Mennonites and Post-Colonial African Studies

This book examines the evolution of post-colonial African Studies through the eyes of Africanists from the Anabaptist (Mennonite and Church of the Brethren) community. The book chronicles the lives of twenty-two academics and practitioners whose work spans from the immediate post-colonial period in the 1960sto the present day, a period in which decolonization and development have dominated scholarly and practitioner debate. Reflecting the values and perspectives they shared with the Mennonite Central Committee and other church-sponsored organizations, the authors consider their own personal journeys and professional careers, the power of the prevailing scholarly paradigms they encountered, and the realities of post-colonial Africa. Coming initially from Anabaptist service programs, the authors ultimately made wider contributions to comparative religion, church leadership, literature, music, political science, history, anthropology, economics and banking, health and healing, public health, extension education, and community development. The personal histories and reflections of the authors provide an important glimpse into the intellectual and cultural perspectives that shaped the work of Africanist scholars and practitioners in the post-colonial period. The book reminds us that the work of every Africanist is shaped by their own life stories.

Foreword Aliko Songolo Introduction John M. Janzen, Harold F. Miller, and John C. Yoder Part One: Pioneers Chapter 1: Donald Jacobs—Missionary, Anthropologist, Church Leader, John C. Yoder Chapter 2: Melvin Loewen—Missionary, Educator, Banker to the World, John C. Yoder Chapter 3: David W. Shenk—Missionary, Professor, "Saved One," Friend of Muslims John C. Yoder Part Two: Professors Chapter 4: The Road to Ghardaïa: Investigating a Community Deep in the Sahara Leads to the Study of Global History, Donald C. Holsinger Chapter 5: The Anthropology of Health and Healing in Africa John M. JanzenChapter 6: Encountering and Demythologizing Africa,Curtis A. Keim Chapter 7: A Career in theLiterature andFolkloreof Africa, Karen R. Keim Chapter 8: From Chipembi, Zambia to Michigan State University: Reflections of a Mennonite Africanist Educator, John D. Metzler Chapter 9: The Economics of Development, E. Wayne Nafziger and John C. Yoder Chapter 10: Mary K. Oyer and David A. Shank—Recognizing and Embracing African Aesthetic and Spiritual Canons, James R. Krabill Chapter 11: Sa?d Sheikh Samatar and Lydia Glick Samatar—Love, Poetry, and History in the Horn of Africa Lydia Glick Samatar, Jonathan Lurie, Peter B. Golden, and David D. Laitin Chapter 12: Historical and Political Perspectives on African Culture, John C. Yoder Chapter 13: How Africa and the Mennonite Central Committee Touched My Life, Lauren W. Yoder Part Three: Practitioners Chapter 14: Establishing Private-Public Partnerships to Improve Health Services in Africa, Franklin C. Baer Chapter 15: We Live to Serve Others with a Holistic Touch, Musuto Mutaragara Chirangi Chapter 16: Combatting Malaria and Sleeping Sickness by Building Entomological Research Capacity in Africa, David L. Denlinger Chapter 17: Africa: A Transformative Place, D. Merrill Ewert Chapter 18: Learning from Africa: An Educator/Administrator’s Post-Colonial Pilgrimage, Ronald J. R. Mathies Chapter 19: Three Anthills, and the Pot will Catch the Fire: Fremont and Sara Regier’s Lifelong Calling to Service in Africa, Sara M. Regier Chapter 20: Working as an Applied Anthropologist in Public Health, P. Stanley Yoder Part Four: Observations from Outside Chapter 21: Mennonites, Jews, and the Historical Roots of an Africanist Ethos, Steven M. Feierman Chapter 22: Perspectives on Afro-pessimism, Afro-optimism, and African Culture, Paul Gifford Chapter 23: Reckoning with Colonialism and Mennonite Service: Reflections on Race, Class, Gender, and Power in Africa, Emily Welty

John M. Janzen is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Kansas, USA. Harold F. Miller served as a fraternal ecumenical service worker in Tanzania, Sudan, and Kenya, and is now retired in Virginia, USA. John C. Yoder is a Professor Emeritus of History and Political Science at Whitworth University, USA.