Thread by @blackrepublican

The African Mothers and Fathers of Western Christianity

Cyprian, and Augustine.

Saints Perpetua and Felicity and Saint Maurice (as well as his military regiment), early martyrs, African."

#AfricanHistory #BlackHistoryMonth

cbeinternational.org/resource/artic…

"There have also been three North African popes: Victor I, Melchaides (also a martyr), and Gelasius I.The vast majority of these Patristic-era figures resided in North Africa, where Christian communities thrived until the Muslim conquests of the region."

"Africa has the world’s third largest Catholic population, after the Americas and Europe. Nearly 1 out of every 5 Africans – 19.2% – is Catholic. The Pew Research Center expects the number of African Christians south of the Sahara, including Catholics, to double by 2050."

"The Portuguese departed with slaves and ivory while leaving behind priests and craftsmen."

cambridge.org/core/books/med…

@ayittey

The History of Early Portuguese Settlers in Africa

#Portugal was a small, poor feudal society during the 15th century with underdeveloped industry and unproductive agricultural lands. This explains the exploration of the Portuguese in Africa.

Before The Congo: Black Christianity in Africa

"There were multiple early Christian kingdoms in Africa, the most of notable of which emergedin Ethiopia (then Aksum). Around this same era, however, there were also three Nubian Christian kingdoms, ...

... all of which were conquered and left little trace of their former glory; scholars have since recovered some of their history.

Due to the Chalcedonian Schism in the 5th century, however, most of this Eastern (African) Christianity became divorced from Catholicism very early on.

African Christian Mothers and Fathers | Mark Ellingsen