LOVE OF NEIGHBOUR IN LK 10:25-37: A NARRATIVE READING FROM CHEWA TRADITIONAL PERSPECTIVE IN MALAWI
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Date
2025-11
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THE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF EASTERN AFRICA
Abstract
Chewa societies in Malawi have oral traditions that can be used to understand the biblical message from their cultural perspective. Some of their traditional stories, like folktales, proverbs, and legends, are used to communicate messages to the audience. Some of these oral traditions promote the love of neighbour by teaching moral lessons in Chewa societies. This study aimed to understand the love of neighbour in the narrative of Lk 10:25-37 from the perspective of the Chewa people in Malawi. The study employed an African Integrated Approach to biblical interpretation which involved three steps: the literary analysis of Lk 10:25-37 through Narrative Criticism that examines the features and functions of storytelling in the Bible; the analysis of Chewa traditional narratives on the love of neighbour and then the interaction between Lk 10:25-37 and the Chewa traditional stories. The synopsis helped us to set up some hermeneutic principles applicable in understanding other biblical passages in different contexts. The work has revealed that to understand the biblical message, it is good to use the oral traditions of the local people for them to understand the Word of God from their cultural perspective.
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Keywords
Love of neighbour, Luke 10:25–37, narrative interpretation, biblical hermeneutics, contextual theology.