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103-504: On 16 March 1968, the Mboki sub-prefecture was established and later it was abolished on 14 February 1984 due to unknown circumstances. However, Mboki regained the status of sub-prefecture. On 24 July 2009, 13 LRA fighters commanded by Colonel Acellam Smart attacked Mboki. They looted the town's market and killed five civilians. However, when they killed 11 years old boy, 200 Mboki self-defence force fighters armed with arrows and machetes attacked

206-531: A cult of personality of its leader, Joseph Kony . Although the LRA has been regarded primarily as a Christian militia, the LRA reportedly evokes Acholi nationalism on occasion; many observers doubt the sincerity of this behaviour and the loyalty of Kony to any ideology. The original aims of the group were more closely aligned with those of its predecessor, the Holy Spirit Movement . Protection of

309-450: A "revived Catholic integralism" has been noted among the younger generation of Catholics writing for websites such as The Josias . Integralism could be said to merely be the modern continuation of the traditional Catholic conception of church–state relations elucidated by Pope Gelasius I and expounded upon throughout the centuries until the Syllabus of Errors , which condemned the idea that

412-606: A Christian duty to take "control of a sinful secular society." In 2005, Clarkson enumerated the following characteristics shared by all forms of dominionism: The essayist Katherine Yurica began using the term dominionism in her articles in 2004, beginning with "The Despoiling of America" (February 11, 2004). Authors who also use the term dominionism in the broader sense include the journalist Chris Hedges , Marion Maddox, James Rudin, Michelle Goldberg , Kevin Phillips , Sam Harris , Ryan Lizza , Frank Schaeffer , and

515-526: A Christian viewpoint and disagree on theological grounds with its theocratic elements as well as its Calvinism and postmillennialism . J. Ligon Duncan , Sherman Isbell, Vern Poythress , Robert Godfrey , and Sinclair Ferguson analyze reconstructionism as conservative Calvinists, primarily giving a theological critique of its theocratic elements. Michael J. McVicar has noted that many leading Christian reconstructionists are also leading writers in paleolibertarian circles. Some social scientists have used

618-682: A botched United Nations special forces raid targeting the LRA deputy leader Vincent Otti in DR Congo . According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the LRA attacks and the government's counterinsurgency measures resulted in the displacement of nearly 95 percent of the Acholi population in three districts of northern Uganda. By 2006, 1.7 million people lived in more than 200 IDP camps in northern Uganda. These camps had some of

721-520: A brief clash. Mboki has one health center. The town is served by M'Boki Airport . Lord%27s Resistance Army The Lord's Resistance Army ( LRA ) is a Christian extremist organization operating in Central Africa and East Africa . Its origins were in the Ugandan insurgency (1986–1994) against President Yoweri Museveni , during which Joseph Kony founded the LRA in 1987. The group

824-638: A criminal gang than an army, smuggling ivory and arms across the DR Congo border. In 2024, LRA officer Thomas Kwoyelo was tried in Uganda on charges including rape, murder, kidnapping, and enslavement of civilians. He was sentenced to 40 years in prison. Part of the structural causes of the LRA conflict has been explained as rooted in the "diversity of ethnic groups which were at different levels of socio-economic development and political organization", leading to ethnic strife. Enemy images have instilled insensitivity to

927-798: A cultural erosion. Amid complex geopolitical dynamics and international scrutiny, they wish to move toward a future marked by stability and autonomy within a multi-party democracy in a new Ugandan state bound by the Ten Commandments . The LRA was listed as a terrorist group by the United States , but it has since been removed from the list of designated active terrorist groups . It has been accused of widespread human rights violations, including murder , abduction , mutilation , child sex slavery , and recruitment of child soldiers . Uganda's north and south are politically divided. The south and east are largely inhabited by Bantu -speakers, such as

