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Call for Papers
Theme: The Clash between Modern and Traditional Life
Subtitle: African Family Values in the Contemporary World
Type: International Conference
Institution: Council for Research in Values and Philosophy (RVP)
Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA)
Location: Nairobi (Kenya)
Date: 25.–26.5.2017
Deadline: 1.3.2017
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The challenges of Africa, under the impact of colonialism and
imperialism, hardly need any introduction. Caroline Elkins, in her
book “Imperial Reckoning: The Untold Story of Britain's Gulag in
Kenya” (Henry Holt and Company, 2005), describes the so-called
3-pronged prescriptions of British mission to civilise the African
continent as follows: (1) to redeem the backward heathens by bringing
the light of the gospel to the dark continent, (2) to use the
superior economic know-how to exploit the continent’s natural
resources and its people’s labour, and (3) to civilise Africa
administratively by using their superior laws and administrative
structures. Indeed, the hidden agenda has been exposed by such
thinkers as Walter Rodney (How Europe Underdeveloped Africa, Bogle
L’Ouverture Publications, 1972) among others.
The interest of this conference, however, is the clash of values that
ensued from the encounter. Especially it will focus on family values,
because family is the foundation of society. According to the African
tradition as well as many other traditions marriage is the lynchpin
of which all societal life evolves. According to J.S. Mbiti (African
Religions and Philosophy, Heinemann, 1969/1990) this concept of
marriage is the centre of life in Africa for (1) it connotes
immortality, a continuum of the past, present, and future, that is,
life in the here and now, at a non-definitive future, and in the
hereafter; (2) it also encompasses a plethora of relationships,
namely, between fellow human beings, between families, between
communities and the environment, between living persons and
ancestors, and between human beings and their creator.
In reality, the African life, values and cultural traditions have
been persistently reliving, reviving and evolving in its rich soil
despite the imposed ideas, policies, paradigms, among other forms of
foreign interference. Nevertheless, the imposition did distort many
things and affect the life and values in many ways in the African
continent. The clash between the modern and traditional values and
ways of life has raised many unprecedented challenges that this CUEA
international conference has taken special interest in.
In preparation for the conference, the CUEA academia makes a special
effort to delve into concrete issues pertaining to this clash and
distortion of values and ways of life. If we have to ‘re-learn to be
human for global times’, we need to discover what went wrong and how
to correct the mistakes.
Thus, the CUEA Faculty of Law and other participating faculties and
departments, such as, Literature and Language, Education, Social
Justice and Ethics, Philosophy, and Theology, have developed themes
and sub-themes related to their areas respectively. For instance,
“African Family Values and ‘Literature as a Tool for Promoting
Values: The African Experience.”
Abstract
Please send an abstract of not more than 300 words and a brief CV to
Professor Ernest Beyaraza [ebeyar...@yahoo.com] and [cua-...@cua.edu]
by March 1, 2017. Full papers sent by April 30, 2017 will be
considered for publication by the RVP in its publication series
"Cultural Heritage and Contemporary Change."
Contact:
Ernest Beyaraza
Email: ebeyar...@yahoo.com
Web: http://www.crvp.org/conferences/2017/Nairobi-2.html
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