"Woman, why are you weeping?"(Looking Ahead to the WCC's Eighth Assembly: African Perspectives.)

Njoroge, Nyambura

Before African women theologians began to speak out for ourselves,(1) there was unnamed hidden pain, a cry for help, no response, long silence, more pain, until we could not bear it any more. We are learning to interpret and articulate our pain and unheeded cries in words and actions. Consequently, we have joined the male theologians in search for a viable Christology in Africa. In tears, we are searching for our Redeemer, who affirmed our dignity and humanity as persons created in God's image. Yet, the African church is taking too long to learn to ask the question which the two angels and the risen Christ directed to Mary Magdalene: "Woman, why are you weeping?" (John 20:13,15). It has been a long, lonely and painful journey that we have travelled to get the church to begin to listen, to ask the right questions and to respond accordingly.

But why the hidden pain and tears, the blind eye and deaf ear, the complacency and conspiracy of silence? Maybe the church has not read or heard or has forgotten the words of the Servant of the Lord recorded in Isaiah:

The Lord has given me

the tongue of a teacher,

that I may know how to sustain

the weary with a word.

Morning by morning he

wakens -- wakens my ear

to listen as those who are taught.

The Lord God opened my ear,

and I was not rebellious,

I did not turn backward (Isa. 50:4-5).

The reality is that the church in Africa has overslept and has missed the most important lesson: how to listen attentively. Its ears have remained closed, and so the church has been rebellious against the words of its teacher. It has not learned the art of sustaining the weary with a word: "Woman, why are you weeping?" By searching the scriptures to articulate an African Christology, we are sounding the wake-up call anew; and the church is slowly beginning to turn its head to trace the new sound. But the church has still missed the best part of the morning lessons because it cannot yet believe what it has heard: "These words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them" (Luke 24:11).

This new wake-up call is feminist theology. Known by different names among women from different life situations and contexts, it is a gift to the church and the world at large out of our own experiences and faith journeys. But even when women speak with a clear voice, we are not taken seriously and our words are usually not believed. Even though Jesus'male disciples had spent three years of training with him (theological education and ministerial formation) and had witnessed his taking seriously women's cries, words and actions, they did not seem to learn the art of looking and listening to women intently until after Jesus' ascension (cf. Acts 9:36-41; 16:11-18; Rom. 16). Unfortunately, the trend of ignoring women continued over the centuries until women became tired of being ignored, excluded and not believed.

What lessons have the churches learned since the rise of the women's movement in society and the church? By and large, instead of learning to listen, repent and be compassionate, the church in Africa has tended to be apologetic, defensive and rhetorical. The fact that weeping women are slowly gaining some attention is because we have refused to be driven away from our home, the body of Christ, the church. We have voted for boldness, courage and faithfulness. With few exceptions, the church has acted out of shame rather than conviction. The church has yet to come to grips with the voice of African women articulating the psalmist's lament:

Be gracious to me, 0 Lord, for I am in distress;

my eye wastes away from grief,

my soul and body also.

For my life is spent with sorrow,

and my years with sighing;

my strength fails because of my misery,

and my bones waste away,

I am the scorn of all my adversaries,

a horror to my neighbours,

an object of dread to my acquaintances;

those who see me in the street flee from me.

I have passed out of mind like one who is dead;

I have become like a broken vessel.

For I hear the whisper of

many -- terror all

round! -- as they scheme together against me,

as they plot to take my life (Ps. 31:9-13).

From these and many other lamentations recorded in the Bible, we know that African women do not have a monopoly on weeping. Today, however, society and the church leave the impression that it is only women who have the capacity to express their pain through weeping. We are said to be too emotional, to cry too easily, while men are socialized to believe that crying is a betrayal of their manhood. So weeping has been trivialized, and church and society alike have lost the chance to listen to the many voices expressed in tears and deep sighs too painful for words. At the same time, our daily preoccupations have blinded us to the grief-stricken faces and images that we encounter. With the enormous violence taking place in Africa, the image of Jesus on the cross has become so familiar that we pass by as if nothing is happening.

Even when the echo "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (Ps. 22:1; Matt. 27:46) reaches our ears, we hurriedly walk away.

Why this topic?