1030-579: A groundswell of mistrust by the population against virtually any overtures from the government to the rebels. This cynical strategy, some argue, was deeply rooted and employed in Luwero triangle by the National Resistance Movement (NRM)/NRA rebels during their five-year bush war in order to garner popular support, with an underlying drive of "unique greed for absolute political power" in total abhorrence of democratic means. The strong imbalance in

1133-401: A highly questionable picture of a virtually faceless and nameless 'Dominionist' Christian mass". Kurtz also complained about a perceived link between average Christian evangelicals and extremism such as Christian reconstructionism : The notion that conservative Christians want to reinstitute slavery and rule by genocide is not just crazy, it's downright dangerous. The most disturbing part of

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1236-525: A major role in pushing the primarily premillennial Christian right to adopt a more aggressive dominionist stance. Misztal and Shupe concur with Sara Diamond and Frederick Clarkson by arguing, "Reconstructionists have many more sympathizers who fall somewhere within the dominionist framework, but who are not card-carrying members." According to Diamond, "Reconstructionism is the most intellectually grounded, though esoteric, brand of dominion theology." The journalist Frederick Clarkson defined dominionism as

1339-494: A manual of political philosophy . Today, the Catholic Church's political treaties with various countries, known as concordats , are criticized by some liberal and democratic human rights groups for advancing Catholic integralism. More than 200 concordats are in force. Some of them explicitly guarantee that Catholicism is recognized as the official religion of state in several countries and others grant historical recognition of

1442-513: A movement that includes dominion theology and reconstructionism as subsets but is much broader in scope and extends to much of the Christian right in the United States. In his 1992 study of dominion theology and its influence on the Christian right, Bruce Barron wrote: In the context of American evangelical efforts to penetrate and transform public life, the distinguishing mark of a dominionist

1545-579: A new four-nation African Union military force (a brigade of 5,000, including contingents from DR Congo, the Central African Republic, and South Sudan) to hunt down Kony and the remnants of the LRA but asked for more international assistance for the task force. In 2012 the LRA was reported to be in Djema, Central African Republic, but forces pursuing the LRA withdrew in April 2013 after the government of

1648-612: A peaceful solution to the crisis. In December 2009, the LRA forces under Dominic Ongwen killed at least 321 civilians and abducted 250 others during a four-day attack in the village and region of Makombo in DR Congo. In February 2010, about 100 people were killed by the LRA in Kpanga , near DR Congo's border with the Central African Republic and Sudan. Small-scale attacks continued daily, displacing large numbers of people and worsening an ongoing humanitarian crisis , which

1751-590: A political conception was referred to as " Christendom " with the summit of political authority held by the Holy Roman Emperor and the summit of spiritual authority held by the Supreme Pontiff ( Pope ). After the movement toward liberal secularism and disestablishmentarianism, several modern states eventually reacted with a revived integralism, often in a fascistic or proto-fascistic form, such as in Spain under

1854-514: A reputation as having been possessed by spirits and became a spiritual figure or a medium. He and a small group of followers first moved beyond his home village of Odek on 1 April 1987. A few days later, he met a group of former Uganda National Liberation Front soldiers from the Black Battalion whom he managed to recruit. They then launched a raid on the city of Gulu . By August 1987, Auma's Holy Spirit Mobile Force scored several victories on

1957-494: A similar superstition, encouraging soldiers to use oil to draw a cross on their chest as protection from bullets. During a later interview, however, Auma distanced herself from Kony, claiming that the Holy Spirit did not want soldiers to kill civilians or prisoners of war. Kony sought to align himself with Auma and, in turn, garner support from her constituents, even going so far as to claim they were cousins. Meanwhile, Kony gained

2060-401: A threat: "The most important thing is that no matter how little the LRA may be, it still constitutes a danger [as] they continue to attack and create havoc." Since the LRA first started fighting in the 1990s, they may have forced well over 10,000 boys and girls into combat, often killing family, neighbors, and school teachers in the process. Many of these children were put on the frontlines so

