Essay about European Missionaries in Africa - 1222 Words

European Missionaries in Africa At the beginning of the nineteenth century, Christianity was bounded to the coastal areas of Africa. At this time in Western Africa, there were a total of three missionary societies operating in western Africa. There was the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel (SPG), the Wesleyan Missionary Society (WMS), and the Glasaw and Scottish Missionary Society (GSMS). In the southern portion of Africa, the Morovian Missionary and the London Missionary were dominant. There was only one society in eastern Africa and there were none at all in northern Africa. However, by 1840 the number of missionary societies had increased to more than fifteen in western Africa, eleven in southern Africa, five in†¦show more content†¦Crowther was very popular amongst his people and later became the first African Anglican bishop. ( Gordon 285) Crowther had a firm belief that Africa could not be evangelized by Europeans, but only by Africans themselves. He argued that the presence of Europeans enda ngered the â€Å"manly independence and the courage and bravery of Africans† ( Boahen 22) Even though white missionaries did place pressure on some portions of Africa, take for example southern Africa, there is little doubt that those in the heart of Africa were facing great danger in being subjected to the Zulu, Boers, or Ndebele people and saw the white missionaries as a â€Å"savior† and embraced them. (Boahen 16) This could be a reason why the Africans tolerated and welcomed the white man to begin with, when they could have fought them out of their lands. In addition preaching the Gospel and converting the African people to Christianity, these European Missionaries also translated the Bible into several African languages. The Missionary Societies also promoted agriculture as well as teaching certain skills such as printing and tailoring. They also set up trading posts and various points to help trade flourish, although these posts were more than likely set up for their own benefit. But perhaps the greatest thing that the European missionaries tried to enforce on the Africans was the educational system. (Boahen, 16) TheShow MoreRelatedEssay about The Collision of Beliefs in Things Fall Apart1167 Words   |  5 PagesThings Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, missionaries came to Africa to teach the natives a new way of life, Christianity. The natives had lived one way their entire life, and enacted their beliefs whole-heartedly. European missionaries wanted to convert them from these ways. Each group of people had a difficulties communicating with each other; this caused a type of ignorance towards the other. 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