The topic of this article emerged as I was reflecting on the theme of the general council of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches (Debrecen, Hungary, 8-20 August): "Break the Chains of Injustice" (Isa. 58:6). As the staff person responsible for women's concerns, I began to ponder what "chains of injustice" from our context we African Christian women should name at the council. In reading the report of the team visits made in 1994-96 to the member churches of the World Council of Churches in connection with the Ecumenical Decade of Churches in Solidarity with Women, I was struck by how often women named the hidden pain in their daily lives resulting from a variety of reasons. The fact that this happened during passion week perhaps made me more sensitive to the pain suffered by African women in the ongoing and vicious cycle of violence and destruction of life, all life, in Africa.

I began to write this article on Maundy Thursday, the day we remember Jesus' command "to wash one another's feet" (John 13:14). As Gail R. O'Day has explained, footwashing has two meanings: "the footwashing models service and discipleship (John 13:12-16)... and to participate in the footwashing is to participate in Jesus' suffering and death" (13:3-11.(2) What does it mean, I wondered, to participate in the suffering of African women, who are part of the humanity Jesus suffered and died for? I recognized that not to respond to African women's cry for help is to deny their creation in God's image and to ignore their struggle for liberation. I had already addressed this theme in a number of articles.(3) Why then another one?

I believe that we as Christians have to struggle continuously to understand what Jesus' suffering and dying for broken humanity means in our context. We must wrestle with the word of God in the scriptures in our search for an authentic African theology and Christology which take seriously the social reality of a continent permeated with violence and death, and in particular violence oriented towards women whose God-given identity has been deformed. Africa's missionary history, teachings and theology, which most African women still depend on, emphasized saving souls and converting people from paganism to Western Christianity. Given that background, we need to see, touch and hear the "Word that became flesh and lived among us" (John 1:14) in the person of Jesus Christ. We must understand what this means for ourselves and in our time. We cannot live by the word of the missionaries or male pastors and priests; we must search the scriptures, and ask what the risen Christ has to say to the weeping women of Africa. Like the women at the empty tomb, we must discover the risen Christ, worship him, talk with him and take his command seriously: "Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, there they will see me" (Matt. 28: 1 0). This is the source of our courage to speak. We must be faithful to the tradition of women telling the good news, rather than be held captive by the institutions, structures and patriarchal authority which silence and marginalize women. Furthermore, we need to come to grips with exactly what difference it makes in our lives, as African women trapped in the vicious cycle of violence and destruction, to believe in the incarnate God.

As faithful followers of Christ, we must learn from how Jesus dealt and continues to deal with the pain and suffering of humanity, and be ready to take a bold step to make a difference. That conviction lies behind this article, which is an attempt to encourage the church in Africa to address the "cry for help" of African women seeking to be liberated from many years of marginalization and subjugation in the church and society. In other words, I am pleading for an African Christology which takes women seriously as we try to be faithful disciples of our liberator. What can we learn from the encounter between Mary Magdalene and the risen Christ outside the empty tomb? What about the woman who is called "a sinner" (Luke 7:37), who while weeping began to bathe Jesus' feet with her tears and to dry them with her hair, kissing his feet and anointing them? Why have these biblical accounts not moved the church in Africa to listen to women and to take them seriously? For too long, we African women have faced the harsh reality of "empty tombs" in our lives without anyone coming to our aid or asking why we are weeping and whom we are looking for -- the second question the risen Christ put to Mary Magdalene (John 20:15). We must honestly and candidly face the reality of African women. We must stop "spiritualizing" the gospel by placing it outside effective concrete activity to bring new possibilities and new life.

The invitation to write this paper asked for reflection on the theme of the eighth assembly of the World Council of Churches: "Turn to God -- Rejoice in Hope". Like the WARC general council theme, these words also challenge us to look intently at what is happening in our communities and the world in general, at what God is doing through Christ's presence and what our response should be. I believe by focusing on the African women's "cry for help" through the eyes and ears of Jesus and his response to women in the gospels, we are challenged both to break the chains of injustice related to patriarchy and sexism, and to turn to God to rediscover new ways of living together as women and men in faith, which will bring rejoicing in hope and abundant life. Above all, the underlying theme in the call to turn to God is the way we live together and the quest for justice in our world today. "It is first a turning to God, and away from idols -- all the false values and securities which claim us today; it is also a turning to our neighbours, in loving kindness and humble service; and it is a turning which seeks to do justice to others and to the whole of God's creation."(4) Let us take these themes along with us as we explore our topic and as we attempt to bring new life in Africa through Jesus Christ, the resurrection and the life.

