Uganda July 1-4, 2008

By Sarah Gonski

“The hope of Africa is in the young, emerging, innovative, resourceful leaders. Amahoro is committed to these leaders because they are the hope of Africa. They are not waiting for donations or from permission from an NGO or government. They are out there, working hard in their own communities and contexts, following the call. The only invitation they need is Jesus.” – Kelley Johnson Nikondeha
With these words of purpose, the inaugural Amahoro Summer Institute in Kampala, Uganda was officially under way. Last week, forty emerging leaders from East Africa came together at this event to discuss what it means to be a transformational leader in the way of Jesus.
Our discussion aimed to address three main questions relating to theology, context and praxis. We asked:
What is the story of God? How does the story of God collide with our local story? How do I live out the story of God in my unique context?
Throughout our time together, we had stimulating conversations on the role of culture in faith, and how our allegiance to a denomination, a country or a framing story can all too easily co-opt our allegiance to Jesus or skew his message. Time spent in dialogue and learning was sprinkled liberally with more concentrated time in small groups. This small group time was a crucial part of the conversation, and created space for us to communally process through the theological heft of the seminar sessions.

We also had lively discussions on the various ways in which we have read our story into Scripture. We reflected on how we often fail to see the story of the Bible as continuous, and can sometimes get stuck in various portions of the story, such as the Fall or the early church. As a consequence, we sometimes fail to fully live into our unique stories because we get stuck trying to live into the lost context of a past.

As pastor and board member Tim Keel says, there are “three things Amahoro does well: create space for theological discussion, create relational space, and create transformational space”. Through these Institutes, we aim to provide a safe and fertile environment for generative theological discussion and for new relationships to blossom. By encouraging our friends in attendance to ask questions, challenge themselves in new ways, and to be a part of the fluid dynamic of the conversation, we are inviting them to shape the event in whatever ways are particularly relevant in their local context..

Within the next few weeks, we will be hosting similar gatherings in Burundi and South Africa. Please pray with us, as each unfolds, that those in attendance would find their time together to be a blessing!

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