The Rev. Prof. John S. Mbiti Memorial Lecture is an interdisciplinary academic gathering dedicated to engaging the enduring intellectual legacy of John S. Mbiti. It provides a platform for scholarly dialogue across disciplines, institutions, and regions, fostering renewed inquiry into his work and its contemporary relevance. The inaugural edition explores the theme The Enduring Legacy of Prof. John S. Mbiti’s Discourse on African Spirituality and the Nexus between African Religion and Christianity with keynote speaker Prof. Philomena Njeri Mwaura from Kenyatta University.
The lecture takes place annually in October.
Practical Information
Date: 16 October 2026 | 14:00–17:00
Location: Tangaza University, School of Theology, Nuru Hall, Langata South Road, Karen, Nairobi, Kenya
Format: Hybrid format (on-site & online)
Who can attend: Open to academics and the public
Charges: Free of charge (registration required)
VISION
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Conceived as an annual academic convening within a broader commemorative framework, the lecture seeks not merely to look back on Mbiti’s contributions but to take his scholarship as a point of departure for renewed inquiry, dialogue, and thoughtful reflection. It aims to provide a platform that both honours his intellectual legacy and stimulates further research and conversation across disciplines and institutions.
The annual lecture invites scholars from diverse fields to interpret, contextualise, and engage with his ideas, and to consider their continuing relevance. It also seeks to foster academic exchange and collaboration across universities, disciplines, and regions, including connections with the visual and performing arts.
LEGACY
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Prof. Dr. phil., Dr. theol. h. c. John S. Mbiti (1931–2019) was a Kenyan theologian and philosopher of religions whose work earned him recognition as the “father of modern African theology.” His interdisciplinary scholarship focuses on the role of religions in society and their historical transformation, with particular attention to Christianity and interreligious and intercultural dialogue.
By challenging Eurocentric readings of African religions and advancing a specifically African-centred Christian theology, John S. Mbiti opened new pathways for religious and intercultural understanding. His work draws on philosophy, ethics, anthropology, linguistics, and religious studies, and comprises more than 400 publications. Among his most influential books are African Religions and Philosophy (1969), Concepts of God in Africa (1970), and The Prayers of African Religion (1975).
Over the course of his career, Mbiti held professorial and visiting appointments at universities across three continents and was an internationally sought-after speaker. His contributions were recognised with numerous honours, including the Anglican Church of South Africa’s Peace with Justice Award (2016).
Intellectual Relevance and Reception
Mbiti’s work has had a lasting impact on modern African intellectual traditions, particularly in the study of religions and African philosophy, and continues to inform contemporary debates in philosophy of religion, African theology, interreligious dialogue, curriculum development, identity formation, decolonial epistemologies, and indigenous knowledge systems. Although not a political theorist, his work is frequently read as carrying enduring ethical implications, especially regarding human dignity and relational conceptions of community. This is reflected in his widely cited formulation, “I am because we are; and since we are, therefore I am” (1969:108), often interpreted as an influential articulation of relational personhood associated with the concept of Ubuntu as a central dimension of African social, ethical, and existential life. The breadth and interdisciplinary nature of his oeuvre have generated sustained academic engagement across generations and disciplines.
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
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Prof. Philomena Njeri Mwaura (Ph. D) is an Associate Professor in the Philosophy and Religious Studies Department, Kenyatta University, Kenya. She is a former Director of the Centre for Gender Equity and Empowerment in the same university.
Prof. Mwaura is also former President of the International Association for Mission Studies and a former Coordinator of the Theology and Women’s Commissions (Africa Region) of the Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians (EATWOT). She is also a member of the Circle of Concerned African Women Theologians and Chairperson of the Board of the Collaborative Centre for Gender and Development, Kenya. Since 2021, Prof. Mwaura has been a member of the Methodological Committee of the World Forum for Theology and Liberation. She has researched, taught and published extensively on various aspects of African Christianity, African Catholicism, new religious movements, Pentecostal and Charismatic Movements/Churches, gender and theology, gender and religion, and religion in public life.
PROGRAMME
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The event will begin with an opening ceremony, followed by the Inaugural Memorial Keynote Lecture delivered by Prof. Philomena Njeri Mwaura. Invited discussants will then offer their responses, leading into a plenary discussion. The programme will conclude with closing remarks, after which participants are warmly invited to continue the conversation during a networking reception with refreshments.
LINK Full Programme [View / Download programme PDF] QR-Code
Credit
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Photo John S. Mbiti (1970): Meyer Liebowitz/The New York Times/Redux/laif
Organisation
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A collaborative initiative of Mbiti Mulango Family Trust and Tangaza University of Nairobi, with the support of the John S. Mbiti Memorial Planning Committee.