Christ's treatment of suffering and pain

Like the women in the Bible, there is no single cause of the reality of pain and suffering which drives African women to cry out for help. It is beyond the scope of this article to describe or even name all of these circumstances. Instead, I shall illustrate, by way of two gospel stories, how Jesus dealt with women's pain and suffering in his ministry, and in so doing challenge the church in Africa to change the way it treats women's suffering. We shall then return to Mary Magdalene at the garden.

1. The widow of Nain

The social reality of the African widow demands urgent action by the church and the ecumenical movement, for the religious, social, economic and cultural dynamics which dehumanize the African widow are a disgrace to the gospel.

When I was a parish minister in Nairobi, I was shocked to discover, after the death of the husband of a member of the Revival Movement,' that his widow was exhorted not to cry or grieve because this would demonstrate lack of faith in Jesus Christ, her personal saviour. The exhortation was addressed to women since we are the ones who publicly show grief and sense of loss. Since some of the prominent members of the Revival were elders and deacons in the local church, this exhortation would be taken as though it were the gospel truth. It is also common for pastors and priests (who are predominantly male) to admonish widows to pray and persevere in suffering because even Christ suffered. The women would discover, however, that withholding their tears and not expressing their grief would not cause the pain to go away. Instead they ended up suffering in silence as they attempted to cope with the new circumstances of widowhood. Some reported how they field endlessly at night during the months that followed, when there was no one to console them. Some ended up doubting their faith in God, since grieving was equated with lack of faith. Others lost confidence in their leaders and felt that the church had let them down at the time of great need. But not only are no concrete steps taken to address the grief process; there is also little attention paid to the problems that result from property inheritance laws, widowhood cultural practices and the economic implications for the family. Women from some ethnic backgrounds are confronted with rituals of widowhood and morning which cause more suffering beyond the pain of losing a loved one.(6)

To make matters worse, a widow is expected not to remarry regardless of her age or personal preference. It is in fact usually women who most oppose the remarriage of a widow. Recently a friend told me the story of a group of Christian women in her village who boycotted the wedding of a woman who decided to remarry after 6 years of widowhood. They could not understand what wrong they had done to her, since she had decided to abandon her proper home. By contrast, both the church and the extended family are eager to see that a widower remarry within as short a time as one year. Such experiences and stories have provoked me to search the gospels for alternative ways of dealing with the pain and suffering experienced by African widows. The story of the widow of Nain could as well be the story of an African widow:

Soon afterwards he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went

with him. As he approached the gate of the town, a man who had died was being carried

out. He was his mother's only son, and she was a widow; and with her was a large crowd

from the town. When the Lord saw her, he had compassion for her and said to her, "Do not

weep." Then he came forward and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said,

"Young man, I say to you, rise!" The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave

him to his mother. Fear seized all of them; and they glorified God, saying, "A great prophet

has risen among us!" and "God has looked favourably on his people!" This word about him

spread throughout Judea and all the surrounding country (Luke 7:11-17).

Although the woman is nameless in this account, the naming of her social reality -- a widow whose only son had died - underscores the intensity of her suffering. Megan McKenna has reminded us that in Jewish tradition widows were part of the group known as anawin -- the poor ones of Yahweh.(7) She was not just a widow, she was poor; and losing her only son meant losing her lifeline, her support, her hope for the future, her connection to the community. Her grief is multi-faceted. Her poverty is deepened for she has nothing to live for. Because of Jesus' sensitivity, the widow of Nain did not have to cry out for help; her weeping was enough for Jesus to have compassion and to act. Perhaps Jesus did not know that she was a widow or that the dead man was her only son. What mattered is that this was a grief-stricken woman, a weeping mother. Jesus' action was spontaneous, "Do not weep." Without asking any questions, he stopped the cortege and uttered words of life: "Young man, I say to you, rise!" By raising the son from death, Jesus also restored the dignity and life of his mother and of the community.

Furthermore, the power of resurrection is confessed in this community. Like the women on the first Easter who "with fear and great joy, ran to tell the disciples" about the empty tomb (Matt. 28:8), a similar experience is reported in Nain: "Fear seized all of them; and they glorified God, saying, 'A great prophet has risen among us!' and 'God has looked favourably on his people!'" These words also resonate with John's words about the Word incarnate: "The Word became flesh and lived among us!" In affirming Jesus as a "great prophet", they echo John the Baptist: "Among you stands one whom you do not know, the one who is coming after me; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandal" (John 1:26b-27). Not only is human life restored in the community, but God's presence is experienced and affirmed. Similarly, the words of the mourners connect us with the songs of Mary -- "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant" (Luke 1:47-48) -- and Zechariah -- "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has looked favourably on his people and redeemed them" (Luke 1:68).

