as a peace representative, the replyfrom the field after making the appointment was asfollows:

We don't know what you want him to do. We arevery pro-British. I am afraid and have verylittle sympathy for those who speak ofruthless British Imperialism. They do notlive in the present. Regardless of what thepast may have been, we have to think ofwhat can be done in a world situation as weare in -- and what is being done. (Letter infiles of C.B.M. Garkida, Nigeria)

The major result of the colonial situation wasto create a pluralism which was described in detailby J. S. Furnivall's concept of pluralism, which existsin the form of a colonial society and a colonized one.The characteristics of the colonized society are thefollowing:

(1) Its overwhelming numerical superiority,and (2) the racial domination to whichit is subjected. Although in numericalmajority it is nevertheless a sociological

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minority... 'colonization means power,'which entails the loss of autonomy. thefunction of each of the segments of thecolonial society is to insure domination in awell-defined domain (political, economic, andalmost always spiritual) (emphasis mine(Balandier 1965:41) .

Commenting further on this theoretical position Balandiernotes:

Sometimes these divisions preceded Europeancolonization, and were the result, forexample, of the conquering movements ofIslam. But in a number of places colonizationhas introduced religious confusion opposingChristianity to traditional religions, andChristians of various denominations amongthemselves (1965:42) .

This study will show that the above-mentioned confus-ion existed within the mission society itself, a factwhich had ramifications in the converted group of Afri-cans. The conclusion to be made is that a study ofexpatriate missionary groups must be within the theoret-ical context of Balandier's colonial situation andFurnivall's pluralism.

A further note on Furnivall's pluralism at thispoint will clarify the writer's analysis. Furnivallwas himself a colonial servant and then became a univer-sity lecturer and author. His concept of pluralism isnot the only one to be found in modernization literature.There are basically two major concepts of pluralism.One form is an equilibrium model (Kuper 1969:8) bestexemplified by the United States of America since the1950's. In this model, diverse political and socialelements have their own identifying characteristicsbut function within a more or less commonly acceptedideology often described as "the American Way." Thesediverse groups compete but do not subordinate eachother. Thus is created a form of unity with diversitywhich does not threaten the fabric of the society.

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In contrast with the equilibrium model is the conflictmodel, which best describes the concepts of Balandier andFurnivall. As applied to colonialism, the rest is thedomination of Western industrial societies over thepeoples who now comprise the third and fourth worldnations. These nations and peoples have been exploited tomeet the needs of the colonial power, creating subordina-tion and conflict (Kuper 1969:10). Two cultures existedside by side: one was industrial, urban, and scientific.The literature refers to these as being modern or devel-oped. On the other hand there is the traditional,agrarian, and village way of life. These are the presentdeveloping or modernizing nations. Furnivall notes:

...they mix but do not combine. Each groupholds by its own religion, its own culture andlanguage, its own ideas and ways. As individ-uals they meet but only in the market place,in buying and selling. Economic symbiosisand mutual avoidance, cultural diversityand social cleavages characterize the socialbasis of the plural society (1948:304) .

Pluralism as practiced by the colonial nations hasrf ilted in the two culture system in Africa. Oneis the traditional African culture and the other isthat of the white expatriate community (Smith 1969:170).

Salamone (1976) emphasizes the need to study expatri-ate communities as a method of refining the theory ofpluralism. He argues:

...for expatriate societies are but onetransformation of plural societies, onepossible concrete manifestation of deeperunderlying structural principles. Beforesocial anthropology can uncover these struct-ural principles there is a need for increasedempirical research and clearer conceptuali-zation of the problem (1976:1).

The situation referred to by Salamone is further clarifiedby this comment cf Beidleman:

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Anthropologists tend to neglect those groupsnearest themselves, and in the scurry toconduct relevant research... a broader areaof great theoretical interest has been passedby. Almost no attention was ever paid byanthropologist to the study of colonial groupssuch as administrators, missionaries, ortraders.... Anthropologists may have spokenabout studying their compatriots as subjectsfor wonder and analysis.... Colonial struct-ures may be viewed as variants of a broadertype, that of the complex bureaucraticorganization (1974:235-236).

A recent study by Beidleman (1982) suggests someimportant theoretical approaches to missionization.This writer recognizes his debt to this study as itcorrelates with this research. He comments:

Colonial life is a topic neglected by anthro-pology even though only two generations ago itinvolved nearly half the world and waswitnessed by most anthropologists as part oftheir fieldwork. There are no anthropologicalor sociological studies of European officials,planters, traders, or missionaries anywhere inAfrica. There are useful general historicalaccounts, biographies, and reminiscences byretired colonialists, but little comparableto what competent anthropologists or sociolo-gists would undertake (1982:1-2).

The reason for the lack of such studies is unclear.As Beidleman notes, there are studies of African societiesbut not of expatriate ones. There may be an indictmentof the social sciences which can see the visible theyin the African, while the European becomes a we. Just asthe white missionary found it difficult to separatehimself completely from the white colonial servant, so maybe the case with Western social scientists (Beidleman1982:2). Hopefully African social scientists will aid incorrecting the problem.

Nigerians were quick to point out to me a factobserved by Beidleman:

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Furthermore, colonialism is not dead inAfrica, if by colonialism we mean culturaldomination with enforced social change. I

refer not only to continued economic andpolitical influence by former colonial powersbut also to domination of the poor anduneducated masses by a privileged and powerfulnative elite fiercely determined to makechanges for whatever reasons (1982:2 ) .

Missions are an example of a colonial organizationwhich employs many of the factors of complex organizationsas outlined by Weberian theory:

Their large scale and technological demandsrequire hierarchical, bureaucratic organi-zations in which elites, privileged ineducation and income, administer a subordinatemultitude.... Staff serve as buffers andmanipulators between decision makers and anadministered populace.... Christian missionsrepresent the most naive and ethnocentric, andtherefore the most thorough-going, facet ofcolonial life (Beidleman 1982:5,6).

Missionaries responded to a call of the Churchto fulfill the command of Jesus as recorded in Matthew28:19: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations,baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of theSon and of the Holy Spirit." (R.S.V.)

The Church of the Brethren holds as one of itsfaith tenets that the New Testament is the ride offaith for the Church. In many ways the members attemptto practice as accurately as possible the example of theearly Church. The early Brethren were leery of too muchformal education, so that much of their faith was asimplistic approach to an increasingly complex world.This has changed since World War II, but had its ramifi-cations in the kind of mission policy to be formulated.As Beidleman rightly points out, while colonial servants'aims were much more limited to politics and economics ofdomination,

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Missionaries invariably aimed at overallchanges in the beliefs and actions of nativepeoples, at colonization of the heart and mindas well as body. Pursuing this sustainedpolicy of change, missionaries demonstrated amore radically and morally intense commitmentto rule than political administrators orbusinessmen. While missionaries deliberatedabout results of their policies, in theirrepeated protestations that they pursued onlysacred ends, they underrated the impact oftheir deeds (Beidleman 1982:6).

Mission communities share many similarities, yet thereis a variety of types of missionaries and mission commun-ities. Ideally a study should include a variety ofcomparisons, but that will have to be the point of anotherstudy. In order to understand the policies of the Churchof the Brethren missionaries, a brief comment is warrantedabout the social milieu from which they originated. Ashort history follows later.

The Church of the Brethren is one of five branchesof a group-of Anabaptists who fled Germany in the 18thcentury because of religious persecution. They were forthe most part Calvinistic in their view of the workethic. Most settled in farming valleys where they becameprosperous farmers and entrepreneurs in farm-relatedbusiness. They were Congregationalists in most matters,with final authority vested in the Annual Conference.They were not opposed to education but were skeptical ofit. The Brethren were reluctant to conform too closelywith the modern world, including involvement with govern-ment. These values were carried by the missionaries intheir approach to their work in converting the Nigerians.

Before leaving the consideration of theory, a commentmust be made concerning conversion. It is safe to saywithout fear of contradiction that the Christian groupthat does not have a program of evangelism and missionsdoes not grow. They are fortunate to retain theirmembership at a normal replacement rate. One calls tomind such groups as the Amish, Reformed Mennonites, andGerman Baptist Brethren. On the other hand, variousPentecostal groups are experiencing rapid growth. One may

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conclude that missions are essential to the health of theparent body. Missions furnish a motivation for steward-ship.

In the case of the Church of the Brethren missionprogram, local congregations and districts were askedto undertake the financial and prayer support of oneor more missionaries. Regular correspondence was encour-aged, and while on furlough the missionaries would visitthe congregation to make the contact personal. Many timesthe plight of the "heathen" in Africa was presented insuch soul-tugging services that the money forthcoming wasadequate to maintain not only the mission budget but theentire home operation of the General Mission Board aswell .

It is interesting to note that since the declinein foreign mission emphasis there has been a declinein the membership in the United States. While a seminarystudent in the early '50's, this writer recalls a profes-sor of Christian ethics and socio;ogy of religion comment-ing on the fact that the time would come when the Churchof the Brethren would have to merge its mission and socialservice programs under one administrative board. Orig-inally there was only the General Mission Board thatadministered the program of the denomination; mission wasthe major emphasis. Another was Christian education.With the coming of World War II and a large program toadminister conscientious objectors, the Brethren Serviceemphasis came into being. Some of the philosophical andprogram lines began to merge, and in time what is nowknown as u World Ministries Commission was created toadminister missions, disaster relief, and other socialprograms.

The interests of younger adenistrators were away frommissions, a fact which will be discussed later. Inaddition, the older people with substantial resourcesbegan to reduce their support of the General Board. Thereis an ongoing debate as to the role of missions. Duringthe period of emphasis on missions, from 1923-1973, over300 missionaries served and six million dollars was spentin Nigeria alone. Now about 18 missionaries remain, andthe estimated annual budget is $250,000 for Nigeria.

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Reasons for this policy change will be discussed morefully later.

Conversion is the main goal of a mission program.The object is to convert one to a new religious orien-tation, and is nothing more than a program ofresocialization. As Beidleman indicates, conversionis simply an alteration of the personality and socialchange (1982:16). Missionaries justify these changesas being the Will of God. They may accept the factthat conversion is a change in the individual, andsome may recognize the larger social ramificationsbut are not overly concerned. Most Western missionariesaccepted their role as the religious partner ofcolonialism's so-called civilizing mission. This fact wasobvious from the recruiting speeches given on collegecampuses by those seeking dedicated young people forforeign mission service. A. F. Baldwin, herself amissionary for the Church of the Brethren (1944-62) andnow a professor at the Church of the Brethren affiliatedManchester College in Indiana, commented in her doctoraldissertation on this attitude as seen in Austin Phelps ofthe Phelps-Stokes Foundation:

The privileges of such strategic wisdomshould lead us to look or the United States asfirst and foremost the chosen seat of enter-prise for world conversion. Forecasting thefuture of Christianity as statesmen forecastthe destiny of nations, we must believe thatit will be what the future of this countryis to be. As goes America, so goes the world,in all that is vital to its moral welfare(1973:2-3).

Referring to an earlier work by R. Allen, EducationalPrinciples and Missionary Methods (1919), Beidlemannotes the concept of negativism and paternalism whichmissionaries must have of the host culture in orderto be able to justify their ethnocentrism (1982:11).As mentioned earlier, the more inferior by inferencethe missionary can make the African culture, the morethat missionary can strike at the benevolent core of theHs u per i o r " culture and elicit an outpouring of sympathy,and, of course, money.

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Since the 1960's a new sophistication has arisenin missionization. Leading schools such as FullerTheological Seminary of Pasadena, California, havefull-time faculty trained in anthropology and withmission experience presenting approaches to conversionthat give recognition to the relevance of traditionalculture. This unique brand of applied anthropologymay well elicit the same criticisms as were once raisedagainst "colonial anthropologists."

Although it is difficult to assess motives, onecan safely assume that missionaries were seeking tobuild the Kingdom of God in Africa in a pure statesuch as was impossible in the homeland because of corrupt-ing modernizing forces. Upon being confronted with thisobservation by this writer, one older missionary dismissedthe notion as nonsense. Yet she supported every type ofprogram to prevent the Nigerians under her influence fromhaving anything to do with the outside world. She refusedstudents the opportunity to sit entrance examinations forgovernment schools. She wrote negative evaluations ofemployees who succumbed to "pleasures of the flesh" suchas dancing, drinking, smoking, and fornication -- behav-iors not necessarily forbidden by the traditional culture.

Of coarse, nudity, sEeking traditional healers,and associating with non-believers also made one subjectto church discipline. The Western Calvinistic backgroundof the missionaries was clearly demonstrated by theabove example, not unique among the missionaries.Conversion meant the giving up of all of these culturalelements as anti-Christian. Many of my informantsraised this question: What have these cultural elementsto do with religion? Obviously the missionaries them-selves were not aware of the relationship between ideologyand actual behavior.

There is no attempt in this brief study to exhaustall of the theoretical possibilities one could employto analyze the missionization process. It would requirepsychological, social psychological, sociological andanthropological theoretical approaches, depending on thefacet of the situation. That there is a need for ongoingstudies of this type is obvious. From a survey of recentpapers presented at professional meetings of various

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disciplines, it is evident that there is increasinginterest in missionization studies. This is true ofAfrican Studies, Latin American Studies, sociological,anthropological, and religious meetings. At least onepublication, "International Bulletin of MissionaryResearch," is devoted to the topic from a religious pointof view. It is hoped that some new theoretical approachesto understanding the process of social and cultural changein a modernizing world may result.

METHODOLOGY

The sources for this study are listed. The archivalmaterial is located in the possession of the writerand consists of diaries, letters, reports of HaroldStover Kulp, one of the co-founders of the Church of theBrethren Mission in Nigeria. Additional materialsare located at the General Offices of the Church ofthe Brethren in Elgin, Illinois, and at Garkida andthe Kulp Bible School in Nigeria. Various aspectsof the mission and some of its missionaries have beenthe focus of earlier studies (Heiser: 1926; Bittinger:1938, 1941; Baldwin E: 1953; Kulp H: 1954; BaldwinA: 1973; Faw: 1973; Kulp P: 1977).

The original study consists of the results andanalysis of a series of interviews of informants conductedby an associate, Dr. Mamadu Kwaya Mshelbila, Vice-Prin-cipal of the Theological College of Northern Nigeria, andaffiliated with Jos University. We selected a numberof church leaders and educators, as well as politicalleaders, who were able to remember the coming of themission to their area. Sume of them were old enoughire) recall the beginnig of the mission in 1923. Allof those interviewed held their present positions largelybecause of the presence of the mission. These interviewswere conducted in 1978-79. A preliminary report was madeat the annual meeting of the Society for the ScientificStudy of Religion in 1980, and a refinement of that reportwas made following critical comments graciously providedby colleagues in Africa and America.

In the spring of 1983, I conducted a field studyin Nigeria, interviewing over 125 people who had had some

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of their education in schools of the Church of theBrethren Mission or who had been employed by the mission.The data requested of the informants centered on thefollowing four questions:

1. What do you remember about the missionprogram in your community?

2. What do you perceive to be some of themajor contributions made by the mission andthe missionaries to your community?

3. What were the negative and/or disruptiveresults created by the presence of the missionand the missionaries in your community?

4. What socio-cultural changes do youattribute to the presence of the mission andthe missionaries in your part of Nigeria?

The responses were in narrative form and more or lessaddressed the questions as they were understood by theinformants. This paper attempts to analyze the responsesto those questions.

The results will not be given in statistical form, butthere will be an attempt to verify some of the theoreticalconsiderations of the role of one mission as an agent ofsocial change. Obviously there is a need for continuingrefinement of these theories.

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

NIGERIA

Nigeria is one of the most dynamic countries, not onlyon the corcinent of Africa, but of the developing world.Situated in West Africa between 3° - 15° E. longitude and14° - 14° N. latitude, Nigeria contains 356,670 squaremiles (923,768 sq. km.). Bounded on the south by theAtlantic Ocean, on the north by the Republic of Niger, onthe west by the Republic of Benin, ant' on the east by theCameroon Republic, Nigeria stretches nearly 800 miles eastto west and 700 mites north to soutl-, Population esti-

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mates are between 70-100 million. The last officialcensus of 1963 indicated 55.6 million. With an annualgrowt'i rate estimated to be at least 2.5, most estimatesindicate a population of 80 million for the 1980's.Although Nigeria consists of only one-seventh of the Ian'mass of West Africa, it contains half of its population,and a quaff ter of the population of the entire continent.

There are over 200 separate ethnic groups speakingas many languages. However, most of the people ofNigeria speak one or more of the major languages.These are Hausa in the northern parts above theNiger-Benue, Yoruba in the southwest, and lgbo in thesoutheast. Again, the Niger is roughly the dividerof those two southern areas. English is the officiallanguage of politics and commerce, and is the mediumof instruction in all Nigerian schools.

Topographically Nigeria consists of a narrow coastalbelt rising to a plateau of 1000 feet. Most of Nigeria isa large plateau 1000-3000 feet in elevation, with severalmountain ranges along its border with Cameroons. Largeplains gently slope northward toward the Sahara.

The Niger River and its major tributaries, theSokoto River in the northwest and the Benue River in theeast, drain most of the northern part of the country, withthe exception of the --fivers that flow into Lake Chad inthe northeast. Most of the south is drained by coastalrivers and the lower Niger. The Niger River has beendammed, forming Lake Kainiji which supplies electric powerto most of the county. A few smaller towns use dieselgenerators. Only the remote areas have not yet beenserviced, but this is slated for change in the nearfuture.

The rainfall, and hence the vegetation, varieswith the elevation and the influences of the two majorair masses, the tropical mountain air mass (S.W. trades)and the tropical continental air mass. These shifttwice to create a dry and a rainy season. Rainfallranges from more than 100 inches in the south to lessthan 25 in the northeast. The rainy season lasts longersin the south, from March to November, and gradually

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shortens northward. In the extreme northeast, the seasonis usually three months long -- June through August.

There is a severe water shortage in much of NorthernNigeria. Much of this shortage is attributable toinadequate retrieval and distribution systems. Someauthorities believe that there are adequate suppliesand encourage the drilling of bore holes and use ofvarious irrigation projects. In some such areas ithas been reported that the water table is lowering.Whether this is a trend or part of a cycle is not clear.This writer knows of several streams and lakes, now dry,which once flowed with ample water. The 1973 Saheliandrought appears to have been the turning point of thewater problem. Rainfall appears to be lessening.Observation by local farmers and unofficial rainfallrecords indicate a decrease. However, the rainfall hasbeen occurring at intervals conducive to a good crop forthe past several years.

Nigerian vegetation is divided between forestsand savannahs, with several types of each. The forestscover one-sixth of the country, and the remainder is insavannah. The forest ranges from coastal salt watermangrove swamps to equatorial forests. Trees are often100 feet high and 15 feet in diameter. Most of the lumberexported comes from this region. These high trees alsoprovide a canopy permitting secondary growth mostly ofcocoa and banana trees, as well as allowing for tertiaryground crops of tubers.

The savannah is likewise subdivided into severaltypes from south to north. The type of 'uvaries with rainfall and soil conditions. The savannahprovides most of the agricultural and animal grazingarea. The largest of these, known as the Guinea Savannan,is north of the forest belt. Rainfall ranges from60 inches to 40 inches, south to north. Best describedas orchard bush, with scattered trees and some woodlands,the vegetation is quite lush. Further north is theSudan, or true savannah, characterized by thorn scruband scattered trees. Grass is shorter and more sparse.Agriculture and herding dominate these areas in whichrainfall averages from 40 inches to 25 inches.

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In the extreme northeast is the scrub savannahor Sahel, with less than 25 inches of rainfall. Shortscattered thorn trees and very sparse grass cover thearea. Farming is limited to short growing season cropssuch as millet. Water is scarce; some animal grazingtakes place.

Population density in NIeria follows a similarsouth to north pattern with the greatest density inthe south. There is a long tradition of Yoruba urbancenters. These formed a base for many of Nigeria'slarger cities. Ibadan, with a 1963 population of 627,380,is now estimated to have over a million (lido 1980:17).The Yoruba are the most urbanized people in all Africa andhave created a highly centralized social system. Yorubaare noted for their industriousness as farmers, traders,and artists. Other peoples in the southern part ofNigeria are the Edo speakers living on the eastern side ofthe lower Niger; they founded the great Benin empire.East of the Niger are the Ibo and Ibibio, who live insegmentary villages.

North of the forest in the Guinea Savannah livesthe greatest density of Nigerian ethnic groups. Thisarea is commonly referred to as the middle belt. Amongthe largest groups are the Nupe to the west, and the Tiv.The major ethnic groups in the true north are the Fulani-Hausa and the Kanuri. There are more than 200 ethnicgroups and subgroups all struggling to realign theirloyalties to the united nation of Nigeria; however, ethnicidentities linger and conflicts arise.

The above mentioned groups are referred to by theNigerians as being among the dominant and powerful.Most of the peoples in the north, particular, belongedto what are known as the minority tribes or ethnicgroups; many of these were subservient to a dominantgroup. In the feudal type system of traditional states,most of the smaller groups were called upon to paytribute for security, to give taxes in kind, and tobecome a source of slaves and servants. In the northeastof Nigeria in the traditional areas of the kingdomsof Bornu under the Kanuri and Adamawa under the Fulani,were such smaller groups as the Bura, Chibuk, Marghi,Higi, Wagga, Whona, Kilba, and Gude-Fali. Whereas the

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Kanuri and Fulani had embraced Islam in the 16th and 17thcenturies, these people were predominantly followers ofAfrican Traditional Religions. They lived in an area nowknown as Southern Borno State and Northern Gongola State.

It is into this area that three Protestant missiongroups went in the second decade of the 20th century:the Danish Lutheran Church, the United Brethren (nowUnited Methodist), and the Church of the Brethren.

he first two belong to a family of missions knownas the Sudan United Mission (S.U.M.). There was alwaysa close cocp,ration between the S.U.M. and C.B.M.throughout the years. A fourth group, outside thisstudy, but present in the same area, was the RomanCatholic Church. Relationships with them were cordial,if a bit strained at times.

Before one can understand why the Brethren cameto Nigeria, a brief analysis of both Nigeria in itscolonial setting and the Brethren may be helpful.Included will also be a brief survey of the peoplesmentioned among whom the Brethren settled.

One cannot understand Western civilization outsideof its value system any more than one can understandNigerian life outside of its cultural context. Muchhas been written about the rise of capitalism,mercantilism, imperialism, and colonialism in Westernculture. In using the term "Western," this writerrefers to the European origins and the areas of theworld they influenced, i.e., the Americas. Westernculture, including its dominant religion, Christianity,was to confront a world whose philosophy was much differ-ent. Indeed it is interesting to note that Christianitybegan as an Eastern religion, but its Semetic roots wereovercome by Greco-Roman concepts that would mold its"Western flavor."

Meanwhile, one of its greatest competitors, especiallyin Africa, Islam, coming out of the same semetic tradi-tion, remained "Eastern." These two, coming from the sameorientation, passing through opposite philosophies,meet in the 19th and 20th centuries in Africa, competingfor control (Kulp:1958). But what was the nature of this

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Western Christianity? How was it tied to the politicaland economic values of the age?

Scholars have long traced the association betweenthe Protestant Reformation and the rise of capitalism.Together with the industrial revolution there occurredthe greatest technological development the world hadexperienced. The social result was a new economy known aslaissez-faire capitalism. There were several philoso-phical factors that influenced this development. Growingout of the rise of science was a new optimism, partic-ularly in "progress." The thought was that given nointerference, things would work out in their own ordainedway; this optimism extended to the areas of history andeconomics in particular. Adam Smith is noted for theconcept that

declared economic liberty to be an axiomaticprinciple of the natural order, regulatingeconomic life; and behind it he saw at workthe invisible hand which through economicself-interest fulfill:. providential plan(Boer 1978:10).

As in nature, so in economics; without interferencethere will be a balance created so that all may benefit.God was to rule as he did over nature, without humaninterference, punishing and rewarding according tohis plans. Individualism replaced the cooperationthat human societies had spent centuries to achievein the previous economic patterns of pastoralism andfarming. This was a return to searching after scarceresources. Each one was a small group to themselves-- a return to the nuclear family of the band societiesfrom the extended network of kinship that had evolved,and which still exists in Nigeria. The major valuesof self discipline and self reliance of the individualwere characteristic of the 19th century. Competitionbecame a survival of the fit, a fact which led to ruth-lessness and social problems seemingly inherent in acapitalistic society. Sociologically the result was a newclass structure. The old structure had been that ofnobility and peasant; the new was that of the rich and thepoor (Boer 1979:12) Boer goes on to quote Disraeli, whocommented that

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there were two nations between whom there isno intercourse and no sympathy; who are asignorant of each other's habits, thoughts andfeelings as if they were dwellers in differentzones, or... of different planets, arefed by a different food, are ordered bydifferent manners, and are not governedby the same laws (1979:12) .

Social stratification is not alien to human societies,but drastic change in the system and the extremes which ittook in the 19th century created a social upheaval. A newform of poverty emerged known as pauperism. It was moredevastating than anything imaginable. "Large sections ofsociety were degraded and deprived of tolerable condi-tions" (Boer 1979:13). More than anything else, this factof poverty created by capitalism gave voice to itscritics, among whom was Karl Marx. As a result, otherproblems emerged: poor housing and sanitation, alcohol-ism, poor health, low life expectancy, growth of slums,and exploitation of the weaker by the powerful. The timeswere ripe for those calling for a change. While Marx andEngles demanded changes in the social system, the Chris-tian church called for revival and evangelism as a meansof changing individual lives. There was a series ofawakenings or revivals in the 19th century in bothBritain and the United States.

Interesting to note is the fact that the evangelicalmovement had a great effect on the middle class. Thereligious movement of the middle class, Wesleyism,later Methodism, was instrumental in bringing abouta literal philosophy. The mixture of religion andeconomics led to a non-conformism that became a formof Christian conscience. A new ethical position requireda concern for the poverty class. Although supportiveof laissez-faire capitalism, they believed in sharingits contributions, good or bad. The middle class wasaccountable for many of the social problems, but they werewilling to seek solutions (Boer 1979:22). Evangelismbegan to become involved in social efforts which wereaimed at the lower class. Out of this grew the SalvationArmy movement, opposition to the slave trade, homes forvagrants, soup kitchens, and many other philanthropic andhumanitarian prograng3oer 1979:31).

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Many of those administered to were trained au laypeople in the evangelical movement. Social effortand religion were tied together; there was a responsibil-ity to repair, not to replace, an unjust system. Thepoor could not be expected to be concerned with salva-tion. Having their physical needs met was to open the wayfor reception to the gospel. As an example of thisapproach we note the successful program of the SalvationArmy.

In the United States, Dwight L. Moody was to emerge asthe leading evangelist of the 19th century. He preached amessage of personal salvation, but also promoted thecauses of the poor. Working on the social conscience ofthe rich, he was able to promote such programs as theY.M.C.A. The Moody Bible Institute is his legacy fortraining many evangelists; the supporting funds, however,came from the wealthy (Boer 1979:37).

The purpose of evangelism was that a social ordercan become just and humanitarian only when its peopleare. To focus on a system has no meaning. To evangelizea nation, however, will result in the desired change.The emphasis is on the individual. To evangelize issynonymous with mission -- to send out those who willspread the gospel.

Soon the horizons increased from home to abroad,especially as more representatives of Western Civilizationwere moving into "heathen" lands. The foreign missionarymovement was launched out of the evangelical revivalsof Europe and America. It should be noted that thiswas also a time of phenomenal church growth in Europeand especially in America. The conclusion may be thatwithout mission the church falters.

COLONIALISM IN NORTHERN NIGERIA

Assuming an acceptance of the definition ofcolonialism as presented earlier, an examination ofits impact in Nigeria is necessary. Many writers,African and Western, have focused on economic factorsas the major impetus for colonialism. There is noneed to challenge this fact; however, the implications

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range beyond the economic into all aspects of the socialorder. The industrial cities of Europe and America neededraw materials and markets in order to survive. To ensurethese, European nations began to establish their empiresat the expense of the non-Western world.

Following the abolishment of the slave trade, Europeturned to legitimate trade. As a result of the slavetrade, most of the contacts made in Africa were on thecoasts. One of the first to penetrate the interior ofNigeria for the purpose of trade was George Goldie. Anatheist who, to his credit, did not use religion tojustify his actions, Goldie established the United AfricaCompany in 1879, thus gaining a monopoly. He negotiatedtreaties with many local chiefs and eventually won theright to a charter by the British government which gavehim powers of jurisdiction in the area. The company wasknown as the Royal Niger Company.

Goldie was ruthless and employed all means to enhancehis economic empire. All who opposed him suffered,European and American alike. Eventually the charter wasrevoked by the British Foreign Office. Northern Nigeriawas declared a British protectorate on January 1, 1900,with Lugard as High Commissioner, making it equal withSouthern Nigeria. With this, colonialism expanded toinclude a formal political aspect resulting in a colonialpolitical economic approach.

Lugard's famous method of governing was the "dualmandate." This combined the elements of laissez-faireeconomics and the civilizing mission of Britain toAfrica (Boer 1979:57). Now the British government,through the colonial office, was in the exploitationbusiness; the dual mandate was to advance Africa anddevelop resources for Britain. Flora Shaw, Lugard'swife, wrote in her book, A Tropical Dependency, concerningthe purpose of the dual mandate:

to promote prosperity by the peaceful organiz-ation of the country under just laws, themaintenance of order, and the opening ofcommunication with the outer world (1905:495) .

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To this end Lugard proceeded to improve the infrastructureof the country. A railway soon connected Kano andLagos; major roads appeared, although they were madeof lateritic clay and were of limited value in therainy season. Cotton, groundnuts, and tin became themajor items of trade; roads and railways aided in theirmovement as well as in the transporting of troops requiredto maintain the Pax Britannica necessary to maximize thetrade.

To Lugard's credit from the point of view of theevangelicals in Britain, he eradicated the slave trade inNorthern Nigeria from the Moslem raiders. He also refusedto permit alcohol to be traded because of the Islamicteaching of total abstinence. Lugard himself had highpraise for his efforts; he saw himself responsible for

...a higher civilization brought into contactwith barbarism, and with the inevitableresult... to extend the rule of justiceand liberty, to protect traders, settlers, andmissions and to check anarchy and blood-shed.... For under no other rule -- be it ofhis own... or of aliens -- does the Africanenjoy such a measure of freedom and ofimpartial justice, or a more sympathetictreatment, and for that reason I am a profoundbeliever in the British Empire and its missionin Africa (Boer 1979:67,68).

Lugard has been depicted as opposed to Christianmissionaries because as part of his method of indirectrule he promised to the muslim chiefs that his governmentwould not interfere with their religion. this statementwould be used by those who succeeded Lugard, for they,more than he, were anti-mission. He did not promiseto exclude missionaries from Muslim areas, only thatgovernment would not interfere with the Muslim religion.In fact, one of his most trusted advisers was WalterMiller, a Church Missionary Society missionary.

Lugard permitted Christian missionaries in Muslimareas where the local chiefs concurred. There waslittle fear that Muslims would convert but many ofthe people the Muslim chiefs controlled were at best

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nominal missionaries to go among the non-Muslim popula-tions (Boer 1979:70).

Several reasons may be advanced for Britishadministrators opposing missionaries. Some had a respectand admiration for both traditional religion and Islam andthey wanted no interference. Secondly, some administra-tors felt that trouble would result when Christianmissions confronted the existing religious practices.Perhaps a third reason involved a fear that missionarieswould be rivals for the respect and authority of thegovernment in their areas of influence.

COMING OF CHRISTIAN MISSIONSTO NORTHERN NIGERIA

Although the missionary movement in Africa beganwith the Portuguese contact with the coasts of Africain the fifteenth century, there was no lasting result.The year 1775 is considered the beginning of modernmissions in Africa, according to Kendall (1978:16).Efforts to end the slave trade, stories of the exploitsof explorers to strange new lands, the Americanindependence, and an emphasis on humanism all contributedto setting the stage for the beginning of mission socie-ties. William Carey formed the Particular BaptistSociety for the Propagation of the Gospel Amongst theHeathen in 1792. In 1795 the London Missionary societyand the Religious Tract Society were formed (Boer1979:82).

The first missions under the Church MissionarySociety (C.N.S.)arrived in Sierra Leone, West Africa,in 1804 (Kendall 1978:18). The World Missionary Confer-ence at Edinburgh in 1910 provided the first statisticsfor missionaries in Africa. There were 4,534 Protestantand 6,312 Roman Catholic, one-third coming from Britain(Kendall 1978:19). World-wide, there were some twentythousand missionaries (Boer 1979:83). The number ofmissionaries in Africa continued to increase; by 1940there were 22,000 and by 1976 more than 36,000 (Kendall1978:19).

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Since that time the numbers 3f missionaries havegrown more slowly because of various indigenizationprograms, yet the membership in African Churches isgrowing at the Tastest rate of any church in the world.It is estimated that by the year 2000 AD, Africa willbe the most Christianized region in the world. Thereis a decline in numbers of missionaries from thelong-established societies and an increase from smallerevangelical groups. Dr. Philip A. Potter, former GeneralSecretary of the World Council of Churches, noted that 60$of the missionaries in the world came from the UnitedStates (Kendall 1978:25).

Early missionary activity in Northern Nigeria wascarried out by the C.M.S. as early as 1889. This grouphad been active in Southern Nigeria since the mid-century. All of West Africa including Nigeria was underthe Bishop at Freetown, Sierra Leone. Bishop Crowther wasthe first African to become an Anglican Bishop (1860.But his post was opposed by a group of evangelicalAnglicans and they formed their own faction in 1889 calledthe Sudan Party. Crowther employed African missionaries,a practice opposed by the British missionaries. Thisschism, however, was short-lived, and by 1891 it haddisbanded. But the group was able to penetrate the Kanoarea for future mission work. With the Arrival ofDr. Miller, the C.M.S. became well established in Zaria(Crampton 1978:30-35).

The Baptists and the Methodists had establishedprograms in the southern part of Northern Nigeria in 1855and 1886 respectively. But in the north a group under theleadership of Bingham persuaded Lugard to allow theopening of the Sudan Interior Mission (S.I.M.) in 1900.The Sudan United Mission was established by Karl Kumm in1904. Both of these were interdenominational evangelicalmissions (Crampton 1978:46). When Lugard left in 1906,the missionaries expressed thanks for his efforts atpermitting them a foothold.

These three mission groups represented the earlyevangelical Christian presence in Northern Nigeriaduring the first two decades of the century. The RomanCatholics were also establishing themselves. It was into

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this situation that a fourth group joined in 1923 -- theChurch of the Brethren.

CHURCH OF THE BRETHREN BACKGROUND

A brief summary of the Church of the Brethren originsand beliefs will help in understanding the actions of themissionaries. The Church of the Brethren was born out ofthe radical reformation movement of the 17th century. Itsfounders were part of the Anabaptist dissenters who werepersecuted because they failed to accept any of therecognized groups, Catholic, Lutheran, or Calvinist.Their beliefs were similar to those of the Mennonites.They believed in adult or believers' baptism, no force inreligion, and living in peace with all men. They refusedmilitary service and had to flee several times from placeto place in Europe as they were persecuted for theirbeliefs.

They fled to Germantown, Pennsylvania, in 1723and began to organize themselves as a church. Knownfirst as German Baptist brethren, they were popularlycalled Tunkers or Dunkers. Many were skilled artisansand farmers. They migrated into the fertile farmingareas of Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia. Laterthey joined those who moved west across Ohio, Indiana,Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, eventually reaching the northwest.

Their polity is one of strong congregational autonomy,yet the official rule of the church comes from decisionsmade by delegates from each congregation meeting in anannual conference. After suffering several divisions, thechurch remains small compared to other denominations. Atpresent there are about 170,000,000 members. Yet thisgroup sent 300 missionaries at a cost of six milliondollars to Nigeria between 1923 and 1973. This was inaddition to sponsoring mission work in India, China,Ecuador, and ambitious relief programs such as the Heiferproject and .71 program of religious education. Finally,the denomination has a relationship with five colleges, auniversity, and a theological seminary, as well as with ahospital.

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The Church of the Brethren was caught up in theevangelical revivals of the 18th century. Membershipgrew; there was enthusiasm for missions at home andabroad. The church needed missions to keep alive itspurpose; missions needed the church to supply staff andresources. However, external circumstances were to strainthis symbiotic relationship beginning in 1963, eventuallyhaving an effect on the mission program.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries therewas an emphasis within evangelical protestantism toembark on a world-wide program of foreign missions.Colonialism had provided access to many part of theworld not previously available to missionization.As stated before, Western Christianity saw itsresponsibility in the civilizing mission of the non-Western world, a fact that was obvious from the lecturesand sermons that were being given in churches and oncollege campuses.

The central message to all who would hear was theevangelization of the world. The Student VolunteerMovement, active on many college campuses, set as theirrecruiting appeal for missionaries this challenge:"The Evangelization of the World in This Generation"(Baldwin 1973:32). Recp.IncEng to this call were AlbertHeiser, a student at Mani:hester College in Indiana,and H. Stover Kulp at Juniata College in Pennsylvania.They both had graduate degrees in education. (Thecolleges had a strong emphasis on Bible education,since they were Church-affiliated institutions, andthe Brethren did not require theological training forordination at that time.)

There was no mission work in Africa on the partof the Brethren, but there were programs in India andChina. The Church of the Brethren, with fewer than100,000 adult members, was not in a strong financialposition to expand its program. However, Heiser andr:ulp were sent on an investigating tour in 1922, arrivingin Nigeria as the year was closing. After consultingwith British colonial officials and representativesof other mission societies in Lagos, the two men reachedBiu, in southwestern Biorno, in the spring of 1923.

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Earlier, the Phelps-Stokes Foundation had releaseda report identifying the Bornn region as having potentialfor educational and consequently Christian opportunities.Although the area was under the domination of Muslimruling classes, the majority of the peoples in thesouthern part of the region were identified as pagans(animists). The ruling class in the vicinity of Biuwere called Pabir and were Moslem. Their languagewas essentially the same as that of the majority ofthe people they ruled, which were the Bura. (Pabirhas some Kanuri influences indicating the origin ofthe ruling class.)

The Pabir rulers and the District Officer opposedthe missionaries' presence on the grounds that it violatedthe conditions of indirect rule as formulated by LordLugard. One condition was that the religion of the localregion would be respected by the British. However, themajority of the Bura were not Moslem. The team movedfarther east, off the Biu Plateau, to the east bank of theHawal River; the Hawal is a tributary of the GongolaRiver, which flow, into the Benue and on to the Niger.There, at a place called Garkida, on the east bank of theHawal, on March 17, 1923, the first mission program w.7.0begun by the Brethren.

According to one informant, the white people wereaccepted there in part because of the African& curiosityof such strangers. The Bura term given to these mission-aries was zul, meaning a people of unknown origin who cameout of the sea. Otherwise, all whites in Nigeria areknown by the Hausa term bature (singular) or turawa(plural), meaning people from Ture (Europe). Anotherreason for the acceptance of Heiser and Kulp was that theyquickly learned the language, and would visit and jokewith the Bura as equals.

The Nigerians were impressed by the strangers and thenew mrterial culture they brought. However, they werecaut.Jus, and the local elders adopted a wait-and-seeposition to ascertain the kind of people the missionariesreally were. Mission work progressed slowly because therewas pressure from some sources to have the newcomersremoved. Having failed to remove the intruders, however,the Kanuri in Maiduguri were successful in redrawing the

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eastern boundary of Borno so that Garkida became a part ofAdamawa Province. Adamawa's ruling peoples were theFulani, who did not have as tight a control over thevarious ethnic groups in their area as did the Kanuri inBorno.

Meanwhile, additional missionaries arrived andother centers were opened (see map): Dille (1927),Lassa (1929), Gulak (1947), Mubi (1954). Uba (1956),and Mbororo (1956) in Adamawa. Permission was finallygiven to work on the Biu Plateau at Marama (1930),Wandali (1948), Shaffa (1950), and Waka (1952). Otherwork was begun at Chibuk (1940) farther north in Borno.

The area of mission influence covered approximately12,000 to 15,000 square miles, with an estimated popula-tion of 500,000. The main ethnic groups were the Bura,Pabir, Margi, Chibuk, Gude-Fall, Higi, and Whona.Education was a major emphasis of the mission program,for it was seen as a key to developing local leadersas well as spreading the gospel. CRI's, or Classesin Religious Instruction, were established throughoutthe area. These were the forerunners of an educationalsystem that etientually included 40 primary schools,a secondary school, a teacher training college, anda Bible School with an agricultural component. Thor:latter was established to train evangelists to be moreself-sufficient. Rural education was a part of theprogram in order to increase the quantity acid the qualityof life. A medical program of two major hospitals, aleprosarium, maternity clinics, dispensaries, and firstaid stations was initiated.

The primary reason for the coming of the missionprogram -- the spread of Christianity -- had a slowbeginning, but the church has emerged as one of themost rapidly growing in Nigeria. In 1981 the 75thcongregation was organized in Maiduguri. Ironic tonote is the fact that Maiduguri was the source of theearlier religious and political opposition to the miss-ion. And many of the people who are now in leadershippositions in the modern state of Borno received theireducation in the Educational system of the mission.

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MISSION BEGINNINGS

The informants interviewed had similar views concern-ing the origins of the mission program in their respectiveareas. The missionaries were viewed as sincere, dedi-Lated, and hard working. It was known that they had lefta much better life style to come to Africa. The co-found-ers of the Church of the Brethren Mission were AlbertHeiser and H. Stover Kulp. Heiser was a graduate ofManchester College in Indiana, and also studied inLondon. He possessed a charasmatic personality and becamecaught up in the evangelical fervor of his day -- a fervorwhich included an interest in foreign missions.

Helser's contribution to the beginning of the missionis well documented in his book In Sunny Nigeria. Unfor-tunately, his conception of what the mission was to becomewas not accepted by his co-workers. After much tension,letter writing to the Home Board, and prayer, the mission-aries on the field requested Helser's removal. He went onto join the S.I.M. and became a very influential member oftheir administration. The full story of this earlydissention in the young mission group is interesting andwill be commented upon elsewhere.

The other member of the original team remainedwith the mission as its field secretary until his retire-ment in 1963, a service of forty years. A brief biographyis therefore included.

Harold Stover Kulp was born September 29, 1894,on a farm in East Coventry Township in Northern ChesterCounty, Pennsylvania, near Pottstown. His parents,Aaron and Naomi Tyson Kulp, were farmers and membersof the Coventry Church of the Brethren, one of theearliest congregations established by the Brethrenafter they immigrated from Germany to Germantown.The Kulp (Kolb) family were traditionally Mennonite,having arrived in Pennsylvania from Germany at thebeginning of the 18th century. Thus the commitmentto Christianity was a strong factor in the life ofStover Kulp.

He was educated in the local public schools andgraduated from West Chester State Normal School (now West

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Chester University) in 1912 as a teacher. After threeyears of teaching at the Carter Junior Republic Schoolnear Easton, Pennsylvania, he entered Juniata College,graduating in 1918. Juniata was to award him the HonoraryDoctor of Divinity Degree in 1948. It was while he was astudent at Juniata that Kulp came in contact with theStudent Volunteer Movement, which was to be the sourcewhich provided the Church of the Brethren with interest inAfrica (Baldwin 1973:32).

Following his years at Juniata, Kulp served aspastor in two churches. One of these was in Philadelphia,and while there he attended the Philadelphia Schoolof Bible and the University of Pennsylvania, from which hereceived his M.A. in Education in 1921. Later educationincluded study in Linguistics at the School of OrientalStudies in the University of London in 1926, and a year ofgraduate work at the Hartfore Theological Seminary'sKennedy School of Missions in 1931; in the latter he beganpursuing a doctoral program that he was never to finish(Kulp: personal notes) .

Although this paper is not intended to be a biographyof Dr. Kulp or a detailed history of the Church ofthe Brethren in Nigeria, the two are intertwined andinseparable components of the analysis of expatriateactivity and their impact on Nigerians.

In addition to his missionary work, which includedthe duties of Executive Field Secretary, he found time tobe the editor of Listen, the publication of the Inter-national Committee for Christian Literature for Africa;Chairman of the Board of Governors of Hillcrest School forMissionary Children; President of the Christian Council ofNigeria, of which he was a founding member; Chairman ofthe United Evangelistic Campaign of Northern Nigeria whichbrought Billy Graham to Nigeria. He received honors andcommendations from people and organizations both in andout of Nigeria.

The Student volunteer Movement chose him as oneof the 17 outstanding Christian missionaries !n theirversion of "Who is Who - Answering Distant Calls" in1942. As previously mentioned, Juniata College awardedhim an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree in 19148, and the

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Royal Africa Society of Great Britain made him a medalistand Honorary Life Member in 1954. Other accolades camefrom Nigerian officials at his retirement and death.

So respected was he by the people of Nigeria that theypaid him the tribute of an honorary traditional funeral.

Ihe following account is excerpted from a document"Beginnings at Garkidda" written by Stover Kulp forthe Missionary Education Department of the Church of theBrethren in 1954:

Missions are results of prayer and trueworship. So Christ commanded 'Pray yetherefore the Lord of the harvest to sendforth laborers into His harvest (Matt. 9:38).

Our mission in Africa was born in prayer.Believing that the dark events of the FirstWorld War were a judgment calling the Churchto a fuller obedience to Christ's commandto be his world-wide witness, a group ofstudents in several of our colleges were leddefinitely to pray that our Church open amission in Africa.... Although a number ofareas were considered, the answer finally camethrough the missionary explorer, Dr. KarlKumm, who was one of the founders of theSudan United Mission.... Having marls explora-tions in that area, he often mentionedthat in NOrtheastern Nigeria there was a groupof some half a million or more non-Moslempeople who were a challenging field formissionary effort.

The church decided to begin missionwork in Nigeria, and the first missionarieswere approved at Annual Conference held atWinona Lake, Indiana, in June 1922. Appointedwere Rev, and Mrs. Albert D. Heiser of Ohioand Rev. and Mrs. H. Stover Kulp of Pennsyl-vania. It was planned that the men should goahead and locate a definite area and be joinedlater by their wives. The men sailed from NewYork on the S.S. Aquatania on October 13,

1922. Mrs. Kulp spent a year at Livingstone

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College, London, in a medical course forlay-missionaries going to tropical Africa.Mrs. Heiser, a registered nurse, remained inChicago. After getting equipment in England,we proceeded to Nigeria, arriving at Lagos inthe last week of December, 1922 (Kulp 1954:1).

The Phelps-Stokes Fund had undertaken a study of Westand South Africa in 1920-21 at the request of severalAmerican mission groups in order to survey the educationalneeds of Africa. As the report states, the term of studywas "the educational needs of Africa, especially thosepertaining to hygienic, economic, social and religiouscondition of the native people" (Baldwin 1973:34).

Upon arriving in Lagos, Kulp and Heiser had copiesof the report to give to government officials. Thiswas their introduction to Nigerian colonial servants.In fact, Kulp and Heiser used one paragraph of thereport to support their reason for coming to Nigeria:

In north-eastern Nigeria... there is ademand for a teacher-training center thatshall become a stronghold for the dissemina-tion of Christian ideals where Mohammedanismis. pending.... As the government cannotnow undertake this important responsibility,it is further agreed that Christian missionsshould undertake the task (Kulp 1968:63).

A lagos paper, The Nigerian-Pioneer for January 5,1923, noted:

You perhaps already know that partly as anoutcome of the Phelps-Stokes EducationCommission, which visited Nigeria in 1920-21,there have arrived in Lagos on their way toBornu two American gentlemen, Messrs. Heiserand Kulp, as an investigation commissionto Nigeria under the auspices of the GeneralMission Board of the Church of the Brethren tofound an industrial institution among thepagans of the north (Baldwin 1973:34).

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Consultations were held with Sir Hugh Clifford,Governor of Nigeria, who gave them permission to carryon with their search for a location. After a stopat Kaduna, the capital of Northern Nigeria, to consultwith the Lieutenant Governor, who had just returnedfrom a tour in the Bornu area, he called to the attentionof Heiser and Kulp that the Biu district in southernBornu Province had a large non-Moslem population ofover 200,000. Jos was to be point of departure forBornu, so the team left Kaduna, stopping at Zaria toconfer with Dr: Walter Miller. Dr. Miller was a Hausascholar and served under the Church (of England) Mission-ary Society (C.M.S.). A brief summary of Miller'swork and the early tension between missionary Nigeriancolonial administration and indigenous political andsocial structure is analyzed by Salamone (Salamone1976:6-13).

Up to this point, the Americans had been well receivedand encouraged. There has always been the criticism onthe part of indigenous peoples that no matter how hardWestern missionaries tried to disassociate themselves fromother expatriates, especially government and commercialgroups, they, in reality, could not. Missionaries weredependent on other expatriate communities. Althoughindigenous peoples know the difference between individ-uals, there was the normal grouping and labeling processthat occurs in every social context. So, all expatriatesin Nigeria came to be known as Europeans, that is,non-African.

The American team left Zaria and arrived in Jos.After making arrangements for carriers to take theirboxes, engaging a cook and a steward, they began thetrip to the East toward Biu, with major stops at Bauchiand Gombe. On February 12, nineteen days after leavingJos, they arrived at Biu. Today the trip can be madeby auto in under six hours. Biu is on a plateau nearly2000 feet in elevation, making it quite a comfortableplace to live. It is the center of the Bura speakingpeople. The ruling class, known as Pabirs, speak adialect of Bura that has been influenced by Kanuri.It is believed that once Kanuri raiders came into the areaand took over the politir3I structure of the Bura butmarried Bura women; hence the diffusion. Although most of

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the Bura practiced traditional religion, the Pabirs wereMoslem.

Major Edgar, the District Officer of Biu, grantedthe team hospitality. But upon making a request tobegin work, they ran into opposition from the Emirof Biu, a Moslem. Edgar, not wishing to create a problembetween himself and the Emir, refused permission.This was in keeping with the policy of indirect rule.Naturally the missionaries interpreted this act ofthe District Officer as favoring Islam over Christianity.

An appeal was made to the Resident of Bornu Province,Mr. Palmer, who later became Lieutenant Governor ofNorthern Nigeria. To do this, the eight-day trip toMaiduguri had to be made. There, the Resident backed theDistrict Officer's decision. Kulp wrote:

It happened that the resident, althoughan able administrator, belonged to the groupwho opposed missions on the grounds ofpolicy. That is, he favored all people comingunder the Moslem emirs and felt that thecoming of Christian missions was not at thattime a desirable step in the development ofthe country. He took the objection of thelocal chief at Biu as sufficient reason foradvising against our application beinggranted. We had, however, the writtenstatement of the Governor that it was not thegovernment policy to prohibit missions eventhough the paramount chief was a Mostem if themass of the people was still pagan (Kulp1968:70).

An appeal was made by Kulp to the Governor by tele-gram, but the Resident gave permission for their work ifthey moved farther east across the Hawal River. This tookthem off the Biu Plateau where the weather was lesspleasant, and to the edge of the Bura population.The place was Garkida.

The preceding documents the problem of indirectrule. It also shows that appeals to higher authoritycould bring change in that policy. This is commented

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on by Salamone (Salamone 1976:13). However, this authorearlier states that there was a close relationshipamong expatriates, even if they were not all engagedin the same program. This mutual reinforcement wasused when it suited a particular purpose. And Kulpused it even as on earlier occasions he wrote of hisaversion to government officials. But the Nigeriansdid not miss the point. The policy of indirect rulewas not without its exceptions in practice.

Upon returning to Biu, Kulp and Heiser preparedto leave for Garkida, 30 miles east of Biu, arrivingon the third of March at the place that was to markthe beginning of the Church of the Brethren Missionin Nigeria. Ground was broken for the first buildingon March 17th which is regarded as Founders' Day ofthe Mission. As Kulp stated:

On that day, often kneeling in humble,grateful prayer, ground was broken for ourfirst mission residence at Garkida. Ourbuilding, like Solomon's Temple, was builtwithout the sound of a hammer. Walls werebuilt of mud by African builders, often theirown method. Mud was dug and mixed to theright consistency with water and bits of cutgrass.... Natural tools and local materialswere used for the first buildings. But wewere busily engaged in other matters.Language study had started: a language whichwe white men had never written or spoken.Medical work was also begun. At each clinic,there was always an opportunity for a shortgo.,pel message and prayer (Kulp 1954:3-4).

In April, Heiser became ill with malaria and hiscondition was serious enough to require his being hospit-alized. The choice was overland to Maiduguri in theNorth, or Lokoja to the South at the confluence of theBenue and Niger Rivers. After a difficult trip to Neumanon the Benue, they took a barge to Lokoja. It was Augustbefore Heiser recovered. Then, since their wives were dueto arrive in October, they remained in Lokoja until theirarrival. With the wives was the first car -- a gift fromthe Philadelphia church that Kulp had pastored briefly.

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While in Lagos, Kulp paid a visit to Governor Cliffordwho inquired as to their progress and gave them hisblessing. However, Major Edgar was still trying to getthe missionaries out of his area. He was sending reportsto his superiors that the Americans' lives were endan-geed. He even signed the Governor's name to an order ofeviction that greeted the Kulps and Helsers on theirarrival back in Garkida in December. But Edgar's undoingwas the fact that earlier he had written a letter tofriends in Lagos that "Pax Britannica" had come to the Biuarea and there had been no murders for many years. Anappeal by missionaries to the Governor caused Major Edgarto be called before his superiors for an explanation. Asa result, permission was given by the Governor to remainand continue the work (Kulp 1954:5-6).

