Publications on Cardinal Poreku Dery

Alexis B. Tengan (ed.)
Religion, Culture, Society and Integral Human Development: proceedings of Cardinal Poreku Dery third colloquium
First published in 2017 by

Sub-SaharanPublishers
P.O.Box 358

Legon-Accra
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Synopsis: The present book presents a collection of papers presented during the third Cardinal Poreku Dery Colloquium held at Wa, Ghana. Cardinal Dery Colloquia are part of an action research movement and study initiated by Dr. Alexis B. Tengan since 2003 which are seeking to provide a heritage institution of integral human development in the fullest sense of the term. The focus of the movement is to create intellectual awareness for self and guided education into the depths of religious, cultural, economic, social and philosophical movements and ideas before and after foreign religious (Islam, Christianity etc.) arrival particularly in northern Ghana and in Africa generally. The main objective is to identify and document the tangible and intangible archival institutions and materials within the societies in Northern Ghana and in Africa in order to build a comprehensive and integrated heritage institution, of cultural and philosophical discourses within the context of religious and integral development of the people. The project wishes to, in the end, contribute to research on the cultural history and individual as well as social biographies of life in Northern Ghana by focusing particularly on the dynamic interchange and tensions between religion, culture, the economy and society as it evolved since the time of slave raiding in the mid-19th century.
Contents:Paul Bemile: Welcome Address - Ahmidu Sulemana: Satetment "The poor you will always have with you" - Alexis Tengan: A Historical Moment and the End of an Era - Maamalifar M. Poreku: Cardinal Dery in Dialogue with Religions, Cultures and Human Development - Albert Ketelaars: Embracing The Future with Hope: The Emmaus Story in my Personal Life as a Religious Brother and the Role of Cardinal Dery - Richard Kuuia Baawobr: Reconciling Religion and Culture to African Politics - Agbonkhianmeghe E. Orobator: Religion and Politics in Africa: The Challenge for the African Church -  Isidore Lobnibe: The Northern Ghanaian Immigrant Factor in Brong Electoral Politics and the Politics of Belonging in Brong Ahafo, Ghana - Edward B. Tengan: People are my Hobby: The Philosophical Anthropology of Peter Cardinal Poreku Dery - An Debyser: Language in medicine - Alexis B. Tengan: About Dagara Art, Religion and Medicine: Life Transmission and Sustenance - George Gyader: Secularization: A Threat to a Century Old Catholicism in the Tamale Ecclesiastical Province of Northern Ghana? A Study with Particular Reference to the Catholic Diocese of Wa - Gregory Dongkore: Adopting Paolo Freire’s Pedagogy of the oppressed as a Christian Educational Theory in Ghana - Jane -Frances Lobnibe: Between Institutional Governance and Inequality in Higher Education: The Case of the University for Development Studies (UDS) Ghana - Africanus L. Diedong: Relevance of Christian Youth Associations in Ghana in an Emerging Digital Culture - Dapila N. Fabian: Widowhood Rite Among the Dagaaba of Ghana: Effectiveness of the Catholic Inculturation Process


Edward B. Tengan
Some Catechists tell their story: The catechists and the early missionary work among the people of northern Ghana, ISBN: 978-9988-2-2607-7. pp. 78
Published by GILLBT Press, Tamale
Year of Publication: 2015
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Review by Isidore Lobnibe:

During the early decade of the twentieth century, the British Gold Coast colonial administration after much resistance, allowed the Canadian Missionaries of Africa (i.e White Fathers) to   begin their proselytizing activities in what is present day northern Ghana in a limited fashion. By the 1930s, the white fathers had extended their activities from Navrongo to Jirapa in northwestern Ghana where they started to attract and convert thousands of people from the British and neighboring French colonial territories.   Since the 1980s,   the  history  and contributions  of the early  catholic missionaries in northern Ghana  are  receiving scholarly attention(see McCoy 1988), but  what  remains  little known is the frontline role played by the catechists or local African assistants’ in the Missionary enterprise.

