The Manipulation Of The Crowd (S) In Matthew's Gospel And In The Slums Of Nairobi.
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Date
2003
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Tangaza University College
Abstract
Nowadays it is common to hear of the large crowds in political rallies in Kenya
as election time approaches. We hear a politician addressing a large crowd in a certain
ground somewhere in the country. The crowd is becoming very important as the date of
election draws near! The politician's chances of winning the coming general election is
measured by the size of the crowds that gather to listen to him/her. It is surprising
because most of politicians have shown little or no interest in the crowds after they were
elected five years ago. This shows that the politicians' interest in crowds is solely for
their own personal interest and gain. They like the crowds only when they benefit them
and when they can get something out of them. At this time of the election, it is the votes
of the crowds that politicians are interested in obtaining and the rest is secondary.
We also hear of the rioting mob in the slums and of the thief or someone who is
or has been killed by an angry mob. When the crowd becomes rowdy and uncontrolled
it is referred to as a mob. When someone is killed or maltreated by the mob, usually
nobody takes responsibility and it is referred to as "mob-justice".
What is puzzling is that the offense is done to an individual most of the time. It
is individuals in the groups who pick up stones and stone someone. But when this individual is in a group he/she feels no personal responsibility anymore. In other words
one can do whatever he/she wills provided he/she does it in a mob.
I have witnessed people who have been killed in cold blood by an angry mobs,
incited by only one person with only one word, "thief'." In 2001, on Christmas Eve a
young man was killed by stoning outside the wall of our compound by a crowd after he
failed to rob a woman of her mobile phone. Nobody was held responsible for his death!
Besides these, very often in town, I have heard people saying, "Let us go and see what
is happening there, since there are many people gathered." It is as if the crowd has a
magnetic force that pulls individuals to it! Some people are willing to spend their
precious time simply to be with the crowd.
In my study of theology, I have been puzzled by the ambivalence of the crowd
present in all the gospels during the whole ministry of Jesus. The crowd is presented as
powerful (leaders fear it) and fickle at the same time, easily manipulated by the clever
ones (leaders).
Slums are the places where big crowds are often found. This being the case, if
one wants to know more about the crowds', slums provide a good opportunity. During
my four years in Nairobi, I have been in contact with crowds in one of the slums of
Nairobi, Mukuru-Kayaba. This crowd has broadened my perspective and I have come to
understand the source of ambivalence which marked the crowds in Jesus' time and
which continues to characterise the crowds we encounter in many places today.
I have written this paper because of my interest in this subject, an interest which
has been stirred up by what I have mentioned above. In order to be clear from the beginning of what we are dealing with, this paper attempts to define in chapter one the
meaning of the crowd, and its many varied usages as well as it's synonyms.
Having explicated the meaning of the crowd in chapter one; chapter two focuses
on a particular crowd in one of the gospels, Matthew's. We have chosen the crowd in
this particular gospel because p history, environment and challenges are somewhat
similar to those of the crowds we find in the slums of Nairobi today. The crowds we
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encounter today are not a general, vague or the one of Matthew, this being_ the case, I
have dedicated chapter three to this crowd. Crowds do not exist in a vacuum! This is
why I have dwelt at length on the history, physical conditions and different challenges
that face the crowds in both chapters two and three. I am convinced that the crowd is
manipulated partly because of these conditions. The reaction of the crowd(s) is also
influenced by these historical, physical, economical, social and religious phenomena.
This paper suggests the formation of a small group for evangelization from the
crowds following the model of Jesus and his disciples. This small group prepared to live
according to the gospel values and greater awareness of the realities surrounding them,
will make others especially from the slum crowds, disciples. I am convinced that once a
group which live in the midst of the slum-crowd(s) is influenced by gospel values, it can
in turn influence others from the slums to embrace the same values and therefore to
make it difficult and impossible for those who want to manipulate them for their
personal gain.
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Keywords
Crowd, Manipulation, Matthew's Gospel, Slums Of Nairobi