The joy of reunion was shortlived, for in Juneof 1924, Ruth Royer Kulp died of dysentery along withtheir infant son who had been born prematurely. Kulpreturned to his work with a new vigor, if a heavy heart.The rest of 1924 and 1925 were spent in evangelistic workin the district around Garkida.

Some persons within Bornu Province were still opposedto the missionaries being in the area and so in theclosing days of 1924 the Bornu boundary was moved to theeast of the Hawal River, putting Garkida in AdamawaProvince. The missionaries were then forbidden to tour inBornu.

During the year of 1924, four other couples hadarrived, one of the men being a doctor. When 1925came to a close, it was time for Kulp and the Helsersto return to American for furlough. In the first twoshort years, the Mission had established a hospital,Sunday School classes, regular church services, districtevangelistic work, and the completion of the "FirstPrimer in Bura" which Kulp had prepared. He was workingon a "Second Reader" and selected Old Testament passagesin Bura.

With eleven missionaries there were administrativeand personnel matters to be attended to and reportsto be made to the Home Board. Kulp was elected fieldchairman as well as Elder-in-Charge (Presiding Bishop).

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In all of this, Kulp was sensitive to the peoplehe had come to serve. He wrote in his diary:

One cannot laugh at their customs and tradi-tions and superstitions. We must put our-selves in their position. How would anAmerican community treat the bearers of a newreligion? That they tolerate us is much totheir credit. Should we expect any bettertreatment from them than we would give toteachers of a new religion who came to ourtown?

Kulp returned to Nigeria in 1926 after visits inAmerica and a short linguistics course at the Universityof London where he met and married Christina Masterton.The new Mrs. Kulp had served a tour in Rhodesia asmissionary for the United Free Church of Scotland.Permission had been given, meanwhile, for the Churchof the Brethren to open new work at Dille, among theMarghi people. These were linguistically related to theBura. Kulp had come in contact with the Marghi on hisfirst trip to Maiduguri in 1923. And so the Kulps beganthe program at Dille, then moving in 1929 to near Lassa,where this writer was born.

The first four converts were baptised in 1927.Two have died, one reverted to Islam and one is stillactive in the Church. Conversion progressed slowly.From 1927 to 1952 there were 1,313 members, with eightorganized churches and 57 preaching points (Baldwin1953:54) . Since the post World War period growth had beenrapid.

After much effort, the first permission to go intoBornu occurred when Marama was opened in 1930, south ofBiu; Wanda li and Shaffa, to the west between Biu andCarkida, were opened in 1950. Each of these had become acenter of evangelistic, educational, and medical activ-ity. Also in 1952 Wake School was opened, and finally theTeacher Training Centre, one of the original motives forsettling in the Biu area, was established. Other areaswere opened, among them Chibuk (1940), Culak (1947), Mubi(1954), Uba (1956), and Mbororo (1956) (Baldwin 1973:37-38).

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Medical work was first begun Albert Heiser andRuth Kulp who were medical laymen in extensive tropicalfirst aid. However, they were more properly para-medics.When Dr. Burke arrived in 1924, nearly 50 patientsa month were being treated at Carkida. By 1951 anaverage of 1,320 people were being seen monthly bythe medical staff. The Ruth Royer Memorial Hospitalat Carkida became a modern facility, as did the BashoreMemorial Hospital at Lassa. There was also a Leprosariumat Carkida and large dispensaries at each station (Baldwin1973:39-40).

One of the earliest proposals for mission workwas the establishment of schools Schools have playeda dominant part in the program. The plan was for eachstation to have a school, and in this, the Church of theBrethren was like most missions. Education in one form oranother has been associated with Christianity fromearliest times. Christianity is a proselytizing religionwhich requires a certain level of informed clergy andlaity. Some groups have made schools an integral part oftheir program through a parochial school system. Othershave acted as sponsors or proprietors of schools while notowning them. The Church of the Brethren always worked incooperation with the Nigerian government's Ministry ofEducation. There were, as mentioned previously, schoolscalled CRI's (Classes of Religious Instruction) which werestarted in each village where possible. These becamethe base for a later primary system. There was alsoa system of adult education classes separate from thosefor the children.

The schools followed approved syllabi and receivedgrants from the government to subsidize salaries andconstruct buildings. A system of fees helped provi'eoperating funds. In the early years teachers weremainly missionaries. In 1938, the first graduatingclass from the Carkida Teacher Training School becamethe nucleus of Nigerian teachers. This school wasmoved to Waka near Biu in 1952 and has continued providingteachers for nearly 40 mission operated primary schoolsas well as for schools operated by other missions and thelocal government schools. There is also a secondaryschool at Waka where this author served as administratorand teacher from 1958-1965.

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The students were at first separated on the basisof sex. Because there was a feeling among the Nigeriansat first that girls should not be educated, there were farmore boys in attendance. The schools at Waka soon becameco-educational, however, and thus they have remained. TheSecondary School was a co-educational boarding school withseparate dormitories, the second such school in NorthernNigeria and the only one in the Northeast.

School enrollment rose from an average of 600 a yearfrom 1930-1942, to 1,240 a year from 1948-1952. Atten-dance continued to increase until 1969 when the missionrelinquished its program to the Nigerian government(Baldwin 1973:41).

In addition to hygiene and education, the Churchof the Brethren was dedicated to improving agriculture.This may have been in part because of the rural backgroundthat marked much of the history of the church or tothe fact that Kulp was raised on a farm as were othersof the mission staff. Nevertheless, new gardeningand farming methods were encouraged. As a means oftheir own subsistence, the missionaries all had gardens,small orchards, and some kept a few pigs, cattle, andchickens. If lay-evangelists could become self-sufficientin food production with advanced farming techniques,including the use of oxen-drawn ploughs, proper fertili-zers and insecticides, they may have more time to devoteto evangelism. To this end, the mission began such aprogram at the institution that became known as the KulpBible School. Here education in agriculture is asimportant as Bible lessons, and the program has been verysuccessful.

Mention has already been made about the difficultiesin the early days with the ruling Muslim Pabir andthe Biu District Officer. Similar difficulties occurredin attempts to expand the mission into other partsof the Bornu Province and into Adamawa Province. Thisarea now occupies parts of Borno and Gongola Statesrespectively.

In the Chibuk area the local population (Kibuku)welcomed the missionaries. However, as was the casein Biu, the local District Head (Lawan), who was Muslim,

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opposed the intrusion of these outsiders. Lawan Jabba,as he was known, forbade the local children to attendthe mission school; he called it a school to trainthieves. The Kibuku people were largely non-Muslimand sided with the missionaries. Pressure was appliedsin Maiduguri to have the Lawan replacel, and LawanMaigana, the new Head, although a Muslim, was friendlyto the missionaries mainly because they had been atleast partly responsible for his appointment.

The Marghi and Higi areas presented another typeof problem. The area of the Yedseram River Valleyhad been ravished for years by slave raiders. Thissituation is documented in the various studies madeby James Vaughan of the Marghi and surrounding peoplesover a period of twenty years (Vaughan 1964). Thelocal Musl;m leadership was in general in oppositionto the missionaries coming into their area, whereasthe local, largely non-Muslim population wel..omed themissionaries because they were perceived as a means tocounteract the Muslim oppression. One informant recallingthe beginning of the mission program at Dille n 1927 saidthat the District Head, lyawa Huyyn, called the laborersworking for the mission bebbe dawada, or children ofdogs. This is strong abuse, and a curse. He also calledthe missionaries kilaio nasara'en, meaning white black-smiths. Among the Marghi the blacksmith clan were of thelowest social class and its members were held in lowstatus.

The missionaries moved from Dille to a villagenearby called Lassa in 1929 because the water supplyat Dille was not sufficient to support a mission program.At Lassa the village head, Ptil Nyamdu, invited themissionaries by saying, "We want to live with you if youcan live with us." Kulp's reply was, "Yes, we can"(Mshelbila 1979).

In Adamawa Prcvince the same opposition tomissionaries was mot..nted by the Fulani Muslim rulingclass. Again, the combined coalition of the local non-Muslim people and the access the missionaries had to thecolonial officials made it possible for the work toexpand. This fact has never been appreciated by theMuslim groups, and they used whatever opportunity they

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could to harass the mission program, the missionaries,and the Nigerian Christians. The missionaries, ofcourse, attributed their successes in the mission programto the divine will of God.

CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE MiSSIONAS AN AGENT OF SOCIAL CHANGE

There is a growing literature showing the influencesof Christian missions in Africa. One of these, a study bythe Nigerian historian Ayandale (1966) notes among thecontr::)utions cf missions that the most significant we.ein the fields of education and medicine. This same ideawas confirmed by the informants consulted for this study.

The phenomenal growth of the Church has been noted.Many Nigerians were impressed with the willingnessof the missionaries to leave the relative comfortsof America to come to Nigeria to preach the Christianmessage. Growth at first was slow. The language and theculture had to be learned. None of the early missionarieshad any training in anthropology, although severaldeveloped an amateur interest and facility. Kulp madesome contribution to ethnographic data by gathering muchthe same kinds of materials that missionaries are inclinedto collect; h:s was in preparation for a doctoral disser-tation that was never completed because much of thematerial was confiscated and destroyed by the UnitedStates Immigration in 1943. Kulp's notes were in thelocal language and could not be read by the officials;thus they were destroyed as a result of the war paranoia.

Desmond Bittinger, an early missionary, continuedformal education in anthropology after leaving Nigeria,and has taught and written briefly of his experiences.The major contribution by Kulp and his wife Christinawas in creating a written form of Bura and Margi.Traditional Africa employs the oral tradition to passon their culture from one generation to the next.Christianity, however, is a literate religion and itssuccess depended upon a literate people. Thus, the firstwork of the mission was to create a written language and asystem of schools.

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Linguistic training was poor among the missionaries,but they were able to print simple grammars, lexiconhymnals, and the New Testament, as well as some sectionsof the Old Testament. Now there is an extensive useof the lingua franca, Hausa, which has an extensiveChristian literature. English is now the languageof all schooling in Nigeria. Many African leadersof the Independen,..e movement attest to the fact thatmission schools were the only educational opportunitiesopen to them.

As a direct result of the educational and medicalprograms of the Church of the Brethren mission in Nigeria,many of the key leadership positions in both Borno andGongola States are held by Nigerians. In addition thereare Nigerians serving in key positions at the nationallevel. When the new states were created there was a needfor each state's educated citizens to fill many of thepositions in government services. The Muslims hadtraditionally opposed educating their youth, especially inmission schools, until the post-independence era. Thusthe greatest majority of qualified Nigerians in Borno andGongola States were those from the mission areas. Thesewere the same local non-Muslim people who had supportedthe mission program and now their "reward" was that theywere in positions of dominance over the very same peoplewho had once dominated them. In the words of one infor-r..ant, "Were it not for Dr. Kulp and the C.B.M., we wouldstill be in slavery."

Much the same events can be traced in the medicalprogram sponsored by the mission. With the introductionof modern scientific medicine, the health of the localpeoples has improved. infant mortality has decreasedbecause ,)f the availability of trained mid-wives andmaternity clinics. Epidemics of diseases such as spinalmeningitis have been curtailed. Life saving operationsare performed daily in the two hospitals and in theleprosarium. In addition, the leprosarium has gained awide reputation for its work in rehabilitation. Nearlyevery village of size that had a school or a church alsohad a trained dispenser.

The Nigerian government has launched a progressivepublic health program. It is attempting to place a

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hospital in population clusters of 250,000. Reachingout from this center are satellite clinics, dispensaries,and first aid points. Mobile units go out and makethe contacts between the center and periphery. Inthe long run it will cost less to have a solid publichealth program than to try to provide for the medicalneeds of a population without it. The program is hinderedby the drop in oil exports, creating a need to readjustthe federal budget. All programs are affected by thisadjustment. The General Hospital at Garkida, formerly theRuth Royer Kulp Memorial Hospital, is one of the afore-mentioned centers, a part of the Lafiya ('Nellness) ProgramwhLn is a cooperative venture of the Nigerian government,the West German government, the Church of the Brethren,and its Nigerian counterpart, the Ekklesiyar Yan'uwa.Not only has general health improved, but many empioymentopportunities have been created through these medicalprograms.

Another direct contribution of the Church of theBrethren mission was in the area of agriculture. TheBrethren in America have rural origins and many of itsearly leaders were raised on the farm, as was Dr. Kulp.From the early beginnings in Nigeria the missionaries hadgardens, and a frequent response to inquiries from Americaas to needs on the field was "seeds." The early educa-tional program incorporated agriculture into the curri-culum. Later the Nigerian government would do likewise.Missionaries with agricultural skills were recruited.

The Brethren for most of their history had a traditionof the free ministry or tent-making industry. Ministerswere to be self-supporting and attend to the religiousneeds of the community. Obviously there was more than oneminister in the larger communities; the concept of onepastor was of later origin. In Nigeria the same patternwas encouraged. If an evangelist could improve hisgardening techniques and produce more food as well as cashcrops with less energy, the more time he would have toattend to evangelism. The result was the establishment ofa training center which combined the training of churchleadership with improved agricultural methods. Thisprogram known as the Kulp Bible School is under control ofthe Ekklesiyar Yan'uwa. It is a post-primary program and

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has gained the cooperation of government agriculturalministries.

An example of government support is the speechby the Lamido (paramount chief) of Adamawa at the 50thanniversary of the mission in 1973. He praised theagricultural contribution of the mission in particulara ld the work of the mission in general. This praisefrom a muslim leader of this stature is noteworthy.He also attended the annual fair of Kulp Bible School(an event no longer held).

Some of the graduates of K.B.S. have gone on to highereducation in theology and to other vocations. Others haveremained serving the church. One direct influence of theagricultural emphasis of the mission has been to upgradethe diet of the Nigerians as well as to increase theproduction of cash crops. Once it was not fashionable fora person who had some education to return to farming, butnow there are some very successful Nigerian farmers, afact which has increased the status of that occupat'on.

The major contributions of the early missionarieswere on the areas of evangelism, language translation,primary education, medical programs, and some agriculturalwork. The second wave of missionaries was, with theexception of a few specialists, concerned with churchgrowth and with evangelism. World War II created a newclimate in Nigeria as it had around the world; manyNigerians had left their homeland and had come in contactwith a world largely unknown to them. The mystique of thewhite man was shattered, and a desire to learn the skillsrrecessary to survive in the new world was created.Education was emphasized tu a greater degree than everbefore. One returning serviceman informed me that heinsisted on his children doing their homework even thoughhe could barely read. He had been out in the world andknew his children would have to know more than he did inorder to survive.

The government began to increase opportunitiesin education and there was an attempt to counteractthe classical forms of education with programs designedto meet future manpower needs. As a result, new centersof technology were opened. With the advent of more

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and more modern scientific education, many questionsabout the traditional way of life began to emerge --questions which could not help but create new problems.

The last group of missionaries began to addressthemselves to the needs of the newly independent Nigeria.Their interactions were with a new generation of Nigerianleadership. There were the expected cleavages, notonly between missionary generations, but Nigeriansas well. Each side found themselves allied, generationagainst generation. The older missionaries did nothandle the threat of the newer missionaries very well.The arena for this conflict shifted from the missionmeetings to the church meetings. The politics involvedwas for missionaries to work behind the scenes of theirNigerian counterparts. The rationale was that theNigerians needed the experience of dealing with leadershipissues and the missionaries were to be advisers. If therationale was flawed, the motives were even more so. Butthe Nigerians are a gracious and forgiving people. Theyweighed the positive factors of the presence of themissionaries with the negative and even from the perspec-tive of history they speak kindly, if guardedly, about theinfluence of the mission.

The founders of the mission program were committedto the idea that schools were essential to evangelism.One of the first programs initiated was, as mentionedearlier, a type of formal education. Thus, as earlyas 1924 a school was opened at Garkida. There wereactually two separate schools, one for girls and onefor boys, and although classwork was co-educational,all other activities were carried on separately. Mission-aries were in charge of all activities. The curriculumconsisted of reading in the vernacular, English, and BibleKnowledge. There was also instruction in carpentry,smithing, agriculture, and weaving. In addition, villageclasses in religious instruction (CRI's) were estab-lished. This pattern was to be repeated at all missionstations (Banu, 1973:1521.

There was soon a need to train Nigerian teachersand a Teacher Training School opened in Garkida in1932; the first class graduated in 1938. The languageof instruction was Hausa (Banu, 1973:150. However,

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these schools were closed in 1942; several reasonswere given, but the basic problem was that of the missionand the missionaries. The war years saw a shortage ofsupport from home just when opportunities for expansionwere occurring in evangelism. There was a divisionbetween those favoring evangelism as a priority and thosefavoring education. The evangelists "won," a fact leadingto the creation of animosities on the part of some of theNigerians. Some of the Nigerian teachers left to take upsecular work, others to teach in local government-schools. Many defected to Islam. All of these eventsoccurred during Kulp's absence. On his return fromfurlough in 1942, he worked to reopen the schools; by 1944the major ones had opened, but it was 1945 before the riftbegan to heal.

A new element was introduced with the reopeningof schools. The curriculum was expanded, but the schoolswere now managed by a local school board. Most headteachers were Nigerian, but the Manager of the schoolprogram was a missionary until the 1960's. By 1968, whenthe schools were turned over to Local Education Author-ities, there were over 40 elementary schools. The CRI'sremained in control of the mission; they had been themajor factor in the rapid expansion of the church in thedecades of the '60's and '70's, and they continue to bethe means of outreach in the villages for the NigerianChurch. Thus the relationship between evangelism andeducation espoused by Kulp had indeed proven advantageousto the Church.

That this should be true is no surprise to socialscientists who understand the role of education asan agent of change; it simply is further evidence of thephenomena. Additional schools were opened on a post-primary level in 1947 and 1949 at Garkida. In the 1950'sa complex of schools was opened at Waka, including aGirls' School, Women's School, Teacher Training College,and a Secondary School. Today the Teacher TrainingCollege and the Science Secondary School have a combinedenrollment of nearly 5,000 and are maintained by the BornuState Education Ministry.

The social changes brought about by education areenormous, especially to the people of Borno and Gongola

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States; these were the beneficiaries of the program in adirect sense. The value to the church has been noted. Asone recipient states in a recent thesis:

Through the Brethren mission schools, manypeople in the E.Y.N. district had acquired aneducation which introduced them to the outsideworld. The people of E.Y.N. district hadlearned the skills of other people and couldparticipate in the social, economic, andpolitical activities in Nigeria and outsidethe country. This participation had beenrecognized by other tribes in Nigeria whichbecame aware that the ethnic tribes influencedby the Brethren mission now constituted asocial force that could no longer be ignoredin Borno and Gongola States. Today theinfluence of this social force is being feltat the federal level (Balami, 1982:133).

Mission schools provided the background for peoplein the area to quality for higher education. By 1968the first doctorate was earned -- by the son of anearly convert. Upon visiting both parent and son,this writer was reminded that the people were wellaware of the influence of education and the changesthat had come about. An earlier study (1975) investigatedthe role of education in political change in Nigeria.Now, nearly ten years later, this conclusion was stillbeing reinforced. Additionally, a former Secondarystudent of this writer became in 1972 the first medicaldoctor which this area had produced. Since then manymore have received medical degrees, law degrees, andvarious masters' and doctoral degrees. The disciplinesthey represent include a wide variety: health problems;teaching at all levels -- primary, secondary, and highereducation in a wide assortment of areas, academic andtechnological; administrative positicns in the private andpublic sectors. The first Northern Nigerian to quality asan international airline pilot came from Garkida. Onleaving Nigeria for the last time, Dr. Kulp was to beflown by this pilot whose father was once a worker in theKulp household and later an evangelist (Balami, 1982:136).

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At present all of the local schools, hospitals,governmental agencies, and private companies dependupon people who have been directly or indirectly influen-ced by the institutions established by the mission. Theseinclude hospitals, schools, agricultural and technicaltraining institutions as well as the entire leadershipof the church. The consensus of opinions receivedby recent research on the part of this writer is that"without the presence of the Brethren Mission theseachievements would not have been possible" (Balami,1982:135). Balami goes on to note that at a farewellspeech for one of the few remaining missionaries whowas retiring this consensus was reflected:

This contribution [of the mission] hasimprinted us in history of modern education inNigeria permanently. We have been broughtinto the community of intellectuals and I amproud to say many of Waka's old students areschool administrators in Borno and GongolaStates' ministries of education (1982:137).

The quality of life of the local people has alsoimproved. the quality and quantity of medical care,improved farming techniques, skills in the buildingtrades, improvement in diet, housing, and all aspectsof life -- all are attributable to the influence ofthe mission. that which the mission could not do,it encouraged the people and the government to accom-plish. In fact, at times the government was put to shameand thus was urged to double its efforts to provideservices that were needed, often in cooperation withtfie mission. Rivalry increased between the Christianand the Moslem communities, and so the latter beganto compete in providing services. This rivalry onlyimproved conditions for the local people.

On the recent trip to the area, this writer wasable to observe the evidences of material change.Roads were improved, upgraded from gravel to macadam.Few beasts of burden were in evidence. The numberof those who own cars, motorcycles, and bicycles hadincreased to the point of causing traffic congestion.The markets and stores were selling goods from all

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over the world; in particular, radios, television sets,and cameras were noted.

Nudity was rarely seen. People appeared to behealthy. There was an abundance of food for sale,although prices were high. Homes were improved, withfewer and fewer being constructed of mud and thatch.The main medium for building today is concrete block,plastered and painted, with metal roofing. Moslem-stylefurniture is popular.

Although in all areas the quality of material lifeappears to have improved, some concern was expressedover the quality of the non-material aspects of life.the nation, some feel, has been spoiled by theoverabundance of oil-related money which has led toaccusations of fraud. The ethical questions are beingdiscussed in the papers and on the media. Concernwas raised about the influences of Western values and thepossibility of their changing the traditional ones. Suchconcerns are evidences of the impact of cultural change.Is the conclusion to be made that the Mission was respon-sible for these rising problems? To the extent that theMission can claim the responsibility for introducingWestern culture via Christianity to the area, to thatextent it must also assume some of the responsibility forthe negative aspects of change as well.

Influence is difficult to measure empirically,however. Observation by this writer over the past25 years and testimony by others, both Nigerian andexpatriate, tend to agree that any outside force invadinga traditional area will bring about more changes thanwill be caused by any other phenomenon. Countlesssocial scientists attest to this fact in their research.The acculturation that results is inevitable. Thepresent study is an attempt to further refine the conceptsof cultural change by examining one such agent -- anexpatriate missionary community.

CRITICISMS OF THE MISSION

It is always easier to be critical, especiallyin retrospect, than to be sensitive to situations as they

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are happening. All of the informants were taking ahistorical perspective when making their analyses of someof the negative aspects they perceived regarding themission and the missionaries.

As expected, there were criticisms about individ-ual missionaries. The fact of personality conflicts isto be expected, but some of the missionaries did notlearn to appreciate the Nigerian people and their cul-ture. Although they were there to save souls and do theLord's work, they carried with them all of the ethnocen-trisms one might expect, as well as the sterotypes andprejudices typical of many Americans. Each category ofmissionaries was viewed as having attitudes of superiorityand paternalism, although some to a greater extent thanothers. One might even suspect some of latent racism.

Some missionaries were impatient and severe intheir comments about Nigerians who would not readilyleave their present way of life for the new one proposedby the servants of God. Missionaries not well likedwere given labels of ridicule and became targets ofretaliation. Some were robbed and cheated. Therewere other opportunities to express hostility fromtime to time. One illustration involves an "accident"with a borrowed motor cycle. Tht di--;:izr Qf thc =-causing the accident was a local government officialwho had been badly treated by the owner of the motorcycle. Although this was a case of mistaken identity,the government official would not apologize even afterbeing found guilty and fined in court.

On occasion household help were accused of stealingsupplies or even money by their employers. Once accused,then often such behavior did take place. Most mission-aries did not understand the way in which Nigerians sawtheir relationship with those who employed them towork in the house. To the missionary the Nigerianswere only employees, but to the Nigerians, being askedto work inside a home meant that they were a part of thehousehold and entitled to help themselves to an occasionalmeasure of sugar, tea, flour, or whatever was available.The few missionaries who understood this relationship saidnothing and would order a little extra of some supplies tocompensate for this situation.

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The Nigerians' own code prevented stealing of anythingin large quantities, but taking a small amount of what wasseen as a large supply is part of the culture. There iseven the precedent in the Old Testament of allowing poorpeople to go into the fields after harvest to salvage whatmay have been overlooked.

The early missionaries were criticized by the infor-mants for not responding to opportunities for growth whenthey were available. Instead of sharing their problems oflimited resources with the Nigerians, the missionariesoften overtaxed the resources they had. The lack ofcommunication was seen as an indication that the mission-aries did not have sufficient confidence in the abilitiesof the Nigerians. Following the example of colonialism,the mission trained Africans at only minimal entry levelpositions. There was not sufficient early training forchurch leadership.

The missionaries were perceived to do everythingfor themselves as though the day of judgment were athand. Indeed, many felt this way: "Work for the night iscoming" was an often-sung hymn reflecting the Protestantwork ethic of their own American culture. By contrast,Africans, who have a different cultural approach to workand time, were thought to be lazy. Further, Nigerianadvice and counsel were not sought or utilized as much asthey might have been. One informant recollected the timehe had asked Dr. Kulp why he did not keep a better recordof things he had done. Kulp's reported reply was, "Godhas a record of what I have done." The informant thenreplied, "Our children will need the stories sometime."Kulp responded jokingly, "God is interested in work andnot in writing our own history." The informant followedup by saying, "You might be right in the eyes of God,but you will not be helping the future of Nigeria."This conversation is an excellent illustration of some ofthe problems that existed between the perceptions of themissionaries and those of the Nigerians. However,unknown to the Nigerians, Kulp left quite a good recordof his activities in personal diaries and letters home tofamily and friends as well as official reports to the homeoffice. He must have had some sense of history, becausehe kept carbon copies of these reports.

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The early and even later groups of missionariesfelt that the decisions about the mission program weretheir own responsibility and that they were accountable toGod and the home office, but only incidentally to theNigerians. One might suspect the motivations of some ofthe missionaries. It would appear that they wanted tocreate the Utopian Kingdom of God in Nigeria that had notmaterialized in America. There was a chance to create theideal Christian community. One of the early and oldermissionaries, upon being approached with this theory,dismissed it as not worthy of comment. Only the morereason to suspect it. Yet many actions supported this.Missionaries made periodic evaluations of Nigeriansunder their supervision who were employed by the mission.Included in the evaluation were notations on whetherthe employee was faithful in attendance at religiousservices, owned a hymnbook and a Bible, tithed, hadgood work habits and attitudes, or had ever beendisciplined by the church committee for drinking, forni-cat;ng, dancing, visiting a native doctor or participatingin any cultural practices held to be inconsistent with theChristian life. One such comment made by a single femalemissionary was that " argues with his wife." (Itis known for a fact by this writer that many missionaryhusbands argued with their wives, but were never subjectedto such evaluations.)

In a final illustration, one person was accusedof adultery tut it was never proven. Nevertheless,he was suspended for six months from his job. No consid-eration was made by the missionary to ensure that thefamily of this person had other means of support. Therewere sufficient instances of behavior of this type todrive some converts and potential converts to Islam or toa return to traditional religion.

Tensions over mission policy increased with thesecond group of missionaries. As noted earlier, manyof these were evangelists who had been recruited inresponse to the need to expand the evangelistic program.However, the problem of limited financial resourcesremained. During the time Kulp was on leave in 1942-43the missionaries decided to close the educational programto make more resources available for evangelism. These

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tensions over mission priorities would remain for sometime.

This was a time when some of the first Nigerianswere given training and employment as primary teachers.The schools were under mission control and the mediumof instruction was the local language, along with Hausa.English was taught as a subject. Many of these earlyteachers left and found employment with other missiongroups or with government schools which were beginning toexpand to local communities. Some of them had becomeChristian and now converted to Islam. This was a tragicloss of leadership at a time when it was needed.

Upon his return to Nigeria in 1943, Kulp restoredthe schools at the urging of the Nigerians, but itwould be 1945 before the program was back on track.(Fifty Years in Lardin Gabas:154)

The missionaries had developed a skeptical attitudetoward the colonial government. Although for the mostpart the colonial officials at the higher levels werecooperative, there was always a suspicion of those at thelower level because of the experiences which the earlymissionaries had had with them. As an Anabaptist group,the Church of the Brethren has had a long history of beingwary of government. The informants felt there should havebeen more attempts at accommodation with the variouslevels of government, particularly the lower levels.

Several of the informants were quite bitter. Theyfelt that the missionaries did not share enough abouttheir history to help the Nigerians understand theirposition on government. After all, there were manyparallels with the peoples among whom they worked andtheir suppressors. More important, however, was the factthat missionaries in charge of the school system would notpermit the graduates to take government school entranceexaminations for advanced schooling. The missionariesfelt that the Nigerians owed some loyalty to the missionand should be content to work for those who had educatedthem. The missionaries also feared that they would losetheir converts to Islam or worse, to secularism. Severalinformants now in substantial positions in state govern-ment felt that they might now be in federal positions had

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they been allowed at an earlier date to join yovernmentagencies. As it was, it was not until the missionbegan to defer to the government its schools in thelate '60's and early '70's that thc. -ipportunity camefor the mission-trained Nigerians ,_ join governmentagencies.

Another issue was the reluctance of missionariesto support Nigerians who wanted to enter politics.As aliens, the missionaries were forbidden by law to doso, but they seldom encouraged the Nigerians to becomeinvolved. Thus, when independence came to Nigeria, manyof the local people were at a political disadvantage togain a place in the changing political scene. This wasespecially the case when the nation was divided intoregions. Not until states were created and local govern-ments expanded was there an opportunity for the mission-educated people to play a role in the decision-making thataffected their lives.

A major criticism leveled against the missionarieswas in the way they handled some very important socialcustoms. These were the issues of polygamy, socialbeer drinking, and dancing.

The missionaries never had a solution to the issue ofpolygamy. Since men were held responsible for the system,women, who were involved in a polygamus situation were notpenalized if they wished to become church members. Theywere held to be innocent victims of an evil system. Womenin polygamous households could be baptised, but theirhusbands could not. At first men tried to dis.;ouragetheir women and children from attending church and theschools. They probably saw the results as breaking downtheir traditional areas of authority. Men were encouragedto put away their other wives and to keep the first oneonly, if they wished to be baptized. Those men who didnot do this would be "members at the gate," allowedto worship but not to partake of the sacraments, tohold office, or to vote. For a program that soughtto free people from bondage, this practice only createdalienation and confusion. The missionaries spoke of thesanctity of marriage and family on the one hand, whilethey advocated divorce on the other.

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The situation was further aggrevated by the a.r!..iiof a missionary who was a trained anthropologist.He defied the church and baptized some polygamous men.His rationale was that the rules of membership of thechurch were more demanding than confession of faithrequired in the scripture tc enter the kingdom of heaven.The church leaders requested his removal. This wasunfortunate, because as a trained linguist he was correct-ing many errors in the language work of earlier mission-aries. The debate over the issue of polygamy is still notover, nor will it be until several generations havepassed. Other church groups of a syncristic and nativ-istic type have emerged who do permit polygamy, thusmerging faith and culture.

There is a trend toward leniency on the part of theNigerian Church, although its leadership is divided. Inprivate conversation, some reveal that they are determinedto follow the tradition passed on by the missionaries.Yet others realize the confrontation may have a negativeimpact. There are men, so:-.1e of them high educated, whohave taken a second wife after becoming Christian. Thesemen have riot been excommunicated, but r ither are theyasked to become part of the church leadership. Pastorsare dedicating babies of a second marriage; they donot erform the wedding, but will pray a blessing if askedto L.) so.

Several problems are involved here, one of thempertaining to the role of women. They find their highestrole achievement as mothers. In the second place, thereare few opportunities for women to be financially indepen-dent of men, although this is gradually changing as womenare going to school and emerging in the professions.Thus, in time an economic independence for women maynegate the necessity for them all to be married, as thisis no longer a necessity in the Western world. Thirdly,women accept, but do not like, the practice of polygamy.They recognize tnaditional values that put pressure on mento take additional wives, values which include prestige,politics, and social cunsideration.

Most of the early converts could see no real hardshipin the demeads of the new faith and so became baptized.They save little conflict and felt they did not have to

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give up any traditions to become Christian. They saw,too, the advantages in accepting Christianity: employmentopportunity and protection from the traditional rulingclasses. Others saw leadership opportunities in a newcommunity which they could not have in the old one.However, when the missionaries began to impose Westernchristian morality on conditions of membership, someNigerians reverted to their former religion while othersbecame Muslim.

A second problem the missionaries could not dealwith adequately was social drinking, which, in Africansociety, is an important part of the culture. Cornbeer has great cultural significance in Nigeria; itis considered a food, is used symbolically in ritualand is enjoyed in social intercourse. The Brethrenhave always officially endorsed temperance in all thingsand total abstinence in those things which were seen asharmful. They often forgot their own early culture whenbeer was a part of their Germanic heritage. But they wereinfluenced by the abolitionists of the 18th and 19thcenturies.

The problem of drinking became serious when a missionemployee was caught drinking. He was then subject tochurch discipline. Part of the discipline may haveresulted in temporary or permanent loss of employment ifhe had been working for the mission. In recent yearsthere has been less concern with drinking since thebrewing of modern beer makes the issue of religion meet.

In the early years, missionaries were pastors andelders of the church, and held the power of both churchdiscipline and secular employment. Such power has becomeabused. Pastors are taking it upon themselves W inter-vene in non-church matters, bringing them into the churchwhere they may pass judgment. Following are two illustra-tions from my informants. One man was threatened to becalled in to church council and be removed from hisleadership role because he wanted to give his daughterpermission to marry a Moslem who had already taken her asa concubine and fathered two children. The pastor wastrying to make a case in an area not of any business oftha church. The 'ther drank, but was not criticized forthat; the daughter was not a member of the church and so

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could not be disciplines; and furthermore, daughters ofprominent Christians (including a retired pastor) hadmarried Moslems with no pressures being applied. The onlyconclusion was that it was a personal problem and that thepastor was abusing his position to gain an upper hand.

In another case, a pastcr was forced to resignby the church council who silenced his preaching becausehe supported his daughter's right not to marry herbetrothed. The father offered to return the bridepayment and call off the engagement and the wedding,but the fiancee did not agree and he took his caseto sympathetic members of the church council whichincluded some relatives who were retired pastors andwho had retained their power.

Although these cases do not differ radically from somemissionary behavior, one does not feel that the mission-aries meant such behavior to be a part of their legacy.The present church must accept full responsibility forsuch actions. This is indeed an interesting situation inthat the missionaries came from a nation where separationof church and state was strictly held. Yet they woulddeny any "kingdom of God" motives nor would they find thisaction inconsistent. The Nigerians, having no suchconflicts, could not understand why the missionaries couldnot distinc;uiel between faith and culture. For example,the missionaries knew that drinking corn beer was associ-ated with the traditional religions and this providedanother reason to oppose it. In the thinking of themissionaries, a new religion demanded a new life style.They were not aware that the christianity they wereproposing was not free from Western cultural values.

A similar attitude was struck when it came to dancingand the use of traditionai music. Since these were alsoassociated with the rituals of the past, they were to bediscarded. Consequently there was no use of musicalinstruments and the Nigerians were forced to sing poortranslations of Western hymns. (Nigerian musical notationis based on a five tone scale without the two half-notesu3ed in Western music. The Nigerian scale takes intoconsideration the tonal aspect of the African language.Thus, the translations did not always come out in the waythe missionaries planned.) Several Nigerians have become

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hymn writers by using the Western scale. Recently amerger of old and new musical styles has emerged partlybecause of the influence of popular music. Many new formsof African music which blend the styles of West Africa,the Caribbean, and America are emerging, among themhigh life, reggae, and variations of rock and disco.Southern Nigerian Christians who have not had suchnegative feelings about music have introduced new formswhich are being adapted by other church groups. Women'schoirs are emerging, using gourds and clay pots asinstruments. These are traditionally women's tools andare not associated with instruments of traditional music.This is a good example of dynamic, positive changes andadaptations being made.

The middle group of missionaries found themselvesin disagreement with the priorities of the earliergroup, as illustrated previously. The older missionariesoften felt threatened Ly the newer ones. At the sametime more Nigerians were being trained for positionsof leadership. A new form of politics began to emerge.The missionary factions would urge Nigerians sympatheticto them to take sides in issues of policy and program.The missionaries could then sit back and allow theNigerians to debate and argue. If one side lost, theNigerians would take the blame; if one side won, themissionaries would take the credit. Unfortunately,the cleavages were along the various ethnic lines ofpeople that were in the mission field. Particularlystrained at times were the cleavages between the Buraand the Marghi. True, this is a problem which Nigeriafaces nationally, but the missionaries had an opportunityto teach the message of peace and reconciliation thatis an important doctrine to the church in America.Many Nigerians have been surprised to learn that oneof the major doctrines of the Church of the Brethrenis peace. However, the Brethren most often associatedthis emphasis with its opposite, war, and not wit.-interpersonal or inter-group conflicts. To some ofthe informants, this lack of emphasis on the personallevel `eras another weakness, a "ost opportunity.

The Nigerians could not understand the policy thatgave various miision societies territorial rights.This was a policy worked out between the mission societies

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and the colonial government. It was meant to reducecompetition and friction among mission groups. Anunforeseen weakness was that of placing the urban centersin those territorial areas. As Nigerians became moreeducated and as the urban centers began to modernize,there was a migration to the towns and cities. Strangerquarters or wards increased to form a type of ghetto. Fornewcomers to the cities, it was frightening enough to beaway from the protection of the ancestral land, but not tohave the church one was accustomed to created furtheralienation.

Since the Church of the Brethren Mission was arelatively new group in Nigeria and they were workingin an area that did not have any large urban centers,they had to form alliances with other mission groupswho were in the urban regions. The type of denominationalseparateness and doctrinal differences in America made itdifficult for the Brethren to deal with the issue. Therewas a Nigerian Christian Council to which Dr. Kulp waselected first president. There was also an attempt atforming a Christian Church of Northern Nigeria, butneither of these met the needs outlined above. The newlyindependent churches agreed to allow the urban centers tobe open to all groups. This permitted the EkklesiyarYan'uwa to open congregations in Maidugui 1, Yola, and Jos,the capitals of Borno, Gongola, and Plateau States. Othercongregations are planned for cities where the peoplefrom the E.Y.N. area have gone.

The informants were critical of the approach of themission to leadership training, particularly in the areaof church administration. Teacher education, however, wasencouraged, and until the C.B.M. could establish their owncollege they sent students to colleges operated by othermissions. Attempts had been made for some pastoral andevangelistic training, but not on the same academic levelas that of teacher education. Men and a few women werealso encouraged to become nurses and dispensers, occupa-tions which required formal training. Why the same levelof training was not provided for that which was theprimary purpose of the mission is not at first apparent.But when one remembers that few contemporaries of theearly missionaries had any theological training beyondcollege Bible courses, and that Kulp and Heiser had been

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trained in education, the situation is more clearlyunderstood. In addition, the Brethren tradition of thetent-making ministry as mentioned earlier also sheds lighton the problem. In fact, it has been only within thetime period of the third generation of missionariesthat formal churchmanship training has been available.

Several informants among the church leaders werevery angry with this lack of training. They admittedto having discussed this among themselves, and cameto the conclusion that the missionaries feared thattheir own positions would be filled with Nigerians,and so did not provide the training which would bringthis about. In fact, one missionary remarked thatif he would have to serve under Nigerians, he wouldnot return to the field. He did not return, and thereason is not known.

There was also a problem of formal training. Niger-ians came to expect the mission to give them the sameopportunities to advance and to go to further training aswere given to their government counterparts. Thoseemployed in the kulp Bible School are on an equal payscale as are other employees of the church and mission.But opportunities for the expected advanced education arenot possible with the limited resources available to thechurch and mission. This limitation included the makingavailable of machine (motorcycle) and car loans. There-fore some leaders are joining government agencies, butothers, to their credit, continue to serve the church. Infact, they may be able to do more for the church. Forexample, nearly 2,000 people attend church each Sunday inthe Maiduguri Church, many of them government workers.The average offering is between $1,500 and $2,000 aSunday.

In connection with the leadership issues is a criti-cism over the program of pastoral placement. A policydeveloped that was different from that of placing teach-ers. In order to reduce ethnic tensions in the educa-tional program, the mission assigned teachers of oneethnic group to teach in a school outside their ethnicareas. A Bura would teach in a Margi school, and so on.Although this was upsetting to the family and kinship ofthe teacher, there was little choice but to comply if one

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wanted employment. Such assignments were possiblebecause the language of instruction was Hausa and thenEnglish. This policy reduced school politics and intro-duced a new element of social change into the community.

But such a policy was not followed when placingpastors or evangelistic workers. It was felt thata person of the same ethnic group, speaking the samelanguage and knowing the people would be of great advan-tage to church work. One result has been the ethniccleavages in the church mentioned earlier which permitspolitical activity. Attempts at democratic representationat district meetings often became centers where variousgroups would try to dominate.

The Nigerians are relatively poor and the missionariesdid not encourage stewardship. They chose insteadto exercise control and paternalism by paying the costs.It was then -- almost too late -- that stewardshipwas emphasized. One result of this low level of localeconomic self-sufficiency was that pastors and churchworkers were unpaid or poorly paid. On the other hand,teachers were paid according to a government salary scalewhich was paid in part or whole by the government. Themission was the manager and proprietor of the schools forthe government. The church in America was not able to dolikewise for the expanding church program. The result wasthat teachers had more money, could build nicer homes,possess more material goods, and thus have more prestigein the community than did the churchmen. This was trueeven in the cases where a pastor had become educated ona level comparative with a teacher. This fact discouragedyoung people from considering church-related occupations.Quite often the candidates for church vocations werethose who could not be accepted into higher educationprograms.

A few churches were large enough and wealthy enough tosupport a highly educated pastor. The result was jealousyamong congregations and churchmen. The older churchleadership who were less well educated and less well paidoften maneuvered the younger men out of central decision-making committees or employed the old ploy of labelingthem too radical or not sufficiently experien^.ed.

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The missionaries were never criticized for havinga more materialistic life style, and most of themissionaries would not think they lived lavishly.In comparison with their American counterparts theywere not wealthy. But Nigerians expect those who holdhigh positions to live in a more materialistic manner;this is the case in their own society. So if a pastor wasto have respect in the community he had to demonstrate ahigher standard of living and not be dedicated to thesimple life. This fact was difficult for the missionariesto appreciate, again showing a lack of understanding aboutthe Nigerian culture.

This writer heard comments from missionaries andformer missionaries who had returned for a visit yearsafter their tours of service had ended. They werecritical of the automobiles, nice furniture, homes,appliances (especially TV) acquired by many Nigerians.One commented that their housing is better than that whichthe missionaries had had. A Nigerian, hearing thiscriticism, commented on the level of material comfort hehad seen in the lives of American pastors and churchwork-ers. He could not understand how, amidst this wealth, thechurch in America could say that its programs were infinancial difficulties.

CONCLUSION

One obvious factor emerged during the course of thisstudy and that was communication -- or the lack of it.Both sides talk to each other, but neither side is reallylistening and hearing the message of the other.

The remarkable finding this writer discovered was thelevel of articulation of the Nigerian response. Most ofthe Nigerians are gracious and appreciative of the role ofthe missionary. Although critical, they were careful notto condemn. Even when being critical, they were alwaystrying to suggest a reason for the missionary positionthat would in part eiccuse or justify the action.

There is still a chance for a strong mutualrelationship between the Ekklesiyar Yan'uwa and theChurch of the Brethren. The writer attended one meeting

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at which these issues were discussed, and some meaningfulgroundwork was laid. To paraphrase a statement ofthe United States Peace Corps, Niger'a may not greatlybenefit from the presence of the Church of the BrethrenMission, but it will never be the same. Conditionsarising out of such contacts need continuous research,analysis, and evaluation, not only by Western scholars,but particularly Nigerian ones. Fortunately this isbeginning to happen and that fact portends new insightinto the study of missiology from various disciplinaryapproaches.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Abubakar, Sa'ad1980 "The Northern Province Under Colonial Rule

1900-1959," in 0. lkime (ed.) Groundwork ofNigerian History. lbadan: Heinemann Educa-tional Books.

Adjei, A.1944 "Imperialism and Spiritual Freedom: An

African View," American Journal of Sociology,50(3):189-98.

Ajayi, J.F.A.1965 Christian Missions in Nigeria 1841-1891.

London: Longmans.

Ayandale, E.A.1966 The Missionary Impact on Modern Nigeria

1842-1914: Political and Social Analysis.New York: Humanities Press.

Baeta, C.C. (ed.)1961 "Conflict in Mission: Historical and Separa-

tist Churches," in Anderson, Gerald (ed.) TheTheology of Christian Mission. New York:McGraw Hill.

1968 Christianity in Tropical Africa. London:Oxford University Press.

Balami, Nvwa1983 "Fifty Years of the Church of the Brethren in

Nigeria (1923-1973) in Nigerian Perspective."(Unpublished Master of Arts in Theology

Thesis) Oak Bruok, IL: Bethany TheologicalSeminary.

Balandier, George S.1965 "The Colonial Situation," in Van den Berghe

(ed.) Africa: Problems of Change and Con-flict. San Francisco: Chandler PublishingCo.

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Baldwin, A. Ferne1973 "The Impact of American Missionaries on the

Bura People of Nigeria." (UnpublishedPh.D. Dissertation) Muncie, IN: Ball StateUniversity.

Baldwin, Elmer R.1953 "The Establishment of the Church of the

Brethren Mission in Africa." (UnpublishedB.D. Thesis) Oak Brook, IL: Bethany Theolog-ical Seminary.

Banu, Pinder197! "Church of the Brethren Mission Schools" in

Fifty Years in Lardin Gabes 1923-1973.Kaduna, Nigeria: Baraka Press Ltd.

Barrett, David1968 Schism and Renewal in Africa: An Analysis of

Six Thousand Contemporary Religious Move-ments. London: Oxford University Press.

Beidleman, T. 0.1974 "Social Theory and the Study of Christian

Missions in Africa," Africa, 44(3) :235-249.

1982 Colonial Evangelism. Bloomington: Universityof Indiana Press.

Bendix, Reinhard (ed.)1968 State and Society. Boston: Little Brown Co.

Bittinger, Desmond W.1938 Soudan's Second Sunup. Elgin, IL: The Elgin

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1941 An Educational Experiment in Northern Niger-ia. Elgin, IL: The Brethren PublishingHouse.

Boer, Jan. H.1979 Misliayle. Messengers of Liberation in a

Colonial Contest. Amsterdam: Rodopi N.V.

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Bond, George et al. (eds.)1979 African Christianity: Patterns of Religious

Continuity. New York: Academic Press.

Buhlman, Walbert1977 The Missions on Trial. Maryknoll, N.Y.:

Orbis.

Crampton, E.P.T.1978 "Christianity in Northern Nigeria," in C. Ka lu

(ed.) Christianity in West Africa. lbadan:Day Star Press.

Desac, Ram1967 Christianity in Africa as Seen by the Afri-

cans. Denver: Alan Swallow.

Durnbaugh, Donald F.1968 The Believers' Church: The History and

Character of Radical Protestantism. NewYork: MacMillan Co.

(ed.)1978 On Earth Peace. Elgin, IL: The Brethren

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Editorsn.d. Fifty Years in Lardin Gabas 1923-1973.

Kaduna, Nigeria: Baraka Press Ltd.

Ekech, Felix K.1976 "African Polygamy and Western Christian

Ethnocentrism," Journal of African Studies111(3):329-349.

Fashole-Luke, Edward et al. (eds.)1978 Christianity in Independent Africa. Blooming-

ton: University of Indiana Press.

Fields, Karen E.1977 "Revival and Rebellion in Colonial Africa:

Social and Political Consequences of Mission-ary Enterprise." (Unpublished Ph.D. Disserta-tion) Waltham, Mass.: Brandies University.

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1978 "The Role of Missions in the Overthrow ofIndirect Rule." (Paper presented at AfricanStudies Association, Baltimore, MD, November178).

Flint, John E.1960 Sir George Goldie and the Making of Nigeria.

London: Oxford University Press.

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of the Church of the Brethren." (OfficialPaper) Elgin, IL: The Brethren Press.

Fuller, John G.1974 FEVER: The Hunt for a New Killer Virus. New

York: Reader's Diges; Press.

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Story. Ibadan: Day Star Press.

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Kendall, R. E.1978 "The Missionary Factor in Africa," in Fashole-

Luke et al. (eds), Christianity in Indepen-dent Africa. London: Rex Collings.

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THE SUMMER INSTITUTE OF LINGUISTICS/WYCLIFFEBIBLE TRANSLATORS IN

ANTHROPOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE

ROBERT B. TAYLORKansas State University

Summer Institute of Linguistics and Wycliffe BibleTranslators personnel are both linguists and Bibletranslators who expect their efforts to result in conver-sion of indigenes to Christianity. The Institute trainsfuture translators in the techniques for reducing alanguage to writing and translating material from onewriting system to another. The translators may encouragetheir language informants to become Christians and, whenseveral members of a language group have been converted,encourage them to form Christian groups. This allows thetranslators to avoid direct church-planting. The basictechnique is to make portions of the Bible available inthe people's language in anticipation that some willbecome Christians as a result of reading it. The Scrip-ture portions are also used by converts in their effortsto convert others.

Although the translators do not operate asconventional missionaries, their ultimate goal is to seepeople converted. Accordingly, anthropologists and others

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opposed to religious change efforts often criticize theirwork. The critics commonly charge the translators withthe same ethnocentrism, cross-cultural incompetence, andignorance of change principles frequently attributed toChristie'. missionaries in general. I suggest that, as agroup, the Wycliffe translators are more sophisticated inthese respects than the members of many missionary bodies,and I explore some of the ways in which this is so and themain reasons for the sophistication. Of course, thetranslators sometimes fall short of anthropologicalstandards, and I also mention some of the reasons forthis.

I take my information from three decades caintermittent contact with Wycliffe personnel in theUnited States and Mexico and from some of the literatureby and about them. I have had personal conversationswith translators about their work in Montana, New Mexicoand Mexico, especially at the translation center in Mit la,Oaxaca and the Mexico branch headquarters in Mexico City.I have also attended some of their conferences. Forseveral years a former translator was one of my colleagueson the faculty at Kansas State University. However, I

have not conducted systematic research into Wycliffe-SILoperations.

PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION

Probably, most cultural anthropologists feel thatparticipant observation is one of the hallmarks of theirspecialty. They feel strongly that only those who areable to live successfully in culturally diverse societiesare fully qualified to understand and compare differentcultures for scientific purposes. Beyond this they insistthat participation is essential to establishing therapport necessary to obtain information and that investi-gators can get the desired "inside view" of a lifeway onlyby participating in it. But there have always been a fewmissionaries with similar views. For example, HudsonTaylor, missionary to China, stressed living as theChinese bs the best way of establishing good relationshipsand understanding the Chinese view of life (H. Taylor1932:46-147). Wycliffe Bible Translators have shared thisview. Translators and their families, for those who have

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them, live in the communities of the groups whose lang-uages they study, sometimes for years. One of the majorhappenings in the life of SIL is the "allocation" of atranslation team or family just beginning to work in a newplace. The new workers find their new situation full ofmajor adjustments, not the least of which is some cultureshock. Experienced members of the organization deliverthem to their new location and maintain close contact withthem during their first weeks there. The neophytes havealready rehearsed these adjustments through survivaltraining -- in the jungles of Mexico before theorganization was extensively restricted a few yearsago, and now in southern Texas. In a number of casesWycliffe linguists have taken days of their time tohelp anthropologists locate places to work and becomeestablished there, even when the anthropologists werenot sympathetic with SIL goals. I have come to theconclusion that, because of their long experience incross-cultural situations, a large number of Wycliffelinguists are more effective participant observersthan man'. cultural anthropologists. I have specificindividuals in mind.

Accident and disease threaten both anthropologistsand linguist-translators living in physically and cultur-ally alien environments. Both have lost their health and,in some cases, their lives, as the result. The translatorwho helped me locate a Zapotec community to work ineventually died of complications from amputation of a legseverely damaged when his mount fell while negotiating amountain trail. In many instances lesser but still majordifficulties confront the participant. Whatever thedifficulty, Institute linguists suffer more problems thanmost anthropologists, since many of them spend more timein the field. One linguist and his family in Mexico wereconfronted with the demands of the people they had beenliving among for several years that their young teenagedaughter marry within the community. The family had beenparticipating in the lifeway rather deeply, but theyintended their daughter to have a Western education andmarry someone, years later, of Western cultural back-ground. Anthropologists commonly either leave theirchildren behind or remain with a group so short a timethat such issues seldom arise.

