Theological Understanding of Prosperity Gospel in African Christianity: The Nigerian Experience

Simeon Doute Simeon; Prof Lazarus Baribiae Saale

doi:10.56201/ijrcp.vol.10.no3.2025.pg134.145

📄 Download Paper

Theological Understanding of Prosperity Gospel in African Christianity: The Nigerian Experience

Simeon Doute Simeon, Prof Lazarus Baribiae Saale

Abstract

The prosperity gospel has gained considerable traction within African Christianity, particularly in Nigeria, where it has become a dominant theological and ecclesiastical force. This article investigates the theological understanding of prosperity gospel in the Nigerian context, examining its origins, adaptation, and implications. Employing a qualitative theological method, the study explores the biblical, historical, socio-cultural, and ecclesiological dimensions of prosperity preaching. The findings indicate that while the prosperity gospel resonates with African religio-cultural values and socio-economic aspirations, it raises critical theological and ethical concerns. The article offers a contextual critique, seeking a more biblically sound and theologically responsible expression of prosperity within the Nigerian church.

References

Adeboye, Olufunke. Pentecostalism and the Future of the Nigerian State. University of Lagos Press, 2012. Adogame, Afe. Pentecostalism and Charismatic Movements in Nigeria. African Studies Centre, 2005. Adogame, Afe. The African Christian Diaspora: New Currents and Emerging Trends in World Christianity. Bloomsbury, 2013. Adogame, Afe. The Public Face of African New Religious Movements in Diaspora. Ashgate, Adewuya, J. Ayodeji. “Re-Examining the Prosperity Gospel: A Biblical Critique of Its Theology.” African Journal of Evangelical Theology, vol. 30, no. 2, 2011, pp. 112–127. Alozie, Nwachukwu. “Pentecostalism and Wealth in Nigerian Christianity.” Journal of African Theology, vol. 34, no. 2, 2017, pp. 118–130. Alozie, Nwachukwu. “Pastoral Ministry in the Age of Prosperity Gospel: Challenges and Opportunities.” Journal of African Christian Studies, vol. 40, no. 2, 2020, pp. 125–137. Alozie, Nwachukwu. “Prosperity Theology and Its Discontents in African Christianity.” Journal of African Theology, vol. 35, no. 1, 2018, pp. 123–135. Asamoah-Gyadu, J. Kwabena. African Charismatics: Current Developments Within Independent Indigenous Pentecostalism in Ghana. Brill, 2005. Asamoah-Gyadu, J. Kwabena. Contemporary Pentecostal Christianity: Interpretations from an African Context. Regnum Books, 2013. Bediako, Kwame. Theology and Identity: The Impact of Culture upon Christian Thought in the Second Century and in Modern Africa. Regnum, 1992. Bowler, Kate. Blessed: A History of the American Prosperity Gospel. Oxford UP, 2013. Gifford, Paul. Christianity, Development and Modernity in Africa. Hurst, 2015. Gifford, Paul. Ghana’s New Christianity: Pentecostalism in a Globalising African Economy. Indiana UP, 2004. Marshall, Ruth. Political Spiritualities: The Pentecostal Revolution in Nigeria. University of Chicago Press, 2009. Obadare, Ebenezer. Pentecostal Republic: Religion and the Struggle for State Power in Nigeria. Zed Books, 2018. Obielosi, Dominic. “Theological Reflections on the Excesses of Prosperity Gospel in Nigeria.” Nsukka Journal of Religion and Cultural Studies, vol. 5, no. 1, 2019, pp. 100–111. Oduyoye, Mercy Amba. Hearing and Knowing: Theological Reflections on Christianity in Africa. Orbis, 1986. Ogunewu, Moses. “Atonement and Prosperity: A Theological Reflection on the Soteriology of the Prosperity Gospel.” Ilorin Journal of Religious Studies, vol. 7, no. 1, 2017, pp. 86– Sanneh, Lamin. Translating the Message: The Missionary Impact on Culture. Orbis, 1989. Ukah, Asonzeh F.-K. A New Paradigm of Pentecostal Power: A Study of the Redeemed Christian Church of God in Nigeria. Africa World Press, 2008.

Theological Understanding of Prosperity Gospel in African Christianity: The Nigerian Experience

Abstract

References

More Articles from INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RELIGIOUS AND CULTURAL PRACTICE