Issiaka Coulibaly is from Côte d’Ivoire and has been serving for over 25 years at the Faculté de théologie Issiaka Coulibaly is from Côte d’Ivoire and has been serving for over 25 years at the Faculté de Théologie Évangélique de l’Alliance Chrétienne (FATEAC) theological school in West Africa, most recently as its President. He was also chosen as one of two editors for French-speaking Africa for the first edition of the African Bible Commentary, supported by Langham and published in 2006.
FATEAC was established in 1993 under the collaboration and vision of the Christian Missionary Alliance, with the mission to help train and equip pastors across Africa. Today, almost 25 countries are represented at the school, which has recently been accredited as a university, offering a wider range of classes in addition to theology. “FATEAC is the oldest school in the French-speaking francophone regions…We had countries with some teaching and training, but then to actually have a tertiary theological school, in French-speaking countries, FATEAC is among the first in the West African region,” Issiaka shares.
New opportunities in the African Context
He explains, “Back in the day, most of the students had to move down to Central Africa to undergo training there, or some had to go to Canada or to the USA for training. Back then, they were not lucky to actually have a school here in the West African region… the school had the vision of capturing the training by respecting the African context. And I think this is actually groundbreaking when it comes to the training…now they’re trained with respect to the African context and how pastoral work is actually carried out here in Africa.”
Different countries have unique contexts and cultures, and the realities of serving God vary across regions. Issiaka explains, “When students are trained here in Côte d’Ivoire, for instance, or in the Western African region, they have the opportunity of understanding some of the dynamics of ministry and mission here. There are different contexts, for instance, for somebody studying in France, the challenges and the realities are different…So it is always good to actually bring back training in the context so that it can help the students to have a better understanding of the dynamics around.”
Issiaka is greatly encouraged by the diversity at the college and the mutual enrichment that happens when students from different countries come together. “There are common questions or issues that are related to most of the countries that are actually coming here for training. When you trace back their history talking about colonialism, most of these countries were colonised by the French, so they share basically the same political and social and economic history,” he shares.
The Importance of the Africa Bible Commentary
The African Bible Commentary has been a vital resource for both lecturers and students. Issiaka explains, “First of all, because it is a historical book, in the sense that it’s basically the first book which was actually written by African scholars from different countries who came together to write this African tool, it is helping to reflect how we understand the gospel here, how we perceive the gospel, and how the gospel has been lived…Most of the students actually do refer to the book as one of the books that are being used, so it’s actually quite an important book or a tool for the students here at the school.”
A challenge in the church in Côte d’Ivoire is limited Bible knowledge. “I think the main challenge for the church is that people are actually drawn to quick, easy things, and quick answers. And I think it does not really give way to actually have some sort of deep roots when it comes to beliefs, and also other things that need to be really rooted…The gospel needs to actually help people to experience the word of God as it answers to their realities and their daily challenges.”
Having a contextually relevant resource like the African Bible Commentary has been a great blessing to both the college and the wider church in Francophone and East Africa. “The way the context has been exposed makes it easy for the reader to actually relate to the realities of the gospel. And in the commentaries, the authors actually took time to also illustrate some of the realities using Proverbs and also some of the African illustrations…Having this commentary makes it a lot easier, culturally speaking, for Africans to actually relate to the gospel as it portrays their realities here in Africa,” Issiaka says.
The African Bible Commentary project began in 2000, and as one of its editors, Issiaka’s role involved identifying authors to write the commentaries and guiding them through administrative and contractual processes. Issiaka shares, “I’m really grateful to the Lord for making this possible, choosing men and people to work on the project, but also for the provision that God has allowed. And as we trace back the history of this book, it is actually exceptional. It has impacted so many lives, and it continues to impact lives. And we are really grateful to God for allowing this book to come to life, because it answers most of the challenges that we have here. And I’m very happy to have been part of the team that has worked on this book, making it a solution for the church. And this book has been translated into so many other languages, like English, Swahili, and Malagasy, and it continues to actually help the church here in Africa.”
He continues, “It’s just extraordinary to actually see the impact of how this project went about impacting other regions and other contexts. And it’s also proof that this was a project that was actually inspired by God. Now, when you look at the impact that it had and also the way it also inspired other similar projects, we are really grateful and we are proud with all humility to God for being the pioneers of such a project and also such a movement. And we continue to really thank God for making this possible.”
Looking Ahead
Now, over 17 years after the first edition, the second revision of the African Bible Commentary is about to be released. “There’s a need for us to again come back and cater to those new realities. As the context and the lives, conditions are evolving in a way, it is important to come back again and see how we can foster those new realities into the Bible commentaries.”
Issiaka adds, “I would like to thank all those in the churches who believed in this project and supported the project financially. It has transformed life, as we experience the impact of the word of God in the life of the people around here in Africa. And we see that there is a need for us to follow up on this project. We’ve seen how the first edition went about impacting lives, but then we also see that there’s a need for us to have other additions to the African Bible Commentary, but also other commentaries that will help bring the church into having a clear understanding of the word of God.”
Langham Partnership has also partnered with FATEAC by supporting lecturers, PhD students and providing resources and books. “The impact of the ministry of Langham here has allowed us to have men and women who are qualified for theological study and teaching in Africa,” Issiaka shares.
We thank God for Issiaka and for the ministry of FATEAC, and for the profound impact that the African Bible Commentary continues to have across the continent. Please pray that the second edition will reach even more Christians across Africa and equip them to understand the Bible faithfully and relevantly.
Learn more and order the second edition African Bible Commentary by clicking below.