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Anthropologists find participant observation difficultand commonly interrupt field time to return home orelsewhere to regain objectivity or health or work throughtheir field data in preparation for further investiga-tion. Summer Institute linguists repair periodically tobases where they no longer have to struggle so hard tomaintain mental and physical health, if there nave beensuch problems, and where they can refurbish themselves andprepare for further field study. One linguist, working inan especially remote area and threatened by the possibil-ity of appendicitis, had his appendix removed during oneof these periods.

Throughout the history of Christian missions, someorganization have established compounds where the mission-aries lived together rather than among the local people.Western business people, administrators, and tourists havealso formed such "ghettos." And while the Summer Insti-tute branch bases are indispensable to the support of thefield personnel, they also afford the opportunity forthose less able to cope with the troubles of participationto malinger. In view of our human nature, it would besurprising if no one had ever used an Institute base toavoid a bit of unpleasant duty. Still, there are legiti-mate service tasks to perform on a base, and translatorsfacing health and other problems have been able toaccomplish much by working there rather than living withthe people. Commonly, however, a person desiring to seeInstitute linguists must either go to wherever theyare living in a remote place or wait many weeks ormonths for them to make a trip to the base.

LEGITIMIZATION

One of the elementary and most important principlesof both field study and directed change is maintainingacceptable relationships with all persons whose actionsmay affect the flow of data, directly or indirectly.Ethnographers and change agents alike find that a signifi-cant aspect of this is legitimizing their presenceand activity. Many ethnographers find it difficultto explain to people why they are in their communities,and many have reported rather innovative solutions.Christian missionaries face opposition in many places

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because the people do not accept their conversionistobjectives. They commonly reduce their difficultyby performing nonrcIigious acts that win some toleranceof their religious activity by some of the localpopulation. They may view these acts as either legitimatein their own right or do them only to gain acceptance.Medical and agricultural assistance are two of themain activities of this kind.

Summer Institute linguists have involved themselvesin both activities, but linguistic study is the mostunique. Cameron Townsend, the founder, and his associateshad already concluded that people were most likelyto become Christians and lead effective Christian lives ifthey could read portions of the Bible in their ownlanguages. They quickly learned that they had to becomepractical linguists to translate the Bible accurately,which meant that a great deal of time had to be spentlearning and analyzing the languages and developing awriting system before they could translate. And thepeople had to learn to read before they could use thetranslated items, so educational work became a part of theprogram. Since they had to devote the bulk of their timeto scientific linguistics and educational work, thetranslators had an opportunity to legitimize themselveswith the governmental and educational agencies of thecountries in which they were working by organizingthemselves as a scientific and educational organization.This is the Summer Institute of Linguistics, which wasformed in 1936. The objectives of the Institute includedtranslation of portions of the Bible and other materialsof "high moral quality." But most of the academic andgovernmental authorities of host countries had littleinterest in the Bible translation, while many were greatlyinterested in the organization's linguistic and educa-tional services. Usually, for the sake of the benefits,they were willing to tolerate the Bible translationand the informal and generally inconspicuous evangelisticactivities. They could deal with the Institute asa scientific-educational entity. In all these t....ywere deliberately allowing the Institute to leave theirultimate religious objectives unstated and informal.

But the Summer Institute people also had to legitimizethemselves with homeland Christians who provided their

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financial support. The homeland Christians gave tosupport religious, not scientific work, so it was neces-sary for the Institute to emphasize the religious resultsof their work in the home country. For this the Institutein 1942 established a legally separate organization, theWycliffe Bible Translators, though the same peoplebelonged to both organizations. Through this channel thelinguist-translators emphasized their roles as translatorsto their supporters and potential supporters at home.

PRESENTATION OF FACE

While the organizational arrangement was unique,the Institute/Wycliffe people were following one ofthe most widely used and, sometime.;, abused principlesof interpersonal and intergroup relationships, thepresentation of those aspects of one's personalityor group chrracteristics that facilitate satisfyingand producele relationships. Perhaps people use threemajor expedients to accomplish this. In many instancesthey represent themselves as something other than whatthey really are, intentionally misleading others. Anotherapproach is to avoid positively misrepresenting oneselfbut fail to reveal aspects on one's life or activity thatwould hinder the relationship. Thirdly, parties mayimplicitly agree to overlook things that might adverselyaffect their relationship, though both understand they arethere.

The last device is strikingly illustrated in thefriendship of actors Jimmy Stewart and Henry Fonda.Stewart reported that he and Fonda so valued theirlongtime friendship that they never discussed theirextremely divergent political views. It wasn't thatthey pretended not to have such views. Nor was eithertrying to deceive the other. They simply had a highergoal -- friendship -- that was facilitated by theirnot presenting their deeply-held political positionsto one another.

Ethnographers have frequently revealed that theyuse the other two devices. It is no surprise thatanthropologists who live in expensive, well-appointedhomes and drive top-of-the-line cars in their home

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countries withhold that intormation from their inform-ants, since they fear that they may be subjected tocriticism for being so wealthy. And those who don'tbelieve in the supernatural seldom bother to tell theirinformants. But maw! go much farther. They pretend tobelieve things they do not believe and to have hadexperiences they have not had in order to open channels ofinformation. Perhaps most American anthropologistsknow that George Spindler participated in Menomineereligious ceremonies by sharing in the descriptionof visions he alleged he had experienced so he couldlearn more about their religion, and Napoleon Chagnonpretended to receive evil spirits into himself underthe instruction of Yanomamo religious leaders(1983:206-210).

Deception may bo one of the most widely employedtechniques of gaining information and bringing aboutchange. Members of the North American Congress onLatin America advocate destruction of the capitalisticpower structure of the United States. Further, theystress that research into the nature of the power struct-ure is an instrument of liberation and suggest ten "theseson power structure research." They suggest that research-ers penetrate the "information infrastructure" to gainaccess to sources of information, pretending to belegitimate members of "the Corporate State." Specificrecommendations involving deception incl, Je using theprinted stationery of the penetrated o, ganization andpretending that a letter has been typed by a secretary(North American Congress on Latin America 1970:4).

Of course, the line between unethical deceptionand simply avoiding appearances that unnecessarilyarouse opposition is sometimes hard to discern. TheNational Congress also recommends that researcherswear neat clothes and their hair short, which may beinterpreted as a way of concealing the possibilitythat they are not members of the establishment or,simply, a means of maintaining good relationships.Apparently, people tend to vary their position on suchbehavior to advance their particular purposes.advocating that power structure investigators deceiveothers about their actual commitments, the NationalCongress roundly condemns the dual identity of the

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Wycliffe Bible Translators/Summer Institute of Linguis-tics. The Congress seems to have applied a higherstandard to SIL than it is willing to use on itself.Clearly, the translators have followed a practice of notbringing up their Bible translation activities andevangelistic purposes in the host countries unlessnecessary. At the same time they have tried to avoiddeception by including Bible translation among theirstaVad objectives. They have also avoided establishingchurches, though they fervently hope that the translatedScripture portions, the exposure of their translationassistants to the Bible, and their own personal witnesswill result in conversions. They also have assumed thatthere is no way of hiding these aspects of their work fromthe governmental and educational authorities. Thesolution as to where to draw the line between unethicaldeception and nondeceptive discretion is solved byassuming that it is all right to avoid mentioning thingspeople might object to as long as they cannot be hidden.There are those of the same kind of Christian persuasionas the translators who feel that they skate too closeto the line or even across it. It would be rash toclaim that no member of the Institute, including theleadership, ever crossea the line, but it is clearthat they have functioned within the scope of a widelyaccepted, widely approved set of approaches to gatheringdata and causing change and that they have beenunsympathetic with the patently deceptive approachesused by some anthropologists and organizations suchas the National Congress. While granting that SummerInstitute personnel may have fallen into outright decep-tion at points, it is clear that they do no. advocate suchbehavior and that many of the examples adduced by criticsare false. In this statement, rather than refuting

I accusations, I am attempting to portray SIL/Wycliffe'spositions and behaviors as I have observed them.

VALUE CONFLICTS

Applied anthropologists, Summer Institute linguistsand other change agents have suffered, sometimesgrievously, over the difficulties of maintaining workingrelationships with employers and associates with idealsand policies with which they disagree. H. G. Barnett,

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as well as others, has noted that many anthropologistshave found it difficult or impossible to work for govern-ments because of their conviction that colonial governmentpolicy is basically detrimental to the welfare of tribalgroups (Barnett 1956:65). Othar anthropologists have feltthat they can accept less than ideal employers andassociates for the sake of accomplishing something ratherthan rothing for a group's welfare. Two Argentiniananthropologists roundly condemned Mexican anthropologistsfor directing the resettlement of the Mazatec people whentheir lands were flooded by the construction of a dam inthe Papaloapan River (Partridge 1982:1-2). But theMexicans accepted their positions on the grounds thatthere was no way to stop resettlement and they coulddo more to avoid many of it's destructive effects thananyone else. During the course of the resettlementprogram, the anthropologists discovered that they wouldnot receive the promised funds necessary to meet the needsof the resettled population and strongly consideredresigning. But again, putting the welfare of the Mazatecabove all other considerations, they decided to use theiranthropological expertise and the knowledge and skillsdeveloped during earlier phases of the program in behalfof Mazatec well-being.

Summer Institute linguists face similar issuesin that their work depends on the approval of nationalgovernments that often act contrary to the welfareof the indigenous groups the Institute works with.The Institute linguists do not publicly protest humanrights violations by the governments of the countriesin which they work, nor do they encourage the indigenouspeoples to organize in protest or to rebel. For thisthey are severely condemned by critics of political-liberal persuasion. As Bodley points out, the political-liberal strategy for welfare of indigenous groups is tointensify their consciousness of the injustices againstthem and encourage them to mobilize politically and rebelagainst the oppressive policies of the countries inwhich they five (Bod ley 1982:192). The Summer Instituteof Linguistics cannot participate in such strategy,since they would be xpelled from the countries inquestion withuut delay and without recourse. The ling-uists simply would not be able to realize their educa-tional and religious objectives. Most political-liberal

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supporters of reform would be pleased at this result,since they oppose the instigation of religious changes.But the linguists are also concerned about the rights ofindigenous groups. Inside, some would like nothing betterthan to encourage people to organize and protest, but theyrealize that there is merit in alternative approaches.Bodley classifies the Summer Institute of Linguistics asa "conservative-humanitarian" organization, the strategyof such support groups being the promotion of humanitarianassistance and the advocacy of the use of native languageand the development of ethnic pride.

Perhaps there is something especially satisfyingabout rising up in wrath, excoriating oppressors, andorganizing protests, demonstrations, and violent rebell-ions. But some would argue that theconservative-humaztharian approach is more productiveand less costly in human welfare. It is sometimeshard to know about this, but the conservative approachis compatible with SIL religious goals, while organizedprotest is not. So the Summer Institute linguistssuffer, mostly in silence, as their critics featuretheir failures to actively combat human rights violationsand accuse them of aiding and abetting cultural imperial-ism and oppression. They attempt to communicate theirviewpoints in suitable, mostly private or semi-privateforums as opportunities arise or can be created. Theyalso continue their efforts to teach the indigenouspeoples to read and write both their own and the nationallanguage and provide them with knowledge and skillsby which they can cope more effectively with the inevit-able onslaught of civilization. At the same time, theyencourage the people to take pride in their culturesand preserve many of their traditional customs. Whenopportunity affords, they explain their concerns tonational officials. As geographer Nicole Maxwell haspointed out, any indiscretion on the part of Institutelinguists could result in instant expuisioil (Maxwell1974:18). As one linguist responded to Maxwell's quest-ioning on this, "It's easy enough to say, 'Let's you andhim fight.' But we are rigidly non-political. When andif a government agency asks our opinion, we give it -- inprivate.... But never to any organ of the press."

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FUNCTIONAL REPERCUSSIONS

Students of cultural dynamics like to stress that,because elements of cultural life are interdependent,change in one or a few customs may provoke a chainof reactions, disrupting people's lives considerably.Sharp's description of the impact of the introductionof steel axes on Yir Yoront culture in Australia hasso impressed anthropologists and others that it isprobably the most widely reprinted statement on thesubject of functional repercussions (Sharp 1952).Missionaries introduced the steel axes, although I

have been told that the missionaries on the field wereforced to introduce them by their home office bosses.

The case as reported, of course, nourishes theanthropological stereotype of missionaries as ignorantor uncaring about the destructive implications of theirwork. The stereotype is supported by a host of otherexamples, however, since awareness of the systemic natureof cultures and its practical implications seems to comeonly with great difficulty to most Europeans and Ameri-cans. The Summer Institute's detractors (e.g. Hvalkof andAaby 1981 and Stoll 1982) repeatedly indicate ignorance ofthe systemic nature of cultures among Summer Institutepersonnel and destructive results of their work. In viewof the ease with which such failures come, it is thorough-ly reasr-able to expect them among the translators. Thequestions are how the Institute compares with other changeagencies and whether or not its activities are nearly sodestructive as its major detractors allege.

I have made no systematic comparison of the SummerInstitute with other groups on these Issues, nor amI aware of one. But Institute personnel have trainingopportunities to become aware of the systemic natureof cultures not found in many comparable organizations.Cultural anthropology courses taught by anthropologistshave been included regularly in their summer trainingcurricula, so the translators have been exposed tothe doctrine of functionalism. It is impossible tosay how well this teaching has affected their conductin the field, especially in light of failures on thisscore even by some professional anthropologists. TheInstitute also includes a significant number of people

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with training in anthropology, some with undergraduatedegrees and others with graduate qualification. Some ofthese have allowed their anthropological perspectives andknowledge to affect their work and, perhaps, have affectedtheir colleagues' approaches. Others, particularly theseveral who have taken a Ph.D. in anthropology, haveserved as consultants to their organization and individualmembers concerning cross-cultural situations. Speakingimpressionistically, I feel that the organization'smembership ranges from those with rather limitedappreciation of cultural dimensions in their work to thoseas keenly aware of them as any anthropologist. But, ascompared with comparable organizations, things listheavily in the direction of awareness of their importanceand relevance.

Some people declare that, since a specific culturalchange has the potential for triggering a host of otherchanges, only a hands-off policy is acceptable. Othersare willing to accept changes that, by their standards,help a society, but they see religious change as sofar-reaching and potentially destructive that no groupsshould be allowed to proselytize. Critics of eitherpersuasion are apt to attack organizations such as theSummer institute of Linguistics for things they would notcomplain about against groups without religious objec-tives. For example, some have complained about transla-tors' statements that they are linguists rather thanmissionaries, while I have heard no condemnation of someanthropologists posing as sociologists to do field work.

The Wycliffe linguists, of course, hope that thepeople they work with will become Christians. They alsobelieve that Christian cultures are superior in most basicways to nonChristian cultures. They, therefore, work inthe expectation that widespread Christian conversion in agroup will result in a better way of life for the peopleas well as an eternity in relationship with God. Theypoint to examples such as the Tzeltal community of theOxchuc municipality of Chiapas, Mexico, where widespreadChristian conversion led to freedom from fear of witch-craft, significant material betterment, great improvementof health, the cessation of decimating killings, enhancedfeelings of self-worth, and high valuation of ethicalstandards such as honesty and dependability (Turner

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1979). Detractors suggest that the translators do notrespect indigenous cultures and are simply trying to makeChristian Americans out of the people. The title of thevolume edited by Hvalkof and Aaby, (Is God an America? AnAnthropological Perspective on the Missionary Work of theSummer Institute of Linguistics) illustrates this kind ofattack. Yet, spokesmen for the Summer Institute haveinsisted that they respect the cultures of the people theywork with, that they want them to preserve their tradi-tions and maintain their pride in themselves as distinctethnic groups. Their point of view is that Christianitycan permeate a culture without doing away with it --eliminating elements detrimental to human well-being,preserving and enhancing traditions that are compatiblewith essential Christianity, and giving new value andmeaning to lifeways that remain distinct from othersbecause of their cultural history and the special orienta-tion provided by the combination of Christianity with theculture. The translators, today at least, are wellaware that religious change can lead to unnecessarydestruction. The Institute encourages native Christiansto retain their own musical forms, write their ownwords to Christian songs, maintain their traditionallanguage, and so on. But, again, if the culture appearsto trouble the people, the translators have no compunctionagainst the replacement of its troublesome aspectswith Christianity. As David Taylor, who does not sharethe translators' religious views and was once consistentlyanti-missionary, has observed, the religions of manyBrazilian tribes "...provide little order and no solace inthe lives of the people. Life is frequently quitehellish, and gods and witchcraft are...often...theexplanation for such misery." (Taylor 1974) .

Without question, translators and others who do thingsthat may cause change are engaged in delicate work. Ifdesirable results outweigh the undesirable overall, theiroperations are, nevertheless, risky. As Edward Spicer hasnoted concerning the administrator of a technologicalchange program, he or she is dealing "...with the well-being and happiness of generations of men and women. Ifhis skill is poor and his judgment bad, he can destroycooperative human relations and create hatreds that willaffect uncountable numbers of people." (Spicer 1952:13).This, of course, is what the Institute's detractors

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emphasize. But Spicer also says "...the possibility isopen for creating cooperation where it did not exist andfor bettering the lives of generations. The gravity ofthe responsibility need not overawe, but it must im-press...."

With this in mind it would be surprising to findthat the results of the translators' efforts were invar-iably without difficulty. Stoll devotes an entirechapter to the troubles of the Institute's work amongthe Huaorani of Ecuador (1982:278-322). After thefive missionaries were killed while trying to establishcontact with them in 1956, the Institute used a linguisticapproach to reach them. Problems developed, partlybecause their efforts opened continuing contact withoutsiders. Anthropologist James Yost, now anthropologycoordinator for the Summer Institute of Linguistics,was called in to study the situation and found thatthe Huaorani had become quite dependent on outsidersfor various goods and services for which they had develop-ed a strong desire (Yost 1978:5). The Institute'sdecision was to withdraw for an indefinite time toundermine the destructive dependence. When the transla-tors returned they operated somewhat differently thanbefore, including avoidance of acting as agents for anyoutside trade goods. Undoubtedly, the Institute'sawareness and use of cultural perspectives has had todevelop over the years, and there are surely differentdegrees of understanding within the membership, but theuse of an in-house anthropologist to help solve a recog-nized problem in intercultural and intracultural relation-ships illustrates a high level of awareness and a desireto cope effectively with difficulties. Few groupsoutside of anthropology include so many that recognizethe significance of a culture's systemic nature.

ETHNIC IDENTITY IN CHANGE

Anthropologists have noted that groups can changeradically with minimum destruction of their sense ofwell-being if, during the process, they are able tomaintain a sense of identity as distinctive ethnicgroups. Bruner, for example, stresses that, untilrecently, American Indians have had to reject their

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identity as Indians in order to change their culture(Bruner 1976:243). In Sumatra, however, he found that onecould be a Batak and modern simultaneously. A Batak neednot renounce his own social group or personal identity tochange his lifeway. Batak who obtain an education andmove to the city remain Batak, and feel every bit asworthwhile and, perhaps a little superior to otherIndonesians. They are not ashamed of their past or ofthose Batak who have not yet modernized.

Current Summer Institute viewpoints are quite consis-tent with this orientation toward change. The Institutetranslators hold that there is no way to stop the changeof indigenous cultures, and the question of the effects ofchange on their well-being has become of fundamentalimportance to them. A key element in their approach is toenable the people to read and write their own languages,and this contributes significantly to a people's concep-tion of themselves as a culturally distinct society ofvalue and worthy of being allowed to maintain continuitywith their past. Geographer Nicole Maxwell has noted howSummer Institute activities promotes pride in indigenousgroups. He comments that when the people see how hard thetranslators work to learn their language, it stronglyreinforces their respect for their own culture (Maxwell1974:21). He indicates further how landowners and traderswho wish to exploit the tribal peoples complain, "Oncethose linguists get hold of an Indian,...you can't do athing with him. He thinks he's as good as anybody!"(Ibid. ). Alan Pence of the Institute has noted how itsactivities tend to preserve vital aspects of indigenouscultures and produce pride and an improved self image(1979). Like the Batak, indigenous groups can becomemembers of the world community while maintaining a senseof pride in and continuity with their cultural past withthe feeling that vital orientations of their traditionalcultures have been preserved. If to these we add linguis-tic, legal, economic and other skills for coping withthose who would dominate them, it appears that theInstitute's approach, effectively used, has much torecommend it as a way of solving the problems of those indanger of being overwhelmed by the outside world.

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ETHNOCENTRISM AND CULTURAL RELATIVISM

Most anthropologists define ethnocentrism as thebelief that one's own culture is superior to othersand say missionaries are ethnocentric because theybelieve their religion is superior to those of thepeople ti.ey attempt to convert. To that extent WycliffeBible Translators are certainly ethnocentric. Butthose of all persuasions have difficulty escaping ethno-centrism. A number of applied anthropologists haverecognized that is is the foundation of their specialty(Bastide 1971:16). Those who seek to bring better healthand other benefits to various groups may be operatingunder the assumption that those benefits are universallypreferable and that cultures that provide them for theirpeople or others who may be subordinate to them are, inthat way, superior. And, if not that, they may assumethat it is superior to help people who have decided theywant certain benefits.

In spite of this, the vast majority of anthropologistsregard themselves as cultural relativists. Bagishhas summarized fu'l-blown cultural relativism underfour points (Bagish 1983:23). First, there are nouniversal standards for comparing and evaluating customsand cultures. Second, the only way to understand a customis within the context of the culture in which it exists.Third, all customs and cultures are equally valid.Finally, we, therefore, must respect and tolerate allcustoms and cultures. He attacks the third and tourthpositions on the grounds that their acceptance requiresunverifiable assumptions and insists that there arestandards for evaluating some kinds of customs. He alsosuggests that as people of different cultures join tocompare and evaluate human ways, an unexpectedly highmeasure of agreement about what kinds of customs work bestfor widely valued goals can be achieved. Bagish attri-butes much of his disenchantment with full-blown culturalrelativism to the difficulty of believing that incapacita-ting forms of mutilation, ineffective means of birthcontrol, customs that result in the suffering and death ofmultitudes, and the like are as valid as certain alterna-tives.

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A number of anthropologists have put forth standardsfor evaluating customs. Walter Goldschmidt, for example,has suggested that economic development be 'valuatedby whether it increases or decreases a given culture'sability to satisfy the people's physical and psychologicalneeds and whether it contributes to stability orinstability (Goldschmidt 1952:135). AnthropologistJohn Bodley, who has written an entire book describingand condemning the pillaging of indigenous societiesand their cultures by industrial civilizations, describesGoldschmidt's standards as "universally relevant" (Bodley1982:150). John G. Kennedy, who studied pagan Tarahumaraculture by participant observation, felt impelled toevaluate certain elements of the culture. He suggestedthat we must develop some kind of supercultural measuringstick to enable us to legitimate!y "...transcend the bogof total cultural relativism." (Kennedy 1978:221). Hespeaks of the costs of practical losses which threatenTarahumara life and health and which are recognized asdeleterious by the Tarahumara themselves. For example,they express concern that their drunkenness frequentlyresults in an infant's death as a mother drops it in thefire or, while in a stupor, rolls over and crushes it.Other Tarahumara fall over cliffs and injure or killthemselves on their way home from beer parties. Kennedydescribes these and several other costs of Tarahumaracustoms. He refers also to dysfunctions or sociallosses. These include the fact that the beer parties leadto the regular violation of the two moral prohibitionsthat are most important to them, that against fightingand the taboo on adultery (Kennedy 1978:2214).

I present these examples to illustrate thatanthropological thought includes the notion that itis possible to evaluate customs. Therefore, SummerInstitute linguists are conforming to some anthropologicalpractice when they view customs of the groups theywork among as needing modification. I would suggestfurther, that there may be considerable agreement on thisbetween Institute personnel and secular anthropologistswho see cultural evaluation as a legitimate possibility.Of course, the whole question of comparing and evaluatingcustoms remains a scientific and philosophical quagmire,and the difficulties should not be miniriized.Nevertheless, many who condemn Wycliffe/SIL peJple for

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making judgments are being inconsistent, since theythemselves are making judgments. And even if some do not,many anthropologists and other social scientists do. Ifthere is absolutely no basis for judgments, it is incon-sistent to condemn anyone for making them. Many othershave made this point, but it is so consistently overlookedthat it bears many repetitions.

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

The Summer Institute of Linguistics could be examinedwith regard to many other anthropological principles, buttime is too limited. Let's review the points covered.

Many of the Institute translators are effectiveparticipant observers, having many of the same kindsof experiences and confronting problems similar tothose of ethnographers. Some of them participate ingreater depth than most anthropologists because of thetime they spend at it, though they avoid specific forms ofparticipation because of their Christian standards.

Since they engage in a wider range of activitiesthan most anthropologists, the Wycliffe/SIL peoplehave had some special difficulties of legitimization.They have legitimized themselves with governmentaland academic agencies by performing linguistic andeducational roles highly valued by those agencies.They legitimize themselves in the homeland by emphasizingBible translation and its Christianizing effects.And with the people whose languages they study, theyparticipate in their lifeways and provide them withliteracy, medical, and other services.

Field workers and change agents must present them-selves by emphasizing characteristics and roles mostlikely to pleas.. those with whom they want to maintainproductive relationships. Many anthropologists employdeception, and critics accuse the translators of it.Clearly, they have long avoided raising issues that mightbe red Bags to some, and they have presented themselvesin ways that do not emphasize their Bible translation andinformal personal witnessing. They have avoided activi-ties that might arouse opposition, such as formal evangel-

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istic efforts and establishing churches, but it is notpossible for them to hide their religious objectives, andthey have recognized this. They know that the govern-mental and educational authorities are aware of theirultimate religious objectives, but they diplomaticallyavoid mpiting a point of this awareness.

The trcnslators have also been plagued by havingto maintain satisfactory relationships with governmentaland academic agencies with policies and programs theydisagree with. Some anthropologists have refused toaccept relationships with agencies that violate humanrights, while others accept and maintain such relation-ships because they feel they can do more good that way.The Summer Institute has maintained such relationshipsbecause they see the bringing of Christianity to societiesas a far greater good than all others. Critics whodisagree with them have brought the translators muchtrouble because they refuse to attack agencies for theiracts of oppression and do not openly encourage theoppressed to rebel.

Many of the translators are more deeply aware thanmost others that the elements that make up a group'slifeway are interdependent. They realize that introduc-tions can precipitate a chain of cultural and ecosystemreactions and recognize the destructive possibilities.Accordingly, they try to avoid nonessential and unimport-ant changes, but they expect the acceptance of essentialChristianity to have salutory effects on the culture andthe society's well-being. They are more willing than mostanthropologists to risk religious change beta Ise of theirhigh value of Christian commitment for this life andbeyond.

Through the several decades of their existence,the Summer Institute people have increasingly recognizedthat preservation of valued traditions and maintenanceof pride in one's cultural past make importantcontributions to people's sense of well-being and theirability to cope with the ravages of civilization.To the extent that they promote these things they conformto anthropological findings that groups that can changewithout losing their sense of ethnic identity are far more

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satisfied with their lives than those that must give uptheir identities.

Finally, though it is unlikely that anyone escapesethnocentrism completely, a high percentage of Wycliffe/SIL personnel are probably less ethnocentric than othernon-anthropological groups. To a person, probably,they disagree with the relativistic positions thatthere is no way to evaluate customs, that all customsare equally valid, and that we must respJct and tolerateall customs. Many of them understand quite fully therelativistic principle that a custom can be understoodand evaluated only by telating it to its own culturalcontext and by suspending judgement while trying todiscern the nature of a custom. In these respectstheir views are basically similar to those of an increas-ing number of secular anthropologists.

The Summer Institute translators have come to manifesttheir particular configuration of characteristics in largepart because their founder, Cameron Townsend made alinguistic approach the key to the group's work. He didthis, first, because of his belief that people are moreresponsive to Christian teaching if they have portions ofthe Bible in their own language. Then, he found that thepractical linguistic analyses necessary to high qualitytranslation helped to legitimize the translators' activi-ties. The incorporation of linguistics as a majorcomponent of Wycliffe/Summer Institute activity, the maincomponent in terms of time, makes that activity a "domin-ant correlate" -- a change that produces a chain offunctional repercussions because of its connections withother elements of the cultural system (Barnett 1951:89).

Anthropologists are fully familiar with theconnections between linguistic work and culturalsituations. They define linguistic customs as culturalphenomena and emphasize that linguistic behavior isessential to the communication of customs and the trans-mission of cultures through time. The Wycliffe linguistsquickly learned that they had to consider nonlinguisticfactors to analyze a language and produce a meaningfultranslation. In the field situation they came intocontact with ethnographers and linguistic anthropologists,and those who published their linguistic work in scienti-

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fic journals were also brought into contact with anthro-pologists and anthropological literature. Linguisticacademic p.ograms are often a part of an anthropologyprogram or closely connected with it, so Summer Institutepersonnel found themselves in anthropological academicenvironments. These and similar connections increasinglyexposed the translators to anthropological perspectives,which many of them readily perceived as significant fortheir work.

As participant observing students of languagesand the cultures for which they are vehicles, SummerInstitute linguists have undoubtedly experienced someof the same development of awareness as the field ofcultural anthropology. But as they developed thisawareness they found already existing anthropologicalperspectives to draw on. The result is that a numberof translators have earned the Ph.D. in culturalanthropology and make their anthropological perspectivesavailable to their colleagues.

The translators' Christian beliefs, of course,are also of great importance to understanding the natureof the two organizations. Since they believe people mustbecome Christians to be in eternal relationship to God,hey cannot accept the view that stimulating religious

change is bad. To them, it is an ultimate good. For thesame reason, they canna.. accept the notion that allcustoms and cultures are equally valid and to be toler-ated. They believe that Christian cultures are betterthan nonChristian cultures by both temporal and eternalcriteria. As a group, therefore, they may be consideredmore ethnocentric than anthropologists. Many of thetranslators feel ;., commitment to r'mpare the religions andcultures of indigenous groups urnavorably with Christianalternatives and clme to regard them as more costly andless functional than they really are. There are sometranslators -- it is impossibl, to estimate what propor-tion -- who become aware of the functional value ofindigenous religions and related customs and respectthem. They do not believe them to be as satisfactory asChristian alternatives, but they respect them as productsof human creativity that exist because they meet humanneeds.

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The translators combine their commitment toChristianity as the only fully acceptable answer tothe human condition as theologically conservative Christ-ians understand it with perspectives they share withcultural anthropologists. This somewhat unusual combin-ation accounts in large part for the distinctive nature ofthe two organizations under which they conduct their work,as well as the difficulties and opportunities they face inthe current ferment of change.

KEFERENCES

Bagish, Henry H.1983 Confessions of a Former Cultural RelativFst.

Anthropology 83/84, Annual Editions. Guil-ford, CT: The Dushkin Publishing Group.

Barnett, Homer G.1953 Innovation: The Basis of Cultural Change.

New York: McGraw-Hill.

Bastide, Roger1971 Applied Anthropology. New York: Harper and

Row

Bodley, John H.1982 Victims of Progress. Second Edition. Palo

Alto, CA: Mayfield Publishing Company.

Bruner, Edward M.1976 Tradition and Modernization in Batak Society.

In Responses to Change: Society, Culture, andPersonality. George A. DeVos, ed., pp. 234-252. New York: D. Van Nostrand.

Chagnon, Napoleon1983 Yanomamo: The Fierce People. Third edition.

New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.

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Goldschmidt, Walter1952 The Interrelations Between Cultural Factors

and the Acquisition of New T,:chnical Skills.In The Progress of Underdeveloped Areas. BertF. Hnselitz, ed., pp. 135-151. Chicago:University of Chicago Press.

Hefley, James and Marti Hefley1974 Uncle Cam. Waco: Word.

Hvalkof, Soren and Peter Aaby1981 Is God an American?: An Anthropological

Perspective on the Missionary Work of theSummer Institute of Linguistics. London:Survival International.

Kennedy, John G.1978 The Tarahi Tara of the Sierra Madre: Beer,

Ecology, and Social Organization. ArlingtonHeights, Illinois: AHM Publishing.

Maxwell, Nicole1974 An Answer to NACLA. Unpublished statement.

Partridge, William L.1982 Meeting Crisis in Development: A Mexican Case

Study. Culture and Agriculture. No. 16:1-9.

Pence, Alan R.1979 Letter to Mr. Phil Shenk, Select Committee on

Indian Affairs, United States Senate.

Sharp, Lauriston1952 Steel Axes for Stone Age Australians. In

Human Problems in Technological Change: ACasebook. Edward H. Spicer, ed. New York:Russell Sage.

Spindler, George D.1955 Sociocultural and Psychological Processes in

Menomini Indian Acculturation. University ofCalifornia Publications in Culture andSociety. 5. Berkeley: University ofCalifornia Press.

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Stoll, David1982 Fishers of Men or Founders of Empire?: The

Wycliffe Bible Translators in Latin America.Cambridge: Cultural Survival, Inc.

Taylor, David1974 Unpublished Essay.

Taylor, Howard and Mrs. Howard Taylor1932 Hudson Taylor's Spiritual Secret. London:

China Inland Mission

Turner, Paul R.1979 Religious Conversion and Community Develop-

ment. Journal for the Scientific Study ofReligion 18:252-260.

Yost, James A.1978 Variables Affecting Land Requirements for

Tropical Forest Horticulturalists: SomeImplications. Unpublished paper.

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THE ANTHROPOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE INIS GOD AN AMERICAN

CLAUDE E. STIPEMarquette University

INTRODUCTION

In 1981 the International Work Group for IndigenousAffairs and Survival International published a booktitled is God an American? with the subtitle An Anthro-pological Perspective on the Missionary Work of theSummer Institute of Linguistics. The volume was editedby Hvalkof and Aaby of the University of Copenhagenand consists of 13 essays, including introductory andconcluding essays by the editors.

In their introductory essay the editors state that thepurpose of the book is to "analyze some of the social andcultural implications of WBT/SIL's attempt to bring theWord" to some tribal groups (p. 9). They characterize thevolume as a "collection of anthropological essays" (p. 9),and state that the perspective is anthropological becauseit "mostly concentrates on the effects of SIL's work inspecific communities" (p. 15). Anthropological scrutinyof SIL is called for because through "use of the native

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language and creation of an indigenous elite it representsa modernized form of cultural imperialism" (p. 14) .

Another factor precipitating an analysis of SIL is thattheir attempt to change Indian societies from withinilluminates those social preconditions necessary fordiscovering a suitable survival strategy for the Indiansin their struggle against persistent expansion (p. 14) .The editors also state that since they believe thesituation of the Indians cannot be understood only inlocal terms, the writers incorporate into their analysesthe effects of multinational corporations, internationaldevelopment organizations, and development policiesof specific states (p. 15).

My purpose here is to evaluate the extent to whichthis collection of essays meets not only the criteriastated by the authors, but also the generally acceptedcriteria for anthropological analyses.

In my opinion, only four of the eleven major essaysqualify as anthropological analyses of the changes causedby SIL personnel. Vickers' study of the effects of theJesuits and the SIL on the Tucanoans of Ecuador isexcellent. Hahn admits that his study of the Rikbakca ofBrazil includes some claims that are only speculative(p. 104), and that his proposed ideal situation forculture contact probably never could occur (p. 103).Moore emphasizes that his study of the influence of SILpersonnel on the Amarakaeri of Peru "cannot be generalizedto all or even many of the ethnic groups with which SILworks" (p. 135). Smith "editorializes" all through hisdiscussion of the c' ranges which the Amuesha of Peru haveexperienced, so I consider its anthropological quality tobe lower than the other three studies.

It is difficult to understand how some of the otheressays could be classified as anthropological, unless alltreatments of the relationships between two ethnic groupsautomatically becomes anthropology. Statements by anumber of the authors -aise questions about classifyingtheir essays as anthropology. In the first of Stoll's twoessays he states that his theme is "how a bearer of theWord of God has abused words" (p. 23). His second essaydeals with the "mystery" of how SIL has remained inColombia despite recurring crises (p. 63). Robinson

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purports to focus on the sociology of evangelical mission-ary groups, how they are recruited, move abroad, andsettle down to administer "native societies' access to themarket system and the emerging national polity" (p. 41).According to Pereira the first task in evaluating mission-ary work is to "establish in our minds the real interestsof the North American sects in South America, whichmeans that we must strip them of their humanitarianguise" (p. 109). The essay by d'Ans opens with thestatement that he was able to gather "very accurateinformation" concerning the "generally nefarious impact"of SIL's field activities and the "fraud perpetrated"by them which "conceals its real action behind so-called'scientific' motives" (p. 145). Smith informs us that thecommon idealized image of the Christian missionaryis almost completely at variance with the actual peopleand activities, so he has chosen the task of "demystify-ing" the missionaries by critically examining who theyare, what they do, and how they do it" (p. 121).

In the final essay the editors conclude that thearticles have "examined SIL's work at different stages ofits development and under diverse social circumstances"(p. 173), ignoring the fact that many of the articlesincluded very little on the actual work.

BACKGROUND OF MISSIONARIES

One method of negatively evaluating missionariesused by the authors is referring to their geographicaland cultural background, and even their physical andpsychological characteristics. However, the differentauthors do not always agree on that background. Accordingto Hvalkof and Aaby, like Townsend, most of the mission-aries had backgrounds in the mid-west and south (p. 11),but Stoll states that Townsend was the son of a tenantfarmer in southern California (p. 24). Arcand claimsthat SIL missionaries are usually from rural America- often from the midwest. Coming from the smallercommunities, they are part of the "silent majority,"tend to vote conservative, and are totally dedicatedto the Protestant ethics of individualism and hardwork (p. 77). Robinson associates them with the extremeright wing of Nixon's Republican part y because Nixon

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had impressive strength in southern California whereWBT/SIL home offices are located and "where they recruittheir staffs" (p. 42). Robinson erroneously refersto the organization as the Wycliffe Bible Society (ratherthan the Wycliffe Bible Translators) and incorrectly givesSanta Ana, California as the location of their headquar-ters. It seems highly unlikely that people who haveexperienced both southern California and rural communitiesin the midwest would consider them the same environmentsas these authors do.

Robinson attempts to explain why people becomemissionaries, and without documentation claims thatit was a result of frustration with a politically naivepopulist movement in the 1890's (p. 42) . The followers ofthe movement were at odds with urban America and longedfor a simpler past with a more rural variety of religiousand social experiences (p. 44) . Disenchantment with theirown country led them to settle down in other countries andstart a process of social change in their potentialconverts (p. 145). In spite of these statements, Robinsonsuggests that "certainly it was culturally shocking to beradically displaced from industrial society to the tribal"(p. 45) . Evidently the missionaries' background producesvery unsophisticated people, because Pereira contends thatthey are so naive that they are incapable of discerning"the ideological foundations and political interestsof the policy that manipLlates them" (p. 111).

Even the physical and psychological characteristicsof the missionaries are denigrated. After noting thatthey normally look healthy and are physically large,Arcand comments, "It is no known how many of thesemissionaries are considered backward, ugly farmers byother Americans. How many carry abroad with them thefeelings and frustration of inferiority, or at leastmarginality, developed at home?" (p. 77). Robinson addsthat increasingly missionaries are children of formermissionaries "who are not able to adjust to a continentalAmerican society they no longer understand nor enjoy"(p. 41). These statements are difficult to reconcile withthe charge that missionaries live a typical middle-classAmerican life-style on their bases (Hvalkof and Aabyp. 11).

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To take Arcand seriously would necessitate assumingnot only that most missionaries are from rural, farmingareas, but that they went directly from those communitiesto foreign countries. In 1982 118 SIL members heldPhD's and another 570 held MA's. We would have toassume that the posited negative self-image was notaffected by the successful completion of graduate programsin some of the major universities in the United States.

From comments of this type we learn less aboutthe actual backgrounds of the missionaries than aboutthe attitudes of the authors toward missionaries andtoward specific geographical areas of the United States.None of the authors considers the reasons missionariesgive for having chosen that type of endeavor for theirlife work.

DECEIT

Four of the authors accuse SIL of practicing deceit intheir relationships with government officials and/or withtheir North American supporters. They especially notethat there are two separately incorporated organizations,under the names of Wycliffe Bible Translators and SummerInstitute of Linguistics. WBT raises money for themissionary work and SIL deals with government officials inwhose countries the work is being done. Hvalkof and Aabysuggest that the success of WBT/SIL may depend on theirability to convince the countries of their scientificimage, and the home supporters of their missionary aspect(p. 11).

After perusing WBT publications, Stoll concludedthat not until 1956-57 did home supporters know thattheir missionaries were in the field under the auspicesof SIL (p. 27). Hvalkof and Aaby claim that any rela-tionship between WBT and SIL was "categorically denied,"but that in 1953 Townsend was "unmasked" and forcedto admit the connection (p. 10). According to Stoll,the unveiling of SIL linguists as Protestant missionaries"amounted to a scandal in itself" (p. 72). After claimingthat SIL duped host countries into believing that it was alinguistic and cultural rather than a missionary organiza-tion, Stoll contradicts his own indictments. He notes

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that in Mexico (the first country in which SIL worked),President Cardenas "apparently knew that Townsend was amissionary" (p. 26). After stating that SIL's admissionin Peru in 1953 that there was a vital connection betweenWBT and SIL established them as a "Protestant conspiracy,"Stoll notes that recently in Colombia SIL has been accusedof having tricked the National Front by failing to explainthat thcy were an evangelical mission (p. 65). Healso states that to keep the Catholic bishops in Colombiacalm, Townsend agreed not to do missionary work (p. 66).

There is no explanation of how a group publiclyidentified as missionaries in one Latin American countrycould subsequently mislead officials of other countriesinto believing they were not. It seems highly unlikelythat any country negotiating a contract with SIL wouldfail to investigate their activities in countries in whichthey were already working. There are other indicationsthat charges of this type of duplicity are in error. InBrazil the SIL contract with the Ministry of Educationprohibited any religious instruction in the school setting(Vickers p. 56), which would have been meaningless iftheir religious orientation was not recognized.

Even Hvalkof and Aaby conclude that speculationsthat SIL cheated national governments by concealingtheir religious intentions could not be valid, becausemost governments surely must have been knowledgeableabout those intentions (p. 184).

AGENTS OF UNITED STATES IMPERIALISM

As the editors state, the struggle against SILmust contain criticisms of their "function as culturaland economic imperialists" (p. 184). Although SILis also accused of cooperating with national governments,they prefer to set SIL into functional integrationwith foreign imperialism rather than national governments(p. 184). The accusation of imperialism is statedin many ways. Hvalkof and Aaby accuse them of culturalimperialism because they use the native language andtherefore create an indigenous elite (p. 14). Smithdecries the "damned deviousness of their imperialism"which causes profound cultural destruction (p. 132).

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Robinson claims that the imperial condition is faithfullyreflected in Ecuador, where capital is scarce and whereforeign interests exploit their resources and consumers(p. 46).

Charges of complicity with the United States andimperialism come primarily from the editors, Stoll,Robinson, and Pereira. One of the most extreme statementsis by Robinson. After noting the high developmentof technology and the cooperation among the variousProtestant missions, he suggests that the central questionis "just why all this? So that God's work may be done?"Since he cannot accept that as a legitimate answer, heasks: ''Is it farfetched to imagine a direct link withUnitc.d States foreign policy and imperial strategy? Couldthe U.S. intelligence community be directly involved?Certainly we can anticipate such a situation when nation-alist and revolutionary movements and rhetoric threatenAmerican military and missionary security...." (pp. 48-49). He posits an "undeniable, sychronous link betweenevangelical missionary efforts and the United Statesstrategic interests." When Nixon became president, it was"only natural that the simplistic rhetoric of a priordecade would be instrumental in convincing the religiousgroups to perform covert intelligence tasks, particularlyin areas where strategic petroleum and mineral resourcesabound" (p. 42). With the discovery of substantialpetroleum resources in Ecuador, "the link between themissionary establishment's growth and the United Statesstrategic interests have taken on added significance"(p. 44). He also argues that since the demise of thePeace Corps in Latin America, "Missionaries have becomeessential informants to the American intelligence commun-ity" (p. 44). Townsend, whom Robinson characterizes as a.:..-afty Yankee conservative," is said to have been awareor '.he bountiful resources of Amazonia, because they hadbeen surveyed by the OSS, the predecessor of the CIA.Townsend "unquestionably" consulted both the StateDepartment and the intelligence network of "old boys" whenhe first went to Ecuador. Robinson concludes that "Itdoes not require too much imagination to appreciate thelong range strategic value of having listening posts andpolitical monitoring instruments in remote resources-richareas of the Free World" (p. 46).

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Stoll quotes with evident approval the charge of aRoman Catholic priest in 1970 that the SIL is a "neo-colonial force in the service of the United States," andnotes that it may have been the first such statement inall their South American fields (p. 69).

Hahn disagrees with the charges that the SIL inten-tionally promotes the economic and political r )licies ofthe United States, and claims that in the Rikbakcasituation it is a distortion of the facts; they have never"to the best of my knowledge been motivated by a goal ofpromoting the interests of industrial society" (p. 86)."While SIL may effect some changes in Rikbakca life withconsequences beneficial to imperialist interests, theseare not its only effects. Nor are they part of thelinguists' intentions" (p. 100).

Hvalkof and Aaby acknowledge that charges of SILconnection with American imperialism originated mainlywithin the leftist and nationalist circles which portrayedSIL as constantly seeking for information which would beuseful for military or strategic purposes, or for naturalresources which could be exploited by multinationalcorporations (p. 183). They admit that indictments of aconspiracy between the CIA and SIL are difficult to prove,and that institutional connections between them have neverbeen substantiated, yet maintain that SIL's work hasprobably yielded some valuable intelligence. How much ofthese data have gone into the CIA or U.S. Army files "isunknown" (p. 183). They conclude that the dominant roleplayed by the United States in Latin America is a validreason for setting the SIL into ''functional integrationwith foreign imperialism" (p. 184).

The statement by Hvalkof and Aaby that much ofthe debate about SIL has focused on "demonstratingthat SIL's cover is part of a larger 'imperialist plot'"(p. 15) suggests that they are not concerned with thedistinction between unsubstantiated accusations anddemonstrated connections.

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AGENTS OF CAPITALISM

Missionaries are also faulted for being part of thecapitalist system. Robinson argues that SIL is ideolog-ically opposed to confronting the issue of "capitalistexploitation" (p. 41) and that "the growth of the mission-ary apparatus coincides with Ecuador's insertion intoorbit with the international capitalist system" (p. 46).After recounting anonymous accusations that SIL personnelare guilty of working goldmines, Pereira states that "suchenterprises can hardly contribute to the rescue of theAmerican economy, and do not justify an organizationalexpenditure which is counted in the millions. There canbe no question of reimbursing it with gold dust broughthome in pocket flashlights" (p. 111). d'Ans claims thatthe indigenous teachers trained by SIL have been divertedfrom their original goals by a capitalist enterprise.They were subjected to an alienating education whichadvocated a view of the world, economic relations andsocial organization "totally out of step with traditionalpatterns as well as with modern Peru" (p. 162).

Hvalkof and Aaby leave no question about theirattitude toward capitalism. The "real source" of the"Indian problem" is the socioeconomic structure whichbrings about expansion. If one wants to understandthis problem, it is necessary to understand the effectsof "foreign investments, resettlement schemes, nationaldevelopment projects and military consolidation" (p. 14).The effects on the Indians are determined by theirrelationship with the dependent capitalist states (p.173). They argue that integration of the Indians into acapitalist system is not a viable alternative and thatsuch integration should be resisted. Since capitalismoffers Indians integration only at the lowest possiblesocial ranks, the traditional features which push themtoward capitalism and also those which hinder theirstruggle against such integration should be restructured(p. 177). To Hvalkof and Aaby the underlying force behindall the injustices suffered by the Indians at the hands ofoutsiders is "capitalism's attempt to resolve its internalcontradictions by appropriating the Indian's labor, land,and resources" (p. 1851. Therefore missionaries must becriticized for participating in national developmentprograms which use capitalist expansion in attempting to

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solve national economic problems rather than changing thestructure of the economic system (p. 184).

To some of the authors, if capitalism is the problem,com.nunism is the solution. Robinson's statement that"Mindless but astute American anticommunism is today oneof the Third World's and native groups' most potentenemies in the evolving struggle for liberation" (p. 49)is one of the most specific. Arcand notes that somemissionaries seem almost paranoid about guerrilla upris-ings, which may be a result of the ancient persecution ofProtestants in Colombia and also American anticommunistpropaganda (p. 83). It 's only missionaries and "backwardpoliticians" that consider native self-defense movementsto be communist (Stoll p. 75). Hvalkof and Aaby statethat "the basic anti-communism of the missionaries isincontrovertible" (p. 183).

d'Ans appeals to "revolutionary integrity" in demand-ing a global condemnation of past activities of SIL andquestioning its basic organization (p. 161). The revolu-tion "daily gives us the will to solve our problemsthrough efficient, cheap means based on the collectiveconscience and efforts of our local communities" (p. 162).

There is no consideration in this volume of whymissionaries are anticommunist except to relate itto United States political propaganda. Both Stoll(p. 64) and Robinson (p. 46) refer to "godless communism,"but the purpose is to ridicule the missionaries ratherthan to attempt to understand their attitudes. Whenone considers the fate of Christian churches in communistcountries, the attitude of the missionaries is certainlyunderstandable.

RELATIONSHIPS TO NATIONAL GOVERNMENTS

SIL personnel are also castigated for involvementin and cooperation with the national governments ofthe countries in which they serve. They have beencharged with rurning supplies to military garrisonsin Peru (Stoll p. 8), and with supplying maps to themilitary to aid in locating guerrillas in Peru and Bolivia(Stoll p. 64, Pereira

136p. 111). Pereira categorizes

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supplying such maps as interfering in I he internal affairsof a state (p. 111). Stoll also charges that in ColombiaSIL is "a circumspect, autonomous arm of the state,responding chiefly to nressure from the sub-ministerialand ministerial levels" (p. 66).

Stoll and d'Ans are distressed because anti-SILgroups and organizations have not been able to forcetheir expulsion. The Colombian Minister of Governmentignored such organizations in 1971, which a..cord!r.-to Stoll showed that "the government's review processwas bankrupt," and that in the Ministry of Government,"North American missionaries counted for more thanColombian indigenists" (p. 72).

d'Ans states that "progressive intellectuals" in Peruwere almost successful in getting SIL expelled in 1975,but a few "moderate" voices suggested that the country wasnot ready to carry out bilingual education without helpfrom SIL. The attempt was stopped by the rise of thepolitical right in 1976 (p. 145). (Although d'Ansattributes the support for SIL to the political "right,"Hvalkof and Aaby state that "it is hardly accidental thatSIL has often been admitted during periods when liberal orpopulist governments were trying to create nationaleconomic development and 'o under-line conservative forces"(p. 183)). d'Ans attributes Sli:s continued presence inPeru to "the contamination of the traditional elites" andespecially those in the Ministry of Education (p. 147).The "established intelligensia" as well as officialsand civil servants have been fascinated by the "glitterof the technical and pseudo-scientific support systemdisplayed by this Holy Scriptures multinational concern"(p. 145). The "glittering statements and laudatorydeclarations of a handful of defenseless intellectualsrendered speechless with admiration for the gringoes[sic], their planes and radio-sets, their computers..."have favorably impressed Peruvian public opinion (p. 147).

Rus and Wasserstrom seem surprised that even thoughsome social scientists in Mexico have criticized SIL, itis supported by official patrons at the highest levels ofgovernment (p. 171). They state that Townsend's closerelationship with President Cardenas developed becauseTownsend maintained close ties with, and could influence,

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right-wing politicians and businessmen in the UnitedStates who did not appreciate such activities as thenationalization of United States oil interests in Mexico(p. 164). They also suggest that to a large extent, SIL'ssuccess as a global enterprise can be traced to "earlyskill in identifying its purposes with those of thecountry's political leaders," and that in Mexico theirpurposes were much the same as the Institute NacionalIndigenista, which perceived three primary reasons for thebackwardness of the Indians - alcoholism, witchcraft, andmonolingualism (p. 165). They maintain that SIL haswillingly collaborated with a government which since 1916has openly proclaimed its intention to destroy nativeculture and transform indigenous peoples into Mestizos(p. 171).

Although it has no connection with SIL, Robinsoncastigates the station HCJB (World Radio MissionaryFellowship) in Quito for its alliance witr, the rulingEcuadorean elites. "Because the HCJB news staff neveropenly opposes government policy nor engages in substan-tive and critical investigative journalism, it must becalled to judgment for sins of ommission" (p. 48).

Hvalkof and Aaby recognize that SIL could not dotranslation work without offering services to the respec-tive national governments (p. 184), but often seem toignore the fact that S1L's presence is at the discretionof those governments, which could easily deport them.They charge that SIL has tried to "ingratiate itself... byplaying upon state interests in national integration"(p. 183). They castigate SIL for not having publiclycondemned the ethnocidal and genocidal policies carriedout by many of the governments, and for participating innational development plans which "seek to solve nationaleconomic problems through capitalist expansion rather thanthrough structural change" (p. 184).

These authors seem to ignore the fact that an expat-Hate in a country, whose visa can be cancelled at anytime, is in a different situation than is a citizen ofthat country when public condemnation of governmentalpolicies is concerned. Some anthropologists support theuse of ethnographic data for po:,,ical advocacy, but asPreston (1976) notes, such activv.v. , ould rapidly reduce

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our field of research to the United States alone. Also,to argue that it is best to publicly condemn the govern-mvint and be deported suggests that public confrontation isthe only method for effecting changes in a system.

