Kinship, Rurality, and Reform

Towards an African Ecclesiology for the Local Church

Abstract

A top-down approach to ecclesial reform inhibits reception at the local level. This is evident from pastoral realities in dealing with changes in the church. To ignore the dynamics of a local or rural church community is a recipe for failed reforms, which may negatively impact the community. Where ecclesial authorities have the good intention of building a healthy, vibrant faith community, then the process must involve a co-constructive model that takes into account the obligations of the Magisterium and the dynamics of the rural community, both of which are operating fields of the Holy Spirit that vivifies the church. This article argues that to arrive at such a co-constructive approach, there is need to propose an ecclesiological model of the rural church, one that could be found in the African kinship ecclesiology. The article, therefore, explores the concept of African kinship ecclesiology, with its tripartite dimensions of comprehensiveness, compassion, and celebration. It further demonstrates how this ecclesiology could foster a multi-dimensional reform of the rural church.