2163-519: Is " heretical ." That has not prevented cooperation between them, however, when it has been mutually beneficial. Catholic integralism has a much longer history than the Protestant dominionism that arose in the U.S. in the 1970s and in fact has its root in traditional Catholic doctrine on church-state relations that developed when the governments of Europe were nearly all Catholic confessional states and had Catholicism as their official religion. Such

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2266-639: Is a Christian nation" after they cite numerous historical and legal arguments in support of that statement. Kennedy characterized his perspective on Christian political involvement as more akin to participatory democracy than to dominionism. In an interview with NPR 's Terry Gross , Kennedy was asked whether he wanted all public office holders to be Christians. Kennedy answered, "We have people who are secular and humanist and unbelievers who are constantly supporting in every way possible other people who share those views. And I don't object to that. That's their privilege. And I think that Christians should be allowed

2369-526: Is a commitment to defining and carrying out an approach to building society that is self-consciously defined as exclusively Christian, and dependent specifically on the work of Christians, rather than based on a broader consensus. In 1995, Diamond called the influence of dominion theology "prevalent on the Christian Right." The journalist Chip Berlet added in 1998 that although they represent different theological and political ideas, dominionists assert

2472-496: Is a group of Christian political ideologies that seek to institute a nation governed by Christians and based on their understandings of biblical law . Extents of rule and ways of acquiring governing authority are varied. For example, dominion theology can include theonomy but does not necessarily involve advocacy of adherence to the Mosaic Law as the basis of government. The label is primarily applied to groups of Christians in

2575-619: Is active in northern Uganda , South Sudan , Sudan , the Central African Republic , and the Democratic Republic of the Congo . Its stated goal is against internal oppression under successive regimes, notably President Museveni's. Movements like the LRA have articulated demands that include President Museveni's immediate resignation, the dissolution of the National Resistance Army (NRA) and Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF), and

2678-542: Is believed to be a consequence of an ethnic-oriented war that was initiated by the NRM/NRA in Luwero Triangle against the residents of northern Uganda. This was fueled by the belief on the part of the leadership of the NRM/NRA that Ugandan politics had, since political independence ,been dominated by the northerners in the country and that this had happened because of their heavy composition in the armed forces. The determination

2781-639: Is influenced by the Latter Rain movement, and critics have connected it to the New Apostolic Reformation , " Spiritual Warfare Christianity ," and Fivefold ministry thinking. Seven Mountains Dominionism , also known as the Seven Mountains Mandate or 7MM, has become a more prevalent manifestation of Kingdom Now theology since the early 2010s. Bill Bright , Loren Cunningham , and Francis Schaeffer are often credited as having been given

2884-583: Is just the name of the movement because we are fighting in the name of God. God is the one helping us in the bush. That's why we created this name, Lord's Resistance Army. And people always ask us, are we fighting for the Ten Commandments of God. That is true—because the Ten Commandments of God is the constitution that God has given to the people of the world. All people. If you go to the constitution, nobody will accept people who steal, nobody could accept to go and take somebody's wife, nobody could accept to kill

2987-437: Is not motivated by any identifiable political agenda, and its military strategy and tactics reflect this". IRIN comments that "the LRA remains one of the least understood rebel movements in the world, and its ideology, as far as it has one, is difficult to understand". During an interview with IRIN, the LRA commander Vincent Otti was asked about the LRA's vision of an ideal government. He responded: Lord's Resistance Army

3090-464: Is related to inaugurated eschatology . In the late 1980s, the sociologist Sara Diamond started to write about the intersection of dominion theology with the political activism of the Christian right . Diamond argued that "the primary importance of the [Christian reconstructionist] ideology is its role as a catalyst for what is loosely called 'dominion theology.'" According to Diamond, "Largely through

3193-480: Is strongly Calvinistic by emphasizing the sovereignty of God over human freedom and action, and denying the operation of charismatic gifts in the present day ( cessationism ). Both of those aspects are in direct opposition to Kingdom Now theology (see below). Full adherents to reconstructionism are few and marginalized among most Christians. Dave Hunt , Albert James Dager , Hal Lindsey , and Thomas Ice specifically criticize Christian reconstructionism from