ETHNOCIDE

Moore notes that the most serious charge againstSIL is that they are responsible for ethnocide in thenative communities in which they work (p. 133). Hedefines ethnocide as "the destruction of traditionalcultures, that is, the denial of their possibilitiesfor survival as viable ethnic units having integratedstructures and historic traditions" (p. 134). Hvalkofand Aaby note that ethnocide occurs when structuraltransformations make it "impossible for a group tomaintain its existence under its own preconditions"(p. 186, fn. 1). They also include any social processeswhich destroy the ability of the traditional societyto maintain self-determination (p. 177). Moore isnot against all cultural change, only that which resultsfrom a series of unequal exchanges associated witheconomic imperialism. Economic exploitation is notthe only facet, for the "technological, sociological,and ideological foundations of their cultures" arealso sacrificed (p. 134). He states that perhaps SIL'smost significant rr -. in ethnocide has been in id- ologicalchange (p. 137).

Both Arcand rind Pereira state unequivocally thatthe a;:-.-. -If SIL personnel is "the brutal destruction"of the traditional way of life (Arcand p. 80), andthe "total destruction of the Indian cultures" (Pereirap 114).

Hahn and Moore present a different analysis. Hahnclaims that althowih there are differences among thevarious missionaries, they have "generally respectedRikbakca practices, though they have been disturbedby such practic-s as 'adultery' and violence. Evenhere, however, I do not think they have attempted toimpose their beliefs" (p. 100). Moore notes that themissionary to the Amarakaeri made conscious effortsto maintain traditional forms of social organization.

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He encouraged the Indians to maintain their traditionalkin designations and only marry outside their agnaticclans. He also tried to reinforce clan awareness amongchildren by giving them Spanish surnames accordingto clan affiliation (p. 136).

Hvalkof and Aaby evidently are not impressed with thestatements of Hahn and Moore, because in their final essaythey argue that the missionaries try to "counteractpolygamy, marriage rules, traditional forms of cooperationand ceremony, gift giving, oral traditions, etc. If theysimultaneously support other aspects of the indigenousculture, these are either trivial ones (e.g. feathers inthe nasal septum) or can be commercialized (e.g. 'Indian'tourist articles)" (p. 181). They charge that SIL'sclaims of supporting cultural traditions are not warran-ted; "It systematically subverts and destroys them"(p. 181).

There is some recognition that what often is categor-ized as "ethnocide" may be advantageous to the Indians.They are commonly seen as "savages" who can be dealt withwith impunity by nationals in their respective countries.Vickers suggests that Christian conversion gives theSiona-Secoya a "legitimate" religion from the perspectiveof the Ecuadorean nationals, and that having a school intheir community provides them with an additional claim tobeing "civilized," which may protect them from some of themore gross forms of injustice (p. 59). Hahn states thatthe introduction of Western style clothing may be to theadvantage of the Rikbakca because they will seem lessstrange to the Brazilian frontiersmen, who tharefore maytreat them less harshly (p. 96). He also notes thatthe learning of the indigenous languages by mission-aries may help indigenous groups to maintain theirintegrity when it is undermined in other ways (p. 100).

SELF-DETERMINATION

In three essays the authors state that indigenouspopulations should be treated as sovereign states so thatself-determination is preserved. Onl Hahn gives aspecific. scenario for estabiishing the pr der setting forthe process of self-determination. In his suggested ideal

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situation all frontiersmen would be temporarily removed.The language and culture of the indigenous society wouldbe learned, after which the nature of the dominant societywould be explained to them. Only after this would amutually compatible compromise with the frontier beestablished. Hahn knows of no situation in which contactbetween a powerless society d an industrial society hasfollowed this pattern, and admits that even if onewanted to, carrying out such an ideal program wouldbe unlikely (pp. 103-104).

Rus and Wasserstrom class missionaries with economicmodernizers and indigenista bureaucrats in Mexico as nothaving taken seriously the notion that "Indians have aright both to remain what they are and to make informeddecisions about their future" (p. 171). No suggestionsare made as to how the Indians are to be prepared to make"informed" decisions. They probably would not be able tomake such decisions without at least some direct exper-ience with different facets of the dominant culture, andthere is no good reason to expect that they would neces-sarily make choices with which interested anthropologistswould agree.

According to Hvalkof and Aaby the criterion forany type of intervention is whether it helps the groupto "achieve self-determination as a culturally viable,continuously reproducing social unit" (p. 177). Forthis to take place, positive intervention "must attemptto secure Indian control over crucial natural resources,and must try to impede the creation of exploitativelabor and trade relations" (p. 178). The fact thatSIL personnel preach "the Gospel" by definition meansthat they are not contributing to maintenance of self-determination (p. 181).

Hvalkof and Aaby cite Merrifield (on Turner's articleon the Tzeltal) that the old religion was maladaptivebecause the Tzeltals were exploited by Ladinos and weredestroying themselves through witchcraft and alcoholism.According to Turner, the new religion "enables them totake control of their lives and gain power, enlightenment,wealth, well-being, skill, affection, respect and recti-tude." Hvalkof and Aaby conclude that this type of

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"temporal liberation" has "little to do with a society'sself-determination" (p. 175).

These statements do not address the problem whicharises when some members of a society want to makecertain changes and other members do not. This neglectmay be partly due to the fact that many of the authorstake a very positive attitude toward the indigenouscultures.

SOCIAL CONCERNS

Robinson states that SIL personnel did little for thematerial needs of the people (p. 47) and that their Gospelis devoid of social content (p. 48). Although in thefinal essay Hvalkof and Aaby refer only to those with anegative viewpoint, some authors point to positiveattitudes and actions by some missionaries. Vickersmentions schools, health care, the introduction offirearms and modern tools, attempts at agriculturalprograms, and air evacuation for serious medical cases(pp. 56, 58). Stoll (p. 67) and Arcand (p. 81) both notethe high quality of medical help given to the people.Stoll also states that SIL people did what they could tohelp the Cuiva protect themselves (pp. 67-68). When agroup of settlers massacred some Cuiva, the missionariesinsisted that the government press charges (Stoll p. 67,Arcand p. 78). After the massacre some Cuiva started anew village and the missionaries provided tools and seedsfor cultivation (Arcand p. 78). Rus and Wasserstromobserve that missionaries with the Chol and TzeltalIndians in Mexico seemed genuinely distressed by theeconomic and political conditions of those groups andtried to aid them by assisting Protestant converts toemigrate from their ancestral communities (p. 168).

A major concern of some of the authors is the effectof government development projects on the size of Indianland holdings. Arcand accuses the missionaries who havebeen working with the Cuiva for ten years of having "neverlifted a finger" to help them secure rights over theirtraditional lands, though he acknowledges that they triedto obtain official papers confirming that a rancher hadgranted them a small portion of his ranch for their

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village (p. 80). Vickers notes that SIL has worked withthe Institute Ecuadoriano de Reforma Agraria y Coloni-zation to obtain a limited land grant for the Siona-Secoya(p. 60). Hahn reports that SIL personnel are opposed toland reduction in the Rikbakca area but have not activelyresisted it (p. 100).

Both Vickers (p. 60) and Arcand (p. 80) expressthe view that SIL's relationship with national governmentsgives them a unique position from which to exert apowerful influence for recognition of Indian land rights.This is not easily reconciled with the many statementsthat SIL is in disfavor in most countries and is in theprocess of being expelled from some.

ATTITUDES TOWARD INDIGENOUS CULTURES

A recurrent theme is that the organic unity oftribes should not be disrupted. Some authors see theindigenous culture as almost utopian, and contact withmissionaries or other representatives of the outside worldas very detrimental.

Smith gives the most idyllic picture of the pre-contact culture. He is angry at the "confused andbroken remains of a people" which resulted from missionarywork among the Amuesha (p. 132). He was left witha "feeling of hopelessness" when an Indian stated that henow knows that the sun is not divine and the moon issimply a star. "His total acceptance of the Evangelistdoctrine and its implied Western world view has eliminatedfor him all the possibilities offered by his own culture"(p. 124). The music performed to celebrate nativereligion is "hauntingly beautiful" (p. 123) and Smith isangry when the people sing hymns, many of which are inSpanish. New values have paralyzed the performance ofmusic and dance at sacred occasions, and he complains thatthe people had a record player and all the young people"jumped into the monotonous rhythm of the popular cumbia"(p. 128). He states that their traditional religion gavetheir existence a "wonderful richness, and meaning"(p. 125), and he was "thrilled to witness the greeting"based on traditional religious beliefs (p. 129).

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According to Hvalkof and Aaby, SIL's promotionalliterature gives the impression that tribes are afflictedwith "witchcraft, superstitions, sickness, immorality,lack of self-respect, revenge killings, and headhunting."They state that how the people could have survivedunder such conditions "must remain a puzzle" (p. 173),yet they describe the persistence of societies whichthey say have lost all their past traditions and areliving a tragic existence. They decry the characteri-zation by Loos and Merrifield of cultural traits as eitherpositive or negative, because "traits in themselvesare neither 'good' nor 'bad,' but dependent or thetotal system of which they are a part" (p. 177). Theyalso complain that missionaries present scientificexplanations for illness, bad luck, food production,weather, etc. "The evil spirits which were once thecause of illness are replaced by bacteria and amoeba.This undermines the original culture's explanatorymodels and opens a path for the acceptance of the newreligion" (p. 178).

Moore characterizes the Amarakaeri as having had "anefficient and harmonious adaptation to their naturalenvironment, a communalistic and egalitarian form ofsocial organization, and a rich ideological traditionwhich integrated all dimensions of the Amarakaeriworld.... Moreover, primitive Amarakaeri individualsfound a fulfillment and delineation as human personswithin this natural, social, and supernatural settingto an extent which has not been equalled by the Westerninvaders of their world" (p. 133).

According to d'Ans, the Tayakome (Peru) communitywas "once free and proud and peaceful" but has tragicallydegenerated (p. 159).

Arcand faults missionaries for trying to stop fights,including marital ones. Although he admits that suchfights can be dangerous and that sometimes people do gethurt, he believes that missionaries should me make valuejudgments on Cuiva society (p. 82).

Hahn does not hold that all societies are equallyvalid, or that those living in more direct contactwith nature are superior and therefore should be main-

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tained, but he argues that any society should havethe right to choose among alternative courses of action(p. 103).

ATTITUDES OF INDIANS

The general tenor of the majority of the essaysis that Indians would be better off without missionaries,but there is considerable evidence that Indians wouldnot necessarily agree with that analysis. AlthoughStoll is convinced that Indians must "be liberatedfrom SIL," he notes that if the Guahibos are used as anexample, the people around an SIL team "might well regardthem as allies against the grosser abuses" (p. 68). Healso mentions that missionaries were forced to leave fivecommunities in the period between 1970-1974. When theyreturned to three of the communities, they were "probablymore appreciated than ever before" (p. 69). In 1972anthropologists with the Colombian Indian Policy Councilfound that leaders of seven communities were "very much infavor of their SIL translators, for reasons reading like acatalog of SIL's good works." They appreciated having themissionaries learn their language and produce primers sothey could learn to read and write in their own language,receiving medicine for the sick, being taught to extractteeth, being flown to hospitals when seriously ill,etc. (Stoll p. 69). Even when part of a given communityis opposed to SIL's presence, another faction usuallycontinues to defend it. Stoll argues that becausemissionaries cause chronic tension between those Indianswho want them and those who do not, they should beforced to leave (p. 72).

d'Ans, in discussing the establishment of a villageoutside the boundaries of the National Park of Manuwhich would have SIL personnel, notes that "not everyoneagrees to this move, but the majority do" (p. 153).

Hahn notes that few Rikbakca would be interestedin restoring pre-contact life, or even parts of it.Some reject even Indian identity and are rarely concernedwith restoring tradition (p. 102). They certainlywere interested in obtaining the products of industrialsociety (p. 104).

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Some Indians evidently felt that SIL was not providingenough opportunity for change, because some Amarakaerifamilies removed their children from the bilingual schooland sent them to a town where they could study all year.They wanted the children to learn Spanish and "Peruvian"ways more quickly (Moore p. 141).

Surprisingly, Pereira accuses SIL of purposelykeeping Indians isolated from national society ratherthan preparing them for it. The number who want "toestablish themselves as peasants and thus identifythemselves with a new group is constantly growing"(p. 118).

CONCLUSION

It should now be clear why I question the claimthat Is God an American? is an anthropological evaluationof SIL's work. As mentioned earlier, Vickers, Hahn,Moore, and Smith use accepted anthropological methodologyin their studies. Their presentations are coherentand their conclusions are essentially based on theirdata. Even though Smith clearly resents missionaries,he generally presents a coherent picture of what ishappening to Amuesha culture. In their final essay,the editors generally ignore these articles, possiblybecause they provide little support for the chargesthat SIL is responsible for causing extreme damageto traditional cultures, and in fact, often providerefutation of such charges.

The proportion of the volume devz.ted to slAch anthropo-logical analyses is far less than that used for question-ing the motives of the missionaries and attempting toexplain their presence by linking them to the CIA, UnitedStates imperialism, multinational capitalist corporations,etc. Since the latter authors assume that the reasonsmissionaries give for their presence in other countriesare invalid and thus unacceptable, no attempt is made torelate the religious beliefs of the missionaries to theirwork with tribal people. Robinson even states that SILdecided "for reasons yet unknown" to concentrate theirefforts in Ecuador among the tribal peoples of thetropical lowlands (p. 45), which is meaningful only if one

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assumes that missionaries have hidden motives for theirwork.

I agree with Canfield's (1983) characterizationof the book as "Accusation as 'Anthropology." Helikens the liiethodology to that of "McCarthyism," whichentailed renewing a charge after it has been disproved,switching from one unsupported charge to another, pilingallegation upon allegation to suggest excessive guilt, andchallenging the accused to produce evidence of innocence.Some of the charges are patently ridiculous, e.g., that itis a well known fact that "the SIL is the laughing stockof linguistic departments even in the United States"(d'Ans p. 146). Pereira's charge that the SIL furnishedinformation used by the Peruvian government to attack theMayoruna Indians is so different from the account of theevent given by Survival International that the editorsfelt it necessary to print the alternate account (whichcontained no mention of missionaries) in a footnote(p. 113). When a full-scale investigation of allegedclandestine activities at Lomalinda (the SIL base inColombia) revealed no corroborating evidence, Stoilconcludes that "c!,:irly there was more here than even aspecial military commission had been able to uncover"(p. 73).

Hvalkof and Aaby state that SIL must bear responsi-bility for the various accusations and criticisms becauseit has "avoided taking part in debates about its activi-ties" (p. 14) , but as I have noted (Stipe 1983:115), thatwould be tantamount to being required to defend the NullHypothesis. For example, if charges of conspiracy withthe CIA cannot be proved, how can one expect SIL to beable to disprove them?

As an anthropologist, I object to having evaluationsbased on political, economic, and religious ideologieslabelled anthropology.

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NOTES

* This paper was presented at the Xlth InternationalCongress of Anthropological and Ethnological SciencesAugust 14-17, 1983, in Quebec City, Canada.

REFERENCES

Canfield, Robert L.1983 Accusation as "anthropology." Reviews in

Anthropology 10:55-61.

Hvalkof, Soren and Peter Aaby1981 Is God an American? An anthropological

perspective on the missionary work of theSummer Institute of Linguistics. Interna-tional Work Group for Indigenous AffairsDocument 43.

Preston, James J.1976 Commentary. Human Organization 35:328-329.

Stipe, Claude E.1983 More on the Antagonism between anthropologists

and missionaries: reply. Current Anthropol-ogy 24:114-115.

148

AUTHORITY AND RELIGIOUS IDEOLOGYAMONG THE YORUBA1

J. S. EADESUniversity of Kent, Canterbury, England

This paper deals with the impact of the world reli-gions, Christianity and Islam, on Yoruba social organi-sation. The Yoruba are one of Nigeria's largest linguis-tic and cultural groups, perhaps numbering as many as 15million people in the southwestern part of the country.The area has a rich cultural and religious tradition, butdespite the persistence of some aspects of traditionalreligious practice, including divination techniques,medical practices and communal religious festivals, thegreat majority of the population of the area now claims tobe either Christian or Muslim. The distribution of theworld religions in the area is uneven.2 In the Ilorinarea of Kwara State virtually the entire population IsMuslim. In northern and western Oyo State the majorityare Muslims, with a substantial Christian minority. InOgun State the two religions are divided more evenly,while in Ondo State and the Ife and ljesa areas of OyoState Christianity predominates. Within each of the majorreligious communities there are further divisions. TheChristians are divided between the large mission denomina-

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tions -- Anglicans, Baptists, Methodists and Catholics --and the various independent African and Aladura church-es.3 The African churches broke away from the majordenominations in the early 20th century but remain closeto them in ritual and organisation (Webster, 1964).The Aladura churches are the fastest growing sectorof Yoruba Christianity at the moment, and in theirorganisation and ritual represent a more radical departurefrom mission models, placing an emphasis on elementswhich not only have biblical justification but arealso close to indigenous models of religious practice-- prophetism, faith healing and divination. YorubaIslam is perhaps both more loosely organised and lessdoctrinally fragmented than Yoruba Christianity!' thoughmembership of Sufi brotherhoods and the followingsof local Islamic teachers have created cleavages insome areas which have assumed significance in localparty politics or chieftaincy disputes.

But despite these conversions, indigenous religiousinstitutions have not disappeared. The major religiousfestivals are still celebrated throughout the areaand members of the world religions often join in.It is true that the surviving members of many of thecults are now elderly, but in their search for solutionsto everyday problems many nominal Christians and Muslimswill still resort to divination and sacrifice to themain spiritual agencies of traditional Yoruba religions:the orisa and the ancestors.

Elsewhere I have argued that the vitality of adistinctively Yoruba religious belief system and worldview is due to the way in which the categories of beliefand practice have been retained despite the encroachmentof the world religions (Eades, 1980, 143). There isenough overlap between the categories of traditionalbelief and those of the world religions to allow aninterpretation of the latter which fits well with thetraditional patterns of thought and ritual. In the caseof Islam this has been helped by continuous contactbetween the Yoruba and their islamised northern neigh-bours. In the case of Christianity it was helped by theearly translation of the bible into Yoruba by Crowther andothers. In this paper, however, I want to concentrate onnotions of leadership and authority and how these have

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both affected the spread of the world religions and, inturn, been modified by them.

I. THE YORUBA

The Yoruba societies into which the world religionscame had already developed a considerable level ofsocial and economic differentiation in terms of wealth,prestige, ritual status and political power. (Cf. Bascom,1951.) Within the descent-based residential groupswhich formed the basis of Yoruba social and economiclife, roles were allocated largely on the basis ofseniority. In precolonial Yoruba society, authoritywas based on two main principles: seniority withinthe kinship group and the tenure of political office.The role of seniority in Yoruba social structure iswell known. Within the Yoruba towns the main unitsof social organisation are the compounds (He). Thecore of the residents of each compound usually consistsof members of an agnatic descent group, together withtheir wives, children and, formerly, their slaves.Within the compound authority is based mainly on senior-ity, defined in terms of age for those born within thecompound as member of the core group, and in termsof date of marriage. for the wives of compound members.Relative senicr;ty is reflected not only in the kinshipterminology but also in the allocation of work, withthe junior members taking on the harder and more tedioustasks. At the apex of the seniority structure is thebale, normally the most senior male member of the coredescent group. In precolonial times when many compoundswere very large the bale devoted most of his time tocompound affairs and was supported by the labour of hisjunior kin. He was responsible for the allocation ofrooms and farmland, for the adjudication of disputes andfor links with the political authorities of the town.

Beyond the comFound, power and authority lay in thehands of the ruler and the chiefs. The criteria forelection to chiefships varied considerably betweenand within towns. Some offices were hereditary withindescent groups, often rotating between the differentsegments. Others were allocated on a promotional systemor were allocated on the basis of personal achievement.

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Many offices which were initially allocated on other basesbecame vested in a particular descent group over time, andthe holder of the office acted as the spokesman of hisdescent group in the affairs of the town. Chiefs weretreated with the deference and respect due to elders andacted as mediators between descent groups and compoundswithin their areas of jurisdiction just as the compoundhead mediated between segments of his own group. Chiefsand compound heads also had ritual functions. Many of thechiefs were also heads of particular cult groups, respon-sible for the rituals necessary for the continued well-being of their followers, just as the bale, through ritesto the ancestors or orisa, fostered the well-beingof his kinsmen. Elders and chiefs were also seniormembers of the various cult groups in the town, themost important of which was the Ogboni cult. Thisbrought together the most powerful and influentialmembers of the town, and its decisions were bindingon members including both chiefs and commoners.

These links '3etween secular and ritual power were alsoclear in the position of the ruler or oba. His power wasreinforced by the lengthy accession rituals which not onlyserved to legitimate his secular authority but alsoendowed him with the magical powers enjoyed by hispredecessors. The oba was, and still is, responsible forthe coordination of the ritual life of the entire town,and is expected to be neutral in these matters, whateverhis own religious beliefs before his accession.

To sum up, in Yoruba society prior to the spreadof the world religions the locus of sacred and secularpower largely overlapped. The senior chiefs and elderswere men of great secular authority and also membersof cult groups and possessors of knowledge of medicine,magic, curses and spells acquired both to further andprotect their hard-won positions. Wealth, seniority,ritual status, political and spiritual power thus tendedis werlap and reinforce each other, a situation which wasmodified by the arrival of the world religions.

First it appears that in many instances convertsto the world religions were to some extent outsidethe regular structures of authority relations in Yorubasociety. In the case of Islam many of the early Muslims

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in Yoruba land were northern strangers and slaves (Gbad-amosi, 1978,6) while the early Christians includedthe Saro, from Sierra Leone but of Yoruba origin (Kopy-toff, 1965), and the poor (Iliffe, 1983). Peel found thatmany early members of the Aledura churches were educatedurban migrants, detached from their home communitiesand traditions (Peel, 1968). Some of the early converts,however, became wealthy and powerful and organisedtheir families and households it much the same wayas other wealthy and powerful Yoruba. Their religioncame to be shared by their junior relatives and otherdependents.

However, Islam and Christianity not only broughtwith them new ways of understanding the world, butalso new "blueprints" of social organisation, whichin some cases coincided with, and in others were inconflict with those current in Yoruba society. Thekoran and the bible could now be cited to legitimatenew kinds of behavior. The conflict which resultedwas perhaps more acute in the case of Christianity,based as it was co models of social organisation derivedfrom the European world and interpreted by a professionalcadre of European missionaries in the light of theirown socialization and experience. The structure ofauthority relations within Yoruba congregations, theexistence of this alternative set of social blueprints,and the contexts in which they were invoked, form thethemes of the remainder of this paper. The next sectiondeals with an instance of church fission among Yorubamigrants in northern Ghana where I carried out my ownfieldwork. In the third section the insights gained bythis case study are explorerl using comparative material onthe development of Christianity and Islam elsewhere inYoruba land. Finally in the conclusion the theoreticalimplications of this material are assessed.

II. A CHURCH IN NORTHERN CHANA5

Until 1969, when most of them left the count /as a result of the Ghanaian Government's "complianceorder", there ware probably about 200,000 people ofYoruba descent in Ghana. Most of them were involvedin petty trade and they had spread both In_lle markets

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of the large towns and to the most t emote rural areasof the country (Sudarkasa, 1975; 1979; Hundsalz, 1973).One of the more striking features of the Yoruba migrationto Ghana was the way in which migrants from the sametown in Nigeria were clustered in the same towns inGhana. In Kumasi the largest group was from Ogbomosowhile in Accra they were from Ilorin. In Tamale, where myresearch was carried out, most of the Yoruba migrants werefrom the four towns of Ogbomoso, Igbeti, Igboho and Saki(Eades, 1975). The pattern was on of chain migration inwhich a successful trader would recruit junior relativesto help him or her in trade. Usually the trader would beresponsible for arranging the marriages of his assistantsand for providing them with capital to set up in trade ontheir own account (Eades, 1979). Thus not only migrantsfrom the same towns were clustered together, but alsomigrants from the same compounds within those towns. Themost influential men in the Yoruba community were thesenior members of these clusters of kin who were usuallyamong the wealthiest traders in the market. Not allthe Yoruba were traders however. Over the years manyhad been unsuccessful in trade and had drifted offinto alternative occupations. Many of the childrenof the initial migrants had been to school anci hadmoved into a wider range of occupations including clericaland government work.

Despite the fact that the migrants came from aculturally homogeneous area, town of origin was stillextremely important in their social lives. The mostimportant institutions within the Yoruba community werethe branches of the town unions which linked Yoruba fromthe same town with home and with migrants in other areas.The migrants from each town formed virtually endogamousgroups. The importance of town of origin is also evidentin the history of the Yoruba churches which developed inTamale.

Of the 2000 or so Yoruba in Tamale in 1969, perhapsa third were Christians, reflecting the relative strengthof the two world religions in the part of northernOyo State from which they came. Nearly all the Sakimigrants were Muslims, but migrants from Ogbomoso,Igbeti and Igboho were divided more evenly betweenChristianity and Islam. While the Yoruba Muslims were

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well integrated into the religious life of the town, themajority of the local northern Ghanaians being Muslim, theYoruba Christians were rather more isolated. The threechurches which most of them attended, the First and SecondBaptist Churches and the United Mission Church (UMCA) heldservices in Yoruba and attracted few Ghanaians. TheBaptist Church is the leading denomination in the northernYoruba towns from which the majority of the Yorubamigrants to Ghana came, and the Baptist Church in Ghanaonly became established beca.ise of the Yoruba presencethere. The only exception to this Baptist supremacy wasthe town of Igbeti where the main denomination is theUnited Missionary Society. T:ie Igbeti Christians inTamale had set up a United Mission church there, though interms of doctrines, ritual and organisation it was verysimilar to the two Baptist churches.

Yoruba church organisation in Ghana was closelymodeled on that in the home towns. One of its mostimportant features was the division of the congregationinto egbe or associations which brought together menor women of broadly similar age. It was through theegbe that the collection of money for the church wasorganised, and all the members of a particular egbewere expected to contribute a similar amount. Theegbe met every week, and part from the collection of dues,discussed matters of common interest to the members orsettled any disputes which had arisen between them. Theegbe also played a prominent part in individual member'srites of passage -- naming ceremonies, marriages andfunerals. Each egbe had its own officials -- chairman,secretary, treasurer etc.

The main church functions were the two Sunday ser-vices, but there were also weekly prayer meetings,bible study sessions and choir practices. The moreenergetic younger members of the church could regularlyspend four or five evenings a week involved in churchactivities. Less regular special events included theannual harvest festival and choir festivals to whichrepresentatives from other churches would be invited.

I f an understanding of the church organisationis essential for an understanding of the tensions andconflicts which arose within it, so is an understanding

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of the personalities of the leaders of the First andSecond Baptist Churches in Tamale. Isaac Ogundiran,the chairman of the First Baptist Church committee,was one of the most conspicious members of the Yorubacommunity. He was a large man with a resonant voice,and a wealthy trader. He was also one of the few Yorubaof his age group with primary school education, and was asenior member of the largest Christian family fromOgbomoso in Tamale. There was an element of rivalry inhis relationship with Luke, the most senior member of thefamily. Luke's social life revolved around the Ogbomosotown union, the other Yoruba elders in Tamale and thelocal traditional elite. Isaac spent most of his timewith other literate businessmen and government employees.In 1969 he was also the leading figure in the church, andin the absence of a full-time pastor, he effectively ranit, doing most of the preaching and decided the mainaspects of church policy. The other members of the churchcommittee rarely challenged his decisions.

Caleb Olawole, the leader of the Second Baptistchurch, was entirely different. Unlike Isaac, he was oneof the Foorest Yoruba traders in Tamale and was kept inbusiness largely through the help of his friends who werewilling to advance him credit. The other leaders of thechurch were also relatively poor: they included Alade, atailor who had twice failed to become established intrade, Ajayi, a part-time driver, and Alamu who taught inthe small school attached to the church. All four ofthese men had chronic financial difficulties and the onlynoticeably wealthy member of the Second Baptist church wasa trader from Ilesa who owned a store at the militarybarracks outside the town.

As a result of the differences in wealth betweentheir leading members the services in the two churchesdiffered markedly in style. The congregation of theSecond Baptist Church was much smaller than that ofthe First Baptist Church, and there was none of theostentation in dress apparent in the First Church.While the theme of sermons in the First Church tendedto revolve around the misuse of wealth. the messagein the Second Church was that the poor could expecttheir reward in the Kingdom of Heaven. Caleb and hisfriends obviously found solace in their church activities

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which provided them with the bulk of their social life,and it was probably only this network of friends whichprevented them from returning to Nigeria.

The Establishment of Yoruba Churches in Tamale

The first Yoruba Christians in Tamale had comemainly from Ogbomoso. They started to hold meetingsin the late 1920s. By 1939 they had started to holdregular services in a rented room. They built theirfirst church in 1947 and a larger one in 1963. Thefirst pastor was D. A. Alasade who remained with themuntil after the second world war. After a differenceof opinion he left and founded a church on the Bolgatangaroad. In 1969 this was run by the American BaptistMissionary in Tamale and had a mainly Ghanaian congre-gation. The pattern of a large Yoruba congregationcoexisting with a small Ghanaian congregation in thesame town was typical of the Baptist Church in Ghana.The foundation of the two other Yoruba churches inTamale came rather later.

After an interval, Alasade was succeeded by PastorAdeyemi, a graduate of the Ogbomoso Baptist Seminary.It was during his term of office that preaching stationswere established in and around Tamale. A group ofthe younger men on the church committee took it inturns to go out to the villages to preach, as wellas in the prison and hospital in Tamale itself. However,Adeyemi was not popular among some of the older membersOr the congregation from Ogbomoso and lgboho, mainlybecause of his opposition to polygnists serving onthe church committees. Polygynous elders like Lukesaw that this would undermine their influence. Inthe end, the issue caused so much trouble in the congre-gation that Adeyemi returned to the Seminary in 1956.

It was also during Pastor Adeyemi's time that the UMCAchurch was formed. The United Missionary Church forAfrica, founded in 1922, was the oldest and largest churchin lgbeti. At first the lgbeti Christians in Tamale hadattended the Baptist Church, but they felt that Adeyemiwas pressuring them into formal membership. They wrote tothe United Missionary Society in Nigeria to ask if a

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pastor could be sent to Tamale, and they broke away toform their own church. Apart from a small congregation inDamongo this was the only UMCA church in Ghana, though informs of service, doctrine and organisation the two groupsof Yoruba Christians in Tamale were very similar.

Adeyemi's successor, Pastor Lade le, got on betterwith the elders but less well with the younger menwho complained to the mission when he decided to discon-tinue the preaching stations. They were suspendedby the church elders. American and Nigerian missionofficials, with some sympathy for the younger members,attempted to mediate, but more trouble erupted thefollowing year when allegations of adultery withinthe congregation made matters worse. A split whichresulted in the formation of the Second Baptist churchsoon followed.

According to the First Baptist Church leaders the mainargument was over polygyny. According to the SecondBaptist Church leaders it was the issue of adultery.Having been suspended once, they decided to form their ownchurch. Many of the younger, more educated, members ofthe congregation were in sympathy with them, but pressurewas put on them by their senior relatives to remain in themain church, and only nine actually left. Soon after thisthe polygynous elders quietly retired from the churchcommittees. Ogundiran remained on it. Pastor Lade lestayed in Tamale until 1964. The Second Baptist Church,though small, survived and gradually increased in size,and in 1969 its members had just completed a new building.

After a year Lade le was succeeded by another evangel-ical pastor who fell out with Ogundiran almost as soon ashe arrived. Ogundiran, as chairman of the church commit-tee, had effectively been running the church sinceLade le's departure, and he now refused to take any part.The new pastor, however, was having problems with hismarriage and left in 1967. Ogundiran took over again aschairman, a position he held until the exodus.

Although much of this history of the First BaptistChurch on the surface appears to be a simple clashof personalities between leading church members andsuccessive pastors, the structural aspects of the conflict

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are also worth considering. The first thing to note isthe multiplex nature of the ties between members of thechurch. The majority of the adult members worked in themarket, came from the same two towns in Nigeria, and weremembers of large groups of kin linked through marriage andfriendship networks. For many of the members the churchprovided the focus of their social lives not only onSundays but throughout the week. Thus for many thenetworks of kinship, friendship, occupation and churchmembership overlapped, and different norms and values ineach of these areas of social life could give rise toconflict. The leaders of the Yoruba community both in thehome towns and in Ghana were the wealthy senior traders,many of whom had several wives. In Tamale these elderswere the founders of the church in the 1920s and 1930s,and they contributed heavily to its finances. Smallwonder, then, that they should object to seeing theirauthority, unchallenged in other areas of Yoruba sociallife, being undermined by the junior members of thechurch who claimed positions of leadership on the basis ofliteracy and adherence to the norms and values of churchmembership as defined by the evangelical mission. At thestart the church meetings had been informal and werepresided over by the elders. The pastors who took overthe church later on were more aware of the norms ofmission Christianity with its hostility towards polygamyand its emphasis on evangelism outside the Yoruba congre-gation. The conflict over evangelism was not confined tothe Baptist church: in 1969 the UMCA minister was alsocomplaining that this congregation was apathetic aboutcontinuing with the preaching stations ;n the outlyingvillages.

For the individual migrants the Yoruba churchesin Ghana acted as adaptive mechanisms, allowing themto enter into a ready-made social network on theirarrival in the town, and they acted as supportive institu-tions for their members in a variety of ways. It waswithin the friendship networks that grew out of theorganisations that the migrants spent much of their sociallives. Second, they helped the migrants maintain bothlinks with home and with other migrants from the same townin other parts of Ghana. Along with this went themaintenance of Yoruba cultural identity. Whereas inSchildkrout's study of Kumasi (1978) the second generation

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Mossi migrants adopted zongo rather than Mossi associ-ational patterns, the Yoruba in Tamale were involved inorganisations which were modeled on, and which had closelinks with the social institutions of the home town.Membership thus reinforced both cultural identity andlinks with home.

Third, these organisations provided a frameworkwithin which individuals could organise their sociallives and obtain status and respect within the Yorubacommunity. It was this factor which led to the strainsand stresses in the First Baptist Church in particular.Gradually the church had developed out of the informalmeetings of the early Yoruba migrants in Tamale andinto a formal organisation with a professional pastor.It was this development which brought about the clashesof values and personalities which were visible fromthe time of Pastor Alasade onwards. The clashes betweenchurch doctrine and traditional Yoruba values are mostevident in the dispute over polygyny, but there wereimplications for the authority structure of the churchwhich went beyond this. On the one hand, the "big men" inthe Yoruba community, the senior and wealthier traders,considered it their right to control the institutionswhich operated within the Yoruba community. For theyounger members, the poor and the educated, churchmembership provided an alternative status system indepen-dent of the traditional Yoruba status determinants of ageand wealth. These groups defined prestige in terms ofdoctrinal fluency, participation in church activities, andacceptance of Baptist teachings where they conflicted withYoruba values. This was particularly so in their accep-tance of monogamy and the need to evangelise outside theYoruba community. The older conservatives in the churchwere the wealthy traders, the heads of large familygroups, who had been the original members of the congre-gation. In the home town associations, which they hadalso started, their influence and prestige were unchal-lenged. In the case of the church, however, they foundtheir authority being undermined by much younger men,openly critical of the senior members and gaining a largedegree of support from the pastor and the mission.The radicals of the 1950s were much younger men, manyof whom were either unsuccessful in trade or not involvedin trade at all: thus the importance for them of church

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membership as a framework for their social lives. It wasthese men who were enthusiastic about the preachingstations and other church activities which the eldersregarded as a waste of time.

This points in microcosm to the dilemma of theBaptist Church in Ghana. On the one hand it was tryingto establish roots among Ghanaians and on the otherthe overwhelming majority of its members were Nigerianmigrants. The Yoruba ran their churches in the sameway and in the same language as they had done in Nigeria:membership in the Baptist Church was part of theirYoruba identity. In the case of the First BaptistChurch this conflict of interests was reflected inthe departure of the first pastor in the 1940s, inthe opposition to the preaching stations in the 1950s,and in the split which led t-) the formation of theSecond Baptist Church in 1959. It was, however, notonly an issue in the Baptist Churches. The ministerof the UMCA complained to me that his congregationdid not appear to be interested in their own preachingstations which he himself was anxious to keep going.

The position of Ogundiran in all this was ambiguous.Like the leaders of the Second Baptist Church he wasliterate, monogamous, and an able preacher. But hewas also wealthy and a member of one of the largestgroups of Ogbomoso migrants. Thus he regarded hisleadership of the church as important for his own positionin the Yoruba community, but was not particularly inter-ested in evangelising outside it. It was this parochi-alism combined with his steady refusal to play a secondaryrole which resulted in many of the tensions visible in thechurch in 1969.

To summarise. In the Yoruba towns involved inthe migration to Ghana, Christianity and Islam spreadrapidly in those descent groups whose members weremost actively involved in migrant trade elsewhere in WestAfrica. Conversion to the world religions enabled themigrants to fit into a ready-made social network in theplaces where they settled, a network which extended beyondthe boundaries of the ethnic group. As the expansion oftrade involved the development of clusters of kin, it wasnatural that the Baptist Church in Tamale should have

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developed around these clusters, and that their seniormembers should have had the major say in its development.The expansion of the church had two further implications,however. First it became more firmly attached to theBaptist Mission and a succession of professional pastorswere appointed. Second, within it there were Yorubamigrants who were either no longer involved in trade orwho were not members of the large Yoruba family clusters.Because of their marginality they put most of theirenergy into the church and were attracted by thoseelements of Christianity which seemed to relate mostclearly to their position. These were also elementsstressed by the European missionaries -- particularlychurch teachings on marriage, wealth and evangelism.Their appointment to the church committees set thestage for the struggle between the church elders whobased their position on kinship and seniority, andthe younger more marginal members who based their positionon doctrinal criteria as defined by the mission. In theresulting conflict, many church members felt an acuteclash of loyalties but eventually backed away fromsecession, largely thanks to the social and financialpressures which the elders could exert upon them.

The next section traces similar themes -- authoritystructures and rival sources of legitimacy -- in otherwork on the world religions among the Yoruba.

III. PATTERNS OF CONFLICT IN THE WORLD RELIGIONSIN YORUBALAND

Yoruba Islam

Islam was established among the Yoruba much earlierthan Christianity, particularly in the northern kingdomslike Oyo which were closer to events in Nupe and Hausa-land. The religion suffered a setback in the early19th century when the Oyo kingdom collapsed. Manyof the Muslims fled to Ilorin which fell under FulaniMuslim rule in the 1820s, and there was some persecutionof Muslims who remained. However, by the mid 19thcentury Islam had started to spread throughout Yoruba landonce more, and Oyo and Ibadan were to have Musiim rulersby the end of the century. The wars to some extent

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helped: refugees were the starting point for new commun-ities of Muslims and Islamic amulets were much in demandto protect the combatants. The end of the wars saw theextension of British rule from the coast, and thisprovided more settled conditions under which Islam couldspread even more rapidly.

Like Christianity, Islam is a religion in whichleadership can be achieved through literacy and doctrinalfluency. What happens when the religicii spreads toan area in which leadership is traditionally basedon seniority, wealth and genealogical position?

In the early Yoruba Muslim communities such asOyo, Igboho, Ogbomoso and Osogbo, the head of the Muslimcommunity had effectively been the Parakoyi, a chiefshiptitle generally associated with the control of trade inYoruba states. The link between trade and migrant Muslimcommunities is obvious (Gbademosi, 1978, 6-7). By themid-19th century, however, with increasing knowledge ofIslamic institutions (Gbademosi, ,978, 37) leadership ofthe Muslim community came to rest with the Imam, apermanent office held for life, like most Yoruba chiefshiptitles.

"In essence, the Imam was with the YorubaMuslim community what the Oba or the Bale waswith traditional Yoruba society." (Gbademosi,1978, 39)

The other main offices developing were those of theOnitafusiru, Balogun and Ladan (Muezzin). The Onitafusiruwas elected on the basis of his knowledge of Islam,while the others were chosen on the basis of age, stltusand piety. Not only was the title of Balogun borrowedfrom the Oyo political system: so were the rules by whichthese Muslim officials were appointed, and the rulesvaried from town to town, in line with the local politicalsystem. Islamic titles proliferated as the number ofconverts grew -- often they included the Naibi (the Imam'sdeputy), Otun and Osi Balogun, Baba Adini, Asipa, Serikiand Sarumi (Gbademosi, 1978, 57). In Abeokuta the titleswere distributed along township lines, as were otherpolitical offices. Ibadan adopted a promotional laddersystem, and in a number of towns the office of Imam became

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vested in a particular descent group. With the widerspread of Islamic literacy in the 20th century, however,there was pressure for change and gradually a candidate'sknowledge of Islam became more important in selectinga new Imam than his descent group (Gbademosi, 1972).The conflict between acquired knowledge and hereditarystatus in electing the Imam was resolved in favourof the former. Other Muslim titles however continuedto remain vested within descent groups.

Early Yoruba Christianity

Missionaries arrived in Yoruba land in the 1840sand much of our knowledge of the political events in theinterior during the subseqc rit decades comes from theiraccounts. Initially, African converts tended to be fromrelatively marginal groups -- the poor, the strangers andthe Saro returnees from Sierra Leone who provided most ofthe early CMS clergy. However, the children of the earlyconverts tended to remain Christian, and the character-istic pattern of lineage based religious affiliationstarted to develop in towns like Ibadan and Abeokuta.With the arrival of British rule in Lagos and its gradualextension to the interior, Christianity took on a newfunction as the major source of educational opportunityand this facilitated the spread of the religion in theearly 20th century.

Yoruba patterns of social organisation affectednot only the spread of religion but also patterns ofpersecution where it occurred. Iliffe's work on the CMSarchives suggests that, unlike Buganda or Madagascar,persecution of Christians by the state was very rare inYoruba land (Iliffe, 1983). The best known attack onChristians was the Ifole (lit. "housebreaking") riot inAbeokuta in 1867, but the degree of violence was limitedand was much less severe than, for instance, in thepersecution of Muslims earlier in the century. (CfGbademosi, 1978, 8-13.) The Ifole was as much an expres-sion of political protest as of religious disapproval.What incidents of persecution Iliffe did discover wereusually attempts by non-Christian elders to reassert theirauthority over 'rebellious' younger members of theirdescent groups.

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As larger congregations of Christians developedin Lagos and the other major towns, Yoruba Christiaokentered on a new phase. As Ajayi has documented (1965).the position of the Saro clergy was under attack atthe end of the 19th century as a new generation ofevangelical European missionaries called for the imposi-tion ..f European leadership in the church in the name of(European definitions of) morality. The shabby treatmentof leading members of the African clergy, includingBishop James Johnson, by the mission authorities, causedconsiderable discontent among the congregation, partic-ularly at St. Paul's Breadfruit Church in Lagos, whereJohnson was the pastor (Webster, 1964, 73-8). Johnson wasan outspoken man in an ambivalent position. There weretwo major issues in church affairs at the time: polygynyand leadership. Polygyny was a fundamental organisationalprinciple in Yoruba society, but in 1888 a Lambeth rulinghad proscribed the institution. On the quest'on of churchleadership the attitude of the missions was increasinglyto 'tighten up morality' by discrediting the work of theSaro clergy and by replacing them with European offic-ials. African church leaders like Johnson were undergreat pressure from the laity to break away and foundtheir own churches, but must of the Saro clergy remainedloyal to the mission. Many in the congregation, however,did decide to break away, and the result was the start ofthe African church movement. The secession in theAnglican CMS was paralleled by events among both Baptistsand Methodists.

The early history of Christianity among the Yorubatherefore illustrates a number of variations on thethemes outlined above. At first the introduction of thereligion was resisted by elders trying to maintaincontrol among their younger relatives, but, as iliffemakes clear, once the religion was established withinparticular families, the Christian elders were justas authoritarian as their traditionalist and Muslimcounterparts. Se".:ond, the code of behaviour whichChristian leaders, especially expatriates, advocatedwas increasingly resented by the growing congregations,especially the church's position on polygyny and itsattitude towards the African clergy. The positionof the clergy was ambivalent, but in the end rrost of them

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remained loyal to the missions. Thus the Aft can church-es, when they came into being, had a important traditionof lay leadership, which has been a major feature ofYoruba Christianity up to the present time.

The African Churches

If the early struggles in the mission churcheswere over European versus indigenous leadership andnotions of morality, the same issues were to hauntthe African churches in their subsequent development.Ar Webster puts it, the debate was between two maingroups of churchmen: a "church" group based on Lagosand an "evangelical" group based on Agege (1964, 118-124). The church group grew up in urban Lagos amongpeople committed .:o European values and regarding Africancustoms and beliefs as "unprogressive ". The splitwith the missions had come about because of the leadershipissue. Other mission policies -- on education, organ-isation and ritual -- were largely accepted. "Church"leaders hoped for recognition of the African churchesby, and for eventual unity with, the mission churches.In the interests of "respectability" they only toleratedpolygyny and encouraged monogamy. Evangelical leadershipgrew up, on the other hand, around the plantationsat Agege, and the evangelical leaders had more sympathywith Veican values and social institutions. For them thespl!.. with the relssions had taken place not only becauseof the leadership issue but also because the Europeanmissions had devalued African social institutions such aspolygyny and so had undermined the whole basis of moral-ity. Thus the evangelical members of the African churchesplaced no restrictions on the numbers of wives of theirmembers or ever: the clergy. They were more closely intouch with events in the interior, from which the suppliesof plantation labour came, and they used these contacts toorganise a remarkably successful programme of evangeli-sation over wide areas of Yoruba land, despite confronta-tion and occasional persecution at the hands of membersof the established churches.

The struggle between the two schools of thoughtwas epitomised by the personal rivalry between A. W.Thomas, the Deputy Registrar of the Lagos Supreme Court

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and a Lagos merchant, and J . K . Coker, the leadingAgege planter and evangelist. They were the wealthiestmen in the African church movement, and were the pro-tagonists in factional conflict which lasted until1921 and which resulted in occasional violence anda number of complex law suits. It centred around controlof the Bethel Church in Lagos (Webster, 1964, 161-186).The leaders of Lroa factions built up and maintainedfollowings by manipulating their wealth and their familyties. Their wealth, the key factor, enabled them toextend loans to potential followers and so secure theirloyalty, together with that of their families. Coker lostmuch of his influence when he suffered bankruptcy in 1905,while Thomas's position similarly suffered in the finan-cial crash of 1921. The networks of patronage, loyaltyand debt which they created were typical of those operat-ing in Yoruba political life in general. The church hadbecome yet another arena in which the big men in thecommunity could compee for prestige and influence.

The Aladura Movement

While the African churches developed out of discontentwith European mission organisation, the Aladura churchesdeveloped to meet some of the needs of Yoruba Christianswhich were not being met within the mission churches.The name Aladura itself is derived from the word adurameaning 'prayer', and 'praying churches' is an aptdescription of these congregations. The founders of theAladura churches formed praying bands within the missionchurches, and they only separated when their activitieswere seen as unorthodox by the mission authorities.

The major difference lies in their approach tothe problems of everyday life as seen by the members.Whereas the traditional Yoruba cults and Islam wereable to offer healing techniques, protection againstwitches and knowledge of the future, mission Christianitydid not. The missions tended to stress the importanceof salvation in the next world rather than solvingthe problems of this, in direct contrast with the instru-mental nature of Yoruba indigenous religion. The Aladuraprophet, on the other hand, by interpreting dreams andvisions and by faith healing, performs a role similar to

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that of the Islamic alufa or Yoruba babalawo, the !fadiviner. Most of the converts to the Aladura churchesseem to have come not from Islam or Yoruba cults but fromthe mission churches. There is also a continuity inpersonnel with the established churches. Isaac Akinyele,the leader of the Christ Apostolic Church and, for manyyears, the traditional ruler of Ibadan, was a member ofone of the oldest Christian families in Ibadan: hisbrother was a bishop. Other Aladura leaders are relatedto the Agege planters and to the Anglican elite inAbeokuta (Peel, 1968).

As with the African churches, there is a differenceof leadership style between individual leaders andtheir congregations. Mitchell (1970) distinguishesbetween the "spiritualist" and "apostolic" aladurachurches. In the spiritualist churches the key roleis that of the prophet. There has always been a rolein Yoruba religion for ecstatic forms of religiousexperience involving spirit possession, trance andprophetic utterance, and aladura prophets thus havesomething in common with the possession priests ofthe indigenous cults. However one result of this relianceon charismatic leadership is a rapid rate of churchfission as disgruntled prophets have withdrawn with theirfollowers to found their own churches. This has been mostevident in the Cherubim and Seraphim churches, whichoriginated with a praying band which separated from theCMS in Lagos in 1925. Within a couple of years there hadbeen a rift between two of the early leaders, Abiodum, thegirl whose visions had led to the formation of the band,and an itinerant prophet called Moses Orimo lade. The riftwas never healed, and offshoots have proliferated eversince.

The other major group of Aladura churches discussedby Mitchell are the 'apostolic' churches, the largestof which is the Christ Apostolic Church, the thirdlargest church in western Nigeria. Though the dividingline is not rigid, tie apostolic churches tend to put moreemphasis on the role of the pastor rather than that of theprophet, and are closer to the mission churches in theirorganisation and ritual. The number of secessions withinthese churches has also been rather less. The ChristApostolic Church is unusual among the independent African

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churches in prohibiting polygamy, as well as in its rigidopposition to the use of any form of medicine, whetherwestern or traditional, in the treatment of disease. Allthe emphasis is on the power of prayer. It is also theAladura church most heavily involved in educational work,again following the pattern established by the missionchurches.

The major difference between the Aladura churchesand the other cases discussed so far is the natureof externally derived authority. Whereas with Islamand Yoruba mission Christianity authority derives fromexternal mission imposed norms and values, in the Aladurachurches, and especially the spiritualist churches such asthe Cherubim and Seraphim and its many offshoots, prophetsbase their legitimacy directly on biblical precedents, butin doing so they come close to roles and behaviourpatterns to be found in indigenous Yoruba religion.

However, the evidence is that as these churcheshave consolidated their membership, over two generationsin some areas, they have increasingly come to resemblethe other Yoruba churches. Their members now comeranging from a wide spectrum of social classes andoccupations, from agriculture to university teachingand the professions. Membership is increasingly basedon kinship affiliation (Omoyajowo, 1976, 99). Patternsof associational structure are similar to those inother churches, while in the use of Yoruba music anddance in the liturgy the Aladura Christians have tendedto lead the way.

The link with the other examples discussed aboveis the way in which initially marginal religious groupshave, over time, developed into congregations in whichleadership and authority are largely based on modelsto be found throughout the rest of Yoruba society.There is still a potential tension between Yoruba socialnorms and those of Aladura ideology, but the latterinvolves not norms and values imposed from outside byEuropean missionaries but the claims cf charismaticprophets. When these claims are given full rein, as inthe Cherubim and Seraphim churches, the result is rapidschism. Where they are more controlled, as in the ChristApostolic church, larger denominations tend to develop

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with doctrines and practices rather more similar to thoseof the longer-established churches.

Perhaps the most dramatic evidence of the waysin which the norms of Yoruba social organisation tendto reassert themselves comes from the utopian communeswhich developed in the coastal areas of Ondo state,the best-known of which is Aiyetoro (Barrett, 1977).Aiyetoro was founded by a group of persecuted Aladuramembers in the late 1940s and they developed a uniquesystem of communal work, communal ownership and communalliving. During certain periods marriage and the nuclearfamily were virtually abolished, and the village achieveda level of economic development and a standard of livingwhich was one of the highest in West Africa. However,this prosperity soon evaporated, as the communal laboursystem broke up, economic individualism returned and thefamily was re-established. The level of prosperityachieved by the villagers and the ability of successiverulers were unable to erase the underlying patternsof Yoruba social organisation, and within a generationthese patterns had been reintroduced: Aiyetoro looksincreasingiy like other villages in the area and itspatterns of social organisation have increasingly revertedto the local norm.

CONCLUSION

What I am suggesting in this paper is that underlyingthe diversity of Yoruba responses to the penetrationof the world religions are a number of common elementsand themes. In the initial stages of penetration thenumber of converts tends to be small, and they tend toinclude people marginal in one way or another to the restof the community. In the 19th century Christianity andIslam proved attractive to Saro returnees, migrants fromthe north and the poor alike. In the 20th century theyproved attractive to the growing number of migrants in thetowns of Nigeria. In the early stages of development thecongregations of worshippers had sect-like characteristics-- close interaction within the group, little interactionwith outsiders, and a distinctive set of values andbehaviour patterns. As the congregations have grown,however, the pattern has been gradually modified. Over

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time the recruitment of new, younger, members producesstratification and often associational divisions in termsof age. In the cases of Yoruba Christianity and Islam,patterns of leadership based on age and hereditary officehave tended to develop within the world religions,reflecting the organisational principles of the rest ofYoruba society. Even in the rare cases like Aiyetorowhere there has been a conscious rejection of thesepatterns, they have still tended to resurface.

