Contemporary African Christian Marriage Challenges and Responses in Selected New Religious Movements in Nairobi County

Abstract

This study examined the new social dynamic challenges facing contemporary African Christian marriages and attempts by New Religious Movements in Nairobi to address them. The study was guided by four objectives. First, it compared and contrasted the African religio-cultural beliefs and Christian views on marriage. Second, it examined the challenges facing contemporary African Christian marriages in Nairobi County. Third, it assessed the processes and strategies employed by selected New Religious Movements in instituting marriages among their members. Lastly, it evaluated the selected New Religious Movements‟ responses to marital problems. The study utilized the structural functionalist theory as propagated by Jean McIntyre and cyclic theory of social change by Oswald Spengler and Piritin Sorokin. Structural functionalist theory was employed to explain how marriages function as constituent units of the society, to diagnose the problems that affect marriages and to prescribe practical solutions to such problems. Cyclic theory of social change was pivotal in locating contemporary marital challenges as consequences of social change and to justify the rediscovery of traditional religious values as a cure to such challenges. Four New Religious Movements in Nairobi County namely; Nairobi Chapel, Mavuno Church, Jubilee Christian Church and Lighthouse Chapel International were sampled. A total of 332 respondents were targeted. These included 240 married people, 80 marriage candidates who had undergone premarital training and 12 pastors. The researcher observed 12 wedding ceremonies, three from each movement. The study established that certain aspects of African culture were more complementary than contradictory to Christian views on marriage. Common themes such as sacredness of marriage, intended permanency, authority of the husband and communal participation were noted. The study found that 70% of the married informants entered into marriage with incompatible partners, hence regretted later of their choices. The study also established that cultural conflicts, change of traditional family roles, economic pressure, over-emphasis on sex, infidelity, negative family models, unhealthy competition between spouses and with outsiders, strained relationships with in-laws, long distance relationship arrangements, miscommunication, lack of commitment, drug addiction, domestic violence and inability to cope with mid-life crisis were some of the challenges facing contemporary African Christian marriages. The study recognized that pre-marital counseling was the most basic New Religious Movements‟ response to marital problems. It was noted that each movement had a different strategy which targeted different groups within their congregations. The study concluded that New Religious Movements (NRM) are not very effective in offering holistic response to contemporary marital problems. The study recommends that churches should adopt a holistic approach to marital issues, teach marriage and family values from earlier stages of life and emphasize African ideological concepts and formations, such as small Christian communities to enrich contemporary marriages. The study further advocates for formal post marital counseling and divorce care programs.