BiAS 7 – The Bible and Politics in Africa
the bottle’, Banda here calls upon the ‘men of Africa’ to leave ‘the days of
drunkenness’ behind and to ‘restore the dignity in the African home’.^25
The issues mentioned above are referred to as illustrations and indica-
tions of the “distortion of manhood” that Banda observes in Zambian
society. He relates the misbehaviors of men and the misperceptions of
masculinity to some of the major problems postcolonial Zambia is faced
with, such as the HIV epidemic and high poverty levels. How, then,
Banda seeks to “restore” manhood in order to overcome the negative
aspects and consequences of dominant forms of masculinity?
The Alternative Ideal: “Biblical Manhood”
In the sermons, Banda not only addresses all kind of critical issues re-
lated to men and masculinity, but also presents an alternative ideal of
“biblical manhood”. To define this ideal he makes use of the definition
provided by the North American Baptist author John Piper. In the book
Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, Piper defines “biblical
manhood” as follows: ‘At the heart of mature masculinity is a sense of
benevolent responsibility to lead, provide for and protect women in ways
appropriate to a man’s differing relationships.’^26 Quoting this, Banda
says that he found it ‘a powerful definition’ of what fatherhood and
manhood should be.^27 In his sermons he elaborates on the definition in
a detailed way, by discussing its major notions in relation to the Bible
and actual realities. This illustrates that local discourses on gender, in
this case sermons on masculinity delivered in a Zambian Pentecostal
church, in our current era of globalisation and world Christianity, are
related to and influenced by discourses from other regions and other
confessional backgrounds and thus become increasingly hybrid. How-
ever, taking into account that Banda translates and applies the definition
of Piper vis-à-vis African realities, it is also clear that his talk about bibli-
(^25) Banda, Cultivating a Lifestyle of Truth – part 3.
(^26) J. Piper, 'A Vision of Biblical Complementarity: Manhood and Womanhood Defined
According to the Bible' in J. Piper and W. Grudem (eds.), Recovering Biblical Manhood
and Womanhood. A Response to Evangelical Feminism, Wheaton: Crossway Books 1991,
- Corresponding to this is Piper’s definition of “biblical womanhood”: ‘At the heart
of mature femininity is a freeing disposition to affirm, receive and nurture strength
and leadership from worthy men in ways appropriate to women’s differing relation-
ships.’
(^27) Banda, Fatherhood in the 21st Century – part 4.