Andrew Walls
Encyclopedia
Professor Andrew Finlay Walls is a British Christian theologian and missiologist, best known for his pioneering study of the history of the African church. He is currently Professor of the History of Missions at Liverpool Hope University
, Honorary Professor at the University of Edinburgh
and Research Professor at Africa International University's Center for World Christianity. Liverpool Hope University has a research centre named in honour of him, which encourages and supports research in the field of African and Asian Christianity.
His most significant observations have concerned the geographical trends in Christianity in the 20th and 21st centuries, especially in terms of expansion in Africa. Historian Lamin Sanneh
commented that he was 'one of the few scholars who saw that African Christianity was not just an exotic, curious phenomenon in an obscure part of the world, but that African Christianity might be the shape of things to come'. His pioneering research led the magazine Christianity Today
to describe him in 2007 as 'a historian ahead of his time' and 'the most important person you don’t know'.
Walls also founded the Journal of Religion in Africa
in 1967.
Liverpool Hope University
Liverpool Hope University is a university in Liverpool, England. Two of its three founding colleges were established in 1844 and 1856, the third opening in the 1960s. It is the only ecumenical university in Europe. Based on two campuses, the main campus is located in Childwall and the second...
, Honorary Professor at the University of Edinburgh
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
and Research Professor at Africa International University's Center for World Christianity. Liverpool Hope University has a research centre named in honour of him, which encourages and supports research in the field of African and Asian Christianity.
His most significant observations have concerned the geographical trends in Christianity in the 20th and 21st centuries, especially in terms of expansion in Africa. Historian Lamin Sanneh
Lamin Sanneh
Lamin Sanneh is currently the D. Willis James Professor of Missions and World Christianity and Professor of History at Yale Divinity School.-Life and work:...
commented that he was 'one of the few scholars who saw that African Christianity was not just an exotic, curious phenomenon in an obscure part of the world, but that African Christianity might be the shape of things to come'. His pioneering research led the magazine Christianity Today
Christianity Today
Christianity Today is an Evangelical Christian periodical based in Carol Stream, Illinois. It is the flagship publication of its parent company Christianity Today International, claiming circulation figures of 140,000 and readership of 290,000...
to describe him in 2007 as 'a historian ahead of his time' and 'the most important person you don’t know'.
Walls also founded the Journal of Religion in Africa
Journal of Religion in Africa
The Journal of Religion in Africa is a quarterly academic journal established in 1967 by Andrew Walls. It focuses on all religious traditions in Africa....
in 1967.