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3296-432: Is the paranoid mot du jour " and that "certain journalists use 'dominionist' the way some folks on Fox News use the word sharia . Its strangeness scares people. Without history or context, the word creates a siege mentality in which 'we' need to guard against 'them' ." Ross Douthat of The New York Times noted that "many of the people that writers like Diamond and others describe as 'dominionists' would disavow

3399-610: The Baganda people, who were historically agriculturists. Uganda's north is largely inhabited by the Nilotic -speaking Acholi , who had engaged in hunting, farming, and livestock herding in the past. The ethnic and cultural tensions within Uganda grew during the years following the creation of the Protectorate of Uganda in 1894. While the agricultural Baganda people worked closely with the British,

3502-455: The Bible 's ten commandments" were false. In the same speech, Obita also claimed that the LRA's objectives are: The LRA is known for having used several flags and logos over the course of its insurgency. In the course of peace talks in 2006, LRA commander Vincent Otti sketched the official LRA coat of arms, providing it to academic Mareike Schomerus: The emblem consisted of Uganda's national animal,

3605-497: The Carter Center and Pope John Paul II had been spurned by Kony. In February 2004, the LRA unit led by Okot Odhiambo attacked Barlonyo internally displaced person (IDP) camp, killing over 300 people and abducting many others. In 2006, UNICEF estimated that the LRA had abducted at least 25,000 children since the conflict began. In January 2006, eight Guatemalan Kaibiles commandos and at least 15 rebels were killed in

3708-514: The Harper's cover story (the one by Chris Hedges) was the attempt to link Christian conservatives with Hitler and fascism . Once we acknowledge the similarity between conservative Christians and fascists, Hedges appears to suggest, we can confront Christian evil by setting aside 'the old polite rules of democracy.' So wild conspiracy theories and visions of genocide are really excuses for the Left to disregard

3811-580: The kidnapping of 139 school girls in Aboke in 1996 that were forced to become soldiers and also sex slaves to the soldiers. The government created the so-called "protected camps" beginning in 1996. The LRA declared a short-lived ceasefire for the duration of 1996 Ugandan presidential election , possibly in the hope that Yoweri Museveni would be defeated. Based on 1999 UNICEF data, over 6,000 children were held by LRA rebels in Northern Uganda. In March 2002,

3914-618: The 1970s. His theology focuses on theonomy , the rule of the Law of God, and his belief that all of society should be ordered according to the laws that governed the Israelites in the Old Testament . His ideas on biblical law in civil government are laid out most comprehensively in The Institutes of Biblical Law , but he wrote many other books dealing with the subject. Rushdoony's proposed system

4017-510: The 28,283 deaths, occurring mostly outside camps. In 2006–2008, a series of meetings were held in Juba , Sudan, between the government of Uganda and the LRA, mediated by the south Sudanese separatist leader Riek Machar . The Ugandan government and the LRA signed a truce on 26 August 2006. Under the terms of the agreement, LRA forces would leave Uganda and gather in two assembly areas in the remote Garamba National Park area of northern DR Congo that

4120-436: The Acholi and other northern ethnic groups supplied much of the national manual labor and came to comprise a majority of the military. The southern region became the center for commercial trade development. The livestock-raising Acholi from the north of Uganda were resented for dominating the army and policing. Following the country's independence in 1962 , Uganda's ethnic groups continued to compete with each other within

4223-428: The Acholi population was of particular concern because of the genuine reality of ethnic purges in the history of Uganda. This created a great deal of concern in the Acholi community, as well as a strong desire for formidable leadership and protection. As the conflict has progressed, fewer and fewer Acholi offered sufficient support to the rebels in the eyes of the LRA. This led to an increased amount of violence toward