On the cross, as in Nain, Jesus turns to a grieving woman, his mother Mary, a widow who is about to lose her first son in a violent death, and gives her a son (John 19:26f.). Like a replay of what had happened at Nain, this great prophet, who is acknowledged while still in his mother's womb, aligns himself with those who are in pain; he reaches out even in the midst of his own suffering. Jesus acts to give life, life in its fullness. In Nain as well as at the cross and on Easter morning, Jesus lived out his own testimony: "I came so that they may have life, and have it abundantly" (John 10:10).

Like the people in Nain and the women at the empty tomb, all those who listen and turn to Jesus rejoice in hope, for he revealed the divine presence in the world -- resurrection. The mourners and the widow were going through a ritual of shared grief on the way to the cemetery, thereafter to go on with their lives. But Jesus interrupts business as usual and brings to birth something new. That is how Jesus deals with suffering. He does not ignore, trivialize or glorify it by telling people to persevere and to hang in there. Instead he confronts the cause of grief, the pain and injustice. He resists suffering, death and systems of injustice. He is a witness to his Father that God has indeed "looked favourably on his people!" God has turned to the people; and those who witnessed Jesus' presence and his power to bring back life turned to God, rejoiced in hope and acknowledged the fulfilment of God's promise.

So what are the children of God, the community of faith, the resurrection people called to do with the weeping mothers of Africa, the dying, the poverty-stricken caregivers, the childless widows of Rwanda, Burundi, Sudan? According to this gospel story, the uncaring must stop and the church must take action to end the destruction of life. We must act to bring hope, life and God's presence in the midst of despair, suffering and death. We must stop the weeping. We may not have the power to bring the dead to life, but whenever we shatter despair and hopelessness, we bring people back from the dead. This story demonstrates what we miss as a community of faith when we ignore the grieving members in the church and society: not only do we fail to bring hope and life to the community; much more, we fail to be witnesses to the "great prophet", the Word become flesh and dwelling among us, God's grief and refuse to pay attention to the weeping is to tighten the "chains of injustice". Like the widow of Nain, poor African women have had enough suffering even before the death of their children. They have to overcome many obstacles of tradition and cultural values that are harmful to the life of women.

In this passage Luke surprisingly weaves together many Christological motifs -- incarnation, passion, resurrection. These Christological motifs are uttered or lived out by ordinary people -- the mouners who witnessed the occasion and the weeping woman -- as well as Jesus, who raises the dead man. Similarly, the text evokes the rich tradition of women in the life of Jesus who welcomed and nurtured him (Mary, Elizabeth, the prophet Anna), and those who moved him to live out his testimony and compassion (the widow, the women at the cross and at the empty tomb). As we dig into this story, we hear challenging words, demanding action with regard to the pain and suffering of others. Following in the tradition of these women and the mouners who spread the word about Jesus' action "throughout Judea and all the surrounding country", we are called to be witnesses to the divine presence in the midst of suffering and pain.

2. "Woman, where are they?"

Edda Waceke Gachukia, a leading Kenyan educationist, says that hypocrisy has blinded African society to the pain and suffering of unwed teenage mothers, some of whom are as young as thirteen.(8) I would add that the same is true of the African church. The subject of sexuality and inappropriate sexual practices in church and society deserves special attention from African theologians today. While the church expects standards of sexual morality among Christian women and a small group of men in leadership positions (deacons, elders, ministers, priests, moderators, bishops), it does not provide guidance and teaching which would enhance self-respect, mutuality and integrity between the sexes. Addressing issues related to sexuality remains a taboo in the church, unlike the traditional setting with its structures and models of facilitating sex education and healthy relationships. Thus the church remains silent in cases of rape (including marital rape), child sexual abuse, incest and sexual harassment, which violate women's bodies. Essentially, the church is legalistic, and double standards are the order of the day. Both my parish experience and my conversations with women from different parts of Africa have disclosed how much untold and hidden pain arises from unhealthy sexual relationships and the lack of teaching in this area. This has provoked me to look closely at the text on the scribes, the Pharisees and the woman caught in the very act of committing adultery. Like the story of the widow of pain, this account is narrated in only one gospel, yet it gives us a chance to address the central Christological motif of God's forgiving love for all humanity through Jesus Christ:

