Soweto Gospel Choir: the South African choir that took township gospel to the world
Formed in 2002, the Soweto Gospel Choir brought the harmonies of South African church music to international stages. The choir has won several Grammy Awards and…
Category
Africa
Gospel music and Christian news from across Africa, with a focus on Nigeria and Ghana.
Athanasius of Alexandria: the African bishop who stood “against the world”
Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria in Egypt in the fourth century, defended the belief that Jesus is fully God against the teachings of Arius. Exiled five times,…
Perpetua and Felicity: the young mothers martyred in Carthage in 203
In 203, a young noblewoman named Perpetua and an enslaved woman named Felicity were executed in the arena at Carthage, in today's Tunisia, for refusing to…
The Catholic return to Elmina in 1880: how two SMA priests restarted the church in Ghana
Catholic worship first came to the Gold Coast with the Portuguese at Elmina in the fifteenth century but ended after the Dutch took the castle. In…
Timkat: how Ethiopian Orthodox Christians celebrate Epiphany with processions and water
Timkat, the Ethiopian Orthodox celebration of Epiphany, marks the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan. Every January, priests carry tabots in procession, crowds gather at pools…
Benson Idahosa: the Benin City evangelist who shaped Nigerian Pentecostalism
Benson Idahosa founded the Church of God Mission International in Benin City and became one of Africa's most influential Pentecostal leaders. He trained many pastors who…
Mary Slessor: the Scottish mill girl who became “Mother of All the Peoples” in Calabar
Mary Slessor, a former mill worker from Dundee, arrived in Calabar in 1876 as a missionary. She lived among the Efik and Okoyong people, campaigned against…
Musama Disco Christo Church: the Ghanaian church founded by a prophet in 1922
Musama Disco Christo Church was founded in 1922 by Joseph William Egyanka Appiah, a Methodist catechist in the Gold Coast who took the name Jemisimiham Jehu-Appiah.…
The Uganda Martyrs: the young converts burned at Namugongo in 1886
Between 1885 and 1887, Kabaka Mwanga II of Buganda ordered the killing of Christian converts at his court. On 3 June 1886, many were burned alive…
Isaiah Shembe and the Nazareth Baptist Church: South Africa’s prophet of Ekuphakameni
Isaiah Shembe founded the Nazareth Baptist Church, known as ibandla lamaNazaretha, in KwaZulu-Natal around 1910. Blending Christian faith with Zulu culture, his church grew into one…