Some Catechists Tell their Stories is a slim but fascinating book by Edward Tengan that attempts to fill this historical gap. In gripping narrative accounts, the book details the career trajectories of six Catechists from northwestern Ghana, drawing on pictures, and oral interviews, conducted with the informants during their retirement years. The informants were among the early generation of the lay religious animators whom the White Missionaries recruited to assist them in their efforts to evangelize the people in this part of Ghana.  In the 1980s the priest-anthropologist author interviewed the Catechists at the prompting of his doctoral dissertation supervisor, Elizabeth Tonkin of the University of Birmingham.  The result is a fine historical ethnographic account that provides detailed insights into how the Catechists were recruited from their peasant households, and trained to become catechists. Lacking reading skills, the white Missionaries offered intensive training in basic theology and reading skills; they were then posted to outstations of the major parishes away from their own native villages. 

  The book raises important questions: beyond the career trajectories of the Catechists by shedding light into ongoing debates on the sociology of conversion and the local Africans role in it. The unequal power relations between the white missionaries and their subordinates, especially make the book come alive.  The book may have been intended as a pastoral primer, but it unearths the complicated relations between the Catechists and the local African chiefs who represented the colonial authorities on one hand, and the individual missionaries under whose parishes they served on the other.  The author presents his interlocutors’ narratives in ways that allow them to tell their own stories, so that the reader can discern different and multiple layers of tensions and conflicts that characterized the catechists’ careers. At one level, the catechists frequently ran into collision course with the colonially appointed chiefs under whose local jurisdictions they were posted to serve.  Moreover, because the chiefs saw them as agents of change and the fulcrum around which community life revolved, they feared that their activities undermined their authorities, and therefore worked to   frustrate their efforts; some of the chiefs went as far as to physically torture the Catechists.   In fact, the book is dedicated to one of the Catechists who paid the ultimate price in the hand of the chief Fielmuo. But the complicated nature of the Catechists’ relations with the chiefs also stemmed from the fact that some of the chiefs facilitated and even protected them from harm.

  Another layer of tension concerns the individual parish priests’ treatment of the catechists. Here, the stories of the latter point to the paternalistic, if not racial undercurrents that informed and shaped individual white missionaries treatment of the African subordinates. The early catechists’ relations with the younger generation of Catechists who entered the career with some school education was also fraught with tensions.

 This book’s major contribution lies in giving voice to the native subaltern African evangelizer in ways that recover their historical memories and agency in the White missionary evangelization in this part of West Africa.  This is significant because while the white missionary’s experiences can be recovered from the mission archive or memoirs, those of the catechists are largely silenced. By recording the narratives of the catechists’ career trajectory in their twilight years, the author has, allowed the Africans to also insert their own experiences in the historical record of the missionary enterprise.  One would only have wished that the Catechists’ wives whom the author intimated accompanied their husbands during their training and careers were included in the book.  For the Cate hists wives were   hardly mere witnesses but embodied their husbands’ lived experiences and their narratives    would have enriched book. This book would be of interest to the student of African religion, history and historiography, and adult literacy. It is hoped that it will be given a wider circulation beyond its   little known publisher because of the first hand experiences, which I believe, represent rich minefield to be mined by future scholars.

 References Cited:

 McCoy,R.E.  1988. Great Things Happen: A personal Memoir of te First Christina Missionary Among the Dagaabas and Sisaalas of northwest Ghana.  Montreal. The Society of Missionary of Africa.

Isidore Lobnibe, Western Oregon University

Alexis B. Tengan (ed.)
Christianity and Cultural History in Northern Ghana: A Portrait of Cardinal Peter Poreku Dery (1918-2008)
Peter Lang Academic Publishing

Series: Dieux, Hommes et Religions - Volume 20
Gods, Humans and Religions

Year of Publication: December 2013
Bruxelles, Bern, Berlin, Frankfurt am Main, New York, Oxford, Wien, 2013. 281 p., 10 ill. ISBN 978-2-87574-114-1 pb.  (Soft cover)

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Book Synopsis:

On Monday 23 April 1906 the Missionaries of Africa, also known as the White Fathers, arrived from Upper Volta, today known as Burkina Faso, in Navrongo to begin their missionary activities in northern Ghana. The small group consisted of three missionaries and a contingent of twenty Africans as helpers. Socially and culturally, the region was still suffering from the consequences of the recently outlawed practice of slave raiding and the terror regimes initiated by Zambarma generals such as Samouri and Babatu. 