Then each of them went home, while Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Early in the

morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him and he sat down and began to

teach each of them. The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in

adultery; and making her stand before all of them, they said to him, "Teacher, this woman

was caught in the very act of committing adultery. Now in the law Moses commanded us to

stone such women. Now what do you say?" They said this to test him, so that they might

have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the

ground. When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, "Let

anyone among you who is without sin be first to throw a stone at her." And once again he bent

down and wrote on the ground. When they heard it, they went away, one by one, beginning

with the elders; and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. Jesus

straightened up and said to her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?"

She said, "No one, sir." And Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you. Go your way, and from

now on do not sin again" (John 8:1-11).

Reading this story, we can hear people in the surrounding community asking: "Who is this who even forgives sins?" (Luke 7:49b); "Is not this Joseph's son?" (Luke 4:22). But today's reader of the gospel story must remember what Megan McKenna has said:

All the gospels were written after the shattering experience of the cross and the confusing

yet death-destroying experience of the resurrection that gave birth to the early church and

the first Christian communities. All the gospels seek in some way to mine that one

experience: the Father raising Jesus from the dead, shattering the hold of death on the human race

and testifying to the validity of the Son's words and life as revealing God's presence among

the people through the power of the spirit of truth and justice.(9)

To understand resurrection, we revisit the gospel stories of the life and ministry of Jesus. In the previous story, we encountered the "great prophet", whose compassion and caring spirit brought back to life a dead man and restored the hope of a weeping mother and a mourning community. We discovered that the reality of the resurrection event began long before the empty tomb. In his life and ministry, Jesus was revealing the divine among the people through the power of the spirit of compassion and justice. In this second story, we encounter the "Teacher" demonstrating the spirit of compassion and forgiving love to a group of men who are entangled in legalism with respect to the sin of adultery, a sin that destroys human relationships. Another nameless woman helps us to discover anew God's love for a broken humanity. A tragic beginning ends with hope, new life and of course unmentioned rejoicing. Let us now try to see this story in the context of pain and suffering.

Jesus begins his day in the temple, carrying out his ministry of teaching. There he is rudely interrupted by a group of scribes and Pharisees who are eagerly carrying out their own cherished duty: safeguarding the law of Moses. With them they are dragging along a woman at the darkest moment of her life. Having been caught committing adultery, she faces a death penalty by stoning. Her sexual partner is nowhere in sight. She is humiliated, head bent down, speechless, guilt-stricken. Making her stand before the "Teacher" and all those listening to Jesus, the men with stones in hand make their case and pronounce their verdict. Then they turn to test Jesus: "Now what do you say?" Suddenly, the commotion and confusion fall silent as Jesus bends down to write on the ground with his finger. All eyes move away from the humiliated woman towards Jesus, as if they are trying to read the writing on the ground. Perhaps the words of the Psalmist were echoing in the mind of the woman fearing for her life: "For I hear the whisper of many -- terror all round! -- as they scheme together against me. as they plot to take my life" (Ps. 31:13).

After further questioning from the "law-keepers", the Teacher straightens up and utters the most unexpected verdict, overturning the tables as it were: "Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her." As he continues to write on the ground, a deep sigh of agony, of waiting and humiliation, is heard from the woman. anticipating the first stone. But to her surprise, nothing happens, and she is left alone with this man writing on the ground. For the first time she is able to look Jesus in the eye as she responds to his questions: "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?" As the conversation continues, she is transformed from a humiliated, speechless person, one who has been the object of debate and discussion, to a free woman who speaks with confidence for the first time: "No one, sir." Jesus invites her to enter a new way of life: "Neither do I condemn you. Go your way, and from now on do not sin again." Not only does he forgive the woman, but he also takes away the pain and suffering of humiliation and imminent death. Commenting on this passage, Gail R. O'Day observes:

Jesus' focus is not on the woman alone but is evenly divided between the scribes and

Pharisees and the woman. Jesus bends down and writes twice and twice stands to address his

conversation partners. Indeed, what is striking about this story is that Jesus treats the

woman as the social and human equal of the scribes and Pharisees. Jesus speaks to both

sets of characters about sin... Jesus invites both the scribes and Pharisees and the woman to

begin life anew in the present moment. They are invited to give up old ways and enter a

new way of life... Jesus does offer grace and mercy to sinners in this story, but the offer is

extended equally to scribes, Pharisees and women.(10)

