A contextual political theology for the Ghanaian society and its implications for human flourishing

Abstract

Every human society is faced with one challenge or the other. Ghana (the context of the study) is a West African country facing such challenges as poverty, hunger, poor education system, poor road networks, environmental degradation, poor governance, bribery and corruption, injustice, human rights abuse, high inflation, and local currency depreciation, among others emanating from political governance. In addition, there are a lot of misconceptions about human flourishing and so many people use unethical means to acquire wealth and yet, consider their ways as means of attaining a flourishing life. The survey of existing literature revealed the persistence of Ghana’s political is partly due to the lack of a strong biblical foundation, and the lack of adequate contextualization as some of the key research gaps to be filled. This literature-based research, therefore, was undertaken to explore how contextual political theology might be formulated to address Ghanaian political challenges and correct wrong notions about human flourishing. After the general introduction, a biblical-theological study of selected biblical texts was conducted which was followed by an examination of the political thoughts of selected scholars from the ancient Greek era to the contemporary era. The study then examined the contemporary Ghanaian political situation to determine which issues need attention in the study. Using the historical, biblical and Ghanaian political situation as contextual frameworks, a Ghanaian political theology was formulated to cover governance and nation-building, education, work, wealth and the environment, among others. The study found that Ghana’s political challenges are diverse and therefore cannot be addressed without the involvement of all relevant stakeholders. It was also found that Ghana’s communal sense of life resonates with the biblical perspective of life and so can serve as a tool in developing and implementing policies to address the nation’s problems. The main thesis of the dissertation is that a political theology that can address Ghana’s political challenges and correct wrong notions about human flourishing needs to be biblically grounded, historically informed and genuinely contextual within the Ghanaian socio-cultural framework. Such a theology will not only offer an

antidote to people’s misconceptions about political power but will also foster improved divine- human, human-human and human-environment relations.