The inhabitants were still to come to terms with the European use of military force to try to establish colonial rule. Many of the populations and groups residing in what was then called the Northern Territories of Ghana, and also those in semi-urban trading centres such as Tamale, Wa and Bawku, had, over the past century, come to adopt aspects of Islamization within their cultures and had accepted the centralizing chieftaincy structure as their main socio-political system. 

Cardinal Dery was born around this time into a priestly class among the Dagara people, and his life story as a religious leader vividly captures the cultural evolution of the whole region within this period.

Contents: 

Contents: Alexis B. Tengan: Dagara Appropriation of Christianity. Missionary and Colonial Movements into Northwest Ghana since 1929 – Linus Zan: African Traditional Religious Leadership and the Worldview of Peter Cardinal Poreku Dery – Paschal Kyiiripuo Kyoore: A Study of Proverbs among the Dagara of West Africa – Gervase Angsotinge: «If You Do Good You Do it to Yourself and if You Do Evil You Do it to Yourself». Retribution in the Oral Narratives of the Dagaaba – Richard K. Baawobr: Paul’s Call for Reconciliation and its Relevance for the Church with Particular Reference to Africa – Edward Tengan: Conversion and Transformation of Worldviews. The Case of the Dagara of Northwest Ghana – Fabian N. Dapila: Evangelizing the Dagaaba Through Bible Translation. Then and Now – Gregory B. Dongkore: Quality Teaching and Education in Northern Ghana. The Role of the Church – Africanus L. Diedong: Role of Christian Education for Sustainable Development in Northern Ghana – Nora Kofognotera Nonterah: The Use of Religious Education in Fostering Inter-Religious Peace in Ghana – Aloysius Porekuu: The Presence and Works of the Brothers of Immaculate Conception (FIC) in Ghana – Isidore Lobnibe: «Were It Not in the Bush, Will A Man Abandon His Wife This Way?» Northern Immigrants and the Dilemmas of Social Reproduction in the Forest Transition Zone of Ghana – Gariba B. Abdul-Korah: Shifting and Contested Relationships. Migration, Gender, and Family Economy among the Dagaaba in the Twentieth Century.

Edward B. Tengan (ed.)

Retreat with Peter Cardinal Porekuu Dery:Some Reflections of Cardinal Dery on our Christian Vocations
St. Francis Press Ltd; Takoradi
Year of Publication: February 2013
Takoradi (Ghana)
I-IX & 121 pages (Soft cover)
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Book Synopsis:
The book is an invitation to members of the different sectors of our church to come away to a quiet place and engage in a personal encounter with the Lord through conversation with Cardinal Dery.
Though the different chapters are addressed to different sectors of our Christian faithful, a meditative reading of the different chapters of the book affords the reader the chance to gain some insight into Cardinal Dery's views concerning the varied Christian vocations and their roles in the building up of the family of God. Through these pages, Cardinal Dery continues to guide and shepherd the flock he has left behind. It is certainly a very useful document to accompany us on our spiritual journey.

Contents:
The Retreat in the Christian Life: "Come aside and rest for a while" - Retreat for Bishops, Pastors and Shepherds - Retreat for Priests - Retreat fro the Religious - Retreat for the Youth - Concluding the Retreat.

Alexis B. Tengan (Documentary Article)
Dery, Peter Porekuu (1918 - 2008) in: Dictionary of African Biography,
Emmanuel K. Akyeampong & Henry Louis Gates Jr (ed.) 
Year of Publication: 2012 (Pages 182-85)
Oxford University Press
Oxford, New York

Abstract:
Dictionary of African Biography is a major biographical dictionary covering the lives and legacies of notable African men and women from all eras and walks of life. This ground breaking resource tells the full story of the African continent through the lives of its people. The article entry of Dery, Peter Poreku documents the cultural significance of his life to Africa. Starting with the cultural meaning and significance of a given name, the article documents the unique type of religious and spiritual leadership Dery gave to his people during his time. The entry also explains briefly the underlying philosophy of integral human development behind Dery's social action and his approach to the integration of Catholicism and African Indigenous Religions.     

The Nation of Ghana (State Funeral Committee)
Funeral Rites for his Eminence Peter Cardinal Porekuu Dery
St. Francis Press Ltd., Takoradi
April 2008; 48 pp.