Like the scribes and Pharisees, it is common practice in the African church to condemn women for sexual immorality as if there were no men involved. To treat women in isolation in matters of sexual morality humiliates them, reducing them to objects of debate and discussion. In this story, Jesus provides a different model of dealing with the sins of both women and men by offering grace and mercy. The story challenges us to rethink our legalistic approaches to sin connected with sexual activities and to develop life-enhancing models of ministry that restore healthy relationships in the community. Above all, the story challenges us to reconsider how we share the gift of forgiveness, which restores relationships with our neighbours and with God. Condemning a behaviour and invoking church policies does not solve the problem. Instead the church needs to create channels through which women and men can address issues that affect their own bodies and sexual relationships.

Sexual immorality destroys relationships in families, church and community. As a result, many people have suffered from broken marriages, diseases, unwanted pregnancies and so on. It is urgent that the church in Africa deal with matters of sexuality, also because the community-oriented way of life is under great danger. As Christians and as Africans, we cannot afford to remain silent when human relationships are endangered or when women's bodies are violated through rape, incest, child sexual abuse and sexual harassment at the place of work (including the church).

Forgiveness and repentance are central to the process of restoring life in the community and upholding human dignity. The scribes, Pharisees and the woman were all given the opportunity to look at sin and the sinner with different eyes, eyes that are full of limitless compassion and God's love. In this story, we are challenged to break the chains of injustice related to sexual immorality, legalism, double standards and hypocrisy and to reconsider the gift of forgiveness in Christ Jesus, a way of turning to God.

"Whom are you looking for?"

From a careful reading of gospel stories through the pain and suffering of women today, we rediscover how central eliminating pain and suffering was. Jesus was not exclusive as the church tends to be. He paid attention to details, provided solutions to issues at hand and treated each case on its own merits. He asked specific questions which led to conversations and new opportunities.

Mary Magdalene, together with other women at the cross, had seen her teacher and friend suffer like a criminal. While still in her grieving process, she comes to the tomb and discovers the worst: Jesus' body is missing. Her grief is intensified and the weeping continues: "They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him" (John 20:13b). At this point, Mary was responding to the two angels in the empty tomb. In her weeping and confusion, she turned around and saw Jesus but did not recognize him. Jesus drew Mary's attention by repeating the angels' question and adding another one: "Whom are you looking for?" These are engaging questions, which led Mary to respond with intensity and clarity to the person she thought was the gardener: "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away" (John 20:15b). The reality of the empty tomb weighs heavily in her world, but when the "gardener" calls her name, "Mary!", her ears are opened and she turns to her "Teacher".

Knowing what he meant to Mary, and that she might have wished to sit in the garden and listen to the whole story about when and how he rose from the dead, Jesus did not waste time, but said to her, "Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God'" (John 20:17). Spreading the Easter story was more urgent than holding a one-to-one conversation. It is a story about new life, new beginning, and soon the disciples were to be on their own carrying forth the good news. but the foremost of all was Mary. Without hesitation, Mary went and announced to the disciples: "I have seen the Lord" (20:18). The encounter with the risen Lord transformed Mary's life. She found the one she was looking for. Her persistence, courage, boldness, faithfulness and determination were not in vain. From a weeping, grief-stricken woman came the testimony of the Easter story, Christ is risen, he is risen indeed!

Rereading this empowering and refreshing passage made me wonder why the church in Africa has taken so long to ask women the right questions, to pay attention to their grief and pain. Jesus took Mary and her grief and suffering seriously. Jesus entered into the world of Mary as he had entered into the world of the widow of Nain and the woman caught in the act of adultery -- with limitless compassion, understanding and love. For his followers Jesus set models of how to deal with the pain and suffering of others. Jesus' presence moves us from despair to hope, from death to life, from law to grace, from empty tombs to new possibilities. In Christ, through Christ and with Christ we learn how to turn to God and to rejoice in hope. On the other hand, Jesus entrusted Mary with announcing the most fundamental event of his entire life; why then has the church downplayed its master's action?

