Shared life as God's people: an exploration of exclusion and koinonia in social relations in Rwanda

Abstract

In the aftermath of the Rwandan genocide in 1994, one of the many questions that Rwandan Christians asked was 'How could such a tragedy happen in one of the most Christianised countries in Africa?'While some of those reflecting on the genocide predictably asked 'Why did God not intervene to prevent or stop the genocide?', the majority focussed on ethnicity as the root cause of the conflict. Their argument was that conflict originated in the divide-and-rule policies earned out by both the colonial administrators and the Christian missionaries. Their successors, the Rwandan political leaders continued to promote exclusive and divisive policies based on ethnicity, religious affiliation, birthplace and gender. The Rwandan Christian clergy, who succeeded the early Christian missionaries, constantly failed to offer effective criticism or moral and spiritual guidance.There is no doubt that there is substance to this argument and that the above factors contributed to the Rwandan tragedy. Nevertheless, ethnic, religious, regional and gender identities have little overriding significance unless they are seen in the context of their socio-economic implications for the ordinary lives of Rwandans. It is when these identities are used as a passport to land, job, education and other opportunities that they become paradigms for exclusion or inclusion in society and its systems.Throughout the history of Rwanda large groupings of people have been excluded from land, from their communities and from the means of livelihood to which they were entitled. Myths and ideologies played an important part in the establishment of this culture of domination, exclusion and exploitation. Furthermore, taxation and education were in the hands of a small elite and were used as a means to preserve their own privileged status, instead of being used to build up the community. This strategy of control and exclusion is the antithesis of the principle of koinonia, shared life as God's people, on which the Christian life is meant to be based. The Rwandan community signally failed to exhibit koinonia, supporting division and exclusion by allowing ethnicity, religion, birthplace and gender to serve as passports or barriers to land, education, employment and opportunities for personal and social development. Given the extent of the erosion of traditional social mores and of Christian principles, the genocide of 1994 was a tragedy waiting to happen. This thesis is therefore a study of factors which cumulatively provided the conditions for the eruption of the 1994 Rwandan tragedy. And the content of the concept of koinonia provides a way of understanding the ideal of community Christians in Rwanda and outside in the world church are called to build.The key virtues of Koinonia, namely love, peace, equality and justice, can be practically demonstrated in a redistribution of land, a revival of the tradition of reciprocity and solidarity, and in the promotion of income-generating projects for those socially excluded.