However, the new religions have come from outside,and have brought with them new models of behaviourand social organisation which may at times be at variancewith local norms. The conflict has been greater inthe case of Christianity than in that of Islam, par-ticularly over the polygyny issue, even though forpolitical reasons the persecution of Muslims was attimes more severe than that of Christians ever was.A major issue in Yoruba Islam, however, has been theelection and position of the Imam, where Yoruba modelsof hereditary and permanent office have been in conflictwith orthodox Islamic tradition.

A similar issue has arisen within Yoruba Christianitywhere church members, like those in Tamale, have claimedpositions of leadership not only on the basis of theirwealth, family membership and seniority, but also in termsof their doctrinal fluency, elements highly valued by themission authorities. In the Aladura churches the claim toleadership has often been based on the supposed possessionof spiritual gifts, but the result is similar: rapidfission and the proliferation of new organisations.

A final issue which seems to arise repeatedly is thatof the attitude of the congregation towards the outsideworld. Unlike the indigenous Yoruba cults, both of theworld religions regard themselves as having a monopoly ofspiritual truth, and there is a strong tradition ofmilitant proselytisation in both. The tension iii Tamalewas between the professional pastors and some of ti..members who felt an obligation to evangelise outside thechurch and beyond the ethnic boundary, and the churchelders who were primarily concerned with their positionwithin the church and the ethnic community. A similartension can be found in the debate between the "church"

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and evangelical factions in the African churches, acleavage which could also be related to differences in thegeographical and economic positions of the members.

In conclusion one can reiterate the point thatthe social relations of religion are only part of thewider social fabric. What is obvious from the Yorubamaterial is the way in which wider patterns of socialorganisation tend to reassert themselves in religiousinstitutions, despite the attempts at reform introduced bythose claiming legitimacy on the basis of an externallyderived religious tradition. It is the conflict whichderives from this confrontation of opposed models whichprovides Yoruba religious organisation with much of itsvitality and fascination.

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NOTES

1. This paper arises out of some of the material andideas of an earlier paper (Eades, 1977). The field-work in Northern Ghana and Western Nigeria on which itwas based was carried out in 1969-71 and was financedby a Hayter Studentship from the Department ofEducation and Science and a Smuts Studentship from theUniversity of Cambridge.

2. Peel ( 1967) provides data on this distributionbased on the 1952-3 census. The major change sincethen has been the advance of Christianity and Islam atthe expense of indigenous Yoruba religion.

3. The major sources on Aladura Christianity in WesternNigeria include Turner (1967), Peel (1968), Mitchell(1970) and Omoyajowo (1976).

4. It is also less well documented. The major studyis that of Gbadamosi (1978).

5. For a fuller account of the Yoruba churches inTamale, see Eades (1977).

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Ajayi, J.F.A.1965 Christian Missions in Nigeria, 1841-1891.

London: Longmans.

Barrett, S. R.1977 The Rise and Fall of an African Utopia.

Waterloo: Wilfrid Laurier University Press.

Eades, J. S.1975 "The Growth of a migrant community: the

Yoruba in Northern Ghana," in J. R. Goody(ed) Changing Social Structure in Ghana.London: International African Institute.

Eades, J. S.1977 "Church fission in a migrant community:

Yoruba Baptists in Northern Ghana," Savanna,6, 2, 166-77.

Eades, J.1979

Eades, J.1980

S."Kinship and entrepreneurship among the Yorubain Northern Ghana," in W. Shack and E. P.Skinner (eds) Strangers in African Societies.Berkeley: California University Press.

S.The Yoruba Today. Cambridge: CambridgeUniversity Press.

Gbadamosi,1972

Gbadamosi,1978

T.G.O."The Imamate question among Yoruba Muslims,"Journal of the Historical Society of Nigeria,4, 1, 89-116.

T.G.O.The Growth of Islam Among the Yoruba.London: Longmans.

Hundsalz, M.1972 "Die Wanderung der Yorub nach Ghana and ihre

Ruckkehr nach Nigeria," Erdkunde, 26, 218-30.

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Iliffe, J.1983

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"Persecution and toleration in precolonialAfrica: Nineteenth century Yoruba land,"MS (forthcoming in Studies in Church History).

Mitchell, R. C.1970 "Religious protest and social change:

the origins of the Aladura churches among theYoruba in southwestern Nigeria," in R. I. Rot-berg and A. Mazrui (eds) Protest and Power inBlack Africa. New York: Oxford UniversityPress.

Omoyajowo, A.1971 Cherubim and Seraphim Church in Nigeria.

Ph.D. Thesis: University of Ibadan.

Omoyajowo, A.n.d. "The Aladura Churches in Nigeria since

Independence," in E. Fashole-Luke (ed)Religi_l in Ind pendent Africa.

Peel, J.D.Y.1967 "Religious change in Yoruba land,"

37, 292-306.

Peel, J.D.Y1968

Shildkrout,1978

Sudarkasa,1975

Sudarkasa,1979

Africa,

Aladura. London: Oxford University Press.

E.Paople of the Zongo. Cambridge: CambridgeUniversity Press.

N."Commercial migration in West Africa withspecial reference to the Yoruba in Ghana,"African Urban Notes (Series B) , 1, 61-103.

N."From stranger to alien," in W. Shack andE. P. Skinner (eds) Strangers in AfricanSocieties. Berkeley: California UniversityPress.

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Turner, H. W.1967 African Independent Church, 2 vols. London:

Oxford University Press.

Webster, J.B.1964 The African Churches Among the Yoruba,

1888-1922. Oxford: Clarendon Press.

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THE EFFECTS OF MISSIONIZATION ONCULTURAL IDENTITY IN TWO SOCIETIES

DANIEL T. HUGHESOhio State University

INTRODUCTION

In March of 1975 a group of anthropologists, histor-ians, and missionaries gathered at Stuart, riorida for athree-day symposium on missionary activity in Oceania. Itproved to be a most intellectually stimulating andrewarding experience. During the symposium and in thebook, Mission, Church and Sect in Oceania (Boutilier,Hughes, & Tiffany 1978 that followed many aspects of themissionization process were probed and discussed, and agreat deal of light was shed on this very complex phenome-non. However, I would agree with the observation made bySione Latukefu in the concluding chapter of that book(1978:1463). While praising the various authors for theircontributions, Latukefu lamented the fact that there hadnot been more of an attempt "to discuss the religiousaspects of conversion in depth." He expressed the hopethat future researchers would "focus more directly onthis phenomenon and perhaps devise some techniques

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determining what Christian belief really means to adher-ents of Christianity in Oceania."

I think that Latukefu is correct. If we are toenhance our understanding of the missionizztion process,we should focus more attention on the religious aspect ofthis process. We have to ask how the basic Christianconcepts of the universal fatherhood of God, of theunbounded love of God and his redeeming Son, and of divinepresence within the Christian faithful are incorporatedinto the worldviews of converts. Equally important, wemust ask how their lives (individually and collectively)are affected by the acceptance of these concepts.

The present paper will by no means attempt to answerthese questions. It will merely discuss some ways ofexamining them with the intention of stimulating discus-sion and further study and analysis by others. The paperwill begin with a brief explanation of the concept ofidentity change as developed by Goodenough and will thenattempt to use this concept in a tentative analysis of theeffects of Christian conversion in the Philippines and onPonape, two societies in which I have done fieldwork.

RELIGIOUS CONVERSION AND IDENTITY CHANGE

In his book, Cooperation in Change (1963:219),Goodenough says that religious conversion involvesa change of identity. He claims that a true religiousconversion involves "a change in a person's conceptionof self and in how he feels about himself as a person,so that he can no longer be satisfied with his identityas it was, but feels compelled to repudiate it in favor asa new one more in keeping with his ego-ideals." In thatbook Goodenough is actually analyzing community develop-ment. He says that community development involves changeson various levels of people's lives, but on the deepestlevel it involves a change in individual and in communityidentity parallel to that experienced in religiousconversion. Community development literature stressesthat development must come from within, that developmentis something that the people must want and must accomplishfor themselves. Religious missionaries preach a similarmessage. "They may differ from agents of community

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development in the content of their programs and thedoctrines by which they rationalize them, but not intheir psychological objective, which is a new image ofself and world and a new sense ' , :,urpose and accomp-lishment...But we must face up i. wr.at this impliesThe psychology of identity change does not vary accordingto the god or message in whose name such change isundertaken" (Goodenough 1963:219).

Surely Goodenough is correct in observing the parallelbetween the change involved in community development andthat involved in religious conversion. Therefore weshould be able to comprehend the process of religiousconversion more thoroughly by applying some concepts thatGoodenough employs in his analys%s of community devllop-ment. In this paper I will use the concepts of personalculture and community culture as defined by Goodenough.Culture, according to Goodenough (1963:258), includesstandards for perceiving, predicting, judging, andacting. There are both personal (private) cultures andcommunity (public) cultures. A personal culture is a setof standards according to which an individual perceives,predicts, judges, and acts. The personal culture of anyindividual will include a number of different operatingcultures, which are standards of perceiving, etc. underspecific contexts and with respect to the individual'spresent purposes. Community culture, on the otherhand, is the generalized or common way of perceiving,etc. which any member of a community attributes to allother members of the community. In brief, Goodenoughsees community development at its deepest level asattempting to accomplish changes in the operati,ly culturesof individuals in a community on a broad enough scale toassure changes in their public or community culture. Thatis, community development attempts ultimately to changestandards of perceiving, predicting, etc. for entirecommunities.

"SPLIT-LEVEL CHRISTIANITY" IN THE PHILIPPINES

One of the best analyses of the impact of Christianityon Philippine culture is found in the article, "Split-Level Christianity" by Bulatao (1967). Bulatao begins bytelling the story of a pious parrot that had been given as

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a gift to the mother superior of a convent. The iir.tie-superior showed the parrot to the other nuns with greatpride. She pulled one leg and with down cast eyes theparrot recited the "Hail Mary" in English. Then shepulled the other leg, and with equal devotion, the piousparrot recited the entire "Our Father" in English Whilethe mother superior was still gloating with pride over hernew pet, one of the younger nuns wondered what wouldhappen if she pulled both legs of the parrot at the sametime. So she proceeded to do so, hard. At that pointthe parrot shouted in Tagalog: "Putres, madadua ako!(Damn, You'll make me fall!)"

Butatao (1967:16) says that the story invariablybrings a response of laughter from Filipino audiencesbecause it rings so true as a reflection of the specialbehavior that Filipinos exhibit in formal settingsand in the presence of authority figures and of theoccasional breakthrough of a more spontaneous standardof behavior. Also Bulatao feels that the story iscorrect in linking the f,reign language to the formal-ized standard of behavior and the native language withmore spontaneous standards, since the `3rmal standardsare conditioned by the school where English is predom-inAnt and the informal standards are conditioned by thehe e and the streets where the native tongue is prec'om-in.nt.

Bulatao labels this phenomenon of two sets of learnedreflexes in Filipinos as "split-level Christianity." Hedescribes split-level Christianity as

the co-existence within the same personof two or more thought-and-behavior systemswhich are inconsistent with each other. Theimage is of two apartments at differentlevels, each of which contains a family, theone rarely talking to the other. So it iswith the splitleveled person: at one level heprofesses allegiance to ideas, attitudesand ways of behaving which are mainly borrowedfrom the Christian West, at another level heholds convictions which are more properly his"own" ways of living and believing which werehanded down from his ancestors, which do not

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always find their way into an explicitaction. Perhaps from another point ofview, they may be described as two valuesystems, differing from each other in explici-tation, one ;....):-9 abstract than the other, oneof them coming to the fore under certaincircumstances and receding to the backgroundat other times (Bulatao 1967:17).

Filipinos will often rationalize their followingof the non-Christian value system as human weaknessusing the phrase "ako'y tao lamanq (I'm only htunan)."But Butatao insists (1967:20) that split-level Christian-ity is quite different from human weakness, which presumesan acceptance of one set of values and principles and atthe same time a temptation to diverge from those princi-ples. Thus human weakness results in a sense of guilt fornot living up to the principles that one professes.However, in split-level Christianity there is littlefeeling of guilt, if any at all. Rather there is aconvict:nn that follow:rig a second set of principles iscorrect and acceptable, even though it is often shieldedfrom society's gaze or at least from the eyes of those inauthority.

Butatao (1967:22-23) gives three characteristicsof this split-level Christianity. The first character-:stic is the conviction in the validity of each of twoinconsistent value systems. The second characteristicis the failure of the people to perceive the in.onsis-tency of the two systems or at least their ability toprescind from this inconsistency. The inconsistency iss4mply not alluded to and has no effect on the peopleunless someone slips into the indigenous system at aninappropriate time, such as in the presence of a:- author-ity figure of the Christian value system - as in the caseof the pious parrot. There follows then, the thirdcharacteristic of split-level Christianity, which is theneed to keep the authority figure at a distance.

In Bulatao's analysis the surface level in a Fili-pino's life is the more "Christian" value system.In this he follows the standards of belief and behavioracquired at sc' ool and in the Church. Usually thevalues and pH. -iples of this system are verbalized

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and conceptualized in English or in Spanish, and manyof the rules of this system have been committed tomemory word-by-word. The deeper system in a Filipino'slife consists of values, attitudes, and standards ofbehavior, which have never been committed to memory,but hava been learned more informally in the home and inthe strdet.

Bulatao (1967:25-26) suggests two reasons why theincongruity of these two systems is not more apparent tothe people and why these levels of behavior remainseparate. The firvt reason is that the surface level, theWesternized and Christian level, is largely abstract andsymbolic and is not seen as applicable to the core of theFilipino's real social life. The second reason for theselevels remaining separate is that they are learned indifferent settings and in response to different stimuli.Hence, throughout the life of such a person, either valuesystem can be called into action depending upon thespecific situation and the specific stimuli.

If we take Bulatao's analysis of split-level Chris-tianity in the Philippines and rephrase it in Goodenough'sconcepts, we would conclude that in the PhilippinesChristianity has been accepted as one operatin9 culturefor indivirwals, but that it is often in conflict with oneor more other operating cultures of these individuals.Also although Christianity has no doubt altlred thecommunity culture to some degree, this change has not beenof sufficient depth to affect other and conflictingoperating cultures for most people to any significantdegree.

SOCIOPOLITICAL CONTINUITY ON PONAPE

When I did fieldwork on the political system ofPonape, I found a situation in many ways similar to thesplit-level Christianity described by Bulatao. In thatsociety there is a fully functioning traditional sociopo-litical system with leaders selected largely according torank in specific clans and lineages side-by-side with therelatively recently introduced sociopolitical system withelected leaders and appointed bureaucratic officials. Thejurisdiction of one elected leader, the Magistrate

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(Mayor), is exactlj coterminus with that of the tradition-al paramount chief, the Nahnmwarki. Both are acknowledgedas "the leader" of the same geographical area. Whenasked to distinguish the roles of these two leaders,most Ponapeans respond that the Magistrate is the leaderpall en opis (in non-traditional affairs) while theNahnmwarki is the leader pali en sapw (in traditionalaffairs). They explain that the Magistrate is leader ineducation, taxation, health care, etc., while the Nahnm-warki is leader in traditional affairs such as feasts,tribute, and the distribution of titles (Hughes 1970:63).

Ponapeans clearly apply different sets of valuesand norms not only to the roles of Magistrate and Nahnm-warki but to all leadership roles in these two sociopoli-tical systems. They are also quite conscious of thedifferences between these two systems. They see them asbeing different, but not contradictory and they move backand forth between these systems quite nimbly. From thisperspective we could certainly analyze Ponapean societyusing the "split-level Christianity" analysis of Bulataoas a model. It would fit well for Ponapean society and, I

suspect, for many societies. However, on Ponape a numberof studies have been conducted focusing on various aspectsof culture change and adaptation particularly in thesociopolitical system. Thes& studies should allowus to push the analysis further and to ask how theindigenous system has adopted and adapted new elements.Once we have done that, we can ask what impact, if any,the adoption of Christian concepts and values has had inthe ponapean sociopolitical system.

In a recent publication (Hughes 1982) I present-ed evidence of the continued vitality of the indigenoussociopolitical system on Ponape and attempted to explainsome of the reasons for this phenomenon. Without repeat-ing in detail the material in that article, it wi I behelpful to recall the major points in that argument.

The Nahnmwarki is the central figure in the indigenoussociopolitical system on P.,nape and he continues to beregarded by the vast majority of Ponapeans as a figure ofgreat importance in their lives (Hughes 1970:160).Although the Nahnmwarki no longer exudes the same sense ofawe that he did in the early contact period when he was

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considered almost too sacred to be seen, nevertheless someof this "sacred" aura remains. He is still considered theperson with the greatest honor in the state and the sourceof honor for the state, and the people honor him accord-ingly with many signs or deference, both formal and infor-mal. Fischer (1974:176) has noted that a Nahnmwarki"could probably stop any brawl between Ponapeans todayif he chose to intervene". Few Ponapeans would be solacking in respect for the Nahnmwarki as to resist suchintervention.

Another indication of the honor associated withthe position of the Nahnmwarki in contemporary Ponapeansociety is the number of formal apology rituals stilloffered to him by his subjects. The details of theformal apology ritual have been described by Riesenberg(1968:56). It is a ceremonial offering of kava bythe Nahnken (the second ranking paramount chief) inwhich the Nahnmwarki 's asked to forgive the offendingparty. In a recent study R. Ward (1975) found thatsuch apology rituals to the Nahnmwarki remain quitecommon. Formerly an offender was moved to make suchan apology by a belief that a refusal to do so wouldprovoke punishment by the spirit of the Nahnmwarkior by the fear that the Nahnmwarki might deprive himof his property, his land, or even h.3 life. Nowadays,with those sanctions removed, an offender is inducedto apologize simply by social pressure or by the fearof having his title revoked or of not receiving a highertitle.

Under successive colonial administrations the formalauthority of the Nahnmwarki has been relegated :ncreas-ingly to the "tradit::Aial affairs" such as title distri-bution and feasting. However, his actual power andinformal influence extend far beyond these arenas. Oneexample of this power was the construction of an elaboratefeast house in Matolenim (M. Ward 1975). To defray thecost of that project the Nahnmwarki levied a tax on alltitleholders in the state. For several years manyresidents contributed large sums of money and othersdonated food for laborers, materials for construction, ortheir own labor.

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One major reason `3r the continuation of the Nahnm-warki as an important figure in Ponapean society is thathe has retained control over state titles, which can beconsidered a vital resource in that society. State titlesare extremely important to most Ponapeans, even to thosewho are most successful in the modern or introducedpolitical and economic systems. A recent study has shownthat 95% of the adult Ponapeans eligible for titleshold titles (M. Ward 1975). People place great si?--cance in these titles, and acquiring a high stz.t.c.:remains one of the greatest goals of most Ponapeans. :.title validates one's status in the community in a waythat no other accomplishment can.

Another reason for the strength of the contemporaryNahnmwarkis is the flexibility of the title and thefeasting systems. This flexibility has allowed theNahnmwarkis to introduce innovations that have streng-thened the title and the feasting systems and alsotheir own position in the society as a whole (M. Ward1975; Petersen 1975). They have expanded a category ofhighly honored titles and have awarded these titlesin recognition of accomplishments in the modern sphereas legitimate contributions to the good of the state.They have also allowed traditional items of tribute(yams, kava, and pigs) to be supplemented by cash and bystore-bought goods. In this way they have opened thetitle and the feasting systems up to more people byproviding more winners in the game, as it were (Petersen1975).

A final reason for the continued vitality of theindigenous sociopolitical system on Ponape is the strongand explicit appreciation for "the Ponapean way" of lifeas opposed to "the introduced" ways (Hughes 1970:217), andan equally explicit desire to retain as much of it aspossible. Nason's account of political change on theisland of Etal (Nason 1974:140) demonstrates that not allMicronesian societies have been as explicit and asdetermined as the Ponapeans in their attempt to retain asmuch of their indigenous social structure za possible.Clearly the Nahnmwarkis, as the central figures in theindigenous sociopolitical system, have benefitted fromthis determination.

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IMPACT OF CHRISTIANITY ON PONAPE

At the conference on Missionization at Stuart,Florida referred to earlier in this paper, Latukefustressed the view that one reason for the strainedrelations between missionaries and anthropologistsis the fact that anthropologists almost invariablyfocus on the traditional elements of a culture andare slow to acknowledge the significance of introducedelements such as Christianity. Latukefu claimed thatmost anthropologists seem to ignore the fact that the vastmajority of Pacific Islanders are Christians and have beenfor generations. Both the world views and the cultures ofthe Pacific Islanders have been profoundly influenced bytheir acceptance of Christianity, according to Latukefu,and cannot be fully understood or appreciated without arecognition of this fact.

I think that Latukefu's reservation about the work ofthe anthropologists is quite reasonable and that it wouldapply to those of us who have worked on Ponape. While wehave not denied the impact of the introduction of foreignelements, religious or other, we certainly have stressedthe aspect of cultural continuity. Most, perhaps all, ofus have echoed and supported the theme that runs throughPetersen's incisive analyses: "Apparent changes incontemporary Ponapean life are more actively shaped bythe continuing arc of Ponapean culture history thanthey themselves alter the trajectory of this historicaltradition" (Petersen 1982:1). Our point is that, despitemany changes in the educational process, the politicalstructure, and the economic organization, Ponapeans haveretained a strong Ponapean identity and a vibrant Ponapeansociocultural system. They have not become imitationJapanese, Germans, or Americans. This has been a legiti-mate and, I think, a fruitful line of analysis. However,it may well have caused us to overlook or at least toprescind from some significant elements in contemporaryPonapean culture. For example, as Latukefu would indi-cate, most Ponapeans are now Christians and have been forgenerations. Granted that this "conversion" has nottransformed them into Americans or Italians, how has itaffected their culture and their identity? How has itmodified the sociopolitical system tha we have beenexamining?

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One Christian doctrine that seems to have had aprofound effect on Ponapean culture is the belief in asupreme deity. Pre-Christian Ponapean culture wasstrongly animistic. The most comprehensive presen-tation of the indigenous Ponapean cosmology is foundin a recent publication by Shimizu (1982). Shimizu'sanalysis is most helpful in understanding Ponapeanculture, but he himself is the first to admit thatparts of the analysis are the result of "guess work"because "the indigenous system of religious notionson nature and human beings has almost been lost today"(Shimizu 1982:197-198). Despite our lack of detailedknowledge of the pre-Christian religion, it is clearthat the Nahnmwarki linked his people to the spiritsand the gods and that his authority was supported bysupernatural sanctions. When a Nahnmwarki was offended,the spirit(s) of the Nahnmwarki would inflict punishmenton the offender (Riesenberg 1968:58). Although theNahnmwarkis did not become despotic rules like theirpredecessors in the Saudeleur line, some of them at timesdid take advantage of their privileged position to makeexcessive demands on the people (Riesenberg 1968:51-52).As belief in spirits has faded on Ponape, of course, fearof punishment by the spirit of toe Nahnmwarki for anoffense against him has also faded. Surely the aurasurrounding the Nahnmwarki is less compelling without thespiritual dimension. Still there does seem to remainamong many Ponapeans a belief or a feeling that faithfulobservance of their obligations of tribute to the Nahnm-warki helps to assure the blessings of nature and bounti-ful harvests (Petersen 1975:5; Shimizu 1982:197).

Fischer (1974:197) has noted that during the Japaneseperiod the Nahnmwarki and the Nahnken lost their adminis-trative and judicial responsibilities within the colonialstructure and became "spokesmen for the people" represent-ing them to the Japanese officials. It is Fischer'simpression that popular support for the paramount chiefsincreased as they exercised this role of spokesman. I

think that Fischer is correct and I would speculate thatas the role of the Nahnmwarki was changing it was heavilyinfluenced by Christian notions of the fatherhood of Godand of divine love. Certainly even in the pre-Christianera the Nahnmwarkis were responsible for the welfareand harmony of their people and their role as ruler

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may well have included the concept of fatherhood.However, I would speculate that the element of father-hood in the relation of the Nahnmwarki and the peoplehas been greatly enhanced in recent years. I base thisspeculation on data from my 1966 fieldwork on Ponape.

Part of the 1966 fieldwork was a pilot study in whichI interviewed Ponapeans in all six municipalities askingopen-ended questions about the indigenous and the intro-duced political systems. On the 'oasis of responses tothese open-ended questions I composed a questionnaire thatI then administered to a random sample of 300 adultPonapeans. In this survey the people indicated that themost important duty of a Nahnmwarki is to be a "father ofthe people". The second most important duty is to be a"teacher of the people". Both of these ranked much higherthan the other duties: to be a "giver of titles," "aleader of the people," or a "receiver of tribute." Whenasked what qualities they valued mostly highly in aNahnmwarki, the sample ranked "love of the people"first, fcllowed by "ability to foster cooperation"and by "patience". The lowest ranked qualities were"capability in administration" and "intelligence" (Hughes1970: 161-162 ) .

The view that ideally the Nahnmwarki should actas a father to his people and should love them andguide ;hem as a father loves and guides his own childrenwas not expressed only in response to the questionnaire.It was expressed frequently by people when they discussedthe role to the Nahnmwarki in Ponapean society.

The most eloquent expression that I heard of thisaspect of the Nahnmwarki's role was given by NahnmwarkiSamuel of Matolenim. A few days after he had beeninstalled as Nahnmwarki, he visited southern Matolenimwhere five sections gave a combined feast in his honor.After various leaders of the state had spoken, NahnmwarkiSamuel himself addressed the group. A hush fell over thegroup as his rich, deep voice assured them that his reignwould be a reign of "love" and "harmony". He said thatfrom the northernmost section to the southernmost sectionof the state people would "live with one heart." Againand again throughout the speech he stressed the samemessage. His reign would be a time for the people of

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Matolenim to live and work in a spirit of love andharmony and to prosper. He told them that the peopleof one section would love the people of other sectionsand that the people of Matolenim would love and cooperatewith the people of the other states. Later that day I wasreturning to my own section with others who had attendedthe feast. At one point two of the men began to discussthe speech. Both were deeply impressed by it and saidthat Nahnmwarki Samuel had given a great speech and hadspoken like a true Nahnmwarki (Hughes 1970:154-155).

CONCLUSION

We began our paper with Latukefu's exhortationthat future studies on missionization focus more onthe religious aspects of conversion and that research-ers try to analyze what effect basic Christian conceptsof the universal fatherhood of God and of divine lovehave on the lives of converts. This paper is by nomeans the type of formal research project or extensiveanalysis that Latukefu envisioned. It is rather anattempt to stimulate more interest in such researchby taking some analytical concepts and applying themto research findings in two societies.

We agree with Goodenough's position that on itsdeepest level religious conversion, no less than communitydevelopment, involves an identity change for the communityas well as for the individual. We selected the conceptsof personal, operating cultures and of community cultureto see how these might apply to analyses made by socialscientists of contemporary Philippine culture and ofPonapean culture. According to Bulatao's analysis ofsplit-level Christianity among the Filipinos, conversionto Christianity, along with other introductions from theWest, has created a new formal operating culture.However, for most Filipinos this formal (Christian)operating culture has not succeeded in changing theinformal (indigenous) operating culture in any discernibleway either directly or through a modified communityculture.

On Ponape we find a situation simikir to Bulatao'ssplit-level Christianity in that the Ponapeans distinguish

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between the traditional or indigenous elements and theintroduced or foreign elements in their social lives andthat they see these as part of two distinct culturalsystems. However, by reviewing some of the extensiveresearch focused on culture change on Ponape we can pushour analysis further to examine the process of interactionbetween the indigenous cultural elements and thoseintroduced through Western contact. Most of the culturechange studies on Ponape have emphasized cultural continu-ity and the impressive ability of Ponapeans to incorporatenew elements into their social system in such a way as toretain the distinctive Ponapean character of that system.Still Ponapean culture has to some extent been modified bythese introduced elements, including the basic conceptsand values of Christianity. Returning to Goodenough'snotion of identity change, we find evidence that at leastsome basic Christian concepts and values, such as thefatherhood of God and the divine love of God, are by nomeans completely relegated to the individual operatingcultures associated with introduced or non-Ponapeanaffairs. These concepts and values have penetrated theindividual operating cultures associated with indigenousaffairs and have done so to a sufficient degree to beconsidered part of Ponapean community identity. Hence,these concepts and values have been key elements in bothindividual and in community identity change.

NOTES

1. Paper presented at the Xlth International Congress ofAnthropological and Ethnological Sciences. August14-17, 19d3. Quebec City, Canada.

2. Revised, December, 1983.

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REFERENCES

Bulatao, Jaime1967 "Split-Level Christianity," in Brown Heri-

tage: Essays on Philippine Cultural Traditionand Literature. Antonio G. Manuud (ed.).Quezon City: Ateneo De Manila Press, pp. 16-33.

Boutilier, J., Hughes, D. & S. Tiffany (eds.)1978 Mission, -Church, and Sect in Oceania.

Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.

Fischer, John L.1974 "The Role of the Traditional Chiefs on Ponape

in the American Period" in Political Develop-ment in Micronesia. D. Hughes & S. Lingen-felter (eds.). Columbus: Ohio State Univer-sity Press.

Goodenough, Ward H.1963 Cooperation in Change: An Anthropological

Approach to Community Development. N.Y.:Russell Sage Foundation.

Hughes, Daniel T.1970 Political Conflict and Harmony on Ponape. New

Haven: HRAF.

1982 "Continuity of Indigenous Ponapean SocialStructure and Stratification," in Elites inOceania, Special Issue of Oceania. Vol , LIII,No. 1, pp. 5-18.

Latukefu, Sione1978 "Conclusion: Retrospect and Prospect,°' in

Mission, Church, and Sect in Oceania.J. Boutilier, D. Hughes, and S. Tiffany(eds.). Ann Arbor: University of MichiganPress, pp. 457-1464.

Nason, James D.19714 "Political Change: An Outer Island Perspec-

tive," in Political Development in Micro-

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nesia. D. Hughes and S. Lingenfelter (eds. ).Columbus: Ohio State University Press,pp. 119-142.

Petersen, Glenn1975 "Yams, Kava, and Harvesting Breadfruit:

Agriculture in Ponapean Society." Paperpresented at Fourth Annual Meeting, ASAO.Stuart, Florida.

1982 "Bad Debts and Good Credit: Redistribution inPonape's Commercial Economy." Paper presentedat the Eleventh Annual Meeting, ASAO. HiltonHead Island, South Carolina.

Risenberg, Saul H.1968 The Native Polity of Ponape. Washington,

D.C.: Smithsonian Contributions to Anthropol-ogy, No. 10.

Shimizu, Akitoshi1982 "Chiefdom and the Spatial Classification of

the Life-World: Everyday Life, Subsistenceand the Political System on Ponape" inIslanders and Their Outside World. MachikoAoyagi ed. Tokyo: St. Paul's (Rikkyo)University, pp. 153-215.

Ward, Martha C.1975 "Alive and Well: A View of the Contemporary

Ponapean Title System." Paper presented atFourth Annual Meeting, ASAO. Stuart, Florida.

Ward, Roger L.1975 "Ponapean Apology Rituals: The Persistence of

the Apology Pattern in Modern Ponape." Paperpresented at Fourth Annual Meeting, ASAO.Stuart, Florida.

SABBATH OBSERVANCE AND THE SOCIALCONSTRUCTION OF RELIGIOUS BELIEF

IN A SCOTTISH CALVANIST COMMUNITY

PETER G. MEWETTNorth Australia Research Unit,

The Australian National University

The Isle of Lewis is the largest island in thearchipelago of the Western Isles, situated off thenorthwest coat of mainland Scotland. This is oneof Scotland's major crofting areas. The croft is a rentedagricultural smallholding defined by, and given certainprivileges under, statute law. In Lewis, with its Doorarable land and even poorer grazings, these crofts havebeen too small to support the household without combiningcroft work with other sources of income. This gave riseto a system of necessary occupation& pluralism that,until relatively recently, provided the economic basecharacteristic of Lewis croltino communities (Mewett1977). These crofts are gathered together into a numberof villages, or townships to use the official and legalterm, and my observations in this paper derive from twoyears fkld research, in 1974-75, in a group of threespatially contiguous townships. These three townships areviewed collectively by their inhabitants and by otherpeople as a social unit separate from other nearbyvillages For this reason I take them to be a singlecommunity which. for ease of exposition, I call Clachan.

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It is located a few miles along the coast from Stornoway,the island's only town, in one of the more denselypopulated crofting areas of Lewis. The working populationof Clachan, now much more occupationally divers1 thanit was up to two or three decades ago, mainly commutesto Stornoway for work. In common with Lewis generally,Clachan has suffered severe population depletion inthe course of this century. The associated demographicimbalances of this population trend are seen in a relativepreponderance of elderly, and of single people.

Lewis is renowned for its radical Protestantism.It is, perhaps, the major stronghold of Calvanism inScotland and in the British Isles as a whole. Its origindates back to the first half of the nineteenth century,following the dissolution of clan society in which theclan chiefs had become the landlords of a new economic andsocial order. One church existed in Lew', at that time -the established Church of Scotland - and the affiliations,interests and outlook of its ministers favoured the landedvested interests. Crofters moved away from this church inincreasing numbers to follow dissenting ministers, laypreachers and missionaries who espoused a radical andfervent evangelicism.

The 'spiritual destitution' which nine-teenth-century Evangelicals discerned in theHighlands was very real. It was the inevit-able outcome of the absence since themid-eighteenth century - of any real sense ofsocial cohesion or framework of moral refer-ence. The evangelical faith helped make goodthis deficiency. It provided new beliefsand new standards. It created a new purposein life and in an insecure world it gave somesense of security (Hunter 1974:100).

This movement was largely led by lay-preachers- commonly known as 'the men' - who were drawn fromthe crofters' ranks. The 'men', frequently distinguishedby some pecularity of appearance such as a long flowingbeard, led these popular millenial movements that involvedsocial teachings more relevant to the contemporaryneeds of the crofting population. Such movements,according to Hunter (1974:106), represented an attempt

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to come to terms with the realities of a social andeconomic system dominated by landlordism rather thanby clanship. The Disruption of the Church of Scotlandin 1843 was warmly received in Lewis. The founding,by the dissenting ministers, of the Free Church ofScotland provided an institutionalised setting forthe millenial fervour of this popular religion. About95 per cent of the Lewis population declared an allegiene.:eto it.

Today the Free Church continues to claim about90 per cent of the Lewis people. The remainder aremore or less evenly divided between the Church of Scotlandand the Free Presbyterian Church, a militani. breakawayfrom the Free Church. In Clachan, church affilktionreflects the division between the three churches found onthe island. Each church expects that at least one memberof every household in its congregation should attend atleast one of the two Sunday services. Some non-attendanceis evident but most households maintain this obligation.Clachan belongs to a congregation formed between itselfand a number of neighbouring villages, but a considerable'visiting' of other congregation takes place duringthe 'communion season'.1

The taking of communion is strictly controlled.Only those who have, over a significant time, exhibiteda pious, ascetic life-style, a considerable knowledgeof the bible, and can relate an experience of bung'called' by Cod2 are invited to take communion andso enter the congregation's religious elite. Thisis all in keeping with the doctrines of Calvin, exceptperhaps for the communicants' perception of themselvesas God's elect. Calvin's theology on this issue hasbeen modified because of the inability to recognise(from his teachings) the state of grace essential for theelect. In practice this has been resolved by examiningthe conduct of the individual. If this measures up tothat which befits a Christian then that person has the'true faith'. Personal conduct is important. Theattainment of the state of grace covers the total lifeexperiences of the individual. There can be no separationof the religious from the secular. Temptations of theflesh are to be avoided: sin is everlasting and cannot be

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atoned by the mediation of priestly ritual. Asceticism isthe rule of life.

A problem exists in setting the frame of referencefor assessing the degree to which a person maintainsthe 'systematic self-control which at every momentstands before the inexorable alternative, chosen ordamned' (Weber 1930:115). In practical terms systematisedmodes of behaviour developed that provided the benchmarkfor measuring a person's actions, and hence their statusrelative to the state of grace. This involved certainpractices in connection with church attendance andreligious knowledge, and in the person's day-to-dayconduct. Moreover, the notion P-ot only God's electcan do the 'good work' meant that tie secular behaviourassociated with high religiosity - which I call thesecular mode of religious brlaviour - also became associ-ated with the state of grace. Thus individuals were ableto establish a basis for perceiving themselves as one ofGod's chosen few. This means that those admitted tocommunion must display a personal conduct commonlyaccepted as appropriate to the state of grace.

Calvanism, then, is a practical system of religiousbelief that goes beyond mere professions of piety.Communicants especially are required to uphold thesecular mcde of religious behaviour but it is alsocontingent on the Christian to show others the wayof God. Calvin stated that it was God's will thateveryone, chosen or damned, should conduct themselvesaccording to the true faith. The communicants havebecome the guardians of this, the 'true church', andit is contingent upon them to police the activitiesof others. Thus the church is a powerful force inthe lives of Lewis people. But religious beliefs are notonly promulgated in the confines, and focussed interac-tions, of overtly religious events. Through the secularmode of religious behaviour they promote a religiousorientation in everyday life. Thus the system of relig-ious beliefs and practices is constructed in the course ofeveryday life in the village community, and this occursbecause the interpretation of belief and practice within aCalvanist congregation ensures that the principles of thesecular mode of religious behaviour are common socialknowledge, even for the non-religious.

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My point is that the Calvanism of this population,born from the millenial fervour of an oppressed small-tenantry over one and a half centuries ago, remainsessentially evangelical, because of the conduct ofthis religious practice. The 'men', the radical dissent-ing ministers, and the millenialism are all things ofthe past; if anything the religion has become ratherconservative. But it remains evangelical if by thisword we mean the existence of a continuing emphasison, ane active encouragement of, the religious practiceand doctrine. In this paper I single out one extremelyimportant element of religious practice in Lewis:Sabbath observance. On Sundays, much more than onany other day of the week, the secular mode of religiousbehaviour is purposively promoted as the model of properbehaviour that is, behaviour that glorifies God. Inthis action people of all degrees of religiosity areaware, very aware, of the behaviour expected of them andthe sanctions that will befall them if they transgress.Thus in practice the conduct of most people is that whichaccords with religious cognition. I shall now describesome of the salient features of this Sabbath observance.

RELIGIOUS PRACTICE AND SABBATH OBSERVANCE

The belief that the word of God includes all aspectsof life means that everyday living should further theglorification of God. This view influences island affairsconsiderably. The everyday behaviour of the religious isnoticeably constrained by religious beliefs. Such beliefsprovide the parameters for a distinctive lifestyle and thereligiosity of an individual frequently can be establishedfrom their everyday actions. More importantly, thisdistinction means that religion p.-ovides a way in whichco-villagers and islanders are differentiated from oneanother. At one extreme stands the communicant: thesentinal of religious purity. At the other the drunkard:the 'bottle-basher' whose mode of behaviour is similtan-eously defined by, and throws into sharp relief, theproperties of the secular mode of religious behaviour.

These two opposites religious purity and drunkeness- represent extremes. A considerable proportion ofeach congregation attend church regularly and accept

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and, to some greater or lesser extent, abide by thestandards of religious purity without being overtlyzealous in their manifestations of belief. These peoplemay drink modestly or more heavily at ceremonial occasionsbut they lack both the association with drink that definesthe 'bottle-basher', and the temperance defining thehighly religious. In their extremes the bottle and thebible are irreconcilable only when engaged in by the sameperson at the same time. Movement from one to the other -invariably from bottle to bible can and does take place.

The secular mode of religious behaviour involvesregular church attendance, daily bible readings andfamily prayers in the home, abstinence from alcohol,and a negative attitude towards music and dancing.Keeping up this mode of behaviour is essential forthe very religious and deviation from it may preventa person from taking communion. A previous historyof waywardness, however, does not carry this implication:it is action in the present that matters. The folkimage of church elders is one of men who, having leddrunken and wayward lives in their earlier years, rejectedsuch ways and from their own volition turned to thechurch.

The communicant and drinker can be closely andobligatorily linked by kinship or by neighbourhoodrelationships but the group of friends that each holds,which depends on choice of associates, are normallyquite different (see Mewett 1982). That is, the commun-icant will choose friends from among other communicantsand drinkers from among other drinkers. The dailylives of drinker and communicant, albeit obligatorilylinked by kinship and neighbourliness, otherwise remainquite separate. In particular, the requirement thatan 'other-worldly' style of life should be conductedin this world means that communicants, and aspirantsto this status, conduct themselves in an appropriatelypious way.

The secular mode of religious behaviour means anecessarily ascetic life-style, the encouragement oftemperance, and the discouragement of light entertain-ment. It is said that the fiddles, once a featureof most croft households, were destroyed in communal

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bonfires during a wave of evangelical fervour. Gaelicsongs are invariably unaccompanied and the churchesare devoid of musical instruments. Hymns are not sung:the glorification of God can occur only through thescriptures, not through affectations of praise feeblymooted by mortal people. The singing of the Psalms is theonly form of music permitted by the church. These aresung in Gaelic, to set tunes derived from a blending ofdifferent musical scales and, led by a precentor, thePsalms provide a unique ethnomusicology.

The secular mode of religious behaviour extendsinto the home. Daily family bible readings and prayersshould be performed, grace ought to be said be`oreeach meal and, in many cases, even before partakinglight refreshment. Until recently it was impressedupon people to also say grace after a meal. This secularmode of religious behaviour integrates with the religiousservices of the 'true church' to provide a life-styletotrily attuned to the glorification of God. Religiousservices are frequently held: two each Sunday plus aWednesday prayer service and other meetings held forspecific purposes. Twice a year each congregation alsoholds its five day long communions. The point is,therefore, that religion is everpresent. The Calvanistinjunction that everyday life should follow an ascetic,'other-worldly' direction is constantly being reproducedin the day-to-day life of the island's religious elite.Moreover, once a person becomes a communicant, this statusis known within the religious community of the island andthis fact alone exerts considerable constraints onpotential waywardness. Communicants should be, and mustbe seen to be, absolutely consistent in their maintenanceof a religious front: especially in their upkeep of thesecular moue of religious behaviour.

It can be said that the communicants live out a totalreligious experience. But on Sunday's religion becomesdominant on the island as a whole and markedly affects thebehaviour of everyone, irrespective of their professedreligiosity. And the Sabbath is actively 'policed'. Thebiblical injunction that no work should be done on theseventh day is taken literally and is actively enforced.This restriction extends even into the home. Food for theSabbath should be prepared the day before so that the

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minimum of work need be done on the Lord's Day. Peats arebrought into the house on Saturday to fuel the Sabbath'sfires. Necessary work is permitted, however. Cows,seldom kept w, can be milked on the Sabbath. Similarlylambing ewes and animals and animals in distress can beattended, and stock can be fed and watered. All othercroft work, irrespective of weather conditions, is put inabeyance for the day.

All trade ceases: every business closes down for theday. Pubs and hotel bars are closed to the public. Theferry and air services between the island and The mainlandare curtailed. But work essential for humanitarian orother necessary reasons is exempted from the rules ofSabbath observance. Doctors and nurses are permitted tocontinue their labours, but it is impossible to buy abottle of asprins on the Sabbath. There are grey areas,however. The recent growth of thc, North Sea oil industryand its associated onshore activities produced a problemfor the Free Church. A newspaper report from the timewhen the construction of ail production platforms startedto boom stated that,

Only when the continuous pouring of cement isessential to build the platforms will thefabrication yards operate on Sunday ... TheFree Church of Scotland clearly believes thathowever quietly or devoutly cement is poured,the operation could be tolerated on a Sundayonly if to stop pouring would endanger theplatform. The cement technicians haveassured the church that this would be thecase. (Times 19/11/73).

Anything done outside the house falls into a publicdomain, open to communal scrutiny and transgressionto communal censure. Thus a non-religious man whoforgot, on Saturday, to lift the vegetables for hisSunday dinner, crawled around his kitchen garden onhis hands and knees so that others could not see himdefiling the Sabbath by grubbing out the required crops.His transgression went unobserved.

Activities inside the home are less easy to policebut they should, nevertheless, follow the secular mode of

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religious behaviour. The religious normally would ensurethat their activities do, but the less religious willconduct themselves in a way that would involve censure ifthose acts were made public. The general rule of thumbfor the non-religious is that on the Sabbath they continueto do what they want to do inside their own homes, butensure that they are not seen (nor heard) to be in breachof the secular mode of religious behaviour. This oftenmeans that they simply continue their usual everydaydomestic routine, and catch up with the household choresleft undone in the preceeding week. But it is importantto prevent any outward signs from signalling this domesticactivity to the public domain. For example, people areknown not to use their vacuum cleaner on a Sunday for fearthat it might just be heard by a pazser-by. Televisionsshould not be watched and radios should not be listenedto, and the volume controls of these appliances are turnedlow to prevent any sound from escaping the house. Themore religious generally do not use such appliances on theSabbath - some even go to the extreme of turning theirtelevisions se s to face the wall. 'To resist', oneclaimed, 'the temptation of the devil'.

Thus the secular mode of religious behaviour shouldencompass everyone on the Sabbath. The religious general-ly abide by its strictures, the non-religious do not, buttheir 'transgressions' are done in such a way that theyare not manifested in the public domain. Everyone, thereligious included, are fully aware that not everyonefollows the secular mode of religious behaviour. Thecritical points are first, that everyone should be awareof how they should deport themselves on Sundays. Thus Ihave been told that newly-weds are instructed that sexualrelations on the Sabbath can be performed for procreationonly, and not for enjoyment. Newcomers to the island aretold how they should behave on the Sabbath, but if theytransgress soon after arrival this is usually ignored onthe grounds that the person did not know any better.Such tolerance decreases, however, with the incomer'slength of residence and the expectation that they shouldhave learnt the island ways. Transgressions are thenviewed as deliberate actions subject to censure. Thisleads to the second point: that for censure to occurtransgressions have to be discernible in the publicdomain.

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Censure can take several forms. On the one hand,comments may be made about a particular action to aperson's face. One woman, an incomer to the islandfrom mainland Scotland, told me that on being unableto sleep in the early hours on Monday m(3...fling, shegot up, did her washing and had it pegged out on thewashing-line before the rest of the villagers begantheir Monday morning activities. The outcome was that'words were said' to her because it was assumed that shehad done her washing on the Sabbath - otherwise it wouldnot have been hung out so early on the Monday morning.

Pointed verbal attacks may be made against trans-gressors. The next case involves a household of asenior doctor in the Stornoway hospital. Weather permit-ting, washing was regularly pegged out on the line at hishouse on Sundays. He persistently and frequently floutedSunday observance. The point was reached where a nursewho was also an active figure in the Lord's Day ObservanceSociety - gave ..he doctor a savage 'dressing down' in apublic part of the hospital in full view of a significantnumber of people. He took this rebuke benignly and it wasas futile as previous remonstrations since it did not leadto a cessation of the objectionable practice. Particular-," interesting features of this case reside in the markedoccupational status differences separating the protag-onists, and in the fact that the encounter occurredin a location where this difference was especiallyrelevant. The encounter broke the rules of discoursenormally expected of a person addressing their superior:it represented the chastisement of a superior. Theperson who related this encounter to me - a non-religiousperson - spoke in, terms of awe. She implied that thenurse had acted with some audacity. But this informantsuggested no condemnation of the nurse. To have done thiswould have been to question the basis of the islander'sreligious beliefs, in which any action is thought to beaccountable to God and, in the final analysis, to Himonly.

Unlike Catholicism, where atonement with God forwayward actions can b3 made through confession and themediations of the priest, the Calvanist protestant-ism found in Lewis permits no such leeway. Instead,the way of life of the individual has to be lived out

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according to the conduct expected of a person in the stateof grace. Transgressions of th;s - which for the non-religious are in practice restricted to transgressionsoccurring on the Sabbatn are sure signs of eternaldamnation. Moreover, it is incumbent upon those in astate of grace to direct the 'less fortunate' in thecorrect way to live. Open and clear denouncements ofSabbath transgressions, therefore, are morally correctactions. Indeed, it is the duty of those in the state ofgrace to lead, by the example of their conduct, the othersto an exemplary life under the will of God. That, inpractice, this is decided largely by what a person doEs onSundays signifies the importance of Sabbath observance inthe social construction of religious belief in Lewis.

The church as a formal organisation can also figuresignificantly in the control of behaviour on the Sabbath.A woman pegged out her washing one Saturday and forgot allabout it. On the Sunday morning it flapped about for allto see. On that same Sunday morning part of the servicein her congregation was given over to a discussion, ledfrom the pulpit, to establish if she had sinned or ifthere were sufficient mitigating circumstances to avoidcensure.

The Lord's Day Observance Society is closely associ-ated with the church. This organisation can be regardedas a militant vanguard of the secular mode of religiousbehaviour. People who transgress the Sabbath may wellreceive a visit from a member of the Society, in order toclearly and unambiguously remind them of what constitutesappropriate Sabbath behaviour. A non-religious informantwould not breach the rules of Sabbath observance becausehe did not want a visit from the, 'little men in darksuits': the expression he used to categorise the Soci-ety's activists. There is a social element in this. Avisit from the Lord's Day Observance Society is likelyto be observed by neighbours and then knowledge ofit rapidly disseminated throughout the village. Thusthe miscreant is also subjected to the knowledge thatothers in the local community know that he or she hadtransgressed the ordinances of Sabbath observance.Even if the others did not markedly disapprove theywould have to express disapproval of an action contraryto the secular mode of religious behaviour.

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A case involving the Society centres on the returnto Lewis of a group of school children in a charteredaircraft. Its departure had been delayed by had weatherand it finally returned to Stornoway on a Sunday.An official of the Lord's Day Observance Society awaitedthe plane's arrival and he berated the accompanyingadults as soon as they had alighted from the plane.The main thrust of his crit;cism was that by arrivingon Sunday (and not further delaying their departuresto avoid travelling at all on the Sabbath), the groupleaders had sinned. But worse than this, they hadset a bad example to the children, who might be ledastray. A parallel exists between this case and thedoctor-nurse one given above. The Lord's Day ObservanceSociety official was a school-teacher and the 'offending'group leader a major official in the local authority'seducation department. In terms of occupational statusand in terms of their relative positions in the bureau-cratic organisation employing them both, this was anothercase of a superior being rebuked.

The legitimacy for such actions is contained in themoral authority deriving from the religious person'sperceived status within the church. This moral authorityis professed by the communicants in particular. Theirmembership of God's elect makes it incumbent upon them tochastise wrongdoers - to show them the way of the truefaith. The cases and instances described above highlightwith some force that religious belief in Lewis requiresthat an ascetic devotion to God should penetrate theactivities of every household. And the belief that thesecular mode of religious behaviour should be followedlegitimises the rebuke that may follow when it is seem notto occur.

Involved in this is the Calvanist doctrine thatGod demands particular forms of behaviour from theindividual. Deviations - epitomised in actions thatcontradict the secular mode of religious behaviour

are, and have to be, tolerated because of the wayin which other social relationships cut right acrossthe divisions created by the degree of religiosity.But on Sunday, the one day of the week above all othersthat should be devoted solely to the glorificationof God, deviations are not permitted. Or, at least,

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they are not permitted to be seen to occur. Religiousbeliefs, moreover, demand that thol glorification ofGod should be part and parcel of every household'sroutine: especially on the Sabbath. A point displayedin the prohibition of all work on this day and in thesharp reaction to any visible sign of such activity.

This point is, perhaps, most graphically shownin the symbolism of the washing-line. The incomersoon learns - in fact, is quite pointedly told - thatthe hanging-out of one's washing on a Sunday is certainlynot the thing to do. The cases cited above centreon 'ncidents surrounding the washing-line largely becauseof the wrath incited by transgressions in this area. Thismeans two things. First, that hanging-out one's washingon the Sunday is most unlikely to be ignored and, second,talk about a transgression and the transgressor) rapidlycirculates through the village and beyond its boundaries.But why should the washing-line be such a potent symbol?The first 'washing-line case' given above is important.In this instance no washing was done on the Sunday, it wasjust negged out so early on the Monday morning that peopleinferred that hIs household chore had been done on theSabbath. This suggests that it is not the washing on theIii e in itself that fires the indignation of the religi-ous, so much as it provides evidence, in the publicdomain, of household work on the Sabbath. Many householdchores cannot be discerned in the public dor lin andcan be done with relative impunity on a Sunday. Butwashing - with the necessity to peg the clothes onthe washing-line as part of the cycle of work associatedwith this ' lusehold chore - means that clothes on thewashing-line on Sunday (or, indeed, early on the Mondaymorning) publicly signals work on the Sabbath. Therelevance of the pulpit-led debate about the womanwho forgot to take in her Saturday washing before theSabbath lies in whether or not she had done any work onthe Sunday. More then anything eise the replete washing-line symbolises Sunday work and thus the desecration ofthe Sabbath.

There is a deeper level of meaning in this symbolism,however, which centres on the secular mode of religiousbehaviour. From Monday to Saturday this mode applieslargely to the life-style of the religious, the less-

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or non-religious, in varying degrees, ignore its stric-tures. On Sunday the emphasis changes. The ban onanything other than necessary work is added to theascetism of a religiously 'proper' everyday life.And this ban applies to everyone on the island. Ona week day the secular mode of religious behaviouris policed only for the communicants. On a Sundayit is policed for everyone in respect of transgressionsthat can be discerned in the public domain.

