“Missionaries, not aid money, are the solution to Africa’s biggest problem – the crushing passivity of the people’s mindset.”

Matthew Parris, is a convinced atheist and columnist for The Times of London. Recently he visited his boyhood home of Malawi (formerly Nyasaland) and found himself confronted by a conviction that he’s been trying to “Banish” for most of his life: it is an observation that, as he says, “confounds my ideological beliefs, stubbornly refuses to fit my world view, and has embarrassed my growing belief that there is no God.. Africa needs God, and it needs the Christian missionaries who spread the faith.”

“Now a confirmed atheist, I’ve become convinced of the enormous contribution that Christian evangelism makes in Africa: sharply distinct from the work of secular NGOs, government projects and international aid efforts. These alone will not do. Education and training alone will not do. In Africa Christianity changes people’s hearts. It brings a spiritual transformation. The rebirth is real. The change is good.

I used to avoid this truth by applauding – as you can – the practical work of mission churches in Africa. It’s a pity, I would say, that salvation is part of the package, but Christians black and white, working in Africa, do heal the sick, do teach people to read and write; and only the severest kind of secularist could see a mission hospital or school and say the world would be better without it. I would allow that if faith was needed to motivate missionaries to help, then, fine: but what counted was the help, not the faith.

But this doesn’t fit the facts. Faith does more than support the missionary; it is also transferred to his flock. This is the effect that matters so immensely, and which I cannot help observing.”

As a missionary, and someone who has worked in Africa I can truly relate to what Matthew Parris reflects upon. 

Scott Gilbreath states it well in his blog, Novia Scotia Scott “Christianity liberates believers; it takes away their fears; it makes them honest, dependable, and self-reliant…Economic support by itself does not change people. Billions of dollars in government-to-government foreign aid over many decades has enriched a minuscule and powerful elite, but it has not fundamentally improved the living conditions of the vast majority of Africans. Christianity, by contrast, has improved the lives of many of those it has touched.”

You can read the rest of Matthew Parris’ article by clicking here

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