Although African culture uses a lot of stories, African scholars rarely use the
dynamics of popular stories in biblical interpretation. This article explores this
possibility through a narrative analysis of the inaugural discourse of Jesus in Lk.
4.16-30 and an opening story from the bagr initiation rite of the Dagara of
Ghana. Both stories are at the beginning of longer narratives and thus influence the
rest of the narrative. They have an inbuilt appeal to discipleship and to acting in
a certain way. The article identifies the key moments of each story and examines how
each story shapes the wider narrative. Dialogue with the anthropologist, Alexis
Tengan (2006), exegetes and other writers, allows the relevance and challenges of
biblical narrative criticism in Africa and beyond to emerge.
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