A Study of the Modern Trends of Bible Usage and Reading Among Christians in Kenyase

By Joseph William Acheampong and Boaz Kofi Asiamah

Abstract

The Bible is a key tool that is used by Christians all over the world but African Christians have various motifs of reading and using the bible. This paper uses a structured interview questionnaire to examine the motif for reading, usage and significance of the Bible to the Christians in Kenyasi within the Kwabre East Municipality of the Ashanti Region of Ghana. 6 denominations and 2 Para-church movements in Kenyase were selected. This included mainline orthodox and Pentecostal churches as well as charismatic churches. It is observed in this study that, various Christians have different motifs for reading and using the Bible in their private Christian life. Some of them showed that they are mostly influenced in a way by their primal worldview which has made them ritualize the use of the bible and also approach the Bible base on the circumstances they are surrounded with. This study stresses the need for the church in Africa, among all the other ways of using and reading the bible, to educate congregants on the knowledge that the Bible is the key document that facilitates the nurturing process of the Christian other than merely using it as a sacred object of power and approaching it purposely with their problem to seek for the solution.