Book Synopsis:
Following his death on 6th March 2008 (Ghana's Independence day), a national period of mourning and a state burial and funeral was organised in honour of Cardinal Dery from Monday 31st March to Tuesday 1st April at the Tamale Sport Stadium. This book further documents the life story of Cardinal Dery and brings together some major testimonies of individuals, local and international, on the social and spiritual role he played in their lives. It also contain tribute messages from different segments of Ghanaian society. 

Contents:
Biography of the late Peter Cardinal Porekuu Dery - A message from his Holiness Pope Benedict XVI - A message from Ivan Cardinal Dias, Prefect of the congregation for the evangelization of peoples - A message from Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Secretary of Sate - A message from the apostolic nuncio to Ghana - A condolence message presented by the symposium of episcopal conference of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) - Liturgical Program - A tribute from national union of Ghana Catholic Diocesan Priests' Associations - Tribute from National Catholic laity council - Tribute from Ghana National Catholic youth council - Tribute from Tamale archdiocesan priests' association - Tribute from Congregation of the sisters of Mary Immaculate - Tribute from Xavier family - Tribute from St. Francis of Assisi old girls association - Tribute from the Noble order of the knights and ladies of Marshall - Tribute from the knights of St. John international and ladies auxiliary - Tribute by OLA cathedral parish pastoral council - Tribute from Nandom youth and development association - Tribute from Pax Romana and IYCS members - Tribute from Grandchildren of cardinal Dery - A message from Cardinal Dery at centenary celebration at Navrongo.

  

Paul Bemile (Ed.)

From Assistant Fetish Priest to Archbishop: 

Studies in Honor of Archbishop Dery

Vintage Press, New York, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Chicago

Copyright: 1987 Josaphat B. Kubayanda

I-IX; 1-125 pp. ISBN: 0533072271

Book Synopsis:

From Assistant Fetish Priest to Archbishop is a compilation of articles in tribute to Arch­bishop Peter Poreku Dery of Ghana, in West Africa. From paganism to installation as a Roman Catholic archbishop, the life of Peter Dery can be described as a pilgrimage along the way of duty and devotion to God.

Responding to new and unexpected calls with never a faltering step, Archbishop Dery's faith and forceful character have led the way that many others now follow. His service as priest and bishop has been a service to all the needs of his people. Not only do seminaries now flourish where none existed before, but the everyday needs of his people are met. Anticipating Vatican II, Archbishop Dery began the African indigenization of the liturgy by translating it into the language of the local people in Ghana, composing hymns, introducing the use of local music on native instruments, and even reclaiming the native religious words from the province of paganism.

This is the story of a man born to pagan parents who became a Roman Catholic priest and whose outstanding efforts were recog­nized by Pope John XIII. Truly the life of Peter Dery has provided "a light to lighten the Gentiles."

Contents:

Paul Bemile: Preface; Archbishop Dery - Albert A. Kuuire: The Dimensions of Christian Salvation - Joseph W. Apuri: African Parallels for the Jewish Concept and Ritual of Blood - Lucas Adadamloora: The Catholic Church in West Africa: Historico-Pastoral Perspectives - Edward B. Tengan: Personalism: A plea for the Person-Attitude in Life - Paul Bemile: Some Theological Reflections of Africans after the Independence of Black Africa - Gregory E. Kpiebaya: Shepherd of his Flock - Yvon Yangyuoru: Towards Effective Youth Movement: A Sociological Viewpoint.

Bauer, Marcel & Hansjosef Theyssen (Documentary Book Chapter)

Peter Dery: Der Sohn des Fetischpriesters (Peter Dery: The Son of Fetish Priests) 

(in) Pioniere und Propheten.
(ISBN: 3877600298 / 3-87760-029-8)
Publisher: Spee-Verlag, Trier - Missio-Aktuell-Verlag,
Publication Date: 1979


Abstract:
This is a chapter of a book documentary on church pioneers and their prophetic visions. The language of the book is German. The chapter on Peter Dery recounts his career history starting as the son of a fetish priest and passing through working as houseboy to the first missionaries in northern Ghana to becoming bishop of Wa and Tamale. The main body of the article, however, uses professional photography to document Dery's pastoral interaction with different categories of people and in various locations. These included the market place in the town of Wa, the old house where Dery was born, in the open savannah and with people engaged with their daily activities.
(© Alexis B. Tengan)