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4326-625: The Catholic faith and grant certain rights and privileges to the Church. Kingdom Now theology is a branch of dominion theology that has a following within Pentecostalism and attracted attention in the late 1980s. Kingdom Now theology states that although Satan has been in control of the world since the Fall of Man , God is looking for people who will help him take back dominion. Those who yield themselves to

4429-409: The Central African Republic (UPC) fighters and incursions by self-defense groups from Bangassou was reported in the town. On 25 June three soldiers were killed in Mboki. As of April 2021 Mboki remains under control of UPC armed group. Azandé Ani Kpi Gbé militia attacked UPC position 10 kilometers from Mboki on 7 May 2023 after hearing the disappearance of a Fulani herder, for which the militia blamed

4532-466: The Central African Republic was overthrown by the Séléka Coalition rebels . The UPDF rescued more than 15,000 people that were abducted since 1986. It is estimated that over 50,000 children were captured during the 20 years in Northern Uganda by LRA. As of 2022, it was reported that the LRA consisted of splinter groups of 1,000 members altogether and was militarily very weak. It acted more like

4635-690: The Christian right. Proponents of the idea (such as David Barton and D. James Kennedy ) argue that the Founding Fathers of the United States were overwhelmingly Christian, that founding documents such as the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution are based on Christian principles, and that a Christian character is fundamental to American culture. They cite, for example, the U.S. Supreme Court 's comment in 1892 that "this [the United States]

4738-536: The Federal Democratic Movement (FEDEMO), were known for their lack of discipline and brutal actions meant that the civilian population was accused of supporting the rebel LRA; likewise, the rebels accused the population of supporting the government army. In March 1991, the Ugandan governments NRA started Operation North, which combined efforts to destroy the LRA, while cutting away its roots of support among

4841-520: The GOP courted... religious leaders for the votes of their followers." She added: "If people really understood dominionism, they’d worry about it between election cycles." Michelle Goldberg notes that George Grant wrote in his 1987 book The Changing of the Guard: Biblical Principles for Political Action : Christians have an obligation, a mandate, a commission, a holy responsibility to reclaim

4944-619: The LRA attacks in DR Congo resulted in displacing as many as 320,000 Congolese, exposing them to famine and disease, according to UNICEF director Ann Veneman . Also in August 2009, the LRA attacked a Catholic church in Ezo, South Sudan , on the Feast of the Assumption , with reports of victims being crucified , causing Ugandan Archbishop John Baptist Odama to call upon the international community for help in finding

5047-535: The LRA broke off negotiations, accusing the government of trying to entrap them. Starting in the mid-1990s, the LRA was strengthened by military support from the government of Sudan , which was retaliating against Ugandan government support for rebels in what would become South Sudan . The LRA fought with the NRA army which led to mass atrocities such as the killing or abduction of several hundred villagers in Atiak in 1995 and

5150-503: The LRA's commandment given as "Thou shalt not smoke." In a speech, James Obita , a former secretary for external affairs and mobilisation of the LRA, adamantly denied that the LRA was "just an Acholi thing" and stated that claims made by the media and Museveni administration asserting that the LRA is a "group of Christian fundamentalists with bizarre beliefs whose aim is to topple the Museveni regime and replace it with governance based on

5253-645: The LRA, in response to Uganda lending military support to the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA). According to Matthew Green , author of The Wizard of the Nile: The Hunt for Africa's Most Wanted , the LRA was highly organised and equipped with crew-operated weapons, VHF radios , and satellite phones . In 2001, it was also reported that LRA targets Sudanese refugees. The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants on 8 July and 27 September 2005 against Joseph Kony , his deputy Vincent Otti , and

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5356-666: The NRA, now the UPDF , launched a massive military offensive code-named Operation Iron Fist against the LRA bases in southern Sudan, with agreement from the National Islamic Front . In retaliation, the LRA attacked the refugee camps in northern Uganda and the Eastern Equatoria in southern Sudan (now South Sudan), brutally killing hundreds of civilians. By 2004, according to the UPDF spokesperson Shaban Bantariza , mediation efforts by

