An Investigaton of the Role of the Family Head in Household Conversion among the Akamba and its Missiological Implications for the Church

Abstract

The objective of this study was to study the husband-wife conversion dynamics specifically examining the role of the family head in household conversion among the Akamba and its missiological implications for the church. In order to achieve this, research was carried out in Makueni district. The research was a qualitative study and data was collected primarily through ethnographic open-ended, structured and unstructured interviews as well as modest observation participation. This was done with three categories of people: Saved women whose husbands are not saved, unsaved husbands whose wives are saved and wives who converted after their husbands converted. Questioners were used to get background information from three pastors who have run churches in the district. The findings revealed that among the Akamba the reasons that make women convert almost immediately after their husbands convert to Christianity while on the other hand men hardly get converted when their wives convert first are mostly socialcultural. In the whole sphere of the Akamba traditional stratification, man as the head of the family was bestowed the honour and authority of making the major decisions in the family. Conversion then seems to be so major a decision with so many implications that if made by a woman, a man feels that his authority has been usurped and this makes the man most unwilling to follow the wife to church. Based on these findings, recommendations were made that in order to have households converting to faith in Jesus Christ, the significant role that a man plays can not be overemphasized. There is real need for the church to formulate a missiological approach that puts into consideration all these socio-cultural dynamics.