The Elusive Vision of the Common Good as a Challenge to Political Theology in Kenya

Abstract

Political theology is about interpreting and applying the gospel to diverse aspects of public life, thus positively impacting society. Contrary to expectations, participation in Christian worship has not always produced transformational believers who uphold and spread positive Christian values, unlike the corrupting practices in the broader society. The result is that Christian impact on society is often less than expected. Existing scholarship on political theology suggests this is partly due to a lack of contextual and effective political theologies. Such contextual political theologies would entail Christians bringing their visions of the good life to shape various aspects of public life. This paper is based on a study of the political theology of the Fellowship of Christian Unions (FOCUS), conducted using the pastoral circle method. The paper argues that the lack of a clear political vision within the church results in ambivalence when confronted with specific political issues of the day. Since the nation-state in Africa, as currently conceptualized, is unable to be or shape this vision of the common good, it is the responsibility of Christians to see what Africa is, discern from God what it can and should be, and work to bring this about. Unless this is done, efforts to achieve political transformation through an infusion of godly values into various sectors of society, as the salt of the earth and the light of the world, will not achieve meaningful missional results.