ABSTRACT
Africa’s first encounter with Christianity was in the regions of Egypt and North Africa. Later on, Christianity spread into the heartlands of Africa: Nubia and Ethiopia. The second encounter of Africa with the gospel was around 1500-1800 when Christianity encountered ancient African kingdoms through the Portuguese missions. The third encounter is dated between 1792-1918 with modern evangelization, Protestant missions and Catholic missions. Twentiethcentury Christianity forms a sort of fourth phase.1 Summarily put, the phases of Christianity in Africa may be said to comprise: first, the Early Church; second, the fifteenth century Christian Missions from Portugal; third, the nineteenth century Christian Missions (which are often given prominence by European writers); and fourth, the twentieth century to contemporary Christianity. This chapter presents a historical overview of Christianity in East Africa, more
precisely the present-day countries of Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya, starting from the Christian missions’ first contacts with East African states from the 1500s to the missionary period in 1631. It will further highlight Christian missions’ contact within the East African region between the seventeenth and the eighteenth centuries. This chapter shall proceed to give an outline of twentieth century Christianity and the colonial experience through to independence in East Africa. A glimpse of the East Africa revival shall be given within this period. Historically, the East African revival has been said to have positively shaped leadership within the Church Mission Society (CMS) and the Protestant experience in post-colonial Uganda. Finally, this chapter will explore Christology as a theme, thereby highlighting the presentation of Jesus Christ by African women through the epochs of Christianity in East Africa. This is so as to answer the basic Christological question, “Who do you say I am?” as expressed in the gospel of Mark (8:29).
