Photographic Collections at the CSWC Archives

In scenes played out all over Britain, men, women, and children sat in darkened church halls mesmerised by missionary photographs projected on white walls or make-shift screens. Before the average British citizen could see pictures from all over the world on a mobile phone or a home computer, these kinds of presentations were the closest most of them would ever come to seeing other parts of the world. Their conceptions of far-off places were shaped in large part by these slide shows given by missionaries trying to enlist the support of congregations at home.

Jeffrey CannonThe Centre for the Study of World Christianity has thousands of these images in its collection of material relating to the history of world Christianity and the missionary movement. Documenting the spread of Christianity outside of the West has been a major part of the Centre’s work since Andrew Walls founded it in 1982. After working as an archivist for more than fourteen years, the Centre’s archives were an important part of my decision to study here. One of the first things I did after I arrived was meet with the Centre’s archivist, Kirsty Stewart, to discuss material relevant to my project. Continue reading

Chilembwe Re-Visited – Symposium

Chilembwe Re-Visited
A one-day symposium to mark the centenary of the
Chilembwe Rising in Nyasaland in 1915

K500 Banknote

Date: 7th February 2015, 10am – 4:15pm
Place: New College, Mound Place, Edinburgh
Cost: £5 registration (on the day). Bring your own lunch. Tea and coffee will be provided.

Speakers:

  • Dr. John McCracken, Senior Research Fellow, Stirling University
  • Dr. John Lwanda, Malawian historian and activist
  • Mr. David Stuart-Mogg, Co-editor, Society of Malawi Journal
  • Dr. Jack Thompson, Honorary Fellow, School of Divinity, Edinburgh University

Plus Closing Panel Discussion

Co-sponsored by: Centre for the Study of World Christianity, University of Edinburgh, and the Scotland-Malawi Partnership

Further Details from Jean at: j.reynolds@ed.ac.uk