Public Preaching by Muslims and Pentecostals in Mumias, Western Kenya and its Influence on Interfaith Relations

Abstract

This research argues that the huge presence of “free preachers” points to the development of new religious leadership both in Islam and Pentecostalism in Kenya in general, and Mumias, Western Kenya, in particular. Both traditions are witnessing a fragmentation of leadership through the emergence of new leaders whose claim to authority is based on experience and not traditional learning. The emergence of this new crop of leadership leads to competition between the new leadership and traditional leadership and also between members of the two traditions. Both Islamic and Pentecostal preachers engage in the public sphere in varying but also common ways. The contestation of the preachers in the public sphere must be understood within the broader context of Kenya’s public sphere. The unbalanced sharing of resources in Kenya which has adversely affected Muslim dominated areas such as the coastal and North Eastern provinces is widely acknowledged. Such inequality, real and perceived, has led to claims of deliberate marginalization of Muslims.The imbalances between Muslims and Christians in the country impact on differentiated engagements in the public sphere, which this thesis highlights through a study of public preaching as daʿwah and mission respectively. Muslim preachers in their sermons invite on non-Muslims to embrace Islam as a more rational and more ‘biblical” tradition.They call on Christians to debate with them, mainly on a set of Biblical texts. Their daʿwah is a debate staged in the public square, and proclaims the truth of Islam against the dominant Christian tradition. The Pentecostals, on the other hand, extend their churches into the public square. The stage is not a debating duel, but an extension of the Church. They ask Christians to recognize “salvation” in the word and deed of God, and recommit themselves to Jesus Christ. This acceptance is also framed around the Bible, which speaks to the challenges facing contemporary Kenyans. Pentecostal Preaching acts reach a high point when listeners turn to Jesus by entering the Church. This research argues that public preaching by Muslims and Christians reflects their positions in the public sphere, and indicative of the competition between them. From a perceived marginalized position, Muslims want to prove that Christians err on the basis of Biblical and Qur’anic texts. Pentecostal Christian preachers, on the othe hand, extend their religious spaces into the public sphere and invite Kenyans in general, and mainline Christians in particular, to recommit themselves to Jesus. The preaching of both Muslims and Christians has potential and real negative effects for public order.