5459-449: The NRM's more than 20 year rule. Although poverty at times may be treated as an escalating factor which creates resentment in society, its role in the conflict in northern Uganda is part of the underlying class structural factors. The Poverty Status Report, 2003, indicates that "one-third of the chronically poor (30.1%) and a disproportionate moving into poverty are from northern Uganda". The LRA

5562-489: The UN described as one of the worst in the world. By May 2010, the LRA killed over 1,600 Congolese civilians and abducted more than 2,500. Between September 2008 and July 2011, the group, despite being down to only a few hundred fighters, had killed more than 2,300 people, abducted more than 3,000, and displaced over 400,000 across DR Congo, South Sudan, and the Central African Republic. In March 2012, Uganda announced it would head

5665-604: The Ugandan government agreed not to attack. Between December 2008–March 2009, the armed forces of Uganda, DR Congo, and South Sudan launched aerial attacks and raids on the LRA camps in Garamba, destroying them. The efforts to inflict a military defeat on the LRA were not fully successful. The US supported Operation Lightning Thunder against the LRA. There were brutal revenge attacks by scattered LRA remnants, with over 1,000 people killed and hundreds abducted in DR Congo and South Sudan. Hundreds of thousands were displaced while fleeing

5768-439: The United States . Prominent adherents of those ideologies include Calvinist Christian reconstructionism , Charismatic and Pentecostal Kingdom Now theology, and the New Apostolic Reformation . Most of the contemporary movements that are labeled dominion theology arose in the 1970s from religious movements asserting aspects of Christian nationalism . Roman Catholic integralism is also sometimes considered to fall under

5871-457: The area—trust neither the LRA nor government forces". He believes that "a Ugandan political solution" ("political process"), rather than "military mobilisation" and international "escalation", was what was needed to resolve this conflict. The LRA's ideology is disputed among academics. In practice, "the LRA is not motivated by any identifiable political agenda, and its military strategy and tactics reflect this". It appears to largely function as

5974-499: The attack, Azandé Ani Kpi Gbé militia remained on the town's outskirt, and the residents fled to the field and bush near Mboki. It was estimated that 40 people were dead from both warring parties, and four civilians were killed. The town was attacked again by Azandé Ani Kpi Gbé on 29 August 2023. Casualties were reported on both sides. In September 2023 armed forces and MINUSCA peacekeepers were deployed in Mboki. FACA and Wagner mercenaries captured Mboki from UPC on 25 May 2024 after

6077-552: The authority of God's apostles and prophets will take control of the kingdoms of this world, being defined as all social institutions, the "kingdom" of education, the "kingdom" of science, the "kingdom" of the arts, etc. C. Peter Wagner , the founder of the New Apostolic Reformation , writes: "The practical theology that best builds a foundation under social transformation is dominion theology, sometimes called 'Kingdom Now'. Its history can be traced back through R. J. Rushdoony and Abraham Kuyper to John Calvin ." Kingdom Now theology

6180-557: The battlefield and began a march toward the capital, Kampala . In 1988, after the Holy Spirit Movement was decisively defeated in the Jinja District and Auma fled to Kenya , Kony seized this opportunity to recruit the Holy Spirit remnants. The LRA occasionally carried out local attacks to underline the inability of the government to protect the population. The fact that most NRA government forces, in particular, former members of

6283-459: The belief that "America is a Christian nation" and opposition to separation of church and state , but "hard" dominionism refers to dominion theology and Christian reconstructionism. Michelle Goldberg uses the terms Christian nationalism and dominionism for the former view. According to Goldberg: In many ways, Dominionism is more a political phenomenon than a theological one. It cuts across Christian denominations, from stern, austere sects to

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6386-518: The bounds of Uganda's new political system. In 1986, the armed rebellion led by Yoweri Museveni 's NRA won the Ugandan Bush War and took control of the country. The victors sought vengeance against ethnic groups in the North of Uganda. Their activities included Operation Simsim, which engaged in burning, looting, and killings of locals. Such acts of violence led to the formation of rebel groups from

