THE PROTESTANT CHURCH IN THE DR CONGO AND SOCIO-POLITICAL ISSUES
4.10 IMPACTS OF, AND GAPS IN, PROTESTANT INVOLVEMENT IN THE NATION’S SOCIAL AND POLITICAL WELLBEING NATION’S SOCIAL AND POLITICAL WELLBEING
It needs to be stated that the existence of a political commission in, or socio- political involvement of, the church does not necessarily lead to organizing political activities or occupying posts in political life or government. The following section assesses impacts made by Protestant actions in the context of politics, as well as gaps that need to be filled.
4.10.1 Has Protestant socio-political involvement made any impact in the DR Congo?
As regards the church’s involvement in politics, a few points may give the issue some general background.
The church, in its early years, did push its views on socio-political issues. Early during the Mobutu regime, the politically powerful captured the church with great urgency, aiming to make it work in Mobutu’s interests. The voice of the church when raised was often aimed at allowing the President to remain in power and strengthen his position. Personal voices were often heard, opposing the unjust system of governance, but not having much of an impact. When the church tried to speak objectively on socio-political matters, it made no considerable impact.
Why was the voice of the Protestant Church not heard? The personal positions of church leaders concerning socio-political issues were not clearly distinguished from the church’s, or synodal, positions, nor from the leaders’ views when speaking in their quality of executives.
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4.10.2 Gaps in the Protestant Church’s dealings with its political responsibility
One reason why the Protestant Church’s socio-political involvement in the DR Congo was doomed to weakness is that it took the form of an attachment to the President of the church. It never functioned as a department in its own right, but at most as an occasional commission that could sometimes be made to act as an annual executive committee as we have seen above from some executive reports.
This means that the executive committee takes in scrutinizing governance is not enough to reflect on political, social and economic ills in order to impact the actual lives of people.
The church counted two services, similar to each other. The one, attached to the Presidency, occupied itself with justice, peace and safeguarding creation (Commission de justice, paix et sauvegarde de la creation). Bekofe (1999:68) suggested that this commission should seriously focus on the matter of human rights since this is also the prophetic mission of the church. Thus, through this commission, the National Secretariat could become the voice of the voiceless. In addition, it was the commission’s calling to denounce and fight injustice and defend the oppressed.
Next to these tasks, the commission was expected to organize a colloquium, training of church leaders and theological reflection on socio-political matters.
The second commission, called Diaconia, functions in cooperation with the Congolese Protestant Relief Agency (CPRA), Ministère de l'Eglise pour les Réfugiés et les Urgences (MERU), and Centre Protestant d'Approvisionnement en Médicaments (CEPAM). Bekofe has explored the organisational structure of the ECC since 1999. Having interviewed Mushila and Munduku on this subject, he states:
Le Secrétariat National doit développer une ecclésiologie Christocentrique devant se soumettre à des reformes ; une ecclésiologie plus eschatologique qui permet de jouer sa mission ou rôle prophétique. Il lui faut une structure qui favorise l’exercice d’une diaconie libératrice.
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Ensuite, en nous référant à connaitre sa propre analyse situationnelle du Secrétariat National nous pouvons dire que les questions éthiques et dogmatiques qui se posent dans l’Eglise et qui doivent trouver des solutions, la mission de l’Eglise en faveur des droits de l’homme, l’efficacité de la participation des chrétiens dans le processus de transformation sociale, l’épanouissement de l’identité de l’église sont autant des facteurs qui influencent le révision de la structure organisationnelle (Bekofe, 1999:64-65).
In English: The National Secretariat must develop a Christocentric ecclesiology before submitting to reforms; a more eschatological ecclesiology that allows it to fulfil its mission or prophetic role. A structure is needed that is favourable for the exercise of a liberating diaconia.
Next, referring to our knowledge of the situational analysis of the National Secretariat itself, we may say that the ethical and dogmatic questions that arise in the church and that must find solutions, the mission of the church in favour of human rights, the effectiveness of Christian participation in the process of social transformation, the flourishing of the identity of the church, all of these are factors that influence the revision of the organizational structure (Bekofe, 1999:64-65).
Another gap in the church’s involvement in socio-political concerns is presented by the fact that most declarations of the church are not heard by the people. They feature in the reports of national synods and Executive Committees. The church needs to deal with this by establishing a powerful and competent communication service to spread its message among the people.
CONCLUSION
Chapter Four discusses the Protestant Church and its involvement with socio- political issues. One of the strengths of the Protestant Church in the DR Congo is that it has a structured organisational body in which 95 communities around the country are gathered. The body was created in 1941 with the aim to unify and develop Protestantism sharing one motto: “all one in Jesus”. Following on the establishment of this body, the church strove for an awareness of civil society and
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to attain religious freedom of the people. The 1970s were the scene of an apparent split between Mobutu and Malula. Mobutu now needed another platform to strengthen his position. He turned to the body of Protestantism that became a supportive force and acted the good boy for the government.
According to its constitution, three social objectives are the concern of the church.
These are the evangelical mission, the educative mission and diaconal mission.
The church accomplishes its diaconal mission by social activities.
In the context of its political concerns, the church releases declarations as part of synods and usually referring to each of its executive commissions. The church began to modify its position in relation to the government, forced by the events of the 1990s, when socio-economic policies led to the collapse of the country.
Since 1990 the church has made many declarations on issues of a socio-political nature and participated in combined actions. One problem in this political involvement remains the lack of clear separation of the church leader’s personal position from the church’s view of specific socio-political issues. The risk posed by the mission of socio-political involvement of the church to its integrity is that of aspiring to political posts.
Before the 1970s the socio-political impact of the church was strong. After the 1970s the church came to serve the government to some extent. There were a few awakenings in the church during the 1990s. But the tendency didn’t persist, and the church’s impact was weakened by minor declarations that referred to socio- political issues but made little impression. Chapter Five reports on field work, aimed at verifying the church’s contemporary position on socio-politics.
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