This study examines the role of Christianity in Liberia under the corrupt regime of Samuel K. Doe (1980-1990). Paul Gifford shows that, in general, Liberian Christianity--far from being a force for justice and human advancement--diverted attention from the cause of Liberia's ills, left change to God's miraculous intervention, encouraged obedience and acceptance of the status quo, and thus served to entrench Doe's power. This Christianity, devised in and controlled from the United States, thus furthered regional American economic and political objectives, which were designed to support Doe's rule.

Moran argues that democracy is not a foreign import into Africa, but that essential aspects of what we in the West consider democratic values are part of the indigenous traditions of legitimacy and political process.

The Mask of Anarchy traces the history of the civil war that has blighted Liberia in recent years and looks at its roots in the way governments have been established in West Africa during the 20th century.

Christians are often portrayed as sharing the same political opinions and the same theological foundations for their actions. Yet, from the time of the early church, believers have held a variety of perspectives on the relationship between church and state and what constitutes legitimate political behavior for Christian citizens. Thoroughly Christian political beliefs run the gamut from disavowal of any political responsibility to a complete endorsement of government policies and the belief that the state has been divinely appointed. In Church, State, and Citizen, Sandra F. Joireman has gathered political scientists to examine the relationship between religion and politics as seen from within seven Christian traditions: Catholic, Lutheran, Reformed, Anabaptist, Anglican, Evangelical and Pentecostal. In each chapter the historical and theological foundations of the tradition are described along with the beliefs regarding the appropriate role of the state and citizen. While all Christian traditions share certain beliefs about faith (e.g., human sin, salvation, Christ's atonement) and political life (e.g. limited government, human rights, the incompleteness and partiality of all political action) there are also profound differences. The authors discuss the contemporary implications of these beliefs both in the United States and in other areas of the world where Christianity is showing increasing vigor.

A Publishers Weekly Best Religion Book of the Year A Choice Outstanding Academic Title For many Americans, being Christian is central to their political outlook. Political Christianity is most often associated with the Religious Right, but the Christian faith has actually been a source of deep disagreement about what American society and government should look like. While some identify Christianity with Western civilization and unfettered individualism, others have maintained that Christian principles call for racial equality, international cooperation, and social justice. At once incisive and timely, Christian delves into the intersection of faith and political identity and offers an essential reconsideration of what it means to be Christian in America today. “Bowman is fast establishing a reputation as a significant commentator on the culture and politics of the United States.” —Church Times “Bowman looks to tease out how religious groups in American history have defined, used, and even wielded the word Christian as a means of understanding themselves and pressing for their own idiosyncratic visions of genuine faith and healthy democracy.” —Christian Century “A fascinating examination of the twists and turns in American Christianity, showing that the current state of political/religious alignment was not necessarily inevitable, nor even probable.” —Deseret News

This book explores the life and ideas of Hilary Teage, a Baptist pastor, merchant, statesman, and newspaper editor. Through both his actions and writings, Teage tirelessly promoted Christianity, rationalism, and republican government.

The received account on African evangelical Christianity regarding social witness in a section of Western scholarship is that it is anti-development and a-political. Such an account heavily draws from an instrumentalist and functionalist assessment of such Christianity without recourse to its emic perspective. Using the case-study method, this book presents an ethnographic examination of this functionalist reading by investigating, describing and analysing evangelical Christian theological and socio-political consciousness within the context of oil and conflict in Nigeria’s Niger Delta region. Adopting approaches from practical theology, congregational studies, and anthropology of religion, the author challenges such a reading using data gathered from three congregations in the region. His discourse revolves around answers to the following four critical questions: • What are the underlying theological issues and beliefs of Nigerian evangelical Christians within the context of oil and conflict? • What is their prevalent praxis within the context of Nigeria’s political economy of oil and conflict? •How accurate is the received account that African evangelical and ‘fundamentalist’ Christianity lacks social responsibility and is a-political and anti-development? • What would a contextual political theology for Nigeria’s political economy of oil look like? The theological issues are varied and the prevalent praxis nuanced, which then serves as a veritable critique of the claim that African evangelical Christianity lacks social responsibility due to its preoccupation with soul-winning. Whereas such Christianity places much emphasis on the winning of souls as an expression of its spirituality, it is neither oblivious nor indifferent to its socio-political milieu. Rather it sees such spirituality as a form of political praxis. Some of the trajectories of the spirituality include a theology of conversion, a theology of prayer, and an ethics of crude oil, with Total Freedom as the nomenclature for the specific theological perspective offered for Nigeria’s political economy of oil. While locating this theological perspective within the taxonomy of Liberation Theology, the affinity and dissonance between the two are identified.