Abstract

The African [Initiated] Churches has shown a phenomenal growth in the past century and today as people speak of the ‘Christian South’ or shift of the centre of gravity of christianity from the West to the South they definitely include these churches in their category. Their growth in the Sub-Sahara Africa has increasingly manifested a great challenge to European mission churches. The emergence and expansion of these churches remain a challenge to Western mission and calls for soul-searching (introspection) on those who brought christian message to Africa. This paper investigates the puzzlement as to why African [Initiated] churches exist and continue to grow rapidly in areas or space where Western churches shrink and diminish.

Key words: Civilization, christianity, colonisation, commerce, expansionism, messianic, separatist, sectarianism, western christianity, African christianity,liberation, self-determination, African Initiated Churches.