6489-662: The broader sense of the term dominionism , which appears in her dissertation and in Roads to Dominion solely to describe dominion theology. Nevertheless, Diamond originated the idea that dominion theology is the "central unifying ideology for the Christian Right." Jeremy Pierce of First Things coined the word dominionismist to describe those who promote the idea that there is a dominionist conspiracy and wrote: It strikes me as irresponsible to lump [Rushdoony] together with Francis Schaeffer and those influenced by him, especially given Schaeffer's many recorded instances of resisting exactly

6592-482: The casualty rate for these children has been high. The LRA have often used children to fight because they are easy to replace by raiding schools or villages. According to Livingstone Sewanyana, executive director of the Foundation for Human Rights Initiative, the government was the first to use child soldiers in this conflict. Although unproven, there have been rumors that Sudan may have provided military assistance to

6695-405: The crane, standing atop two palm fronds forming a circle; within the circle there is a star, a crescent moon, and a heart containing the Ten Commandments ; over and below the palm fronds the group's name can be found on two small banners. At the time, Otti stated that crane signified pride in Uganda, the palm fronds stood for peace, the Ten Commandments for the group's commitment to Christianity, and

6798-408: The crescent for the oneness of God regardless of religion. Otti claimed that the symbol adorned every LRA uniform, and that he had designed it. It is unclear whether the group continued to use the symbol after Otti's alleged execution by Kony. By 2010, the LRA no longer used standardized uniforms, instead plundering clothing from enemy armies. Furthermore, its troops often adorned their uniforms with

6901-570: The dominionist umbrella, but the Catholic integralist movement is much older and theologically markedly different from Protestant dominionism since it is tied to the doctrine that the Catholic Church is the only true church . Dominion theology is a reference to the King James Bible 's rendering of Genesis 1:28 in which God grants humanity "dominion" over the Earth. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, "Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish

7004-479: The earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth." In the late 1980s, several prominent Evangelical authors used the phrase dominion theology and other terms such as dominionism to label a loose grouping of theological movements that made direct appeals to the passage in Genesis. Christians typically interpret

7107-641: The establishment of an independent government reflecting ethnic diversity and democratic principles. This struggle has exacted a heavy humanitarian toll, with widespread displacement, loss of life, and atrocities against civilians devastating northern Uganda, particularly Acholiland . Despite allegations of brutality, groups like the LRA seek international recognition, framing their actions as self-defense and resistance against government injustices. The conflict has also profoundly impacted Acholi society, disrupting education, fracturing traditional family structures, and precipitating forced migration, contributing to

7210-541: The extent that people perceived as enemies can be deemed inconsequential. A former Cabinet minister who was a key figure in the Presidential Peace Team while addressing elders in Lango on the atrocities committed by the NRA in the northern districts of Gulu , Kitgum , Lira , Apac , and Teso , warned them that "they did not matter as long as the south was stable". This sense of betrayal on the northerners festered into

7313-449: The first warrants issued by the ICC since it was established in 2002. Details of the warrants were sent to the three countries where the LRA is active: Uganda, Sudan (the LRA was active in what is now South Sudan ), and DR Congo. The LRA leadership has long stated that they would never surrender unless they were granted immunity from prosecution; so the ICC order to arrest them raised concerns that

7416-467: The flags of enemy states to confuse their opponents, for instance using the regular flag of Uganda and the flag of Luxembourg . The Sudan Tribune also attributed a red-black-blue flag to the LRA. In 2007, the government of Uganda claimed that the LRA had only 500 or 1,000 soldiers in total, but other sources estimated that there could have been as many as 3,000 soldiers, along with about 1,500 women and children. By 2011, unofficial estimates were in

7519-459: The group TheocracyWatch . Some authors have applied the term to a broader spectrum of people than have Diamond, Clarkson, and Berlet. Sarah Posner in Salon argues that there are various "iterations of dominionism that call on Christians to enter... government, law, media and so forth... so that they are controlled by Christians." According to Posner, "Christian right figures promoted dominionism... and

