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Periodical article Periodical article Leiden University catalogue Leiden University catalogue WorldCat catalogue WorldCat
Title:My Matrimonial Bureau: Masculine Concerns and Presbyterian Mission Evangelization in the Gabon Estuary, c. 1900-1915
Author:Rich, JeremyISNI
Year:2006
Periodical:Journal of Religion in Africa
Volume:36
Issue:2
Pages:200-223
Language:English
Geographic term:Gabon
Subjects:missions
Fang
culture contact
History and Exploration
Religion and Witchcraft
Peoples of Africa (Ethnic Groups)
Cultural Roles
Historical/Biographical
Marital Relations and Nuptiality
About person:Robert H. Milligan
External link:https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/27594376.pdf
Abstract:This essay examines the reasons why some young Fang men supported Presbyterian missionary Robert Milligan's crusade to establish a Protestant community of converts in the Gabon Estuary region at the turn of the twentieth century. Milligan presented his work as an example of heroic and muscular Christianity that transformed young Gabonese men. However, his methods of attracting followers appear very similar to those used by local big men: creating kinship networks, providing military support, sharing imported goods and providing access to women for marriage. Fang men and Milligan shared a flexible vocabulary of fatherhood that placed obligations on converts and missionaries alike. Eventually, Milligan's efforts came undone because of problems with other missionaries, but young Fang men continued to turn to missionary patronage, in part to cope with gender tensions and struggles over status. Bibliogr., notes, ref., sum. [Journal abstract]
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