The Sabbath has quite definite temporal boundaries.It starts at precisely midnight on Saturday eveningand ends exactly twenty-four hours later. Storiesabound of women busy at household chores on a Saturdayevening in preparation for the Sunday only to carry-onpast midnight and excuse their transgression with acomplaint about the clock running fast. True or false,such stories signify the arbitrariness of the start to theSabbath. Moreover, Friday evening is the main evening fora 'night-out" it is then that dances and so on areheld. These, and the associated heavy drinking, frequent-ly continue into the early hours of Saturday morning. Ifheld on a Saturci,4y evening such revelling would have tocease by midnight. A dramacic illustration of theSabbath's temporal boundaries occurred when the oil-rigconstruction site was being built in Lewis, adjacent toStornoway harbour. Continuous shifts were used to keepthe work going twenty-four hours a day. But the workstopped at the stroke of midnight on Saturday nightsand restarted at precisely midnight on Sunday nights.The fact that the churches agreed this arrangementsuggests the strict, arbitrary nature of the Sabbath'stemporal boundaries. But these are policed as well.Any work or event spilling over into the small hoursof Sunday morning, for instance, would be censured.

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

That religion is so pervasive in Lewis is partlyattributable to the fact that it is informed by Calvanistdoctrine, in which religious activity is nct confinedto any 'sacred site' but pervades the everyday lifeand actions of people. On the other hand, the actual-isation of this doctrine into an established practice

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of secular behaviour means that religious expressionand the pervasiveness of the religion is regarded

as part of everyday social activity. In this way religioncan define and inform the actions of the non-religious aswell as those of the religious.

The religious are the communicants and the aspirantsto this states, and these generally live out a ratherascetic life-style as demanded by the secular modeof religious behaviour. Communicants, who perceivethemselves as God's elect, generally police one anotherto ensure conformity with the secular mode. But everyone,irrespective of their religiosity, knows what thisinvolves. That is, the secular mode constitutes partof the local community's stock of knowledge. Peopleknow whether or not they live their everyday livesby the secular mode. Irrespective of their religiositythey also know what Sabbath observance means and how,on Sundays, the secular mode is enforced within thecommunity as a whole. What this really involves forthe non-religious is that they must be careful to avoidtheir transgressions from becoming evident in the publicdomain. But in so doing they are, publicly at least,reaffirming the sanctity of the Sabbath: a belief basicto the dominant religious doctrine. Thus the beliefbecomes confirmed by the practice through the socialconstreztion of Sabbath behaviour. The policing of theSabbath by the religious serves to discover transgressionsand, in so doing, use these as negative examples of thatwhich should be practiced. The secular mode must bepracticed if the 'true faith' is to be followed, and it isthe duty of adherents to this faith to ensure that othersalso follow this mode. This provides the moral authoritylegitimating the policing of the Sabbath by the religious.

In Sabbath observance especially, religious beliefsabout the secular mode and the actual practice of thismode are fused into a process of religious observancethat is essentially proselytising. It is this becauseof the doctrine that the secular mode should be followed,and it is a part of one's deity to God .9 ensure itsobservance by others. Thus the doctrine is projectedonto the local community as a whole, and it is givencredence as people act out the performance of Sabbathobservance. Even the non-religious, by keeping their

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transgressions of the Sabbath out of the public domain,socially construct the practices that the secular mode isall about. Belief and practice thus become fused in theCalvanism for which Lewis is renowned. Moreover, it is anevangelical religion made so by the very practicespromoted by the religious doctrine and reaffirmed everyseventh day in the ritual of Sabbath observance.

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NOTES

* This paper presented to the 'Missionaries andAnthropology' session of the Xlth InternationalCongress of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences,August 1983, Quebec, Canada.

1. Communions last for five days and each congregationholds two a year. They are so arranged to prevent anytwo congregations holding communions at the same time,which also facilitates an extensive pattern ofinter-congregational visiting that has been built upon the basis of attending communions (Mewett 1982:120).

2. This is referred to as getting the curam (Mewett1982:118).

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Hunter, J.1974 'The emergence of the crofting community: the

religious contribution, 1798-1843', ScottishStudies, Vol. 18, pp. 95-116.

Mewett, P. G.1977 'Occupational pluralism in crofting: the

effect of non-croft work on crofting agri-culture in the Isle of Lewis since about1850', Scottish J. of Sociology, Vol. 2,pp. 37-49.

1982 'Associational categories and the sociallocation of the person in a Lewis croftingcommunity', A. P. Cohen (ed), Belonging:Identity and Social Organisation in BritishRural Cultures, Manchester, ManchesterUniversity Press, pp. 101-130.

Weber, M.1930 The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of

Capitalism, London, Allen and Unwin.

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RACIAL AND ETHNIC CONFLICT IN A CHRISTIANMISSIONARY COMMUNITY: JAMAICAN AND SWISS-GERMAN

MISSIONARIES IN THE BASEL MISSION IN THEGOLD COAST IN THE MID-NINETEENTH CENTURY

DOROTHY DEE VELLENGA, Ph.D.Muskingum College

On April 17, 18143, a ship named the Joseph Andersondocked at Christiansborg harbour in the Gold Coast.On that ship were 214 Jamaicans, an Antiguan, a Liberian,two Danes and a German.1 This international and inter-racial group was to form the founding core of the SwissBasel Mission in the Gold Coast. The dynamics of thismixed group in interaction with a local African populationprovides a fascinating glimpse into problems of cross-cultural communication in the mid-nineteenth century. Atthis time the rigidities of the colonial system had notcompletely formed and theorists of racism had not fullydeveloped their ideologies. In the flux of the moment wewill see both the seeds of a co-operative inter-racialcommunity and racist tension. The Christian ideology ofuniversal brotherhood has always co-existed with the ideaof a chosen people set aside from the heathen and theunsaved. As the perversions of Calvinism in South Africahave demonstrated, this latter perspective can easilypredominate and lend itself to the support of a racistideology. The Basel Mission came out of a similar

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Calvinist tradition, but the different situation in theGold Coast produced a somewhat different result.

The Basel Mission Society had earlier attemptedto establish a mission in the Gold Coast starting in 1823at the invitation of the Danish Government which thenruled the coast from Christiansborg to Keta and inland toKrobo and Akwapim. Ten European missionaries had beensent out from 1828 to 1840 and all except Andreas Riis andhis wife died shortly after their arrival.2 In an attemptto find a healthier climate, Riis had traveled inland in1835, up the Akwapim scarp to Akropong, the capital of theAkwapim state. He found the climate much more tolerablethan the coast and purchased some land from the rulerOkuampemhene Addo Dankwa. He built a house and stayedthere five years, but in that time made no converts.The Basel Mission in Switzerland decided to abandontheir Gold Coast efforts and Riis was asked to returnto Europe. However, when the ruler and elders of Akwapimcame to say farewell to Riis, the Okuampemhene is reportedto have said to him through his linguist: "When Godcreated the world, he made book for the White man andfetish or juju for the Black man, but if you could show ussome Black men who could read the White man's book, thenwe would surely follow you."3

When Riis returned to Basel, he relayed his messageto the energetic new inspector of the mission, Hoffman,who developed the idea of establishing a colony ofEnglish-speaking Black Christians at Akropong:4

These he thought could do most of the manuallabour that had caused the death of some ofthe white missionaries and they would presentthe desirable spectacle of an ideal Christiancommunity which would dispel the heathen ideathat Christianity may be a good religionfor whitemen but not for coloured men.... Inthe West Indies... there were colouredmen who had had longer Christian training inthe German Evangelical form of the MoravianBrethren. Men from the British West Indieswere regarded to be more suitable than thosefrom the Dutch Indies, among others, becauseof their acquaintance with the English

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language which had a bright future in the GoldCoast.

The plan to use converted slaves as missionaries inAfrica was not unique to the Basel and Moravian missions.As early as the mid-eighteenth century in the Americancolonies, Samuel Hopkins (1721-1802), an outspokencritic of slavery and Ezra Stiles (1727-95) presidentof Yale "promoted a play to raise money to free slavesand return them as missionaries to Africa. i5

In this paper we will first describe the missionariesand the West Indian Christian families, the situationthey left in Jamaica and the atmosphere in the GoldCoast in which they worked. We will then analyze therelationships between the Jamaican colonists and theAfricans, the Basel missionaries and the Africans andfinally the Basel missionaries and the West Indiansfor the first five years. This was the time periodset up for the initial experiment. In 1848 the WestIndians were to decide whether to return to the WestIndies or stay in Africa. For those who remained rew longterm problems emerged. We will focus on only two of these-- questions of marriage and Black-White relations.Finally, the contributions of these West Indian immi-grants, through their descendants, to the development of aChristian, professional and eventually nationalistic elitewill be analyzed.

RECRUITMENT IN THE WEST INDIES

In 1842, George Widmann, Herman Halleur and GeorgeThompson were appointed by the Basel Mission to goto the Gold Coast along with Riis and his wife. Halleurwhen on ahead to Africa, but the others went first to theMoravian mission in the West Indies to find suitablecandidates for the colonization scheme. Riis, at thistime was 38 years old. He had been born in 1804 inSleswig which was a Danish province until 1864. Eventhough the Basel Mission was headquartered in Switzerland,most of its missioparies in the Cold Coast were eitherDanes or Germans.° It is not entirely clear where hiswife, Ana Wolter, was born. She had joined him in theGold Coast in 1837. They were the only survivors of the

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first phase of missionaries who went out. These earlydeaths and disappointments and the loneliness that Riisexperienced among his uncomprehending Danish compatriatsin the coastal area left its mark on Riis. He becameincreasingly difficult to work with. But no one deniedthat he had vision and endurance.

Widmann, who was 10 years younger, was born in1814 near Tubigen in South Germany.? By all accounts,Widmann was a calmer and humbler man than Riis. Hewas more of a teacher than a pioneer and is creditedwith laying the foundation for the system of educationof the present-day Presbyterian Church in Ghana.8 He wasa serious scholar of the Twi language and less than a yearafter arriving in the Gold Coast preached in Twi withoutan interpreter. He died in Akropong in 1876 having spent33 years in the Gold Coast.

George Thompson was a Liberian who had been takento Basel by a missionary named Sessing to work as ahouseboy. He eventually obtained an education as ateacher in Switzerland.9

On May 18, 1842, these four left Gravesend, England,for the West Indies, their destination being the Moravianmissions there. The Moravians had arrived in Jamaicaas early as 1754.18 In comparison with the Methodists,the Baptists and the Black Baptists, the Moravianswere considered rather co- operative by the white eliteof the Creole Society. 1As Braithwaite analyzes thesituation,12

There was, in fact, a certain ambiguityin the white missionaries' attitude andposition which the black preachers were notcaught balancing on. The white missionarieswere, quite sincerely, ...endeavouring 'toget personally acquainted' with the slaves,and their motives in trying to do this weremuch 'purer' than a similar endeavour onthe part of an average secular creole wouldhave been. The missionaries were also, on theprinciple of their religious freedom alone, inopposition to the white Establishment.Because of this they were, by implication on

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the 'side' of the slaves.... But the slavPwere still slaves, still seen as stereotyrnot people, as souls to be saved, not seersto be respected. And this, the slaves mustsurely have realized and felt. There were,without doubt, many sincere Christian slaves-- really converted. But the evidence ofmissionary diaries suggests that in generalthe slaves found the missionaries a conven-ience. They could offer them a certainprestige; protection and privileges, some-times. But above all, they could supply, withtheir white man's religion, a new and anotherfetish.

But Braithwaite also adds:13

For the slaves, on the other hand, and for thenon-whites generally, the missionary commun-ities provided a new extra-plantation exper-ience they had not known before. The newChristian communities like their own ex-African religious ',alias and practices,provided them with embryonic organizations andways and means of organizing. What is more,these Christian organizations were beingencouraged, not discouraged like their Africanones. The missionaries, in other words,whether they realized it or not, were givingthe slaves and non-whites, no matter howpresented, new ideas to use, think about,re-interpret. They were providing a form ofeducation and recharging the batteries of theslaves' imagination.

Into this ambivalent situation, the foi.., emissariesfrom the Basel Mission came seeking converts who wouldbe willing to go to Africa. Slavery had been fullyabolished only five years earlier in 1838. Some ex-slavesin the Christian communities were just beginning toaccumulate some property of their own. The Rev. JacobZorn was head of the Moravian mission in Jamaica andintroduced the Rik party to the congregations in Jamai-ca. Six families volunteered to go as well as threebachelors, one of whom, Jonas Hosford, was recruited

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from Antigua. In addition, Catherine Mulgrave volunteereuto go. She had been captured from a Portuguese slaverat the age of five and adopted by Lady Normandy, thewife of the governor of Jamaica. She had been trainedin Moravian schools and had qualified as a teacherat the Mico Institute in Kingston.114 The missionariesthought she would make an appropriate wife for GeorgeThompson and accordingly they were married in Decemberof 1842.15

The three bachelors ranged in age from 17 to 22.Alexander Worthy Clerk, the eldest, had been trained as ateacher. His father had been a headman in their villageduring the time of slavery. The father had been an earlyChristian convert. An English woman had sent 10 poundsyearly for Alex's education and had wanted him to take hergrandfather's name.16 Jonas Hosford, the youngest, was theonly non-Jamaican in the group, having come from Falmouth,Antigua. David Robinson, 20 years old, had been a fieldworker on a plantation in Jamaica.17

The Miller family consisted of Joseph, 43 and Mary, 32and their three children, Rosina, 7, Robert, 4 andCatherine, 1. Joseph had been a communicant member of theFairfield Congregation in 1832 and his wife in 1834. Hisoccupation is listed as a field worker. John Rochester,31 and his wife Mary 33, had one son, John, who waseight. Rochester's occupation is listed as a cooper. Hissister, Anna, 24, a washerwoman, also had volunteered toaccompany them. She is described by Rev. Zorn in thefollowing way.18

Not a little have I wondered at the faith andcourage, I may say moral heroism, of a young,black, single sister who was in our house as adomestic (for we must estimate the strengthsof the resolution by the limited intellectof the indivi 'Jai). Though almost overwhelmedby her feelings, she goes in the humblecapacity of washerwoman to the Mission family,thus to show a Christian example.

John Rochester had joined the church in 1841 and hiswife much earlier 1827. Anna became a communicantmember in 1838.

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James Green, 33, was trained as a carpenter. Hiswife, Catherine, 37, had joined the church ir, 1837 and hein 1831. They had one son, Robert, 12 years old. JohnHall, 41, had been a distiller of rum. He and his wife,Mary, 32, had joined the church in 1839 and 1840 respect-ively, but John had already been elected a Presbyter.They had one son, Andrew, two years old.

The Mullings, James and Margaret, had been house-servants. He was 23 and she 22. They had a one yearold daughter, Catherine. Both were candidates forchurch membership. The sixth family was the Walkers.Edward was 34 and Sarah, 24. His occupation is listedas field worker. He had joined the church in 1840and his wife as a candidate. They had one son, John,who was 6 years old.

Although most of the West Indians were recent commun-icant church members, almost all had been baptizedas children indicating that they were probably secondgeneration Christians.

The Rev. Zorn's comments on these volunteers weresomewhat ambivalent. On the one hand he mentioned,19"We felt much encouraged by the conduct and sentimentsof these Brethren especially as they were not of thenumbers of those from whom we had expected" -- a ratherback-handed compliment. But he also stated that

By their industry, they had made themselvescomparatively comfortable and were doing wellin the world, but this they freely resigned.The agent of one man's property (which we hadadvised him not to sell) warned him that themaintenance of the property would eat up theprofits, but the man told him, 'Brother, I

look for nothing.'

The stereotypes of Africa shared by both the mission-aries and the Jamaican Christians must have done little toease their anxiety. Zorn mentions that their families hadendeavoured to dissuade them from going and spoke of the"cannibalism of Africa, the horrors of wild beasts andrelated terrifying dreams." A hymn composed for theirdeparture spoke of "wretched Afric's shore" and that "dark

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land of sorrow, sin and death." They were admonished tokeep "entirely clear from African superstitions. Theyformed a temperance society and all signed the pledge."Interestingly, however, many of the slaves who werebrought to Jamaica originally came from the Gold Coastarea. Retentions of Akan and Ga culture from the southernGold Coast could be seen in Jamaica in customs associatedwith the life cycle such as birth and funeral practices,religious ideas, music, dance and language.2° Undoubtedlythe West Indian families had been exposed to these.Despite their conversion to Christianity, there must havebeen some ambivalence about these customs.

The Basel Mission Society and the West Indianshad si9ned a contract which had the following stipula-tions:2'

1) Form of services for the congregationsand regulations for church discipline of theMoravians to be maintained.

2) They are to serve willingly the mission,who will care for all their needs in the firsttwo years.

3) The mission society takes the obligationto provide houses for the West Indiansand gardens and to give one day a weekfree.

4) After the two years, they may either work forthemselves or for the mission society for areasonably low wage.

5) If anybody wants to return after five years,the mission society will pay the passageprovided that he has not been guilty of moralaberration. (sexual)

Rev. Zorn described their farewell service:22

They wept and there was scarcely a dryeye.... One said, 'My dear brethen andsisters. I am leaving you for Africa. I gowith my life in my hand. If I live, I live

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unto the Lord; if I die, I die unto the Lord.I thought of how our Savior came from Heaven,left all Hi.-, glory out of love for us in orderto do good and save our souls. This loveinduces me to go to Africa in order to tellthe poor ignorant people of Jesus.... We goin order to set a good example to the peopleof Africa and to each them how a Christianmust live and I hope that we, with theblessing of our Saviour, will be of someblessing to them.' ...Most of them, yes,I can say all, have left houses, lands,fathers, mothe.-s, brothers and sisters. Bytheir diligence they have attained a degree ofprosperity and are outwardly in good circum-stances, but they have denied themselves allwith pleasure.

They al: departed from Jamaica on Feb. 8, 1843 and alittle over two months later landed in the Gold Coast.Thompson and his bride were to remain at the coastalstation in Christiansborg along with Alex Clerk who wouldhelp in the founding of a school. The rest of the partytraveled inland to Akropong. They were welcomed by thenew Okuampemhene, Adum, a different ruler from the onethat Riis had known. The house that Riis had built wasnow in ruins, so the West Indians proceeded to build newhouses -- this time from stone. I hey were the first stonehouses bu'lt in Akropong and some are still standing.23

THE AKWAPIM SETTING

Almost immediately the little mission station inAkropong established patterns distinctive of the BaselMission in the Gold Cop:A. One of these patterns was towork primarily among inland peoples who had not been"contaminated" by the influences ,i' the Afro-Europeanculture of the coastal cities. The Wesleyan missionaries,on the other hand, tended to concentrate in the towns.Secondly, the attempt was made to create a physicallydistinct "Salem" community of Christian missionaries andconverts to separate the Africans from their past life.Third, was the stress on learning the local language andteaching and preaching in the vernacular. Finally, a very

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practical orientation manifested itself in the emphasisplaced on self supporting farms, creatin skilled artisansand eventually providing market outlets.L4

Much as the Basel Mission might have wanted to be acommunity apart, they were inevaably drawn into the localfactional and political disputes. Akwapim at this periodwas divided between rivals to the stool (the term for thethrone). For the time being, Adum was in charge, but hewas challenged by large sections of the state and the townof Akropong. Many of the residents had even fled thetown. In the coastal areas there were rivalries betweenthe Danes and English and sometimes these rivalriesoverlapped with the state crisis in Akwapim with the Danesgetting involved on one side or another hoping to streng-then their suzerainty.26

Riis, himself, had described the situation in 1836.26

Ado Dankwa is in Accra, Adum at Larteh.He gets more and more supporters exceptthree villages among them Akropong. But evenin Akropong, Adum has supporters. Thereforethere are scenes of revenge and bitternessright in Akropong and one family after theother leaves the town to follow the thengovernment of Adum under Danish protection.Akropong thus gradually becomes depopulatedand rain ruins the abandoned houses. Adum,though supported by the Danes, cannot beenstooled, since the party of Ado Dankwa keepsthe paraphernalia.

At this time, Riis was seen by the Danes as supportingAddo Dankwa, who had been the ruler when Riis firstwent to Akwmpim. Riis argued that he was trying tobe neutral, but this soured relations between the Danishauthorities and the Basel Mission. Widmann, shortly afterarrival in Akropong,27

reported on October 1st 1843, that when he andanother missionary were returning from a visitto Abiriw, they met "Duke" Adum in the eveningheavily drunk and remarked that the "poor manis spoiling his game by drinking much no

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wonder that he is not respected." Earlier inthe year when Widmann visited the Abiriwhene,Kwasi Taa, whom he described as the "highpriest of Akwapim, who is also chief ofAbiriw... a very considerate man" muchdiscussion about the bad character of Adumtook place between the two men. The mission-aries also, on several occlsions, had tointervene to save a number of arrested slaveskept in chains from being executed by Adum.

Later, however, the West Indians intervened to savethe life of Adum. He was eventually exiled to Denmark in1845 and peace returned to Akwapim for awhile. it is notclear whether the West Indians were deliberately taking adifferent side from the m'sionaries in these disputes.It was John Hall who hid Ad.in when he was fleeing for hislife from his enemies.28 A letter from Thompson indicatedthat Riis had threatened Adum with a gun so it may havebeen that Riis and the West Indians were on oppositesides of this dispute.29 This is also supported bya letter from Widmann in which he states that:"

...even now in many places among the Negroesit is being told that Oshiodany (Riis) wasguilty of the Akwapim affair. To what extentthey are right or wrong I would rather keep myjudgement to myself. The main reason whyseveral of our West Indians helped to get Adumout of prison was the following: that theyhad heard the people in the village say,shortly after Riis had talked to them aboutAdum's matter, that Oshiodany had saidone should kill Adum.

We will now elaborate on the implications of some ofthese different coalitions and relationships. First, therelationships of the West Indians with the Africans;second, the relationships of the missionaries and theAfricans; and finally, the relationships of the mission-aries and the West Indians.

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THE WEST INDIANS AND THE AFRICANS

As mentioned earlier, the prevalence of Akan customsin Jamaica created an ambivalent situation for the WestIndians. One could imagine that the temptation toidentify with the Africans was quite strong. This is seenmost clearly in the case of Jonas Hosford. Widmann statedthat "he began to be with the natives in a way which hurtus deeply," but added, "he is otherwise very capable andhas learned the language of the natives quite well."31 Alater letter indicated that one of the missionaries hadreprimanded him for watching funerals and "pagan" perform-ances.32 Hosford resented this and ran away to BritishAccra. Apparently he was in and out of the mission duringhis five years' tenure and was one of the West Indians whowanted to return in 1848. Unfortunately, he died on thereturn trip.33 The other West Indians apparently mademore of an effort to keep away from African "superstition"-- at least in a public way.

Most poignant, perhaps, are the stories that have comedown in Akwapim oral tradition about the West Indians whowere able to trace their ancestors back to the Akwapimarea. Although all of the West Indians had been born inJamaica in the early nineteenth century, several of theirparents hid been brought directly from Africa. One storywas that John Hall's father was from Dawu -- an Akwapimtown, where he had been captured and sold into slavery.Another story was that John Rochester's mother was fromAkwapim and had also been sold into slavery. Her Africanname was Akyeabea and she had somehow kept a diarywith names which she had given to them before theyleft the West Indies to see if they could trace herorigins. Still another account indicated that themother of Mary Miller was from a part of Akropong calledKodumase and that she had also kept these place names inmind and asked the Millers to trace them when they went toAfrica.34 There are no letters in the Basel archivesconfirming those connections, but given the pattern of theslave trade, they are very possible. One wonders whatmust have gone through the minds of the West Indians ifthey did, indeed find these evidences of their roots. Inlanguage and religion they were linked with the whitemissionaries, but in race and possible ancestral ties they

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were linked with the Africans -- truly a marginal commun-ity.

It was in the area of material culture, however,that this marginal group provided some genuine innovationsthat were picked up by the Africans. John Rochesterhad brought some seeds with him from Jamaica and soonthe West Indians had introduced mangos, avocados anda new variety of coco-yam which became a staple inAkwapim.35 This was later followed by more commercialcrops such ar coffee, groundnuts and eventually cocoa.

In life style, the West Indians were credited withteaching the36

natives such industries as the buildingof substantial dwelling houses with stones andbricks, gardening and agriculture on improvedlines, road- making, sawing, etc. ant; their owndwelling houses and gardens proved to bemodels to the natives.

But there was apparently some initial disagreementamong the white missionaries as to whether or not the WestIndians were to be models to the "natives" in their lifestyles or were to live like the Africans. Riis eemed tothink that they should live like local Afric.ans,3i but, asWidmann pointed out, in pursuit of that objective, hedenied the West Indians some of the necessities of life.38

That we have had so many problems and com-plaints about our immigrants stems fromBrother Riis' treatment of them, no matterfrom what side I view the matter, I mustobserve that he does not treat them in asbrotherly and reprimanding a way and has notcared for their needs as would have been hisduty.... They are supposed to be an exem-plary community from which the heathens are tosee that it is something different to servethe Lord inst.::01.1 of the Fetish. But the foodwas so little that these good people werecompelled to sell some of the most necessaryof their few belongings which they had broughtalong to eliminate their shortage in even the

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smallest way. Lately they have lacked properclothing so much so that they had to walkabout in rags and even the heathens commentedabout it not being good.... Brother Riis...never requested anything specific forthe immigrants and the society had given himthe responsibility to care for these peo-ple.... Most of all, one must wonder thatwhen one touches on the needs of the WestIndians, especially their lack of clothing,Riis talks about saving and spiritual frugal-ity, while one knows that in other matterswhere it would be more desirable he does notsave, and he, besides all that, began a fightwith his superiors in Basel over clothes.Such and more inconsistencies one could nameeasily, if one wanted. In Kingston he boughtmuch superfluous and very expensive equipmentfor horses which is now useless since all butone of the horses are dead.

Some of these tensions will be examined later when weanalyze relations between the West Indians and themissionaries. It is clear, however, that the new materiallife styles that were introduced by both the West Indiansand the missionaries were some of the attractions ofChristianity for the Africans. As some African studentswrote to Basel:39

Their houses, how we see it, are very plea-sant, and if you coild, you would see that isdifferent between theirs and those of theheathens. Some of them also have wives andhow they deal with their wives and how thewives deal with their husbands even this showsus also that it is a great benefit to beChristian.

Despite these attractions, it was not until Christmas1847 that the Basel Mission had its first baptism ofconverts from Akwapim. This was close to the end of theWest Indians' five year contract. In these early years,then, there was no community of African Christians atAkropong with whom the West Indians could interact. Onthe coast, however, there was a substantial Afro-European

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community with whom some of the West Indians laterdeveloped close ties, but in these early years thosecontacts were limited. In their relationships with theAfricans, then, the West Indians faced an ambivalentsituation. Admonished to stay away from African supersti-tion, many of the practices they encountered were familiarones From the creole folk culture in Jamaica; some evenfound family ties in Akwapim. Also they came from adifferent material culture and were to be models to theAfricans, but initially were not given the resources to dothis, so that the Africans looked down on them for nothaving proper clothing.

Some of these contradictions came to the fore incompiaints over compensation for their work. It had beenagreed that the West Indians would do most of the physicalwork in setting up the mission station -- building thehouses and farming the crops and providing domesticservices. This would free the missionaries for the wort(of learning the language, teaching and evangelization.For the first two years, they were to have their needsprovided for in exchange for their work. In 1845 a newagreement was drawn up in which payments were specifiedfor certain jobs such as sawing boards, doing laundry,etc.4° Also items of clothing were to be given to theWest Indians under the terms of this new agreement. ButAfricans were also working for the mission and apparentlythe West Indians thought they should receive more fortheir work than the Africans. In 1847 there was a"palaver" over higher salaries led by Mullings.41 Widmannmentioned that the West Indians felt they should get threetimes what the Africans were getting and he attributesthis to the "psychology of colonists." Here again, theWest Indians appear to be trying to set some boundariesbetween themselves and Africans.

THE WHITE MISSIONARIES AND THE AFRICANS

The white missionaries had a less ambivalent relation-ship to the Africans. The Africans of Akropong were thereto be saved and had no shared cultural and ancestral tieswith the Europeans. The primary point of contact with theAfricans was in the schools. In November of 1843, GeorgeThompson and his wife opened a school in Christiansborg on

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the coast with 33 boys and 7 girls.42 Alex Clerk helpedthem for awhile but later went to Akropong and started theschool there with Widmann. The first students werethe children of the West Indians and two Akropong boys.43By 1845 they had 12 boys. By 1847 the school had grownto 37 African girls, 25 African boys and 7 West Indians.44

Another technique the missionaries used was to takeyoung boys to live in their homes.

Although it is not possible to trace the backgroundof all of these early students and eventual converts,it appears that many of them were the "disinherited"of Akwapim society -- but at two different levels.One of the first Africans mentioned was a Sakyiamawho apparently was a slave and was in danger of beingsold again. One of the missionaries bought him "freefor 10 riq.sdalers and sent him to Osu to learn shoemaking." Several years later they "bought" TettehQuashie whom they trained as a locksmith. He thenwent to work on Fernando Po and is credited with bringingback to Ghana some cocoa seedlings and, together withthe support of the Lsel Mission, starting the agricul-tural revolution that transformed southern Ghana.46

At the other level were sons of royalty who, in thismatrilineal system, had no access to state office. Royalofficials were chosen from branches of the ruling matri-lineal clan in which descent was traced through mothersand sisters. Sons of the Okuampemhene, the ruler ofAkwapim, were sometimes given bureaucratic duties ormarried off to royal women. With the introduction ofChristian missionaries and the schools, the royal men mayhave seen these institutions as providing mobility fortheir sons. At any rate, one of the first converts to bebaptized in 1847 was David Asante who was the son of aformer Okuampemhene, Owusu Akyem. Asante became one ofthe leading evangelists of the early church. Kwamena-Pohdiscusses his career and links to the royal house.47

The case of David Asante, one of the firstAfricans to be ordained a minister of thePresbyterian Church of Ghana is of particularinterest. He was the son of Owusu Akyem(Okuampemhene Adumis cousin and heir)....

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David Asante was "adopted" by the missionariesafter Owusu Akyem's death at Christians-borg. During his lifetime, Owusu Akyemhimself had shown some interest in the work ofthe missionaries at Akuropon. Widmannreported several visits he paid to him, giftsof two sheep he presented to them on August13, 18143, and remarked that he was a "goodman... and though he listens to the Gospelit is difficult for a man of his position toaccept the word of God." However his son wasto become "the stalwart David Asante" of thePresbyterian Church of Ghana.

Another son of a royal was Jonathan Palmer who wasbaptized in July 1848. His father was a prominentelder in Akropong. One of the missionaries gave amoving account of Jonathan's father's death in 1851:48

Yesterday evening the father of our studentJonathan died -- an honest councilor and elderof the town of Akropong. Today he wasburied. He had often heard the word of God,accepted by his baptized son and had alsosurrendered more of his children to us. Hehimself could not take that step, althoughwhen we visited him in his illness, he heldthat the word of God was valid. There was agreat custom at his funeral. However, he hadsaid that his son Jonathan should not attendthe event and that it would be better if heleft Akropong for that day if he felt weak andunable to resist the temptation to partici-pate.

In this matrilineal society, one of the ways in whichthe paternal line was recognized was the presence andparticipation of a man's children at his funeral.This, then, was truly a remarkable concession on thepart of this elder. But both of these cases show thatprominent royals were influenced by the missionariesand saw in the mission opportunity for their sons who wereexcluded from inheritance to their offices.

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One of the concerns of the missionaries was thatthe male converts should have female converts as wives.Yet they had much more trouble in converting the womenand girls. A letter from Widmann's wife describesthis difficulty and her work in teaching the girls.49

The group of girls who come to school and forwhom the noble woman friend in Basel providedfor so lovingly, for which we are very thank-ful, increases and numbers already over 30.For the most part they show much enthusiasmfor learning, mainly sewing. For some timenow I have been giving them lessons not onlyin womanly work but also in reading andarithmetic and alternate in both.... Theeleven year old Rosann Miller, whose parentsnow also want to stay here and whom I teachwomanly work in the days of vacation so thatshe can be employed later as a teacher, isalready now a big help to me in the school.The Lord has helped me in language to such anextent that I am able to tell the girls shortstories from the Bible in their mothertongue.... It hurts me that thus far notone of these girls has decided to prove andshow that they have withdrawn from the serviceof the fetish by allowing themselves to bebaptized to live for and serve JesusChrist.... The girls were more attached totheir religion, if one could call it that,than the boys and are, therefore, much moresuperstitious. Two of them are in themeantime working with us and are thus underour immediate supervision.

Here also one can see the combined practice ofteaching students in the school and taking a few into thehouseholds of the missionaries. Not surprisingly, theattitude expressed toward the religion of the Africans isone of contempt. However, as the missitNiaries became morefluent in the local languages, they became more apprec-iative of the richness of the languages and the sophis-tication of some of the religious concepts and thedifferent levels of spiritual beings in Akan religion.50Given the basic assumptions of a Christian evangelizing

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mission, however, there would be no way that they couldaccept the equal validity of the African world view.

The missionaries, too, were certainly aware thatmuch of their appeal lay in the presentation of analternative life style in a material sense. T. clothedthe children who came to their schools and we have alreadymentioned the attraction of the new styles of houses. TheAkwapim name for Riis was "Osiadan" or Builder. This isnot to deny that close personal relationships, tinged withpaternalism, developed between the missionaries andparticularly those converts they took into their homes.One missionary mentions how much he missed Jonathan Palmerwhen he was sent to Aburi. "I feel the loss. He hasbecome a fine lad."51 These new converts really didbecome "adopted" sons of the mission and took on the namesof some of the missionaries as their baptismal names.

THE MISSIONARIES AND THE WEST INDIANS

The key dynamic in inter-relationships in the firstfive years of the colonization experiment, however,was between the West Indians and the Europeanmissionaries. It appears that the relationship betweenRiis and the West Indians was marked by almost totalconflict. We have already mentioned how he deniedthem certain necessary provisions. Widmann in a letterwritten two years after their arrival, states:51

Concerning the condition and the mood of ouremigrants it is at present difficult to givean objective report. Because of the unfortun-ate disagreements and because Brother Riissees in them only the bad and not the good,they are very discouraged so that they have agreat longing and desire to return to Jamai-ca. That will change, however, when they findthemselves in different circumstances and aretreated differently. I, for one, have seenthat when I have advised them with love andhave admonished them with conviction, it hasborne fruit. I have heard from several sidesalready that if Riis had been alone with them,

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they would not have known what would become ofthem.

Earlier, in January of 1845, the West Indians had writtenthe Basel Mission in Switzerland saying they wanted toreturn to Jamaica.53 a year later, however, Widmann wasable to write that "The West Indians are our consolationand encouragement."54

By this time Riis had been recalled by the mission.As a historian of the Presbyterian Church in Ghanaassessed his contribution,55

Riis grew difficult to work with. The deathof his child, the political unrest, the burdenof leadership, coupled with his own and hiswife's failing health, led him to becomeoverbearing and intolerant.... He wascriticised by his colleagues for his auto-cratic attitude toward both Africans andEuropeans.... Persistent reports from hisfellow missionaries critical of his leadershipfinally determined the committee at the end of1845 to recall him to Basel for discussions.By the time the letter reached Akropong,however, Riis had left of his own accord in abitter frame of mind.... At home he wasadjudged by the committee to have disobeyedtheir express instructions not to use gun-powder and muskets as articles of barterand his services were dispensed with.... Withall his faults, Andreas Riis was a missionarypioneer of the first rank; without his faithand endurance, the mission would not have beenbegun; without his enercy, his planning andleadership the second venture would not havebeen established.

Apparently the West Indians did not include allof the other missionaries in their distrust. As Widmannput it:56

Two years have passed now and the emigrantswere to be in a different situation, i.e. theywere not to be supported by the mission any

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more, but rather work for a wage; but thepeople have not had the means yet to acquireclothing for themselves, so an agreement aboutthat and the work was to be made with them.But the people demanded, and rightly so, sincethey know Riis, that this decision should notcome from him alone but also from us othermissionaries... they had seen in Jamaicahow such matters were always discussedtogether with all the missionaries....Amongst other things they said that "InJamaica, the missionaries treated us in abrotherly, yes, fatherly way, and this gave usthe courage to go confidently to Africa withMr. Riis, against all the discouragement ofour friends who prophesized evil, but we werewrong about Mr. Riis."

After the 1845 agreement on wages and clothing andRiis' departure, things settled down for a time. In 1847,just before the West Indians were to decide about return-ing to Jamaica, conflicts arose again over their terms ofpayment which we described earlier. This seemed toreflect a deeper division -- not only between the Euro-peans and the West Indians, but among the West Indiansthemselves. Most of the Europeans were trained inteaching, linguistics or theology, whereas most of theWest Indians were manual laborers or artisans. Thus classdifferences were grafted onto differences of race,language, nationality and religious practices. The WestIndians who had been trained as teachers -- CatherineThompson and Alex Clerk -- seemed to have the most incommon with the Europeans and got high praise. Even Riisdescribed Catherine Thompson as "pious and good hearted, agood teacher, faithful wife and believing soul; an honorto our missions."57 Widmann, although describing Clerk as"slower" than Jonas Hosford, said that he had a "bettercharacter."58 Apparently the missionaries had had highhopes for Hosford until he became too fascinated by thelocal culture and attended festivals and funerals.

If Riis was generous in his praise of CatherineThompson, he was much more harsh in his assessmentof her husband, George. He wrote the mission thathe could tell many a story about Thompson." But Widmann

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felt that "all the comments which Riis wrote home aboutBrother Thompson resulted more or less from bitterness andsuspicion and were taken out of context so that they hadto appear objectionable."" And another missionarycommented -- after Riis had left -- that "Riis had mockedhim and accused him."61 This same missionary alsomentioned that Riis had an illegitimate child in Chris-tiansborg. Perhaps Riis' guilt over this may have beenprojected on Thompson. At any rate, Thompson did begin to"fall" repeatedly and in 18146 confessed to severalincidents of adultery. He was, however, a very giftedteacher and described as "the best schoolmaster. "6Another missionary mentioned that Thompson had "been thereason why I entered the mission."63 He and his wifeseparated and then were reconciled, but he "fell" againand Catherine Thompson was finally granted a divorce in18149.54 Thompson left the mission and although heearlier could have worked for a trader on the coast,he was in despair and jobless for some time. One mission-ary mentioned later that:65

Thompson had fallen so low for a time no onewanted to give him a job and he was nearsuicide.... I tried to contact him and haveemployed him personally. He is engaged to anAfrican girl and I will help him pay for her.

Through all this his former wife, Catherine, is describedas a "model in fidelity and piety. "66

In this initial five year period, the relationshipsbetween the West Indians and the European missionaries,seemed to be marked by individual idiosyncracies.Riis totally antagonized both the West Indians andthe other missionaries. Although there were certainpatterned differences between the two groups in occupa-tion, race, religious rituals and language and national-ity, people were seen and judged as individuals. Cathe-rine Thompson was pious and a model of behavior; AlexClerk had good character and was a diligent teacher; JonasHosford was bright and gifted but "troubled"; Mullingswas the ring leader in the "palaver" over higher pay;Rosina Miller was a good helper to Mrs. Widmann; Thompsonwas an excellent school master, but prone to adultery.

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This emphasis on individuals was no doubt facilitatedby the small size of the mission and the fact thatthe West Indians far outnumbered tie Europeans. Riisand his wife, Widmann and Halleur, who left after a sh_ ttime, were the only European missionaries in Akropong inthe initial period. They were joined in 1845 by Threebachelors -- Sebald, H. N. Riis, and Schiedt. Sebald diedafter a few months, Riis returned to Europe after a yearand a half, and Schiedt replaced Thompson in Accra,Widmann then was the only European missionary in Akropc eguntil 1847 when he was joined by four more bachelors,Dieter le, Meischel, Stanger, Mohr and a single woman,Rosin BinderBinder who became Widmann's wife on Jan. 21,1E-k7.6/

Soon a new phase would begin in the life of themission. The little community had survived five yearswith only two deaths -- David Robinson, one of theWest Indian bachelors had died in 1844, shortly aftertheir arrival68 and Sebald, one of the European bachelors,died in 1845. This was truly a remarkable record giventhe earlier experience of the mission. The first Africanswere converted and baptized in 1847. The physical andemotional support )rovided by the West Indians had been 2determining factor in this initial survival and staccesand the Europeans had become c.,._.ite dependent on them. Nowthe West Indians had to decide whetht.. or not to return toJamaica.

In a letter written in July of 1847, the Halls arementioned p, the only family who had agreed to remain inAkropong." A month earlier an agreement had been drawnup stipulating the conditions under which they were toeither return or remain. They were to give notice oftheir intentions by the first of July 1847 and from thattime until April of 1848, arrangements would be made tobook them a passage on a ship to the West Indies. Thiswould be paid for by the Basel Mission Society. Theirhouses would be kept in repair and they would be paid 14strings of cowries daily when their labor was required bythe mission.

For these who chose to remain, it is perhaps worthquoting those conditions in detail.'°

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For those staying in this country -- I. TheSociety will engage to build stone houses forthe brothers staying in this country. Thosehouses which are to be built shall contain 3rooms each and will be farther removed fromeach other than those old ones they are livingin now. Those stone houses will be kept inrepair by the brethren themselves.

II. All those brethren staying in the countryrequested to do any work for the mission toreceive 15 strings per day. The Mission,however, will by no means under no conditionsengage to find any work for the Brethren,for that, which they work and how they arrangethings to get their living by, it is alto-gether left to themselves.

III. The Mission is ready to buy a piece ofland for those Brethren not returning to theWest Indies which will be given over to themand their children as their real property.

IV. If any of the Brethren, so far advancedin age that he is no more able to do any hardwork, the Society will according to thecircumstances of the individual support himwith about 1 dollar per month.

V. In case any family should be deprivedby the mysterious dealing of Divine Providenceof Father or Mother, the missionary of theStation will charge himself with paternal ormaternal duties respecting the education,etc. of the father or motherless children.

VI. The children of those Brethren staying inthe country are allowed to learn any trade,suitable upon the expenses of the Society, sothat they afterwards may deserve their ownbread in an honourable way, independent uponthe Society.

Dated, AccrEI, June 4, 1847

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It was clear that the missionaries were trying tooffer inducements to stay -- by providing new housing andland, p. otection for elderly and orphans and training fortheir children and by not restricting them to work onlyfor the Mission. More explicit arm twisting occurred.Walker complained later that in Aprii 1847 Rev. Meischelhad told him it was time for him and others to make uptheir minds whether to stay or return. Meischel said heneeded them and would be left alone: if they went. Walkerdiscussed this with his wife and they agreed to stay twomore years if the Mission would send them home after that,and Walker said it was up to Meischel to write to theMission for that agreement. Meischel did not, and Walkerfelt he had been betrayed.71 He and his family did stayfor a few more years, but he eventually left the Missionand went to Cape Coast.72 The missionaries, in anticipat-ing more expenses for the West Indians' houses if theystayed, wrote to the Basel Mission as follows:73

Since we will need considerably more money forthe building of the houses as well as thepurchase of the land than is allowed for thesestations, the conference asks the dear commit-tee to let us soon have the necessary sum....In Akropong, the Brothers Rochester andMullings have decided to stay. We hadalready before talked about the two, espec-ially Mullings rr rrning because of their badconduct but the majority of the missionarieschanged their minds and thinks now that theyhave proven to be good colonists and they willmore and more comply. Brother Miller hasoften talked about wanting to return, but hestill sways and we cannot be certain whetherhe w;11 decide in the time for reflection tostay or not. We would not lose much if heleft, but we like his whole family. TheBrothers Green ar,1 Walker have not decided ongoing or staying either.

It is not clear w' at induced the West Indians tochange their minds to stay, but c nly Jonas Hosford and theGreen family returned to the West Indies.74 Hosford, whoby then had 6ecome mentally disturbed, died on the returntrip. There were now five West Indian families in the

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Akropong mission community -- the Walkers, the Rochesters,the Halls, the Millers and the Mullings. Alex Clerk wasin Accra along with the Thompsons who did not finallyseparate until 1849.

LONG-TERM PROBLEMS WITH THE COMMUNITY

The mission community began to settle in for a morepermanent stay. This created new long term problems. Oneof the most pivotal of these concerned questions ofmarriage and the next generation. The majority of theEuropeans were bachelors. The majority of the WestIndians were married, but there were several single peopleamong them Alex Clerk, Catherine Thompson who wouldsoon be divorced and Anna Rochester who had never mar-ried. The children of some of the West Indians were alsogrowing up. Rosina Miller was 12 years old in 1848. Thenthere were the new converts to consider. All were men andas much as the mission would have liked to find Africanwomen converts for them, they had had no luck so far inconverting any women.

The question of marriage is important because the wayin which a "pool of eligibles" is defined says much aboutthe way in which group boundaries are set. As thiscommunity was becoming more institutionalized, would itbecome an endogamous or exogamous unit? Would racial andethnic divisions become more pronounced as people soughtto marry within their race or nationality? Or wouldinter-marriage occur, binding together different groups?These are not just abstract questions of sociologicaltheory, but practical questions that concerned the BaselMission -- a question that concerns any missionary groupin a foreign culture. If one is preaching universalbrotherhood what better way to practice it than encourag-ing inter-marriage with the local converts? Yet thisrarely happens with Christian missionaries and muchattention is devoted to setting up boarding schoolsfor the children of such missionaries where they arelikely to meet future mates of a similar religious,racial and national background. But we are dealingnow with the early period of the missionary lterpriseand such attitudes had not yet crystallized. Seriousthought was given in Basel to the question of bachelor

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missionaries marrying local converts and Kimble, inhis history of the Gold Coast from 1850 to 1928, mentionsthat some Basel missionaries did marry African wives.75

This became an issue for the early L.,asel Missionin the Gold Coast when an enthu' .stic new missionary,Johannes Zimmerman, arrived in 1850. He was stationedin Osu, in Accra, and immediately stated "Almost every-thing around here is too European for me. I would prefer,as much as Christianity allows it, to become a Negroto win the Negroes."76 He was more impressed withAkropong than Accra:77

The situation in Akropong pleased me; thereare several quite valiant apprentices there.The two marriages are also quite happy andblessed and the brothers and sisters livequite intimately together in one house-hold.... Oh if only you could come here once,how you would enjoy seeing this lovinglyblooming Christian village on the hill.

But there was also some dissension in Akropong andmuch of it centered around the delayed marriages of two ofthe brethreni8

I must with the permission of the brothers,inform you of an important point about whichwe could not quite agree. It is theirrelationship to the honourable committee.They don't have confidence in, don't have anopen heart any longer toward it, even though Idiscovered with pleasure that this pains themand that they still have much love for thecommittee.... They referred to their marriagestory. In view of their already advanced ageand some difficulty in the brotherly communityat that time, they asked for permission tomarry... the negative answer of InspectorHofmann had been so painful that it stillhurts, all the more so since after his letterto them there had been silence and no corres-pon6ence for many years. In addition, theysaid, their need on which they based theirrequest was not seen by the committee as one

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of the spiritual aspect of marriage, butrather one of the temptations and desires ofthe flesh and it was not even kept silent sothat the brides had to hear it in one place orthe other in the most painful way.

Zimmerman continued the argument in his next letter:79

It seemed to me as if at last the requestto take a wife any time should be permittedby the dearest fathers (this is not deniedeven a ;Jodi ly son) so that not 3 or more yearsmust pass before a brother who often findshimself in the worst conditions which make theunion with a wife much more desirable, indeed,more necessary than in the conditions in thehomeland. I agreed with the brothers alsofrom my own personal experience that a man whowould contemplate slowly at home the mattersof marriage, if he were here would adviseotherwise.... I believe that a missionarywho is married, if both are in the service ofthe Lord, can, since then he also has an opendoor to the feminine sex and is in a position,with a housemother by his side, to take inwhom and how many he pleases, do so much withhis wife as two single brothers, so that inmy estimation it is not as expensive, yes evenif the Lord bestows the brothers with chil-dren, as one often sees in the often veryimpractical househoidc of single people.

As can be seen from these letters, the Committeein Basel exercised complete control over the marriagesof their missionaries. The missionaries were not evenexpected to make a request for a wife until they hadserved for two years. They could make suggestionsfor an appropriate person, but these were rarely carr:edout. Widmann had begun his first request for a bridein 1845 and had proposed that "one of the daughtersof the family Klauber at Boeblingen" would be appropri-ate.8° The committee chose another woman, Rosina Binderand she was sent out two years later in February 1847.The marriage was an apparent success. She and Widmann hadtwelve children.81 The three bachelors, Mohr, Dieter le

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and Meischel began making requests for wives in 1847 withDieter le wistfully suggesting that he knew a SophiaWeigel. "Might she not be the person the Lord wanted forme. "82 He also added later that "Mrs. Widmann works hardand we have a good relation to her, but for my own needs Istill need a wife."83 Finally, in 1850, they were sentbrides, but Sophia Wiegel was not among them.

Zimmerman apparently felt his single state evenmore acutely after observing the marriages of his col-leagues. In 1851 he became gravely ill and CatherineMulgrave Thompson George Thompson's former wife --nursed him through his illness. After her divorceshe remained in Osu as a teacher for the girls, buther situation as a divorced woman had been a causefor concern. Zimmerman, after his recovery from hisillness, decided that he and Catherine Thompson shouldbe married. From the viewpoint of the Committee inBasel, this would have been highly irregular. It wouldhave eliminated the two year waiting period and the powerof the Committee to make the decision. However, themissionaries in the field concurred with Zimmerman'swishes. Stanger wrote from Osu84

I believe to be able to say that I have gottento know Mrs. Mulgrave well during the time inwhich she was referred to me in my pastoralduties and that she, although not very talent-ed, is neverth3less very loyal and diligentin the fulfillment of her duties and with thathas come so far as to be able to replaceEuropean women in every respect, if need be.In some instances (she) even offers advan-tages, which are not at all unimportant, afact which you have learned form earlierreports. I believe, therefore, that Zimmermanhas done well by her....

You are probably very interested to hear howthe situation is viewed here... one of theelders, who inspires great confidence and isasked for advice by Mulattos and Negroes,talked to Brother Zimmerman and me about Mrs.Mulgrave. He said someone should take thiswoman. It is not right that we allow her to

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be all alone. We could of course not respondto that at the time. But since it is nowknown, it has met with general approval. Whatconcerns Brother Zimmerman, I have noticedthat it will be good for him to have a littleball chained to his feet in this way.

Stanger also added that they had been afraid that theywould lose Catherine Thompson to the Wesleyan communitythrough marriage since "she is well known to them andgreatly respected."

Another missionary, Mader, also added his support:85

Brother Zimmerman surprised me with theuncanny news of his engagement.... I cannotobject to his undertaking, but rather agreewith his assertions that he is acting for thesake of the Mission and his occupation....Zimmerman is still the circumspect, glowingideal and also real mission man, enthusiasticabout the Mission as always. He seems to havegotten even more courageous because of hisillness; if anyone sacrifices his personalinterests for the sake of the well being ofthe whole, the matters of the Mission, it ishe.

And finally, Zimmerman, himself, explained his decision:86

Already, in my homeland, I often thoughtabout whether it would not be advisablefor a missionary, especially in Africa,to marry a converted native, if he consideredmarriage at all. I spoke about it with thebrothers as well as before our departure withInspector Josenhaus. The general view wasthat such a step would have some advantages,but that such a brother would have to considerit well and would have to give up much. Withsuch a sentiment, I arrived here. Soon I sawin which unfortunate situation Frau Mulgravefound herself. We brothers often talkedabout it -- that it would be our duty to takecare of her.... (It) would be best if one of

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the brothers would have the enthusiasm tomarry her. I was not only expected to wait,but also was not inclined nor had I enthusi-asm, although I was able to love Frau Mulgraveas a sister in Christ. Then I became ill andthought more about dying than marrying.... I

went to Frau Mulgrave after the Lord hadremoved several obstacles out of my way andasked for her hand, with reservations of thepermission of the Dear Committee. But at thesame time, I considered myself obligated totell her, because of her special circumstan-ces, that in case the Dear Committee would notagree and she would prefer not to take backher word of acceptance, I would keep my wordto her.... Without my own household, I

cannot bring my apprentices, now six, inChristian order. I cannot teach them correct-ly. Single, it is too difficult, while FrauMulgrave is very suitable for this.

With overwhelming support from colleagues in thefield, Zimmerman and Catherine Mulgrave's marriage wasallowed by the Basel Committee. Later Zimmerman wrote ofhis happiness in his marriage:87

Should I be so free and say a few wordsabout my domestic situation. I must say thatI am as happy in marriage with my dear Africanwife as I could ever have expected. She is afaithful soul tested by much sorrow. Thesufferings which Thompson cat sed her, were nother only ones. Many a door has been opened inmy job; many a difficulty lessened throughthis union.

By all accounts, this was a happy and prosperousmarriage. Catherine had had two children from hermarriage to Thompson -- Rosina and George -- whom Zimmer-man helped raise and she and Zimmerman had six childrenA

one of whom died in infancy. She died in Accra in 1891.8°

The Zimmerman-Mulgrave marriage may have been one ofthe few marriages among the Basel Mission based on prioracquaintance and previous respect and affection. As we

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have seen, the marriages of the other missionarieswere arranged by the Committee. The missionaries,in turn, tried to control and arrange the marriagesof those under their tutelage -- the West Indians,the coastal converts and the Akwapim converts. Withthe exception of Catherine Mulgrave, the later marriagesof the West Indians remained within racial boundaries,but cut across ethnic boundaries.

