African Church and COVID-19

Martin Munyao is lecturer of peace and international studies and deputy director of Open, Distance, and Electronic Learning; Joseph Muutuki is senior lecturer of theology and pastoral studies; Patrick Musembi is dean of the School of Arts and Humanties; and Daniel Kaunga is adjunct lecturer of theology and pastoral studies at Daystar University.

• Introduction: Imagining of a Post-COVID-19 Church in Africa Martin Munyao Chapter 1: Understanding COVID-19 Disease and the Church in Africa: Infections, Containment, and Vaccines Natalia Gitu and Peter Martin Gitu Chapter 2: ‘Can these Bones Live?’: African Christianity and Human Security in Post-Covid-19 Era Chammah J. Kaunda Chapter 3: The Church and Food Security in the Post-COVID-19 Era: A Call for Decolonializing the African Mind Joseph Muutuki Chapter 4: Environmental Justice and the Church in Post-COVID-19 Era Peter Durito Chapter 5: Religious Diplomacy and Interstate Relations During COVID-19 Pandemic: Exploring Interfaith Engagements in Mediating for Peace and Harmony in the East African Region Martin Munyao and Maureen Muturi Chapter 6: The Church and Humanitarian Crisis in The Post-Covid-19 Era Sylvia Tuikong Chapter 7: The Church, Family, and Gender-Based Violence in the Post-COVID-19 Era Patrick Musembi, Joseph Muutuki, and Josephine Munyao Chapter

African scholars cannot outsource the responsibility of reflecting on the African condition to outsiders, no matter how well-meaning those outsiders might be. Contributors to this volume have taken this challenge seriously, investing resources in clarifying the role of the church in Africa in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. This volume bears testimony to the importance of contextual theologies, as the contributors have demonstrated how the church has sought to be visible on the frontlines in responding to one of the most demanding pandemics of our time. It is a timely, well researched, and balanced publication.