Depending on our social reality, the challenges to "break the chains of injustice" and to "turn to God, rejoice in hope" can lead us to address a variety of issues. I have tried in this article to demonstrate one area in the life of African women which calls for urgent and concrete attention. Whether through weeping, crying out or writing theological reflections, it is apparent that we African women are trapped in chains of injustice which cause untold pain and suffering. The church in Africa must face this challenge for the sake of the gospel. Jesus has set the way, he has demonstrated in more than one model that it is possible to enter into the world of the suffering and to create new possibilities. The integrity and credibility of the church is at stake if it continues to turn a deaf ear and a blind eye to those who cry for help.

In the course of writing this paper, I felt the passion and boldness of Mary Magdalene in the Circle of Concerned African Women Theologians, who have decided to name their pain and suffering in the home, church and society. In the Circle, we are determined to engage the church to take women seriously. In tears and deep pain, we too are searching the garden, but our garden is the Bible, which is the bearer of the Easter message which Mary announced. The other garden is African religion and culture, where we are searching for life-enhancing values which will strengthen and sustain a healthy community of women and men, a community of faith. We are aware that the word of God in the Bible is hidden in deep layers of ancient and complex religious and cultural milieus which sometimes hamper the search. We are aware of the many misinterpretations and misrepresentations of some parts of the Bible, especially those which talk about women. And so we band together to roll away the stones that prevent us from having life in its abundance.

We have just begun, but we do not lose heart because we have the legacy of Mary Magdalene, who did not leave the garden until she had seen and talked to her Redeemer. We too must turn to God to taste and see the fruits of the garden, so that we can rejoice in hope - "a radical hope, a hope based not in human possibilities but in God's faithfulness and mighty deeds. In raising Jesus to new life, God affirms the way of the cross, the power of Christ's self-offering love. It is an inclusive hope, one which insists that all are brought within the scope of God's love and care. Such hope is inspired by the vision of the Trinity as a community of mutual sharing and love, one in which domination has no place."(11)

NOTES

(1) Particularly through the Circle of Concerned African Women Theologians, an interfaith institute established in 1989 for research, writing and publication; I refer here especially to the Christian members of the Circle, of which I am one.

(2) Gail O'Day, in Carol Newsom and Sharon Ringe, eds, The Women's Bible Commentary, Louisville, Westminster/John Knox. 1992, p.299.

(3) E.g., "Groaning and Languishing in Labour Pains", in Musimbi Kanyoro and Nyambura Njoroge, eds, Groaning in Faith: African Women in the Household of God, Nairobi, Acton Publishers, 1996, pp.3-15; "Hannah, Why Do You Weep?", in Grace Wamue and Mary Getui, eds, Violence against Women: Reflections by Kenyan Women Theologians, Nairobi, Acton, 1996, pp.21-26; and A Spirituality of Resistance and Transformation", unpublished paper for the Pan-African Conference for African Women Theologians, Nairobi, August 1996.

(4) Turn to God -- Rejoice in Hope: Bible Studies, Meditations, Liturgical Aids, Geneva, WCC, 1996, p.ix.

(5) The Revival Movement, a non-denominational Christian reawakening, began in Rwanda in the 1930s, from where it quickly spread throughout East Africa, later branching into several groups whose names reflect various theological emphases. Followers give testimonies about the date on which they accepted Jesus as "personal Saviour" and how he has sustained their faith and publicly mention sins of which they have been forgiven. They hold regular fellowship gatherings after Sunday worship and during the week, as well as monthly national gatherings.

(6) On African widowhood and mourning rituals see further Daisy N. Nwachuku, "The Christian Widow in African Culture", in Mercy Oduyoye and Musimbi Kanyoro, eds, The Will to Arise: Women, Tradition and the Church in Africa, Maryknoll NY, Orbis, 1992, pp.54-73; Constance R.A. Shisanya, "Death Rituals", in Kanyoro and Njoroge, op. cit., pp.186-203; and Mulambya P. Kabonde, "Widowhood in Zambia: The Effects of Ritual", ibid.

(7) Megan McKenna, Not Counting Women and Children: Neglected Stories from the Bible, Maryknoll, NY, Orbis, 1994, p.147.

(8) In the video "The Lesser Child"', Nairobi, UNICEF, 1993, which offers a window on problems facing the girl child in Kenya, including teenage pregnancy and how Kenyan society turns a blind eye and deaf ear to these immature mothers and their children.

(9) McKenna, op. cit., p.18.

(10) O'Day. loc. cit., p.297.

(11) Turn to God -- Rejoice in Hope, p.ix (italics added).