Cristo de Los Milagros Book

Lamin Sanneh's book is a confusing mess, but with faint, gorgeous stabbings of light shining through the chaos. First of all I have to say that the "freestyle" approach Dr. Sanneh has chosen, structuring his book into an interview with an imaginary skeptic, is neither innovating nor clarifying. Nor is it facilitating to communication in any way. There are reasons why literary traditions exist, and one of them is to keep things like this from happening. My critique of the "freestyle" "interview" approach is twofold: that it is a bit pretentious, responding to questions posed by the writer's own self in another persona, as if there were really a spirited debate going on; and then, by far the more serious problem, that the alternate persona itself is extremely annoying. Every time Dr. Sanneh makes a legitimate and intelligent point, the squawking, inconsistent objector has something to say about it. His opinions are sometimes liberal and enlightened, and just as often bigoted, uneducated, and narrow-minded. Don't think that in this Dr. Sanneh is guilty of the straw man fallacy. If anything, it is the very opposite. In his formal cordiality (quite a jarring clash with the "freestyle" form he has adopted), Sanneh's exchange gives his skeptical questioner too much credit, affords him too much intelligence. For instance, the skeptic insists on approaching religion in Africa from an evolutionary/economic/anthropological viewpoint, one that is obviously and disastrously inadequate considering the facts on the ground. He insists, in one place, on opposing the idea that Africans might already have an idea of an uncreated God that is the source and cause of everything, despite the fact that monotheism came before polytheism and often lurks as an assumption behind Paganism. But instead of pointing out these facts, Sanneh gives his skeptical questioner too much credit and respect in questions like these. To my mind, nothing could be farther from the straw man fallacy.

Despite this major problem, the book does carry some valuable, beautiful, and immensely helpful truths. Sanneh gives credit where credit is due, pointing out that Christianity's success in Africa is largely due to the works of Africans themselves, and not to the missionary or colonial efforts of Westerners. He discusses how Christianity helps Africans to become fulfilled and renewed Africans, rather than simply African versions of Europeans. Interestingly, he equates the current situation with the original circumstances of Christianity, as it took root in Greek communities, having spreading there from its Jewish sources. In his high points, which are unfortunately few and far between, Sanneh is capable of beautiful prose and keen insight.

Secondly, the major flaw of the book is this. While I understand and actually champion with deep pleasure Dr. Sanneh's insistence that Christianity resonates with, and finds ways to express itself through, native ways of viewing the world, I do think he gives away too much when he devalues Christian doctrine as specifically Western or European doctrine. Though Europe has definitely shaped Christianity, it is far more true to say that Christianity has in the majority of cases shaped Europe. It is a mistake to give native cultures so high a privilege that they can override Christianity on the most central doctrinal issues; for then it ceases to be Christianity and becomes Paganism expressed in Christian language. Sanneh says in one place: "conversion is to God; I did not say it was to...other people's theories of God." The sentiment is admirable, but it misses a key truth: the Christian view of God is what makes Christianity unique among all other religions. It is what makes Christianity its self. A similar error is to read mainstream Christian doctrine as the interpretation of the West, or of Europe, or of conservatism. Rather, these things are based within Christianity. Europe may be in twilight, as Sanneh thinks, and so may be the West. But Christianity is not; it is eternally young, as his studies prove.

Unfortunately, I would not recommend this book. While its subject is extremely interesting, and while Dr. Sanneh makes several interesting and insightful points, the extremely awkward interview format and the abstruse vocabulary make this book tedious and rather annoying. It's an important subject, but I'd advise interested readers to look elsewhere.