Solomon Andria - Romans

T he study of the epistle of Romans is essential for any Christian theology, for any faith led by the desire for more depth and purity. There is not and never will be any African theology which forfeits the need for African study of this fundamental exposition of the gospel. I am therefore deeply grateful to my old friend, Solomon Andria for setting himself the formidable task of commenting on the whole epistle, a task that he achieved with the help of the Holy Spirit.

First of all, I commend this work for its African flavour. Solomon Andria is one of the rare authors who can represent the large variety of sub-Saharan Africas diversity and Christianity. He honours his country of origin, Madagascar, the Big Island, (even embellishing his commentary with Malagasy sayings and proverbs) and makes the most of the cultural resources of Cte dIvoire, his adoptive country. He has also visited many other African countries and knows the churches of many denominations, has seen them grow, and has sometimes also seen them make mistakes. He has listened to their pastors and has contributed to their edification through his preaching and teaching ministry with IFES. It was during a meeting held in Bangui with church leaders from many countries that I realized how much he was respected and how grateful these leaders were for his ministry. This servant, whom I will nickname Solomon the African, has been able to place the most systematic text of the New Testament in an African perspective and to soberly suggest contextualized explanations and applications.

The second characteristic of this commentary that attracts our attention is its pastoral concern. It is true that the author first seeks the apostles message, which is Gods word, and displays a noticeable interest in the original Greek text. His knowledge is backed up by references to Professor Samuel Bntreaus two-volume commentary written by the same professor who initiated Solomon Andria into exegesis in his student days! But Dr Andria does not become bogged down in technical matters nor in either impassioned or dry debates among experts. Rather, he writes to meet the needs of churches and Christians in Africa today. And he knows these needs so well! He has experienced them and is sufficiently detached to produce an impartial diagnosis. We may not agree with his interpretations of every verse in the forty-two units (a structure which in itself is a considerable contribution for teaching purposes) but we cannot deny the wisdom and shrewdness of his thought. If readers and the pastors among these readers put this pastoral treasure into practice, this book will be a blessing for the churches of Jesus Christ in Africa.

Among other commendable qualities of this work, I would also like to note its spiritual reading. By that, I do not mean an allegorization that separates a so-called spiritual meaning from the concrete realities of history. That is not the spirituality of the Holy Spirit. Rather it enhances the intimate relationship between the biblical text and the Spirit, the giver of life. Solomon Andria reads the text with Gods inspiration, and writes under the full guidance of the Spirit; he has noted that the epistle begins and ends with references to the prophets and their writings (1:2; 16:26). He asks for the enlightenment of the Spirit for good comprehension and transposition to todays realities. The circumstances of Christians in the world and in Africa today are quite similar to those of the first Christians in Rome, but there are also differences that make it necessary to change the form in order to remain faithful to the substance. The whole commentary is pervaded by a concern for a healthy and biblical spirituality, characterized both by missionary balance and dynamism in our churches today. The questions at the end of each unit encourage further meditation.

Our Lord himself alludes to the Spirit of God as the finger of God (compare Luke 11:20 with Matthew 12:28). So, we can say that the inspired Scriptures, at the heart of which lies the monumental epistle of Romans, have left their fingerprints.

Thank you, Solomon Andria, for helping us to see the mark of the finger of God in this text.

Henri Blocher
Professor of Systematic Theology
Faculte Libre de Theologie Evangelique
Vaux-sur-Seine, France