sunday in ghana

2/29/07
I have left the land of Islam and entered “Christendom”. The 4 am morning call to prayer has been replaced by the drums and shouts of local charismatic/evangelical churches.
I attended my first Ghanaian mass today. I do have to admit that there were parts that felt foreign. As in Uganda, however, this was not because of their African origins, but rather because of their English origins. I sometimes feel we have more flexibility and creativity within the American catholic church (at least with regards to English music) than I am finding in these English speaking African countries, which are still using the old catholic hymns. I can understand why people leave the church because it is boring here. There is certainly more to church than music. I believe that community is a strong element of church. I think the sacraments are essential. True worship is important as well, and these other theological ideas remain to be just ideas as it is hard at times to see their physical presence. Take community for example. I think that this is one theological principle that has to be expressed in reality. There are some ways that we try to encourage that in the US. When I mentioned the idea of coffee and doughnuts (or the Ghanaian equivalent of coco and biscuits), as a means of creating a space where people can meet and talk after church. He thought it was a great idea. I was shocked that there was nothing similar to it here! I don’t think this is a difference of cultures, but really there is a problem in the catholic church here that at least could have some preliminary solutions applied to them. I have heard so much about the African principle of community, and I know that this exists in different forms that one would see in the US, but I would like to at least see a few examples of it in the church here!