Alex Clerk was a source of concern for themissionaries when a tragic incident occurred which focusedtheir concern. Anna Rochester, the sister of JohnRochester, had come with the group as a washer-woman. Shewas single and close to Alex Clerk's age. They becameinvolved briefly and as a result she became pregnant. Shehid her condition until she was nearly ready to deliverand then died in childbirth. This shook the littlecommunity -- even more so when it came out that Alex Clerkwas the father. The missionaries forced Clerk to confessbefore them and even before his students. This was ashattering experience for him, but since he showed so mushrepentance, the missionaries became more understanding.°Years later, in writing his autobiography for the mission,Clerk obliquely referred to this experience:90

Through the deceitfulness of the Devil and theweakness of my frail nature, not long after I

had been at Akrepong, I fell into gross sins,the remembrance of which caused me the deepestgrief and sorrows and shows me more fullyhow I need the Apostle's admonition, "Let himthat thinketh he standeth, take heed lest hefall."

Shortly after this experience he married a mulattowoman from the Osu community. They founded a dynastyof church workers and educators in the Gold Coast.Nicholas Clerk was their son and he led a lop 9 andproductive life as a minister and evangelist. 'I Hewas trained in Basel and became the first Synod Clerkof the Gold Coast Presbyterian church after the BaselMissionaries were forced to leave during World WarI. A Clerk daughter, Mrs. Swaniker, became one ofthe first teachers in the Accra Government Girls' School.

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The Millers were less fortunate in marrying offtheir daughter Rosina. At first Mr. Miller had wantedher to marry Jonas Hosford or Alexander Clerk and keep herfamily in the West Indian community. The missionkriesobjected to this. As Miller put it in a letter to Basel4

They say Jonas is a liar, a thief and awhoremonger.... And in the year 1850 Mr.Dieter le came into me now to ask for mydaughter to be given to a native boy calledJonathan Palmer. Two times I went in the townI saw him knocking drum for the custom.But I did not consent it.

He also did not want her to marrey anyone from the Afro-American community at the coast.'

There are plenty of the mulattoes whichmarried in the Coasts and after two or threeyears left their married wives and runningabout from place to place. Moreover Mrs. Wid-mann told me that my daughter would died (sic)just like Anna P.nchester who died in forni-cation and then Sir what would you think ofit? I would not like to stay here and see mydaughter died (sic) in fornication.

His wife added her concern and explained their decisionto stay in Africa:

We had agreed on Jonas Hosford. When themissionaries heard it they quickly called aconference and send (sic) him home, namelythis Jonas, purposing to give our daughter toa native boy named Jonathan who has nocharacter at all. As we refused it, it caused(such) solemn wrath among the missionariesthat it is amazing.... When the five yearswas over that it was agreed that we shouldreturn home to Jamaica, when I heard that myhusband, he would go, I begged him hardly tostay for my children's sake that they may beeducated and become somewhat serviceable tothe vineyard of Jesus Christ.

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This problem festered in Miller's mind for a long timeand he became quite bitter about it, feeling he had beenmisled into staying in Africa. In 1855 he wrote that hewas being treated this way because he was Black:94

All this (no reply) shows me that just becauseI am a black man or a negro therefore all mycry nobody (sic) do regard it. What is aNegro? If I had been a white man, I wouldnever crys (sic) twice but I would be soonheard and relieved. If the great God abovedid abused (sic) the black people in suchmanner as they are abused in the world, thenno black people would live under the Sun....I was not sold to you nor sent here as acriminal that I shall (sic) be treatedthus.... Where is Mr. Edward Walker that isin the number come (sic) with us. Where is henow?

Mrs. Miller added, "The cry that my husband makes to youdaily, is it a music in your ears? If it is pleasant inyour ears, it is not so pleasant in mine." It is notclear from the available information if Rosina evermarried, but she did get an education and became one ofthe founders of the Accra Girls School.

As indicated in the Miller letter, Walker also beganto feel that he had been misled by the missionaries intostaying, and in his letttrs to the Basel Mission, bringsup the question of race.93

Dear Rev. Sirs: Please to look at this matterand see how a wite (sic) man can do with apoor black man. Because he knows thatwhosoever he write to, they will believe hiswords more than mine.

The kochesters, like the Clerks, contributed to one ofthe leading church families in the Gold Coast, but in amore indirect way. John Rochester became involved with awoman of the royal house of Akwapim and divorced his WestIndian wife in 1851.96 A daughter of this second marriagebecame the wife of Rev. Edward Samson who was a leadingevangelist and arbitrator in the Akwapim area and wrote a

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history of Akwapim.97 The Adades, a family of ministersand teachers, are descended from the Samsons. The Halls,also, made a yak...hie contribution to the growing churchin the Gold Coast. Their son, Peter, born in 1851, wastrained at the Akropong Seminary and preached in Akwapimand the Volta Region and was the first moderator of thePresbyterian Church of the Gold Coast.98 The head of theremaining family -- Mullings -- had earlier been pegged asa trouble-maker by the missionaries. He and his familycontinued to work for the mission, but information on hisdescendants is scanty.

Given the available information, then, it appearsthat there was only one marriage that cut across racialboundaries -- that of Catherine Mulgrave and JohannesZimmerman. The rest of the West Indian Community andEuropean missionaries married within racial categories-- the European missionaries with other Europeans and theWest Indians with coastal Afro-Europeans or Africanconverts.

By this time -- the 1950s -- the mission had not gnlysurvived, but was beginning to prosper economically:9

By 1850, at Akropong, a small Mission settle-ment was in being, a coffee plantation hadbegun to yield well, progress had been made inlearning the Twi language and both the schooland seminary had begun to flourish. Thetendency for Christian curiverts to build theirhouses in or near the 'mission quarters' ledto the emergence of what may be called aChristian suburb, or "Salem" in most of thetowns of Akwapim.... Many of the houseswere built of stone with shingle roofs andwere laid out in straight streets around thechurch and the school.

As we have shown, however, as this community becamemore established and institutionalized, boundariesbased on race began to become more pronounced -- boththrough patterns of marriage and expressions ofbitterness. The missionaries began to reveal implicitracial assumptions. Early on, in referring to sopaproblems with George Thompson, the missionaries wrote: luu

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Concerning Thompson, the decision of thecommittee that he cannot have a boy as servanthas been realized. So far he has conductedhimself quite well on the whole; but he stilldoes not show real expression of thoroughpenance and conversion. But we cannot expectof him, a Negro, what we do of a European.

Even Zimmerman, full of enthusiasm to "become a Negroto win Negroes," writes:101

Continuous Christian intercourse with theNegro will do great things because he is achild in every respect and has to be taught tobe a Christian; then the intercourse has to befatherly not masterly as is usually the casehere. The Negro adapts in a childlike way andimitates the good as well as the bad in achild like fashion. this is apparent in thepatriarchal arrangement of all the circum-stances of the Negro, which are almost asstrong as the caste system of the Hindu....What is childlike and simple is best for theNegro.

In reference to the West Indians, Zimmerman alsogeneralized:102

The West Indians are dear people, but they donot lend themselves to larger undertakings;they are too weak and will need always or atleast for a long time, European love.

One wonders how European love differs from West Indianor African love.

When problems arose with the European missionaries,they were seen by the Europeans as individual problems,e.g. Riis was net accused of being mad "like all Danes."But with the West Indians, Africans or Thompson, aLiberian, statements were increasingly being made aboutthe Negro race in general, and the responses of the WestIndians, on an individual basis, followed some of the samepatterns seen in contemporary responses to racism --withdrawal, dependency, assimilation, nationalism and

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despair. The resentment of Miller and Walker to pater-nalistic treatment took two directions. Walker left tolead an independent life while Miller became more depen-dent, continually complaining to the missionaries and theMission Committee in Basel. Alex Clerk took still anotherapproach. Perhaps because of his earlier training inJamaica, or perhaps because of his devastating experiencein the Anna Rochester case, he :iad internalized some ofthe European attitudes toward Blacks and had assimilatedinto a Western Life style. In his autobiography, hereferred to his childhood in which he as "guilty of thesame wicked acid naughty acts as other children of thefallen race."111:. In an earlier letter describing his workhe stated, "It dues not a little gratify me now not onlythat I have to do with Christian children as was myoccupation in Jamaica, but also to be used by the Lord, asan instrument for the education and perhaps conversionof the poor bRnighted race of my forefathers children,the Africans."1u4

The incipient patterns of racism were there alongwith some typical responses to it. The more piousand compliant of the original West Indians CatherineMu !grave and Alex Clerk -- were quite well integratedand assimilated into the miszionary community. Thosewho appear to have been mo-e intellectually gifted andcreative -- George -r.ompson and Jonas Hosford -- wereforced out of the community. One went mad and the otherbecame almost suicidal. The other West Indians, manualworkers, were caught between the Africans and Europeans.They attempted in terms of wages, life styles and relig-ious practices to set themselves apart as distinctive fromthe Africans. Eventually, however, it was the Africancommunity which they and their descendants joined and towhich they contributed in a permanent way.

Although the mid-nineteenth century was not thetime of nationalistic sentiment in the Gold Coast,in the post World War I GJid Coast, there was a growingrationalist movement and the descendants of Clerk, Halland Miller played important roles in this. NicholasClerk and Peter Hall were leaders of the PresbyterianChurch when attempts were being made to Africanize th;church and break away from being a mission church.1°3Nicholas Clerk advocated wearing African dress, singing

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African hymns and more power in the governance of thechurch. Miller's great grandchild was Dr. Nanka-Brucewho was a highly respected doctor in Accra in the 1920sand a leader in the nationalist :novement of that time.106

But this is not the whole story. If there wereinc;pient and open signs of division and racism inthis missionary community, there were also signs ofco-operation and understanding across racial and culturallines. Zimmerman perhaps illustrates these contradictorytendencies best. He married a Black woman in one of thefew marriages of choice among the missionaries and he wasfascinated by African cultures and languages. His letterscontain detailed anthropological data on everything fromhair styles to customs surrounding pregnant women. Healso tried to trace the African origins cif his wife.107Later Basel missionaries continued his tradition ofrecording cultural practices and becoming linguisticexperts. The Basel missionary, Christaller, compiled aTwi Dictionary which is a veritable encyclopedia of Akanlife in the 19th century. Even Zimmerman's comments aboutthe father-child relationship of Europeans to Africansneed to be seen in the context of the highly authoritarianBasel mission structure where the Inspector and Committeewere the Father to the missionary Children.

These fragile bridges of cross-cultural understandingremained a sub-theme, however, as the powerful forcesof colonial domination and the racism that accompaniedit set the tone for the Gold Coast of the latter 19thcentury and 20th century. Yet the "Shining City ona Hill" envisioned by the Basel Mission had its moments.A community of flawed human beings -- of differentraces, nationalities, and cultures -- survived andeven prospered in an alien environment and, in theend, contributed to the creation of an independentand nationalistic Ghanaian culture.

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ENDNOTES

The research in the Basel archives on which this paper isbased was partially funded by a grant from the MackFoundation and was administered by Muskingum College.Paul Jenkins of the Basel Mission was particularly helpfulin locating and transcribing some of the materials.Barbara Jurasek, of the German Depa. tment of EarlhamCollege, translated the letters.

1. A Short Centenary Sketch: The settlement ofWest Indian Immigrants ^n the Gold Coast underthe auspices of the erstwhile Basel EvangelicalMissionary Society 1843-1943. Presbyterian Churchof the Gold Coast, 1943. No author or publishergiven, p. 13.

2. Ibid., pp.7-8.

3. Ibid., p. R.

4. Ibid., p. 10.

5. Noll, Hatch, Marsden, Wells, and Woodbridge,editors. Eerdmans' Handbook to Christianityin America. Grand Rapids, Mich., 1983, p. 146.

6. M. A. Kwamena-Poh. Government and Politics inthe Akwapim State: 1730-1850. London: Longmans,1973, p. 111.

7. Wiihelm Schlatter, Geschichte der Basler Mission1815-1915 Band Ill. Die Geschichte der BaslerMission in Africa. Basel: Berlag der BaslerMissionsbuch Landlung. 1916, p. 35.

8. Kwamena-Poh, p. 1142.

9. Centenary Sketch, p. 11.

10. Edward Braithwaite. The Development of CreoleSociety in Jamaica, 1770-1820. Oxford: ClarendonPress, 1971, p. 252.

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11. Ibid.

12. Ibid., p. 258.

13. Ibid., p. 264.

14. Centenary Sketch, p. cit., p. 11.

15. Letter from Rev. Jacob Zorn to Rev. Latrobe,Dec. 26, 1842. Africa III, Bound Letters, BaselMission. Letters will be annotated by the nameof the correspondent, the date and the volumein which they are found in the archives. Allthe letters are written to the Central Committeein Basel unless otherwise noted.

16. Alex Clerk's Biography, 1855, Afica VII.

17. "Bei lage F Liste uber unsere Neger-Geschwister"Beilagen zum Jahresbericht der Basler MissionGesellschaft 1844. The information on the otherfamilies comes from this same source.

18. Letter from Rev. Jacob Zorn to Rev. Latrobe,Jan. 5, 1843, Africa III.

19. Ibid.

20. See "The Folk Culture of the Slaves" in Braith-waite, 212-239.

21. Debrunner's translation of contract between themission society and the West Indian Christiansgoing to Africa with Riis, Widmann and Thompsonfrom Jamaica, Jan. 4, 1843, Africa III.

22. Centenary Sketch, pp. 12-13.

23. Ibid., p. 14.

24. Philip Foster, Education and Social Change inGhana. Chicago: University of Chicago Press,1965, p. 51.

25. Kwamena-Poh, 62-71.250

241

26. Ibid., p. 65.

27. Ibid.

28. Centenary Sketch, p. 17.

29. George Thompson, Sept. 12, 1844, Africa III.

30. Widmann, May 26, 1845, Africa II.

31. Widmann, May 26, 1845.

32. Dieter le, Feb. 17, 1848, Africa III.

33. Centenary Sketch, p. 18.

34. Interview with Rev. Thomas Adade, a descendantof the West Indians, Aug. 1974, Akropong-Akwapim,Ghana.

35. Centenary Sketch, p. 18; Kwamena-Poh, 118-19.

36. Centenary Sketch, p. 18.

37. Sebald, May 1845, Africa III.

38. Widmann, May 25, 1945, Africa III.

39. Students at Akropong, Dec. 1, 1855, Africa VII.

40. Copy of the Agreement with the Emigrants at Akropongmade in June 1845, Africa III.

41. Dieter le, Apr. 26, 1847, Africa III and Widmann,April 6 and July 12, 1847, Africa III.

42. Centenary Sketch, p. 14.

43. Alex Clerk's Biography, 1855, Africa VII.

44. Kwamena-Poh, p. 118.

45. Dieter le, Aug. 2, 1847, Africa III.

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46. H. W. Debrunner, Owura Nico: The Rev. NicholasTimothy Clerk, 1862-1961. Watterville PublishingHouse, Accra, 1965, p. 54.

47. Kwamena-Poh, p. 121.

48. Zimmerman, excerpt from his diary printed inDer Evanqelische Heidenbote, Basler Mission,Nov. 1851, p. 93.

49. Rosli Widmann, Aug. 5, 1848, Africa III.

50. Zimmerman, July 18, 1851, Africa IV and Dieter le,Mohr, Suss and Mader, July 1, 1851, Africa IV.

51. Dieter le, Jan. 25, 1849, Africa IV.

52. Widmann, May 25, '845, Africa III.

53. Letter from West Indians, Jan. 17, 1845, AfricaIII.

54. Widmann, Jan 8, 1846, Africa III.

55. Noel Smith "The History of the Presbyterian Churchin Ghana, 1835-1960" as quoted in Kwamena-Poh,p. 117.

56. Widmann, May 26, 1845, Africa III.

57. Riis, Nov. 6., 1843, Africa III.

58. Widmann, Jan 8, 1846, Africa III.

59. Riis, Nov. 6, 1843, Africa HI.

60. Widmann, May 26, 1845, Africa III.

61. Scheidt, Dec. 13, 1846, Africa III.

62. Scheidt, Nov 10, 1847, Africa III.

63. Locher Report, Oct-Dec., 1851, Africa IV.

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64. Letter of Divorce of Mrs. Thompson, Accra, 1849,Africa IV.

65. Locher Report.

66. Schiedt, Nov. 1847, Africa III.

67. Centenary Sketch, pp. 14-15.

68. Riis, Sept. 4, 1844, Africa III.

69. Widmann, July 12, 1847, Africa III.

70. Stipulations for the West Indian Brethren, June4, 1847, Africa III.

71. Walker, Oct. 3, 1849, Africa IV.

72. Centenary Sketch, p. 18.

73. Widmann, Mohr, Dieter le, Mar. 21, 1848, AfricaIII.

74. Meischel, Dec. 29, 1849, Africa IV.

75. David Kimble, A rulitical History of Ghana:the Rise of Gold Coast Nationalism, 1850-1928.Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1963, p. 159.

76. Zimmerman, July 29, 1850, Africa IV.

77. Zimmerman, Sept. 10, 1850, Africa IV.

78. Ibid.

79. Zimmerman, Oct. 7, 1850, Africa IV.

80. Widmann, Feb. 12, 1845, Africa III.

81. Familien Register, Basler Mission, 1847-1890.

82. Dieter le, Aug. 5, 1847, Africa III.

83. Dieter le, Apr. 18, 18149, Africa IV.

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84. Stanger, June 2, 1851, Africa IV.

85. Mader, June 2, 1851, Africa IV.

86. Zimmerman, June 2, 1851, Africa IV.

87. Zimmerman, July 18, 1851, Africa IV.

88. Familien Register, Basler Mission, 1847-90.Also conversation with Cornelia Vogelsanger,Volkerkundemuseuri der Universitat Zurich whowas doing research in the Basel archives. Somedescendants of Catherine and Johannes Zimmermaneventually went to Europe. In a tragic footnoteto their family history some of these descendants,as non-Aryans, were rounded up in the Holocaust.In the past and future international associationsof this one woman, one can see the two horrorsof the modernization process -- slavery and theHolocaust. Catherine was captured from a Portu-guese slaver at the age of five; raised by theBritish wife of the governor of Jamaica; marriedto a Liberian and sent to the Gold Coast in 1843;divorced and re-married to a German missionary;finally, her descendants are caught up in theHolocaust. The truth is certainly more dramaticthan any novelist would dare to conceive. (Onethinks of attempts by novelists such as Schwartz-Bart: The Last of the Just and A Woman calledSolitude and William Styron: Nat Turner's Rebellionand Sophie's Choice to deal with both slavery andthe Holocaust.)

89. Stanger, Feb. 25, 1849 and Widmann, Feb. 21,1849 and Dieterle, May 11, 1849, Africa III.

90. Alex Clerk, July 1, 1851, Africa IV.

91. Debrunner, Op. Cit., passim.

92. Miller, Nov. 10, 1850, Africa IV.

93. Miller, June 1854, Mary Miller, Aug. 6, 1854,Africa VII.

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94. Miller, Mar. 28, April 9 and June 18, 1855; MaryMiller June 18, 1855, Africa VII.

95. Walker, Oct. 3, 1849, Africa IV.

96. Dieter le, Nov. 10, 1851, Africa V.

97. Interview with Thomas Adade, October 1969 andAugust 1974.

98. Peter Hall erzahlt sein Leben. "Von West Indiesnach West Africa." Walter Ringwald. EvanMissionsverlag. Gmbtl. Stuttgart. BaseleriaVerlag, Basel, 1961.

99. Noel Smith, "The Churches" in Akwapim Handbook,edited by David Brokensha, Ghana PublishingCorporation, Tema: 1972, p. 65.

100. Widmann, Dieter le, Mohr, Mar.21, 1848, AfricaIII

101. Zimmerman, July 29, 1850, Africa IV.

102. Zimmerman, Oct. 7, 1850, Africa IV.

103. Alex Clerk: Biography, 1855, Africa VII.

104. Alex Clerk, July 9, 1851, Africa V.

105. Minutes of the Synod of the Scottish Missionheld at Odumase, 16th to 19th July 1924, no publish-er, no date. Also Debrunner, op. cit., pp. 65-66.

106. Interviews with Adade, Aug. 1974 and Kimble,op. cit., passim.

107. Zimmerman, Oct. 4, 1851 and Dec. 20, 1851, AfricaIV.

Or- -4- );)

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PERCEPTIONS OF MEDICINE AND DISEASEIN NIGERIA

ROBERT A. HESSMessiah College

Of serious concern to African nations is the provisionof health care for their citizens. In the past, expensivemedical institutions (hospitals and dispensaries) in urbancenters have been the major thrust, but such institutionsbecome prohibitively expensive when the goal is to reachthe masses. This and other factors have led to a renewedinterest in traditional medicine, and medical anthropologyhas become increasingly important.

Generally it has been assumed that the majorityof Africans prefer traditional medicine, but such anopinion may likely be the result of generalizing fromwell-popularized studies of limited local areas to all ofAfrica. At least, the conclusions drawn from the studydescribed in this paper indicate that the people of thearea researched clearly consider scientific medicine asbeing most preferred. What is striking about thisconclusion is that the area is far more rural than theYoroba who were studied by Uma Maclean and about whom shedrew a contrasting conclusion (Maclean, 1971). Hence this

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study of the Bura is important in demonstrating that oneshould avo:d generalizing from the conclusions onestudy to the whole of Africa, or even a whole country.

THE SETTING

The area chosen for this research lies in the villageareas of Bila and Gusi, which are in the western part ofBorno State, the homeland of the Bura ethnic group. Thearea has been influenced by the Biu Kingdom since themiddle of the sixteenth century although the power of theWu was minimal in the area until the establishment ofcolonial rule shortly after the beginning of the presentcentury. Until that time, a village political structureserved with most day-to-day matters settled by lineageheads. Villages generally acted jointly only in times ofwar when they were united under a trusted warrior.

With the establishment of colonial rule a morestructured administration was introduced under a districthead at Kwaya, about ten miles zway, and a system ofvillage heads under him. Hamlets were grouped togetherinto these designated villages. This meant that tradi-tionally rulers of many villages now become heads ofhamlets under larger villages and lost their independence.

In many cases, families were removed from theirleadership in villages and replaced by appointees who werefavorites of the Biu Kingdom. Such was the case in Bilawhere the representative of the old line continues to livewithout legal power but retaining the traditional title.

The Bura are agriculturalists and the people of theBila and Gusi areas continue to be farmers almost exclus-ively. Because of few opportunities for other employment,youth in search of employment leave the area. The maincrops are guinea corn (sorghum) and groundnuts. Aporridge made from guinea corn is the staple, althoughthose who can afford to do so eat rice. Some household-ers, among whom are a few Fulani, keep cattle. Goatsand/or sheep are found in nearly every compound. Manyalso have chickens. Nevertheless, meat is scarce andexpensive and the diet lacks protein.

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The traditional religion was animism, and bothancestral and village spirits were worshipped. Shrineswere often in groves or caves or among the rocks.Other spirits were in abundance, many being consideredmalevolent. Overall was a high-god who was known by thename Hyel. He was the creator, the source of life. Suchtraditional religious concepts continue to dominate theworld view of many and some continue the traditionalrituals.

Islam had come to the Biu area with the establishmentof the kingdom in the sixteenth century, but the peoplein the rural areas were little affected. During thepast sixty years, however, many conversions have takenplace. Those in political posts are Muslim almostwithout exception, for the power structure causes many whowish to gain advantage to adopt, at least, the outwardsymbols of Islam.

Christianity was brought to the area in 1923 by theChurch of the Brethren Mission when the first station wasestablished at Garkida about forty miles east. Themission later built stations at Garkida about forty mileseast. The mission later built stations at Marama (estab-lished 1931) and at Wanda (established 1946), each aboutten miles away. A school was placed in the Bila areathirty years ago. As a result, Christianity is strongestin the Bila area. In the hamlet of Kwagu, where thechurch is located, Christians dominate village affairs andmay be nearly a ,najority. In Kwagu one notes the greatestrepudiation of the traditional concepts of disease whichascribe illness to the evil machinations of the spirits.

The family system is partilineal and partilocal.The oldest male member of the extended family whichmay extend to four generations is consulted about impor-tant family affairs, especially matters related tomarriage. If one's father is dead, one defers to one'sfather's brother. Within the household, the husband ishead; he is the one who decides when and where hischildren and his wives will be taken for :nedical treatmentalthough the matter is often discussed with his rela-tives. Often he will himself obtain roots, leaves or barkfrom the bush for members of his household. He may alsobuy medicine in the market.

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Men of the Bile and Gusi village areas continueto practice polygyny and the practice is widespread.Perhaps a majority of the older men have two or morewives. Thus although many young men have left thearea and household heads tend to be in their late fortiesor older, children are in abundance. Children are valuedand loved, and the bearing of children is one of theattractions of polygyny.

METHODOLOGY

The main method of research used in this studyinvolved the use of a questionnaire. A questionnairewhich was in use by the Department of Community Medicine,Ahmadu Bello University was adapted to the conditionsfound in the communities in which the research wasto take place. The Administrative staff of the GarkidaRural Health Programme, including Dr. James Kipp, TheMedical Consultant, assisted both in constructing thequestionnaire and in choosing the three health posts to bestudied. They also volunteered to conduct some of theinterviews and administer the questionnaires.

In order to be closer to the people and thus gain anunderstanding of the culture as a participant observer inthe time-honored fashion, I arranged with the headmasterof the Mindikutaki Primary School to live in an unoccupiedroom in his household during a three-month period in early1981. Mindikutaki, being one of the hamlets of the BileVillage Area and the location of the residence of thevillage head, was a site which lent itself well to thepurposes of the research.

I chose Mr. Daniel Yarongao as my assistant. Since I

already know the language well, having lived among theBura for sixteen years, I wanted someone to assist me whenconversations were beyond my vocabulary or when peoplefound my Bura difficult to understand. Daniel was neededalso to guide me to the hamlets of the area and to makeintroductions.

Daniel has had four years of primary schoolingin the vernacular. He knows a little English, butnot too much. He reads the vernacular with difficulty.

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At one time he was employed by the mission as a dresser,and he takes an interest in medicine; people recogiiizethat he has skills in herbal medicine as well.

With his background, Daniel was equipped to beof great service. Having been around Europeans heunderstood how to help me with the culture. Havinglived in the area all of his life and having met thepublic as a dresser, he knew an amazing number of peoplepersonally. Thus doors opened readily. He was able tounderstand Bura when spoken with a European accent, and heknew how to speak in the Bura of limited vocabulary whichI could also understand.

Working together, Daniel and I administered thequestionnaire to 387 individuals. We limited ourselvesto household heads, one or two of their wives (oftenthe more senior wives) and teachers. This means thatthe sample is not representative of the entire popula-tion. This factor must be remembered especially when thecatalogue of ailments (question 14) of the respondentsis analyzed. The data will not present a cross sectionof the ailments of the entire population. Childhoodailments do not appear at all.

In order to obtain a sample which was representative,an attempt was made to get into all of the hamlets of Bileand Cusi Villages. With the exception of a few smallhamlets, this was accomplished. Since Dayar lay in twovillage areas and because time did not permit more intensesampling, the survey was restricted to an area within twomiles of that health post.

Most hamlets were small enough to permit the inclusionof nearly all households in which the occupants could befound home. In the larger hamlets, care was taken toinclude all sections of the hamlet, although not allhouseholds could be visited. In this way, the sampleincluded a representative sampling of the clans andoccupational groups which made up the hamlet.

In addition to the households polled in the Bile.Gusi, and Dayar areas, the staff of the Garkida RuralHealth Programme polled thirty -throe respondents whosecompleted questionnaires are included in the data.

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Due to insufficient supervision, the results of anadditional fifteen had to be discarded. Those staffwho conducted the thirty-three interviews which supplieddata used in the analysis contained in this paper chosehouseholders from a widely scattered area. The interviewstook place in the course of performing their duties inmany different hamlets. In no case did they interviewmore than three people from the same hamlet. Eighteendifferent hamlets were included, mostly in the Biu, Shamiand Gombi Locao Government areas.

Because these thirty-three respondents are fromsuch a widely scattered area they do permit some compari-son between the main geographical area of research andother areas. Unfortunately the sample included inthese thirty-three questionnaires is not large enoughnor was it selected systematically enough to yielddependable conclusions.

Other methods were utilized in addition to thatof using a questionnaire. I interviewed numerous pe..pleconcerning general cultural matters and medical practicesand concepts. In eleven cases, I recorded the sessionswith traditional healers and other elderly persons. I

captured the daily activities of people on motion picturefilm, took hundreds of slide pictures, and made copiuusnotes. The daily conversations about any subject whicharose allowed me to gain an intimate knowledge of thecultural context and to make numerous friends. Thisprovided an its.-ormed context in which to interpret thedata gathered by the questionnaire.

CAUSES OF DISEASE

Although changes in health practices do not needto await a change in the perceptions about the natureand cause of disease, the preference for scientificmedicine in the Bile, Uayar and Gusi areas is associatedwith natural and scientific explanations for the causesof disease. :n an effort to ascertain what, in theminds of the people, causes disease, an open-endedquestion was as:ced to 385 people. Directly, asked,the questions was, "What causes disease?" The dataobtained therefrom were then tabulated in Thirteen

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categories and analyzed according to the health postarea, sex, age and occupation. The results are foundin table G.

According to these results, people believe thatdirt, flies, impure water and improper or impure foodare the main causes of disease. Flies were mentionedmost frequently (40.3%) with food nearly as often(35.2%). Mosquitoes, although not listed among themost frequent causes, were named in nearly 19 percentof the replies.

An analysis of the data reveals that the repliesindicate an overwhelming preoccupation with naturalisticcauses. Only 5-6 percent of the respondents repliedthat God causes diseat.a, but they did name tier non-physical causes which are included under the categorylabelled "other." Such replies are striking for theirinfrequency; only three people volunteered that ghostscause disease, two that sorcery is a cause, one thatsin brings disease, and two that evil is also a cause.

In spite of these initial replies, the observershould not jump to the conclusion that the Bura peoplehave abandoned the traditional African view that spiritsare the main cat,..es of disease and have become natural-istic in their world view. More intense probing, whichI did on -.. number of occasions, revealed that, on a levelbelow that most vocalized, the potency of the spirit worldis often assumed. This probing took the form of askingspecifically if certain aspects of the spirit world causeddiseases. Among those more intensely questioned, I foundagreement with the following:

Witchcraft or sorcery

Ghosts (mutu)

Spirits

Sin(Sometimes as apunishment for sin)

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27 times;

29 times;

10 times;

17 Times;

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God 7 Times;

Devils 5 Times.

Unfortunately no accurate record was kept concerningthe number of peoplf. specifically questioned in thismore intense manner. Nevertheless a fair estimateis that at least sixty percent of those so questionedagreed to at least one of the non-physical causes.

On the other hand, some of the respondents wouldnot agree to suggestions of non-physical causes. Of thosewho denied the non-physical causes which I suggested,fifteen refused to admit that sorcery could cause disease,twelve that ghosts or spirits were responsible, three thatsin could bring disease, and two that God would inflictdisease on people. Sever.'') were caught in the dilemma ofbelieving that God was ultimately the all-powerful causeof everything while also holding a repugnance for assumingthat a good God would ever cause evil.

In light of these negative attitudes tnoward non-physical causes of disease, one must take notice of thefact that both Christian and Muslim teachers have beenpreaching against the traditional animist base of theindigenous concepts regarding disease. For example, I

found that Muslims generally would not accept the ideathat spirits of the departed were in any way responsiblefor the welfare of the living, nor where the naturespirits and ghosts. On the other hand they could morereadily agree that the shatans (devils) might be responsi-ble. Typical of syncretized Islam in many parts of Africaand other areas were animism has been replaced, thespirits of the older world view have become the "ji m" ofIslam.

Replies to probing questions concerning non-physicalcauses of disease, therefore, appear to refiect theteaching of the more recently arrived monotheisticfaiths which are incompatible with the older animism.One sometimes suspected elements of a new orthodoxyin the replies received which may not accurately reflectthe deepest opinions of the intervic.:ees. For example,the frequently encountered assumption that a person

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who did not receive relief from a serious illness mightconsult a diviner- healer as a last result (and thensomewhat reluctantly) indicated that one should at leastmake sure that the traditional spirit world was in order.

But non-physical explanations notwithstanding, thefact remains that the unguided replies to an open-endedquestion concerning the causes of disease indicatea decided naturalistic orientation. Such orientationis not incompatible with the traditional views of diseaseand illness. The herbalist traditionally diagnosed by anobservat.on of physical symptoms and prescribed herbswhich were considered effective in recovery from thesymptom. Of course, there was no denying that non-physical causes might be involved, but the herbalistprescribed, in many cases, on the level of the naturalis-tic.

One is then justified in assuming that the peoplereplied to my question regarding the causes of diseaseon the physical level because that is the level onwhich they most frequently initially approach the fightagainst an illness. There may, of course, he a reticenceto discuss matters of the spiritual world openly, espec-ially with a stranger from another culture. Neverthelessthe people's statements concerning preferred places oftreatment and their own self-declared record of attendanceat health posts and dispensaries show a consistency ofattention to the physical aspects of disease. So too doestheir preference for the herbalist over the diviner-healer.

For example, an explanation of mental illness given bya traditional practitioner noted for his skills in healingmental illness sound very akin to the germ theory.According to Mbwadiwa, a healer near Biu, Borno State,mental illness is caused by a sickness substance which isin the air. This sickness enters the nose of the victimand finds its way to the brain, whereupon it proceeds toturn the brain to water. In other causes, the huge veinwhich supplies blood to the brain turns red rather thanremaining white. This causes the person to see double orto have hallucinations. At that point, the person loseshis touch with reality and talks nonsense.

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What is then necessary is for the healer to findan herb or herbs which will absorb the sickness sothat it can be voided from the body. When the sicknessbegins to be voided from the body by the natural processesof elimination after it has been absorbed by the herbalmedicine, the patient begins to recover. Eventuallyhe returns to health.

Another healer who prescribes herbs for a wide varietyof diseases gave similar explanations. He explained thatthe medicine lies in the stomach where it absorbs thesickness before passing on to be eliminated from thebody. Even diseases caused by sorcery are cured in thisfashion.

Although traditional concepts are, in some ways,compatible with contemporary explanations of diseasecausation, there are some notable differences in theresponses of various segments of the sample. Thesedifferences are found when the older respondents arecompared with younger respondents and farmers ar° comparedwith other occupations (Table G) .

Those in the ten to twenty-nine age bracket weremuch more aware of the importance of dirt, flies, mosqui-toes, and personal hygiene than were those over fiftyyears of age, and the contrasts was even more striking forthose over seventy. In the case of mosquitoes as a cause,those over thirty years of age showed less awareness,while those over seventy showed almost no recognition ofthe insect as a cause of disease. In the case of theyoungest category, 28 percent named mosquitoes, whereasonly 3 percent of the eldest group did so.

There remains one final aspect which is notableregarding opinions as to causes of disease. This is theconcept of the condition of the blood. Although less than10 percent of the people responded to the question "whatcauses disease?" with the reply that blood did so, I foundthat the idea that the condition of the blood was impor-tant was generally accepted. One who had healthy bloodcould resist illness; one who did not was likely to becomeill. Strictly speaking, then, blood is not a cause ofdisease, but it is important in ;:xplaining why peopleunder tht. same conditions of environment will experience a

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257

different frequency of illness. If one had "hot" blood ora lot of blood, one can resist disease. On the otherhand, if one's blood is diminished either in quantity orquality, one becomes sick. One ought, therefore, attemptto build up the blood either by eating good food or bytaking certain medicines.

The concept appears to be a traditional one, as can bedemonstrated by the fact that the more conservativemembers of the population, the farmers, named it as afactor whereas teachers did not. When it was suggested bya medical doctor that the concept may have developed froma knowledge that blood transfusions in hospitals producespectacular recoveries, the idea was tested among peoplein the village. One village person specifically statedthat the concept was traditional, that even their fathersused the expression "change of blood" to explain illness.Another denied that there was any connection with themodern therapy of giving transfusions. Rather, he relatedthe expression to the concept that some foods build up theblood and thereby help one to resist disease.

"Strong" blood is therefore equated with robusthealth. The concept appears to be much like the westernidea of constitution. When one has a strong constitution,one can combat illness. To the Bura the same abilityto resist illness or recover from it is related tothe condition of the blood.

In the end, the fact is evident that both traditionaland scientific concepts regarding disease causationhave blended to influence the people of the Bile, Gusi andDayar areas. Evident too is the fact that in bothtraditional and modern spheres, naturalistic explanationsare a standard aspect of the complex of ideas. Suchnaturalistic causes dominate the immediate consciousnessof the people, but supernatural factors continue to beheld and are more readily expressed by the older and moreconservative elements of the population. How all thisfits together did not become evident, but is was obviousthat old and new ideas had blended together into aharmonious whole and that this was compatible withcontemporary medical practices.

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258

PREFERRED PLACE OF TREATMENT

One striking conclusion of the study of the medicalhealth concepts of those Bura included in the surveywas their clear preference for 'scientific medicinefor treatment of all but a few diseases. Doctors andother Westerners working in the area had assumed thatscientific medicine was the treatment resorted to aftertraditional medicine had failed, but the people do notthemselves consider this to be the case.

Of course, many people do drink traditional medicine,and such medicine is often consumed prior to a visitto a dispensary or other medical facility, but thisdoes not mean that it is the preferred method of treat-ment. In many cases, the taking of traditional, thatis herbal, medicine is looked upon as a home remedymuch as the average North American self-administersremedies from the drug store. When one becomes seriouslyill, Bura victims of disease also prefer scientificmedicine.

Not only did an investigation of the preferred placeof treatment dramatically demonstrate this fact; atabulation of the self-perceived performance over thetwo-week period prior to the survey also showed suchpreference. For example, 34.2 percent of the respondentsfrom the Bila area and 25.2 percent of the people from theGusi area stated that someone from their household hadattended the village health post during that period (TableA). When visits to a dispensary or a hospital are added,the total percentages rise to 49 and 36.9 for Bila andGusi respectively. Compared to this, the people of Bilaturned to herbal medicine only in 11.7 percent of thecases and the people of Gusi did so in only 12.9 percentof the cases. Only one person among those questioned inboth Bila and Gusi combined visited a diviner-healer. Ifmarket medicine is also considered as scientific med:cine,as it truly is in most cases, and it is discovered thatpeople from nearly 20 percent of the households :-.aughtmedicine in the market, the preference for scientificmedicine is dramatically clear.

One factor in this record seems especially important;scientific medicine must be easily available. At least

2.6.7

259

this appears to explain why the people of Dayar (alsorefer to Table A) recorded a different performancethan did those in Bila and Gusi. Their preferencesdid not show the striking contrast with the peopleof the other two areas that their performance did (TablesA and E). That is to say, the preferences for a place oftreatment stated by the people of Dayar where similar tothose stated by the people of Bila and Gusi, but theiractual choice of a place of treatment was very different.

Significantly the health post at Dayar has beenclosed for a number of reasons related to the healthpost workers and the village committee. Hence theyhave to travel approximately five miles to Bila fora visit to a health post or more than five miles inthe other direction to a dispensary. Notably, in nearly14 percent of the households, the people did travel toBi la and a number of people bought medicine in the localmarket. But the clear alternative appears to be to run tothe herbalists; people in nearly 45 percent of thehouseholds did so.

However, as stated, the performance of the peopleof Dayar is not in accord with their stated preference.A tabulation of the preferred places of treatment forthirteen complaints shows that there was little signif-icant difference between people of the various areasregarding their preferences for the service of the villagehealth post (Table F). Some of the differences can beexplained by the fact that many of the people in the"oti-b:r" category are close to the general hospital inGarkida whereas the people of Dayar are relatively closeto a prestigious dispensary. Therefore variation in theperceived seriousness of the complaint may cause one tovary in the preference of one source of scientificmedicine -- health post, dispensary or hospital -- toanother depending upon how available they may be.

As a matter of fact, the survey reveals that of allthe geographical areas, the people of Gusi have thehighest regard for the herbalist. This preference wasfurther documented by the results of the questions whichcompared village health post and the dispensary to thetraditional doctor in the survey as to opinions concerningwhy people did not attend either the village health post

L 268

260

or a dispensary (Tables D and E). Gusi respondents morefrequently believe that a preference for the traditionalpractitioner might be a factor which kept people fromattending the village health post or the dispensary.Ironically the people of Dayar, though they used theservices of the herbalists more, believe that preferencefor herbalists is not an important factor as to why peopledo not use the village health post. In fact, Dayarrespondents show a very low preference for herbalists fornearly every disease, less than 4 percent except in thecases of diseases or ailments which are generally consid-ered by people of all areas to be those for which scien-tific medicine is not clearly superior.

Muting the clear preference for scientific medicinefor most complaints is thi', careful designation oftwo categories\ of disease: {1) Those which respondbest to scientific medicine and (2) those which respondbest to traditional medicine. As one person said,"some diseases are not those of the dispensary." Anotherperson spoke of "modern illnesses" and claimed that theyneed modern medicine, that traditional medicine was oflittle value for such disease. Traditional medicine wasonly for certain diseases.

When asked to indicate which diseases would respondwell to traditional medicine, one person replied thatit was effective only against illnesses caused by thespirit. Another added to this those diseases for whichthe causes were not evident ("The eye that sees onlypartially") and for diseases related to the traditionalreligion.

Nevertheless, the results of the survey reveal somespecific complaints for which people feel that herbalmedicine is more effective. And these complaints may ormay not fit the above categories. Jaundice is an out-standing example. Nearly 50 percent of the intervieweesthought that the herbalist was the preferred place oftreatment for jaundice. Not quite as many thought thatthe traditional healer was the place to go to have brokenbones treated, and far more showed a preference fortreating broken bones in the hospital than was the casefor jaundice. The word has been spread that scientificmedicine has no cure for jaundice -- even nurses and

269

261

dispensers are of this opinion -- and therefore peopleturn to traditional medicine.

A good example of this is the case of mental illnessconcerning which people express confidence in bothtraditional healers and the hospital. In this case, thepublic has learned that severely disturbed people can bewell cared for at Maduguri, the state capital, more thanone hundred miles away. Over the years, the mentalhospital there has become well known as the proper placeto treat those whose anti-social behavior makes itundesirable to have them remain in the villages. This isclearly shown by the results of the survey. On the otherhand, there are also traditional healers who have built upreputations as skillful and successful therapists. Chiefamong them is Mbwadiwa to whom I referred earlier in thispaper. He is well known in the area, and minstrelssing ballads to his fame. The survey shows the impactof his success; people also look to traditional healersfor aid for the mentally ill.

Yet another factor may explain the strong preferencefor traditional medicine for mental illness. Thisis the fact that scientific medicine has not had muchsuccess for this category of illness. Certainly therehave not been the spectacular cures in cases of mentalillness that the "miracle drugs" have produced in the caseof disease caused by bacteria or viruses. At the sametime, because of the nature of the illness, the successrate of traditional healers is high, perhaps nearly ashigh as among western psychiatrists. Other studies haveshown a similar, and often stronger, confidence intraditional healers in the case of mental illness (Twum-asi, 1975, p. 105).

But one factor about the finds of this survey isremarkable for its contrast with other areas of Africa.This is the lack of preference for the divinerhealers andritualists. Generally, investigators have found that,especially in the case of diseases that did not yield toscientific medicine, Africans turn to the traditionalhealers who work more in the realm of the supernatural.Mental illness and infertility are two such complaints forwhich people often seek the diviners, spiritualists andritualists. This is not as frequently the situation among

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262

the people studied. There is relatively little preferencefor such healers. Oddly the greatest preference for thediviner-healer was found in the "other" category whichwas made up largely of people living near Garkida,a less remote area than the main area of research at Bila,Dayar and Gusi. However, even people in this categoryshow low confidence in such healers. Clearly the diviner-healer has little prestige among the Bura people.

Specific questions concerning the work of the diviner-healers supported the conclusion that they did not enjoythe confidence of the people. Frequently the questionerwas met with expressions that showed distrust of thediviner-healers. In many cases there were charges ofoutright fraud and attempts to deceive people. Going to adiviner-healer was for many an action of last resort. Asone resident of Gusi said, "If you have tried a lot ofmedicine but have received no relief, go to the diviner-healer to find out the cause." Another said that if onehas tried hospitals without result and they (the people atthe hospital) say, "Co to the diviner-healer," one wouldgo. In another case where a person was asked when onewould go to a diviner-healer, his reply was that ifsomething troubles you, such as barrenness, you would got.:. ilia- di viner-heaier to find out why. He aciciea thuuyilthat one would not get the truth. It is only as aiast resort and with little feeling of confidence thatmost people would go to a diviner-healer.

Such is not the case with the herbalists. As we havenoted, many people still go to them, and many peoplegather herbs to be used in home cures. In the past,traditional healers reportedly often combined the skillsof the diviner and herbalist, but those days are mostlygone. I was able to learn of only two or three people whodid divining. However, one person named denied that hepracticed divining. Another was only vaguely referred toand never located, and the other was Muslim healer, thusnot truly a traditional medicine man.

Although the herbalists are, in contrast, stilleverywhere to be found, they too have lost prestigeas confidence in traditional medicine has declined.One person expressed it this way: "Traditional medicinedoes not work as well as before." Another confirmed

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263

what had already been observed: formerly traditionalmedicine had been used extensively, but now westernmedicine was by far the predominant kind upon whichpeople depended. On the other hand, he noted thatpeople often used both traditional and western medicine.An interesting example of this dual approach was onechild who had a charm on her leg but whom the motheralso took to the clinic at the Bile Health Post forimmunizations.

There need be no inconsistency in such practices.In the case of the child, the perception is that oneis protecting the child against two different kindsof disease or against two different causes of the samesymptoms. One older informant, aged 70, strongly dis-agreed with the idea that using traditional medicinewould keep a person from using scientific medicine.The confidence lies mainly in the latter. Taking tradi-tional medicine is supplementary or even preliminary.A parallel of this common attitude may be the localtrader who was a licensed chemist (druggist) and whosold modern drugs in the market but did not list marketdrugs as a preferred source of treatment! For himtoo, his medicine was merely clipplementarvI thp nrpfprrpdsource of treatment was a health post, dispensary or ahospital.

Opinions as to the preferred place of treatmentshowed some variation, though generally not much, betweendifferent segments of the sample. The greatest variationswere those already noted: (1) contrasts found between theresidents of the geographical areas represented by thehealth posts (Table E) and (2) a sharp difference in theattitudes of teachers, compared to other occupationalgroups. But other variations were less pronounced. Therewas less preference for home c :liveries expressed byfemales than by males (Table H,, but the sex of therespondent made little difference for other complaints.Furthermore, an analysis of the effect of age upon statedpreferences for places of treatment showed that youngerrespondents either considered breathlessness more seriousthan did older people or else older people were moreconfident in their village health workers and dependedupon them to either treat the complaint or direct themto the appropriate place (Table l). The same was true for

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2614

diarrhea and jaundice. No one over seventy years of agethought that the hospital was the preferred place oftreatment for jaundice.

In fact, older people generally demonstrated the mostconfidence in the village health workers. In addition tothe significant differences in such confidence just noted,older people showed notable trust in the village healthworker for swellings, blood in urine, blood in stool andmental illness. Comments made by the elderly at the timeof the interview showed that in many cases, they were notsure as to which place was best to take a complaint. Thusthey would say, "I would go to the village health workerand he will tell me what to do or where to go. In otherwords, the results of the survey, in this case, show apersonal trust in the workers and not necessarily aconfidence in the medicine of the health post.

As one would expect, the older age groups show greaterconfidence than did others in the herbalists. This istrue for all complaints except jaundice, broke bones, andmental illness -- all diseases assumed generally to bediseases for which scientific medicine is less outstand-ingly successful. But this confidence in herbalists doesnot extend to ali traditional medicine. Striking is thediscovery that even older respondents showed almost noconfidence in the diviner-healers. Times have changed,affecting even the older segment of the population.

However, in spite of these variations in the statedpreferences of different segments of the sample justdescribed, one overwhelming conclusion generally applies.Clearly the preferred medicine of first resort is scien-tific medicine. Just a few decades ago it may have beenherbal medicine with scientific medicine as the alter-native to which one turned after herbal medicine hadfailed. Today that is not the case. Today, one wouldturn, for the most part, to traditional medicine inresignation if scientific medicine failed to produce acure.

Why this is so was not the object of this research,but others have documented a similar development wherescientific medicine has been available for a generationor more in programs competently and efficiently run

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(Foster, 1978, pp. 304-305). The school at Bile isnow thirty-years old and the one at Dayar, slightlyyounger, but the mission has been in contact with the areafor more than fifty years. This contact has resulted inliteracy classes, outposts of the Christian church, anddressing stations as forerunners of the present education-al and medical services. The dispensary at Marama, whichhas an excellent reputation and is only ten miles away,was begun shortly after 1935, and Wanda li in the oppositedirection and only twelve miles away was opened at leastthirty-five years ago. It too has an excellent reputa-tion.

Such facilities have had a decided impact upon thepeople of the area. Striking cures have demonstratedthe effectiveness of scientific medicine as feversand infections have yielded to treatment by sulfa drugs,penicillin, antibiotics and antimalarials. One informantspecifically noted the eradification of small pox ashaving made its impact upon the faith which people have inscientific medicine.

Indeed scientific medicine is often regarded as somesort of magic, and magkally cures are expected. Thus asone takes a particular kind of drug for two or three daysand there is not visible improvement, the medicine isregarded as ineffective. With this orientation, thegeneral assumption that scientific medicine is ineffectivefor treating jaundice results from the long convalescentperiod. Nevertheless, the last half century has producedenough outstandingly successful drugs to convince thepeople of the area that scientific medicine is overwhelm-ingly superior to traditional medicine. As a result, suchmedicine now is the medicine most respected and soughtafter by the Bura people.

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266

NOTES

This document was presented at , Twisty -sixthAnnual Meeting of the African Studies ssociation inBoston, December 7-10, 1983.

Field Research in Nigeria was made possible by grantsfrom the Brethren Health Education Foundation, Elgin,Illinois and the American Philosophical Society, Philadel-phia.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Foster, George M.1978 "Medical Anthropology and International

Health Planning." In Health and the HumanCondition: Perspectives on Medical Anthro-p2INy . Michael Logan and Edward E. Hunt,Jr., eds. Pp. 301-13. North Scituate, Mass."Duxbury Press.

Maclean, Catherine M. Una1971 Magical Medicine: A Nigerian Case- Sturil.

London: Allen Lane, Penguin Press.

Twumasi, P. A.1975 Medical Systems in Ghana: A Study in Medical

Sociology. Tema, Ghana: Ghana PublishingCorporation.

275

13E21 CObA VAVIiverE

TABLE A

Households in Which Someone Consulted One of the Following Within the Previous Two Weeks:

Health PostsBila% NO.

Dayar% No.

Gusi% No

Other

% NO.

Total% No.

Chi Square

Village HealthWorker

34.2 67 13.9 10 25.2 30 15.2 5 26.7 112 14.0415

Dispensary 13.3 26 1.4 1 6.7 8 48.5 18 12.1 51 52.1673

Hospital 1.5 3 0 0 5.0 6 53.3 11 4.8 20 67.5331

market Vender 19.4 38 27.8 20 19.3 23 30.3 11 21.7 91 4.01784

Diviner-Healer 5 1 0 0 0 0 15.2 5 1.4 6 48.0742

Herbalist 11.7 23 44.4 32 12.6 15 15.6 5 17.9 75 41.974

Sample Size 100 196 100 72 100 119 100 33 100 420

276 BEST COPY AVAILABLE

riso 't!r:vd,rii)f

TABLE B

Last `visit to Above Sources of Medical Assistance For HouseholdsWherein No One Had Visited Stich Sources Within the Previous Two

Health POstsdila

lb.Dayar% NC.

Gusi% lb.

Other% No.

Total% N. Chi Square

Less Than 12Months Ago

More Than 12Months Ago

Never

78.9

15.8

5.3

45

9

3

100

0

0

17

0

0

86.1

11.6

2.3

37

5

1

75.0

0

25.0

3

0

1

84.3

11.6

4.1

102

14

5

9.48813Sample Size 100 51 100 17 100 43 100 4 100 121

BEST COPY AVAILABLE

Individuals Suffering Fran the Following Complaints Within the Previous Two Weeks:

Health PostsBila% No.

Dayar% No.

Gusi% No.

Other% No.

Total% No.

Chi Square

Fever 26.2 51 18.1 13 16.8 20 48.5 16 23.9 100 16.1706

Headache 36.7 72 31.9 23 43.7 52 60.6 20 39.8 167 9.3426

Cough 19.4 38 12.5 9 18.5 22 48.5 16 20.2 85 19.2957

Blood in Urine 2.0 4 5.6 4 5.9 7 15.2 5 4.8 20 11.484

Blood in Stool 9.7 19 5.6 4 10.1 12 9.1 3 9.0 38 1.32185

Breathlessness 22.4 44 18.1 13 22.7 27 15.2 5 21.2 89 1.49026

Diarrhea 20.7 21 12.5 9 6.7 8 42.4 14 12.4 52 31.4721

Jaundice 13.8 21 5.6 4 5.9 7 6.1 2 9.5 40 7.71823

Swelling ofFaceAbdomen 3.6 7 1.4 1 3.4 4 6.1 2 3.3 14 1.64136

- Feet

Other 52.6 103 52.8 38 52.1 62 21.2 7 50.0 210 11.8819

Sample Size 100 196 100 72 100 119 100 33 100 420

BEST COPY AVAILABLE 278

8E21 CObA vAvirverE

TABLE D

Opinions as to Why People Do Not Go to Health Posts:

Health PostsBila% No.

