OCHENDO Volume 7 Number 3 2026

PROPHETIC IMAGINATION AND THE THEOLOGICAL ENGAGEMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH ADVOCACY AMONG AFRICAN DIASPORA COMMUNITIES

Pilani, Michael Paul, PhD Kanu, Anthony Ikechukwu, PhD Bazza. Mike Boni PhD Michael Sunday Sasa, PhD
Abstract

The contemporary world faces interconnected public health challenges marked by emerging infectious diseases, food insecurity, ecological degradation, and widening health inequalities. These crises are particularly acute across many African societies and among African diaspora communities whose experiences of migration, socioeconomic vulnerability, and historical marginalisation shape their access to healthcare and environmental resources. This article examines how African diaspora faith communities employ biblical imagination, particularly the covenantal vision of 2 Chronicles 7:14, as a theological resource for public health advocacy and community transformation. Through biblical exegesis, theological analysis, and documentary research, the study explores how the Chronicler's vision of humility, repentance, prayer, and divine healing of the land can be interpreted within contemporary public health contexts. Drawing on Walter Brueggemann's concept of prophetic imagination, African public theology, and liberation theology, the article argues that 2 Chronicles 7:14 should be read not merely as a promise of supernatural intervention but as a summons toward ethical responsibility, social repair, and ecological stewardship. The study demonstrates that African diaspora churches frequently function as important sites of health communication, community mobilisation, and advocacy. The article concludes that stronger partnerships between religious communities, healthcare professionals, and policymakers are necessary for addressing the complex health challenges confronting African populations and their global diaspora networks.

Keywords: 2 Chronicles 7:14; prophetic imagination; public health theology; African diaspora; zoonotic diseases; ecological theology
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