Dayar% No.

GUS/% No.

Other% hb.

Tc -al

% ND.Chi Square

It is Too Far 6.1 12 4.2 3 13.4 16 43.8 14 10.8 45 46.7846

Don't Want toLose Time from 10.7 21 2.8 2 13.5 16 25.0 8 11.2 47 19.4782Work

Staff areUnfriendly

2.6 5 7.0 5 3.4 4 9.4 3 4.1 17 6.54204

Treatment Not asGood as Tradi-tional Doctor

10.7 21 4.2 3 20.2 24 3.1 1 11.7 49 21.6817

Disease CannotBe Treatedat the VHP

22.5 44 11.3 8 30.3 36 21.7 7 22.7 95 12.8559

Treatment Not asGood as at 21.4 42 18.3 13 33.6 40 15.6 5 23.9 100 11.8288Dispensary

Drugs Are NotAlways Available

23.0 45 45.1 32 34.5 41 10.7 3 29.2 121 30.8735

79

TABLE D

Cpinion as to Why People Do Not Go to Health Posta

(Continued)

Health PostsBila% No.

Dayar% NO.

Gusi% NO.

Other% NO.

Total% No.

Square

If You Wait atHome You CanRecover without

7.7 15 9.9 7 10.1 12 9.7 3 8.9 37 4.16713

Medical Aid

Need Injections 42.6 83 46.5 33 55.5 66 40.6 13 46.8 195 8.44051

Need FreeTreatment

18.9 37 12.7 9 30.3 36 43.8 1/ 23.0 96 73.7913

Sample Size 196 71 119 32 418

250

TABLE E

Opinior as to Why People Do Not Go to the Dispensaries:

Health PostsBila% No.

Dayar% No.

Gusi% No.

Other% No.

It is Too Far 16.8 33 12.7 9 34.4 41 61.3 1!

Don't Want toLose Time from 7.1 14 8.5 6 15.1 18 3/.5 ..

Work

Staff areUnfriendly

5.6 11 0 0 6.7 8 9.4 3

Treatment Not asGood as Ttadi-tional Doctor

8.2 16 4.2 3 20.2 24 21.9 7

Disease Is OneWhich Cannot BeTreated at

18.4 36 5.6 4 24.4 29 18.7 A

Dispensary

Treatment Not asGood as at 14.3 28 8.5 6 15.3 23 12.5 4Hospital

Drugs Are NotAlways Available

14.3 28 8.4 6 18.5 22 37.5 12

cs.2./i I

i

J,

5.3

12.0

18.0

14.6

16.3

Av.Chi Square

102 46.3272

50 33.9458

22 9.46147

50 19.9346

75 13.3657

61 7.74081

68 22.4414

TABLE E

Opinion as to Why People Do Not Go to the Dispensaries:

(Continued)

Health PostsBila% NO.

Dayar% NO.

Gusi% NO.

Other% NO.

Total% NO.

Chi Square

If You Wait atHome You CanRecover withoutMedical Aid

Need FreeTreatment

5.6

15.8

11

31

4.2

11.3

3

8

12.6

21.9

15

26

6.3

18.7

2

6

7.4

17.0

31

71

11.2559

34.4763

Sample Size 100 196 100 71 100 119 100 32 100 418

I

2S2

TABLE F

Preferred Place of Treatment by Health Post(Expressed in Percent)

Health Postand

DiseaseHospital Dispensary

VillageHealthPost

Herbalist Diviner-Healer

MarketVender Home Total

%

TotalNumber

FeverBile 3.6 15.8 75.0 1.5 0 3.1 1.0 100 196nayar 2.8 31.9 61.1 1.4 0 2.B 0 100 72Gusi 0.8 26.9 58.1 5.9 0.8 6.7 0.8 100 119Other 12.5 12.5 62.5 0 0 9.4 3.1 100 32Total 3.4 21.5 66.8 2.6 0.2 4.5 1.0 1Gy 419

HeadacheBile 11.7 19.0 61.2 5.1 0 1.0 2.0 100 196Dayar 15.3 44.4 36.1 1.4 0 1.4 1.4 100 72Gusi 22.7 21.9 42.0 6.7 0 4.2 2.5 100 119Other 12.5 15.6 59.4 0 0 9.4 3.1 100 32Total 15.5 23.9 51.4 4.5 0 2.6 2.4 100 419

CoughBile 11.7 19.0 61.2 5.1 0 1.0 2.0 100 196Dayar 15.3 44.4 36.1 1.4 0 1.4 1.4 100 72Gusi 22.7 21.2 42.0 6.7 0 4.2 2.5 100 119Other 12.5 15.6 59.4 0 0 9.4 3.1 100 32Total 15.5 23.9 S1.4 4.5 0 2.6 2.4 100 419

BreathlessnessBile' 27.2 26.2 39 7.1 0 0 0.5 100 195Bayer 16.7 47.2 31.9 2.8 0 1.4 0 100 72Gusi 31.1 29.4 24.4 15.1 0 0 0 100 119Other 20.7 41.4 13.8 3.4 13 0 20.7 100 29Total 26.0 31.8 31.8 8. 0 0.3 1.7 100 415

283

TABLE F

Preferred Place of Treatment by Health Post(Expressed in Percent)

(Continued)

Health Postand

DiseaseHospital Dispensary

VillageHealthPost

Herbalist D_viner-Healer

MarketVernier Home Total

%TotalNumber

DiarrheaBila 1.5 17.4 75.0 4.6 0 1.0 0.5 100 196Dayar 8.3 41.7 45.8 2.8 0 1.4 0 100 72Gusi 9.2 30.3 48.7 8.4 0 1.7 1.7 100 119Other 6.9 20.7 55.2 3.4 0 0 13.8 100 29Total 5.3 25.5 61.0 5.3 0 1.2 1.7 100 416

JaundiceBila 8.7 9.2 27.6 54.0 0 0 0.5 100 196Dayar 6.9 23.6 29.2 40.3 0 0 0 100 72Gusi 9.4 15.4 21.4 53.0 0 0 0.8 100 117Other 31.0 20.7 0 31.0 3.5 0 13.8 100 29Total 10.1 14.3 24.2 49.8 0.2 0 1.4 100 414

Broken BonesBila 35.2 11.8 16.8 35.7 0 0 0.5 100 196Dayar 37.5 25.0 12.5 23.6 G 0 1.4 100 72Gusi 22.7 6.7 9.2 61.4 0 0 0 100 119Other 32.3 3.2 0 48.4 3.2 0 12.9 100 31Total 31 8 12.0 12.7 41.9 0.2 0 1.4 100 418

Swelling of face,feet, or abdomen

Bila 61.9 10.3 15.5 11.8 0 0 0.5 100 194Dayar 47.2 29.2 15.3 6.9 0 0 1.4 100 72Gusi 45.8 17.8 13.6 22.0 0 0 0.8 100 118Other 61.3 16.1 0 12.9 3.2 0 6.5 100 31Total 54.7 16.2 13.7 14.0 0.2 0 1,2 100 415

284

TABLE F

Preferred Place of Treatment by Health Post(Expressed in Percent)

(Continued)

Health Postand

DiseaseHospital Dispensary

VillageHealthPost

Herbalist Diviner-Healer

MarketVender Home Total

8

TotalNumber

Blood in UrineBila 25.1 36.9 31.3 6.2 0 0.5 0 100 195Dayar 26.4 44.4 26.4 1.4 0 0 1.4 100 72Gusi 23.5 45.4 18.5 11.8 0 0 0.8 100 119Other 46.8 37.5 6.3 6.3 0 0 3.1 100 32Total 26.6 40.7 24.9 6.9 0 0.2 0.7 100 418

Blood in StoolBila 21.4 38.3 34.2 5.6 C 0.5 0 100 196Dayar 26.4 41.7 27.8 4.1 0 0 0 100 72Gusi 16.0 48.7 25.2 10.1 0 0 0 100 119Other 45.1 38.7 6.5 6.5 3.2 0 0 100 31Total 22.5 41.9 28.5 6.7 0.2 0.2 0 100 418

Mental IllnessBila 63.3 5.1 5.6 25.0 0 0.5 0.5 100 196Dayar 36.6 14.1 8.5 40.8 0 0 0 100 71Gusi 65.3 5.1 3.4 26.2 0 0 0 100 118Other 41.9 3.2 0 38.8 3.2 0 12.9 100 31Total 57.7 6.5 5.1 29.1 0.2 0.2 1.2 100 416

DeliveryBila 44.4 44.9 4.1 2.5 0 0 4.1 100 196Dayar A8.6 37.5 11.1 0 0 0 2.8 100 72GL.si 59.7 30.3 5.0 2.5 0 0 2.5 100 119Other 59.4 3.1 6.2 0 0 0 31.3 100 32Total 50.6 36.3 5.7 1.9 0 0 5.5 100 419

TABLE F

Preferred Place of Treatment by Health Post(Expressed in Percent)

(Continued)

Health Postand

DiseaseHospital Dispensary

VillageHealthPost

Herbalist Diviner-Healer

MarketVender Hone

Total%

TotalNumber

InfertilityBila 73.8 8.7 2.6 13.9 0.5 0 0.5 100 195Dayar 57.0 23.6 12.5 6.9 0 0 0 100 72Gusi 74.7 11.0 2.5 9.3 2.5 0 0 100 118Other 56.8 0 0 30.0 6.7 0 6.7 100 30Total 69.9 11.3 4.1 12.6 1.4 0 0.7 100 415

286

TABLE G

Causes of Disease --- Opinions:(Expressed in Percent)

Variables Dirt Flies Mosquitos Water

ColdSeasonDraftsEtc.

Lack ofHygiene Sun

FatigueToo MuchWorkEtc.

FoodImproper

orImpure

BloodWeakened

orDeminished

God Unknown Other

.,

I

SampleSize

Health PostsBile 28.6 40.3 18.9 21.4 14.5 17.9 4.1 6.6 35.2 4.6 5.6 10.7 23.0 196Days 26.4 19.4 8.3 20.8 2.8 22.2 4.2 4.2 41.7 18.1 11.1 23.6 25.0 72Gusi 22.2 41.0 12.0 16.2 4.3 20.5 9.4 8.5 41.0 17.0 9.4 8.5 31.9 117

Total 26.2 36.6 14.8 19.7 9.4 19.5 5.7 6.8 38.2 10.9 7.8 12.5 26.0 385

SexBala 27.9 34.5 13.3 23.5 10.2 16.8 4.9 8.8 44.2 8.4 7.5 12.4 33.2 226Female 23.9 19.6 17.0 14.5 8.2 23.3 6.9 3.8 29.6 14.5 8.2 12.6 15.7 159

kge10 - 29 34.0 43.4 28.3 28.3 15.1 32.1 9.4 3.8 47.2 3.8 1.9 1.9 26.4 5330 - 49 32.1 42.0 16.0 19.1 8.0 24.1 4.3 5.6 40.0 9.3 6.2 9.3 30.2 16250 - 69 19.5 33.6 10.2 16.4 10.2 11.7 6.3 7.8 35.2 14.1 6.3 18.7 22.8 12870 - Up 15.2 12.1 3.0 18,2 6.0 3.0 3.0 12.1 30.3 21.2 33.3 15.2 18.2 33

Total 26.6 36.7 14.6 19.4 9.6 19.1 5.6 6.6 38.6 11.2 8.0 12.0 26.1 376

OccupationFarmer 27.3 34.0 13.4 18.0 8.8 14.4 5.7 10.3 43.8 9.3 7.7 13.9 33.0 l$4House-

wife 23.5 38.3 16.8 9.4 8.1 19.5 7.4 4.0 26.8 16.1 9.4 13.4 14.1 149Teacher 23.8 38.1 14.3 71.4 19.0 52.4 0 0 52.4 0 4.8 4.8 52.4 21Trader 33.3 66.7 33.8 33.3 33.3 33.3 0 0 J 0 0 0 33.3 0Other 35.3 41.2 11.8 58.8 11.8 35.3 0 0 64.7 0 0 0 23.5 17

Total 26.0 3f.5 14.8 19.5 9.4 19.5 5.7 6.8 38.3 10.9 7.8 12.5 26.3 384

28?

TABLE H

Preferred Place of Treatment by Sex(Expressed in Percent)

Hospital DispensaryVillageHealthPost

Herbalist Diviner-Healer

MarketVender Home Total

%

TotalNumber

FeverMale 3.1 16.6 70.0 3.6 0.4 5.1 1.2 100 253Female 3.E 28.9 62 1.2 0 3.6 0.6 100 166Total 3.3 21.5 66.9 2.6 0.2 4.5 1.0 100 419

HeadacheMale 0.4 7.5 74.3 2.4 0 14.6 0.8 100 253Female 1.8 12.0 70.5 1.8 0 12.7 1.2 100 166

Total 1.0 9.3 7i.8 2.1 0 13.8 1.0 100 419

CoughMale 14.2 22.9 53.4 5.5 0 3.2 0.8 100 253Female 17.5 25.3 48.2 3.0 0 1.8 4.2 100 166Total 15.5 23.9 51.3 4.5 0 2.6 2.2 100 419

BreathlessnessMale 20.9 34.1 34.6 7.6 0 0.4 2.4 100 249Female 33.7 28.3 27.7 9.7 0 0 0.6 100 166Total 26.0 31.8 31.8 8.4 0 0,3 1.7 100 415

DiarrheaMale 3.2 22.7 63.7 7.2 0 1.2 2.0 100 251Female 8.5 29.7 57.0 2.4 0 1.2 1.2 100 165Total 5.3 25.5 61.0 5.3 0 1.2 1.7 100 416

JaundiceMale 10.8 12.7 24.7 50.2 0 0 1.6 100 251Female 9.2 16.6 23.3 49.1 1.6 0 1.2 100 163Total 10.1 14.3 24.2 49.8 0.2 0 1.4 100 414

288

TABLE H

Preferred Place of Treatment by Sex(Expressed in Percent)

(Continued)

Hospital DispensaryVillageHealthPost

HerbalistDiviner-Healer

MarketVender

HomeTotal

%

TotalNumber

Broken BonesMale 29.2 9.9 11.5 47.4 0 0 2.0 100 253Female 35.8 15.2 14.5 33.3 0.6 0 0.6 100 165

Total 31.8 12.0 12.7 41.9 0.2 0 1.4 100 418

Swelling of face,feet, or abdomen

Male 53.6 17.6 14.0 13.2 0 0 1.6 100 250Female 57.0 13.9 13.3 15.2 0.6 0 0 100 165Total 54.9 16.2 13.7 14.0 0.2 0 1.0 100 415

Bloc' In UrineMala 21.4 40.5 27.0 10.3 0 0 4 0.4 100 252Female I 34.:: 41.0 21.7 1.8 0 0 1.2 100 166

Total 26.6 40.7 24.9 6.9 0 0.2 0.7 lu0 418

Blood in StoolMale 19.8 42.1 28.6 9.) 0 0.4 0 100 252Female 26.5 41.6 28.3 3.0 0.6 0 0 100 156Total 22.5 41.9 28.5 6.7 0.2 0.2 0 100 418

Mental IllnessMale 57.9 6.3 4.4 29.8 0 0.4 1.2 100 252Female 57.3 6.7 6.1 28.1 0.6 0 1.2 100 164

Total 57.7 6.5 5.1 29.1 0.2 0.2 1.2 100 416

DeliveryMale 52.2 31.2 5.9 2.8 0 0 7.9 100 253Female 48.2 44.0 5.4 0.6 0 0 1.8 100 166

Total 50.6 36.2 5.7 1.9 . 0 5.5 190 419

289

TABLE H

Preferred Place of Treatment by Sex(Expressed in Percent)

(Continued)

Hospital DispensaryVillageHealthPost

Herbalist Diviner-Healer

MarketVender Home

Total%

TotalNumber

InfertilityMale 70.4 9.6 3.6 14.4 0.8 0 1.2 100 250Female 6.3 13.3 4.8 9.6 2.4 0 0 100 166

Total 69.9 11.3 4.1 12.5 1.5 0 0.7 100 416

290

TABLE I

Preferred Place of Treatment by Age(Expressed in Percent)

Age Categoriesand

DiseaseHospital Dispensary

VillageHealthPost

Herbalist Divirer-Healer

MarketVender Home Total

%

TotalNumber

Fever10 - 29 3.2 30.2 57.1 0 0 9.5 0 100 6330 - 49 4.0 21.4 65.3 3.5 0.6 4.6 0.6 100 17350 - 69 3.7 21.0 69.6 3,0 0 3.0 0.7 lnG 13570 - Up 0 8.8 79.5 2.9 0 2.9 5.9 100 34

Total 3.5 2 ...1 66.7 1.7 0.2 4.7 1.0 100 405

Headache10 - 29 1.6 15.9 65.0 0 0 15.9 1.6 100 6330 - 49 0.6 9.8 72.9 1.7 0 15.0 0 100 17350 - 69 1.5 6.7 74.8 3.7 0 11.8 1.5 100 13570 - Up 0 2.9 79.4 2.9 0 11.8 3.0 100 34

Total 1.0 ).1 72.9 2.2 0 13.8 1.0 100 405

Cough10 - 29 12.7 30.1 50.8 1.6 0 3.2 1.6 100 6330 - 49 17.4 24.3 49.7 4.0 0 2.9 1.7 100 17350 - 69 14.8 23 51.9 5.9 0 1.5 2.9 100 13570 - Up 17.8 14.7 52.9 8.8 0 5.9 0 100 34

Total 15.8 24.0 50.9 4.7 0 2.7 1.9 100 405

Beathlessnes10 - 29 34.9 36.5 23.8 4.8 0 0 0 100 6330 - 49 28.7 28.1 31.6 8.8 0 0.5 2.3 100 17150 - 69 23.3 32.3 33.1 9.0 0 0 2.3 100 13370 - Up 11.8 26.5 47.0 14.7 0 0 0 100 34

Total 26.4 30.7 32.2 8.7 0 0.5 1.7 100 401

291

TABLE I

Preferred Place of Treatment by Age(Expressed in Percent)

(Continued)

Pge Categoriesand

DiseaseHospital Dispensary

VillageHealthPost

Herbalist Diviner-Healer

MarketVender

Home Totali

TotalNumber

Diarrhea10 - 29 9.9 31.2 50.8 1.6 0 4.9 1.6 100 6130 - 49 4.0 27.7 59.5 6.4 0 1.2 1.2 100 17350 - 69 4.5 21.6 67.2 4.5 0 0 2.2 100 13470 - Up 5.9 14.7 64.7 11.8 0 0 2.9 100 34

Total 5.2 25.1 61.2 5.5 0 1.2 1.8 100 402

Jaundice30 - 29 23.0 14.r 18.0 42.6 0 0 1.6 100 6130 - 49 11.6 16.4 20.4 49.4 0.6 7 1.2 100 7250 - 69 4.5 9.0 27.1 56.3 0 0 2.2 100 13570 - Up 0 15.1 45.5 39.4 0 0 0 100 33Total 10.0 13.7 24.7 49.9 0.i 0 1.5 100 401

Broken Bones10 - 29 30.7 4.8 9.7 51.6 0 0 3.2 100 6230 - 49 30.1 12.1 12.1 44.5 0 0 1.2 100 17350 - 69 36.3 14.0 12.6 35.6 0 0 1.5 100 13570 - Up 29.4 11.8 14.7 41.2 2.9 0 0 100 34Total 3/.2 11.6 12.2 42.3 0.2 0 1.3 100 404

Swelling of face,feet, or abdomen10 - 29 66.7 15.9 9.5 7.9 0 0 0 100 6130 - 49 53.5 12.4 6.4 17.1 0 0 0.6 100 17050 69 54.8 18.5 11.1 14.1 0 0 1.5 199 13570 Up 44.1 21.6 17.7 11.8 2.9 2.9 0 100 34Total 55.1 15.7 13.7 14.2 0.3 0 1.0 100 402

292

TABLE I

Preferred Place of Treatment by Age(Expressed In Percent)

(Continued)

Age Categoricand

DiseaseHospital Dispensary

VillagehealthPost

Herbalist Diviner-Healer

MarketVender Home

Total%

TotalNurtber

Infertility10 - 29 62.3 4.9 3.3 23.0 4.9 0 1.6 100 6130 - 49 75,0 11.1 4.1 9.3 0 0 0.5 100 17250 - 69 67.4 14.8 4.4 11.1 1.5 9 9.8 100 13570 - Up 70.6 8.8 2.9 14.7 3.0 0 0 100 34

Total 70.2 11.2 4.0 12.4 1.5 0 0.7 100 402

293

TABLE I

Prefzrred Place of Treatment by Age(Expressed in Percent)

(Continued)

Age Categoriesand

Diseasehospital Dispensary

VillageHealthPost

Herbalist Diviner-Healer

MarketVender Home Total

8

TotalNumber

Blood in Orin10 - 29 34.9 46.0 15.9 1.6 0 1.6 0 100 6330 - 49 24.4 40.1 27.9 7.0 0 0 0.6 100 17250 - 69 25.2 41.5 25.2 7.4 0 0 0.7 700 13570 - Up 26.5 23,5 29.4 17.7 0 0 2.9 100 34

Total 26.5 te.o 25.3 7.2 0 0.3 0.7 100 404

Blood in Stool10 - 29 32.2 45.2 21.0 0 0 1.6 0 100 6230 - 49 17.3 44.5 31.8 6.4 0 0 0 100 17350 - 69 25.9 40.8 28.1 5.2 0 0 0 100 13570 - Up 17.7 17.7 32.3 29.4 2.9 0 0 100 34

Total 22.5 41.1 29.0 6.9 0.2 0.3 0 100 404

Mental Illness10 - 29 50.8 6.3 1.6 39.7 0 0 1.6 100 6330 - 49 60.7 7.5 5.2 25.4 0 0 1.2 100 17350 - 69 55.2 6.0 5.2 30.6 0.7 0.8 1.5 100 13470 - Up 63.6 6.1 6.1 24.2 0 0 0 100 33

Total 57.6 6.7 4.7 29.3 0.3 0.2 1.2 100 403

Delivery10 - 29 63.5 23.8 7.9 0 0 0 4.8 100 6330 - 49 45.7 41.0 5,2 1.7 0 0 6.4 100 17350 - 69 48.2 37.0 5.9 2.2 0 0 6.7 100 13570 - Up 55.9 32.3 5.9 5.9 0 0 0 100 34

Total 50.1 36.3 5.9 2.0 0 0 5.7 100 405

294

DIFFERENTIAL DEVELOPMENT ANDMISSIONARIES IN NIGERIA

FRANK A. SALAMONEElizabeth Seton College

INTRODUCTION

Prevailing Victorian and Edwardian evolutionaryideology doomed Northern Nigeria to relative backward-ness. Ironically, it was because of its presumed advancedposition on the evolutionary ladder that Northern Nigeriasuffered under the benign neglect of indirect rule.Simply put, because the putative rulers of NorthernNigeria, the Fulani, were on their way to becomingE,uropeans, they were fit partners for British colonialrulers.

These British expatriates were not, it should benoted, representative of their home areas. In socialclass origin and values they overrepresented its uppermiddle class, and, therefore, as a class threatened withunacceptable change at home they clung tenaciously toproper aristocratic behavior in Nigeria. In addition, theexpatriate community was always a small one; the ratio wasusually about 4000 to one. (Cf. Brook 1931. Kirke-

287

295

288

Greene, mss., refers to colonial officers as "the thinwhite line.")

le llegically and pragmatically it was necessaryfor the British to find partners to aid them in rulingthe vast expanse of Northern Nigeria and its populationof over 11,000,000 people. The presence of the aristo-cratic religion of Islam, therefore, helped definethe situation for the British. Ideologically, Islamsymbolized an advanced religion whose followers werealmost at the evolutionary level of European Christians.Practically, it signified a centralized governmentalstructure through which the British could rule whileclaiming an evolutionary and legitimate continuity.

The British dilemma and the manner of its resolutionhad important consequences for Nigeria's religious,political, and developmental history. As a resultof deliberate British policy, Islam in the Hausa-Fulaniarea increased from five percent to eighty percent.Consequently, the power of British clients increased,increasing, in turn, British Power. The end resultof Indirect Rule was the strengthening of a foreigngroup of conquerors, the Fulani, and the acceptanceof their ideologized version of political reality.The fact that local peoplc, including the Hausa them-selves, rejected that version did not overly impress theBritish.

The Fulani version of reality, in addition to beingexpedient, also coincided with the British ideologyof indirect rule. In sum, the Fulani claimed to comefrom Arabia and to form an aristocratic Islamic eliteof scholars. When Hausa rulers failed in their dutyto uphold appropriate Islamic principles - mainly concern-ing on taxation and treatment of the Fulani cattle herders

their holy leader Shehu Usman dan Fodio waged a jihad(holy war) and established a true Islamic state, theSokoto Caliphate. The Caliphate united a number of formerHausa states of the North plus additional areas neverunder Hausa rule. Thus, from 1804 until the Britishconquest of 1903, the Fulani reigned supreme under apurified Hausa governmental structure. (Cf. Hendrixson1980, Smith 1960 and Dorward 1974.)

296

289

British administrative officers did not seem to noticethat everyday reality contradicted the official Fulaniversion. The evolutionary anth ?opology of their day,after all, posited people at various stages of develop-ment. "Hamitic" peoples, presumably, were furtheradvanced than various "Negroid" peoples. Similarly,Muslims were obviously closer to Christians than "pagans."Therefore, the fact that Fulani claimed non-Negroid

"Hamitic" ancestry and were Muslims allowed the British tocategorize them as "true rulers" and natural allies.(Cf. Evans-Pritchard 1951 for succinct summary of theprevailing ideology. Luggard 1906, 1919, 1922 revea:s anunfolding of his version of that ideology.)

The consequences for Nigeria's history are dear.The Hausa-Fulani became models of civilization, Britishpartners in spreading high culture to "truculent" pagans.Nothing, therefore, should be done to upset the spread ofthe Hamitic Hausa-Fulani culture, for spread of thatculture, including 15Iam, was a positive sage in promotingcultural-evolutionary progress. Consequently, in order tovalidate :heir hold on their prestigious position, Fulanibegan to redefine and stress a tradition based on Islam asan ethnic boundary marker ( Hendrixson 1980:57.) Anythingor anyone who interfered with that interpretation ofreality, with what Dorward (1974) terms the "workingmisunderstanding, was considered subversive."

MISSIONARIES AND SUBVERSION

Within the British expatriate group, there wasone segment that consistently threatened the fundamentalperception of reality that justified indirect ruleand the negotiated defiel,tion of Fulani ethnicity thataccompanied it. Missionaries posed a great threatto colonial reality because they had their own contra-dictory version of reality. That version did not viewMuslin Fulani as natural rulers or Islam as a stage thatwould enhance "pagans." Understandably, colonial officersfeared that missionary activity would rupture theirtenuous alliance with Fulani rulers.

Therefore, the official wisdom come to be thatEmirs opposed not only Christian missionaries but alsoWestern education. Such a conclusion is problematic

297

290

at best. Ubah (1976:352) and Omatseye (1981) arguethat Emirs based their opposition to Western educationon the seemingly inextricable Ink between it and mission-aries. Ubah (1976:363) is even of the opinion that theEmirs would not have strongly resisted mission schools,much less non-sectarian Western schools, if colonialpressure had been brought to bear. The fact that Britishopposition to missionaries in Islamic areas was far fromtimid suggests that it was British perception of the Northas Islamic that led them to strive to keep missionariesout of the area for so long. That perception's link toindirect rule and its success certainly contributed to theferocity of colonial opposition to missionaries in the"Muslim North."

The theoretica, foundation for colonial oppositionto missionary work in Muslim areas was Lugard's pledgeto Muslim Emirs that he would follow a policy of non-interference with Islam (Ubah 1976:356). AlthoughLugard's reasons f r the pledge are problematic, itsimplications are clear. Quite simply, British policy inthe North led to separate development of Northern andSouthern Nigeria and sowed the seeds for problems faced byindependent Nigeria even today.

Elsewhere I have discussed the difficulties thatWalter Miller, a cooperative missionary befriendedby Lugard, faced in trying to establish a mission schoolalong lines acceptable to Lugard in 1905. Quite simply,it was impossible to satisfy Luqard and his colr+nialofficers. The school failed, and it is obvious thatLugard was playing a rather tawdry game of cat and mousewith Miller. Only after years of frustration did Milleract in desperation when in 1927 he violated the law andestablished a church within the heart of Muslim Zariaitself. That action led to a "compromise" in which he wasgiven land outzide Zaria proper to establish the school atWusasa which educated many of Northern Nigeria's futureleaders. (Cf. Salamore mss and Graham 1956.)

The situation in the non-Islamic areas of Nigeriawas quite diffek.ent. In southern Nigeria lgbo andYoruba forced the British to provide modern education,or at least to allow missionaries to do so. Westerneducation, in one form or cLher, has a long history,

291

in fact, in southern Nigeria. After all, Portuguesewere in touch with Benin in the fifteenth century,and from that time on at least some Nigerians havefound it profitable to learn enough European skillsso that they would be able to become mediators, laborers,or entrepreneurs. Therefore, in the nineteenth centurywhen British contact became more routine and constant,there was a relative flood of Yoruba students. Mostof those students wished to learn law and theology,for steady upward mobility appeared to lie in thoseareas. (Cf. Koehl 1971:116.)

Although Igbo started later than Yoruba, theirenthusiasm for education soon allowed them to pulleven. Indeed, in many areas they even surpassed theYoruba. Igi)o had no compunction about shopping aroundfor the best offer from missionaries. Before allowingmissionaries into an a;ea they would ask the staffto build a school and hospital and supply personnelfor them. In return, Igbo happily provided labor,materials, and converts.

In sum, Igbo, Yoruba, and other "Southerners" activelysought modern education. They perceived Western educationas the key to advancement in the colonial administration.Their very familiarity with that administration and itscontinuous demand for clerical help provided them withincentives to master the skills needed for success inschools, and subsequently in administration - punctuality,regular attendance, good deportment, etc.

The Muslim North, in contrast, was protected from anyreligious influences it might find objectionable.Although Christian missionaries had been in Kano in1890 and Zaria shortly after, a good ten years beforethe British raj and the consequent "pacification" ofNorthern Nigeria in 1903, Lugard feared their presencewould anger the Fulani emirs and complicate his job.Moreover, the ideology of the time supported the "prac-tical" solution Lugard advanced as Indirect Ru _ orthe Dual Mandate. Lugard's experience with missionaries,furthermore, did little to alleviate his skepticismregarding their ability to work within the frameworkof Indirect Rule.

299

f

292

Given the key ideological foundations of that theory,Lugard was in fact correct. As indicated earlier, even soreasonable a missionary as Miller eventually openly defiedthe system after twenty-five years or so of seeking anaccommodation with it. Bishop Tugwell's response was moretypical of early missionaries. Quite simply, he ignoredLugard's commands.

In 1900. Lugard permitted Bishop Tugwell, leaderof the Church Mission Society's Hausa land's Missionsto proceed to Muslim areas under the provision thatthey go no farther than the limit of government protec-tion. Not only did they press on to Kano, an areabeyond government control, but the Emir of Kano refusedto allow them to stay. Lugard only learned of theincic:ent from a news account in a London paper. Thepaper had received the story from one of the mission-aries who had been invalided home. Tugwell furthercomplicated r °lations by refusing to heed Lugard'sfrantic orders to leave Kano. (Cf. Graham 1966:7,

10-13 and Ubah 1976:355.)

What, then, were the ideological foundations ofeducation under Indirect Rule which ultimately led to sucha marked difference in the development of Northern andsouthern Nigeria? First, there was a conviction that theinevitability of the link between Western education andmissionaries must be broken. Although missionaries had aplace in the overall Northern scheme of education, it wasa sub-rdinate one. In that light Government policyassumes some degree of coherence in what otherwise appearsas a bewildering series of rather fitful starts and stops.

Next, it appears that Lugard was primarily in favor of"industrial" education and the compulsory use of English.The latter is an interesting rebuttal against those whoclaim that the use of English in education violatedLugard's principles of Indirect Rule. Therefore, heencouraged missionaries who provided industrial educa-tion. In order to prevent the identification of educationand missionaries, moreover, Lugard set up governmentschools. In conformity with his principles, he refused toentrust the education of freed slave children to themissions, because he believed that to do so would behanding them captive converts, thereby enraging Muslim

300

293

sensibilities. Therefore, he established Government FreedSlaves' Homes in Zungeru (1901) and Borriu (1904) (Graham1966:8-16).

Margery Perham (quoted in Kirk-Greene 1966:ix)claims that Lugard never intended to exclude missionariesfrom his overall education policy, only to del4mittheir rile very clearly and carefully. According toPerham, Lugard sought to achieve the following fivegoals: The strengthening of government control ofeducation, establishment of more government schools,closer liaison with mission schools and the use ofgrants-in-aid to effect that liaison, the foundingof a government schools inspectorate, and emphasison character training through religious and secularmoral education.

Whatever Lugard's intentions, arid they are proble-matic, his successor, Sir Percy Girouard, did activelypromote policies to keep missionaries from Muslim areas ofthe North for many years. Ironically, the man he chose toimplement those policies was himself an ex-missionary whomWalter Miller suggested for the job when he himselfrefused it, 'cans Vischer. In 1908, Vischer assumed hisposition as :lead of the Education Department. Until 1912there were only three men in the department (Kirk-Greene1966:xxiii).

The results of Girouard's anti-missionary policyare clear, for in the southern part of Northern Nigeria,the so-called pagan area, missionaries were encouraged.In 912 there were five non-missionary and twenty-ninemissionary schools in all of Northern Nigeria. Therewere 350 students in non-mission schools and 604 inmission ones. In 1931 there were 117 non-mission schoolswith 3882 students. There were 3446 students in missionschools. On the eve of independence in 1955 there wereonly 171,200 students in Northern Nigeria out of a totalschool-age population of 2,500,000 (Kirk-Green 1966:x:ii).

It is clear that no matter what Lugard's statededucational policies were, they simply could not anddid not succeed. There was no possible way to implementthem without either missionaries or other expatriatepersonnel. It is clear from the record that the govern-

301

294

ment was unwilling to spend the vast sums of moneythat it would require to bring in non-missionary expat-riate teachers. Indirect Rule, after all, required thatthere be local financial support for all local govern-mental functions and it insisted upon the innate hostilitybetween Islam and Christianity.

Thus, as Graham notes (1966:167-168), even wheremoney for educational expansion was available, staffwere not. The logic of indirect rule demanded thatmissionaries be opposed in "Muslim" area even whenthey were the only feasible vehicles of education.What Dorward (1974) terms the "working misunderstanding"required even modern rulers to be anti-missionary.Thus, in Yauri, Sokoto State, in 1972 less than onepercent of the school-age populaton was in school(S--.Iamone 1976:6), and Yauri was an emirate long-notedfor its "progressive" emirs (Reuss ler 1968:142-143).

Koehl (1971:121-122) sketches a compelling viewof Lhe educational ;nap of Nigeria that resulted fromdifferential administration in Northern Islamic area.

It would be fascinating to be able to draw amap of the educational culture of Nigeria atthe time the young political and socialrevoluticnaries of the 20's were schoolboys.Northern Nigeria with its own divergencieswould scarcely overlap the educationalsubcultures of the South. Perhaps the overlapwould fall most in the animist Middle Beltwhere mission schools had succeeded inpenetrating, and in a few government schoolsin urban areas. Ibo and Yoruba communities inthe North were just beginning to introduce thealready well-developed set of educationalexpectations from the South concerning primaryschooling as the path to independent andfamily mobility and wealth ... The fermentamong the young men had come in the South.The largest 'overlap of common educationalculture' would still not blanket SouthernNigeria in 1914 ... [the] Lagos- Abeokuta-Ibadan area [shared a common Western educa-tional culture].

302

295

These latter, it must be noted, were areas of greatestmissionary activity, an activity encouraged by the peoplethemselves and welcomed by the colonial administration.Koehl continues to discuss other differences betweenNorthern and Southern Nigeria. In addition to Britishelitist schools, such as those the Northern governmentfostered, schools based on the British public schooltrad tion, the South also had teachertraining schoolswhich spread a rather rigid, if muted Christianity to theNorth, for many of the North's teachers came from SouthernNigeria. Many Southerners, moreover, had begun before the1930s to participate in a world-wide metropolitan educa-tional culture in London or New York. In sum, the Northhad fallen far behind the South by 1930 and, more impor-tantly, was immersed in a different educational culture.

Clearly, if the spread of Western education wasthe goal of British colonial policy in Northern Nigeriait was never achieved. I do not believe, however,that it ever was the Administration's policy to seekthe spread of Western education in Northern Nigeria.Such policy was often discussed and even debated.Some officers did, in fact, consistently support suchpolicy. In general, however, the Administration supportedWestern education sufficient to supply clerks for thebureaucracy, and only when local taxes provided enoughmoney to support schools. In Muslim areas it kept out theone group, missionaries, who could have spread Westerneducation until the 1930s when they had insufficientresources to carry on their -Jork.

The Northern Administration's attitude is summarizedin the following excerpt from a Northern colonial offi-cer's critique of the Administration's policy.

Beneath these two groups - the professionalman and the authentic clerk - is a hoard ofquasi-iiterate, parasitic, litigious, showy,noisy, insolent, and as irresponsible as theyare untrustworthy. They wear the white man'sclothing, spr-k pidigin English, and, bywr:sing petitions on anonymous charges,can create an activity in Government circles[as maddening] as it is ridiculous. Thevicious point in the policy of the Education

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Department is that once a youth has learnt histhree R's he regards it as beneath him tocontinue the life of a farmer, cultivating thefields and living in the villages. They [theill-educated charlatans] are always fromSouthern Nigeria: the Moslem in the Northshows a magnificent superiority in characterand worth to the negroes and negroid people ofthe South in this respect just as he does indeclining to ape European clothes and habits:he has a culture of his own of the worth ofwhich he is conscious (Crocker 1971 (original1936): 207-08).

Crocker's argument, one in perfect conformity with theideological underpinning of indirect rule, is thatalthough a few Nigerians had attained the heights ofEuropean education most could not do so because of patentdifferences between "Negroes" and Europeans. Whether ornot these differences were innate was an issue for"empirical" research. However, these differences doexist. Culturally, if not biologically, the "Negro" hadnot evolved to the level of Europeans. Therefore,European education could only produce mischief. TheGovernment in Lagos was aiding such mischief through itsencouragement of written petitions and Western missionaryeducation. Crocker's clear dislike of educated Southern-ers mirrored that of his colleagues who, therefore, triedto protect "their people" from the evil effects of Westerneducation. The results of that protection are seen in thetable from Bray (1981: Table 1.1) which is reflected onthe next page.

The results of the Northern Administration's policy isclear from the table. NoZ. even the much honored Phelps-Stokes Commission of 1924 could do much to close the gap.The Great Depression, World War II, and the race toindependence drew resources away from closing the educa-tional disparity between Northern and Southern Nigeria.That disparity and its consequences figured prominentlyamong the fundamental causes of the Nigerian Civil War.(See Whittabke 1981, ed., for discussions.) Bray's (1981)recent work makes it clear that in no way will that gap beclosed soon.

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YEARPRIMARYNORTH

SCHOOLSSOUTH

PRIMARY ENROLMENTSNORTH SOUTH

SECONDARY SCHOOLSNORTH SOUTH

SECONDARY ENROLMENTSNORTH SOUTH

1902 1 126 n.a. 11,872 0 1 0 20

1912 34 150 954 35,716 0 10 0 67

1926 125 3,828 5,210 138,249 0 18 0 518

1937 549 3,533 20,269 318,610 1 26 65 4,285

1947 1,110 4,984 70,962 538r391 3 43 251 9,657

1957 1,080 13,473 185,484 2,343,317 18 176 3,643 28,208

1965 2,743 12,234 492,829 2,419,913 77 1,305 15,276 180,907

1972 4,225 10,313 854,466 3,536,731 255 964 63,515 337,288

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CONCLUSIONS

Herskovits's (1937) concept of "syncretism" haspolitical as well as religious applications. Moreover,the process is more conscious and intentional thanHerskovits seems to indicate. Certainly, this wasthe case in the unfolding of the "working misunder-standing" that underlay Indirect Rule in the Islamicareas of Northern Nigeria. Successful Emirs workedclosely with colonial officials in order to ensurethat their versions of colonial reality prevailed.In turn, however, they found themselves constrainedby rules of the game. One consequence was the abominableeducational system and its backwardness in comparisonwith the South.

What is needed at this stage of our investigationis more detailed portraits of day-to-day reality ofthe social construction of colonial reality. (SeeSalamone, mss9) Once there are sufficient case studies,then comparisons of actual practices and their consequen-ces .:an be made. Silverman (1979), for example, has notedthat traditional historical and institutional approachesto dependency in developing countries fail to get to theroot of the real issues because they fail to note impor-tant microprocesses taking place.

I suggest that it is important to understand anddescribe the manner in which subordinate members ofcolonial society successfully reshaped the perceptionof their rulers. Drawing heavily upon symbolic inter-action and transactional theory, such a view also appliesthose perspectives to areas where they are usuallyneglected. Thus, colonial reality is constantly :mergingrather than fixed. Certainly, that perspective explainsthe reasons that Fulani Emirs and British colonialofficers invented a past "reality" for Northern Nigeriaupon which they agreed. That reality, furthermore,required keeping out missionaries who threatened itsvery presuppositions. (For additional comments seeSalamone, in press.)

Finally, it is essential to stress the strengthof the ideological underpinnings of colonial rule,for it is too often overlooked or explained away.

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Although there was colonial adaptability, colonialadministrators justified any flexibility in terms of theirevolutionary ideology. When adjustments could not bejustified, then that ideology forced a rigid, logicalcompliance. Thus when Abdullahi, Yauri's Emir, desiredWestern missionary education, the colonial officer incharge, P. G. Harris, opposed him, for in the colonialideology that prevailed a Muslim state ipso facto wasopposed to Western education and the Christian missionaryinfluence it entailed.

Quite simply, missionaries threatened the negotiatedreality of colonial life that prevailed in NorthernNigeria. Although there were, of course, many versionsof missionary reality and no monolithic view prevailed,none of the versions exactly conformed with that ofthe colonial administration which very clearly viewedan educated Nigerian as a spoiled one. Even the immenselycomplex Walter Miller could not please his close friendFrederick Lugard. Again the ideological importanceof the struggle cannot simply be reduced to materialisticdifference of opinion, although those elements arepresent. Missionaries and colonial officers in theIslamic areas of the North simply perceived differentrealities.

The consequences of those differential perceptionshad more than ideological results. The North is largelyIslamic today because the British administrator andthe Hausa-Fulani Emirs agreed that it was so in theearly days of colonial rule. In fact, it was not.The North is backward today largely as result of thenegotiated reality that the Emirs and colonial officerscreated. That reality required keeping missionariesout of the "Islamic" North. The North is still payingfor that decision, one based, ironically, on the colonialdefinition of Muslims as advanced and "pagan" Negroesas "retarded in development."

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DEDICATION

Without the cooperation and understanding of myfamily, no work would ever be finished. Virginia,my wife, provides not only inspiration but interpreta-tion. Frank and Catherine provide love and a reason forcontinuing. The;r questions demonstrate that the obviousoften is not. Finally, I want to thank all those mission-aries and students who aided me on numerous occasions andwere patient with my questions.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Brooke, N. J.1933 Census of the Northern Provinces. London:

Crown Agents for the Colonies.

Bray, Mark1981 Universal Primary Education in Nigeria: A

Study of Kano State. London: Rout ledge andRegal Paul, Ltd.

Crocker, Walter R.1971 Nigeria: A Critique of British Colonial

(Original) Administration. Freeport, NY: Books for1936) Libraries Press.

Dorward, David C.1974 Ethnography and administration: a study of

Anglo-Tiv 'working misunderstanding' Journalof African History 15:457-77.

Evans-Pritchard, E. E.1951 Social Anthropology. London: Cohen and West.

Graham, S. F1966 Government and Mission Education in Northern

Nigeria, 1900 - 1919. Ibadan: IbadanUniversity Press.

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Hendrixson, Joyce1980 The changing significance of ethnicity

and poor relations, Sokoto, Nigeria. Studiesin Third World Societies 11:51-93.

Herskovits, M. J.1937 African gods and Catholic saints in New World

religious belief. American Anthropologist39:645-43.

Heussler, Robert1968 The British in Northern Nigeria. London:

Oxford University Press.

Koehl, Robert1971 The uses of the university: past and present

in Nigerian educational culture. Part I.Comparative Education Review 15:116-31. PartII, Comparative Educational Review 15:367-77.

Lugard, Lord Frederick1906 Instructions to Political and other Officers,

on Subjects chiefly Political and Administra-tive. London: Water low.

1919 Revisions of Instructions to other Officers onSubjects chiefly Political and Administrative,1913 - 1918. London: Water low.

1932 The Dual Mandate in British Tropical Africa.Edinburgh: W. Plackwood.

Kirk-Greene, A.H.M.1966 Introduction in S. F. Graham, Government

and Mission Education in Northern Nigeria.Ibadan: Ibadan University Press.

mss. the Thin White Line.

Omatseye, J. N.1981 Critical appraisal of historic trends in

Nigeria's educational inequality. NegroEducational Review 32:280-89.

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Salamone. Frank A.1976 Structures, stereotypes, and students.

Council on Anthropology and Education Quarter-ly 8:6-13.

mss.a. Relevant Education in Nigerian.

mss.b. The Social Construction of Colonial Reality.

Salamone, Frank A.in Colonialism and the emergence of Fulanipress ethnicity. Journal of Asian and African

Studies.

Silverman, M1979 Dependency, mediation, and class formation

in rural Guyana. American Ethnologist6:466-90.

Smith, M. G.1960 Government in Zazzau. London: Oxford

University Press.

Obah, C. N.1976 Problems of Christian missionaries in the

Muslim Emirates of Nigeria, 1900 1920.Journal of African Studies: 351-71.

Whittaker, C. S., editor1981 Perspectives on the Second Republic in

Nigeria. Waltham, MA: Crossroads Press.

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NOTES ON THE CONTRIBUTORS

J. S. EADES is a Lecturer in Anthropology at theUniversity of Kent in Canterbury, England. He engagedin fieldwork in Ghana and Nigeria on the Yoruba. Amonghis many publications is The Yoruba Today.

ROBERT A. HESS (Ph.D. Howard University, 1972)is Professor of History and African Studies at MessiahCollege, Grantham, Pennsylvania. He has spent 16 years inNigeria as an educator and has traveled in southern andcentral Africa. In 1981, he spent three months doing thefield research in Nigeria which is the basis for thisarticle. He has published "J. F. Ade Ajayi and the NewHistoriography in West Africa," African Studies Review,XIV, 273-85, "Content Analysis as a Tool for ClarifyingTrends in Modern Nigerian miAoriography" in Explorationsin Quantitative African History, ED, Joseph P. Smaldone,Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press, 1977, and"Wholeness and Health in Contemporary Nigeria," inMissiolociy, and International Review. XI, 2, April 1983.

DANIEL T. HUGHES holds his B.A. and M.A. degreesfrom Bellarmine College and his Ph.D. from the CatholicUniversity in Washington, D.C. He has taught at theAteneo de Manila University in the Philippines and

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has done extensive research there and in Micronesia.At present he is a professor and chairperson in theDepartment of Anthropology at Ohio State University.He is author of Political Conflict and Harmony on Ponapeand the co-author and co-editor of Political Developmentin Micronesia and of Mission, Church, and Sect in Oceania.

PHILIP M. KULP was born to Church of the Brethrenmissionaries at Lassa in Borno State, Nigeria. Afterspending his childhood there he returned to the Statesfor his elementary education. He attended HillcrestHigh School, Jos. A graduate of Juniata College, hereceived a M.Div. from Lutheran Theological Seminaryin Gettysburg, Pa., a M.Ed. from Shippensburg Univer-sity and a Ph.D. from American University. He returnedto Nigeria and served the Church of the Brethren asan educational missionary at Waka Schools, Biu. He

has been on the Sociology faculty of Shippensburg Univer-sity since 1965. Dr. Kulp has returned to Nigeria severaltimes, the most recent in 1983. He has presented papersat meetings of the American Anthropological Association,Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, and theAfrican Studies Association.

ROBERT LAWLESS is Associate Professor of Anthro-pology and Latin American Studies at the University ofFlorida. Holding an M.A. from the University of thePhilippines and a Ph.D. from the New School for SocialResearch, he has done fieldwork in the Philippines,Haiti, and New York City. His most recent article is"The Cognitive Contexts of Urbanism in Northern Luzon:A Case Study of Ethnicity and Urbanity," in Urban Anthro-pology and his most recent book is The Concept of Cul-ture: An Introduction to the Social Sciences.

PETER G. MEWETT was born 1948, Singapore. Educated atUniversities of Hull (B.A., 1971), Manchester (M.A. Econ,1973), and Aaerdeen (Ph.D., 1980) , he currently isemployed as a Research Fellow in the North AustraliaResearch Unit of the Australian National University. Hismajor research has involved two years fieldwork in acrofting community in the Isle of Lewis (Scotland), andcurrent work on some northern Australian towns, theseresearch projects being separated by a lecturing appoint-ment in Wales. He has published a number of major

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articles about Lewis and currently is completing a book onthe same work. He is now preparing for publication amanuscript on northern Australia research.

FRANK A. SALAMONE is Chair of the Social ScienceDepartment at Elizabeth Seton College. He is co-founderand co-director of the Mission Institute at Seton Col-lege. Salamone has done fieldwork in Nigeria, GreatBritain, and the United States. He has written onmissionaries, theory, methodology, identity, and refugees,among other topics.

CLAUDE E. STIPE is Associate Professor of Anthro-pology at Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI, where hehas been since 1968. His degrees are B.A. (1952) fromWheaton College (Illinois), M.A. (1955) from UCLA,and Ph.D. (1968) from University of Minnesota allin anthropology. He is a fellow of: AmericanAnthropological Association, American ScientificAffiliation, and Society for Applied Anthropology and amember of: American Ethnological Society, AmericanSociety for Ethnohistory, Society for PsychologicalAnthropology, and Society for the Scientific Study ofReligion, and a member of Sigma Xi, The ScientificResearch Society. He has articles published in theAmerican Anthropologist, Anglican Theological Review,Christian Scholar's Review, Current Anthropology, andJournal of the American Scier...ific Affiliation.

ROBERT B. TAYLOR is an anthropologist with theDepartment of Sociology, Anthropology and Social Workat Kansas State University and holds a Ph.D. from theUniversity of Oregon. He is interested mainly in culturalchange and Mesoamerican ethnology and has done researchamong the Zapotecs of Mexico. His publications include"Conservatism in a Zapotec Town" (Human Organization,1966) and Cultural Ways: A Concise Edition of Introduc-tion to Cultural Anthropology (Allyn and Bacon, 1980).

DOLORES DEE VELLENGA (b. Feb. 22, 1937-d. Oct. 3,1983) began her involvement with African studies whenshe joined the first Peace Corps group of volunteerswho were sent to Ghana in August 1961. Dee Dee taughtbiology at West Africa Secondary School in Accra until1963. At the completion of her Peace Corps service Dee

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Dee began studies for degrees in African Studies andSociology at Columbia University where she was a FordFoundation International Fellow. She returned to Ghanawhere she undertook dissertation research on "Exchangeand Control in Family Law." She received her Dip.Certificate in African Studies in 1966 and her Ph.D. in1975. Dee Dee was also a recipient of a NDFL fellow-ship and a Social Science Research Council Post-doc-toral fellowship. Dee Dee returned to Ghana in 1974 andagain in 1975-76 when she continued her research on theeconomic networks among Ghanaian women farmers. She alsocarried out research in London and the Basel Archives onpatterns of colonialism, legal development and family lawin Ghana. Dr. Vellenga has published many articles injournals such as the International Labor Review and inGhana and the Ivory Coast: Perspectives on Modernization(1972) on "Attempts to Change the Marriage Laws in Ghanaand the Ivory Coast." Her work can also be read in Femaleand Male in West Africa, edited by C. Oppon7 (1983). Arecent historical article on missionaries in the BaselMission in Ghana will be appearing in the Journal of ThirdWorld Studies, Spring 1985. Dr. Vellenga was completingrevision of her manti:cript on Women, Inequality andConflict in Southerr. nhana. Despite her eight yearstruggle with cancer, Dee Dee continued to work withstudents at Muskingum College where she taught from 1972and continued to research, write and participate inactivities which furthered krlowledge and engagement withthe future of Ghana and African peoples. in October, 1983she presented a paper on "Food as a Cash Crop for WomenFarmers in Ghana: The Persistent Search for Profit," atthe 1st Meeting of the Association of Women in Develop-ment.

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