7622-404: The highest mortality rates in the world. The Ugandan Ministry of Health and partners estimated that, through the first seven months of 2005, about 1,000 people were dying weekly, chiefly from malaria and AIDS . During the same time period of January–July 2005, the LRA abducted 1,286 Ugandans (46.4 percent of whom were children under the age of 15 years), and violence accounted for 9.4 percent of

7725-428: The impact of Rushdoony's and North's writings, the concept that Christians are Biblically mandated to 'occupy' all secular institutions has become the central unifying ideology for the Christian Right" (emphasis in original) in the United States. While acknowledging the small number of actual adherents, authors such as Diamond and Frederick Clarkson have argued that postmillennial Christian reconstructionism played

7828-452: The innocent, or whatever. The Ten Commandments carries all this. The Norwegian scholar Knut Holter has argued that what the LRA means by the "Ten Commandments" is somewhat loosely associated with the Ten Commandments as found in the Biblical text. Holter notes that the LRA have created new commandments that help propagate their ideology under the term the "Ten Commandments". One such example is

7931-501: The insurgency would not have a negotiated end. The indictments received warm praise within the international community. However, the Acholi people showed mixed reactions. Many felt that amnesty for the LRA soldiers and a negotiated settlement was the best hope for the end of the war. In the end, the court's intent to prosecute the leaders of the LRA reduced the army's willingness to cooperate in peace negotiations. Dominion theology Dominion theology , also known as dominionism ,

8034-479: The kinds of views Rushdoony developed. Indeed, it strikes me as an error of the magnitude of some of Rushdoony's own historical nonsense to consider there to be such a view called Dominionism [ sic ] that Rushdoony, Schaeffer, James Dobson, and all the other people in the list somehow share and that it seeks to get Christians and only Christians into all the influential positions in secular society. Lisa Miller of Newsweek writes that " 'dominionism'

8137-403: The label, many definitions of dominionism conflate several very different Christian political theologies, and there's a lively debate about whether the term is even useful at all." Other criticism has focused on the proper use of the term. Berlet wrote that "just because some critics of the Christian Right have stretched the term dominionism past its breaking point does not mean we should abandon

8240-562: The land for Jesus Christ—to have dominion in civil structures, just as in every other aspect of life and godliness.... But it is dominion we are after. Not just a voice.... Christian politics has as its primary intent the conquest of the land—of men, families, institutions, bureaucracies, courts, and governments for the Kingdom of Christ. Writers including Chip Berlet and Frederick Clarkson distinguish between what they term "hard" and "soft" dominionism. Such commentators define "soft" dominionism as

8343-690: The last days the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established as the highest of the mountains," and Revelation 17:1–18, which describes "a scarlet beast... [with] had seven heads and ten horns." Prominent Christian leaders who support Seven Mountains Dominionism include David Barton , James Dobson , John Hagee , Bill Johnson , Lance Wallnau , and Paula White . Notable politicians who have embraced it include Michele Bachmann , Sam Brownback , Ted Cruz , Newt Gingrich , Mike Huckabee , Charlie Kirk , Sarah Palin , and Rick Perry . Kingdom Now theology should not be confused with Kingdom theology , which

8446-424: The leadership of Francisco Franco , Portugal under Antonio Salazar , and Austria under Engelbert Dollfuß and his Fatherland Front . Today, only a handful of states remain with Catholicism as the official established religion of state, but there are still movements in other nations and among some in the Catholic hierarchy who support a revival of integralism in states that have become secular. In recent years,

8549-439: The level of development and investment between Eastern and Northern Uganda on the one side, and Central and Western Uganda on the other perceived as wealthy, is a manifestation of economic marginalization of the region, in spite of the fact most top leadership in Uganda hailed from the north between 1962 and 1985. This marginalization with the consequences of wars, has resulted in varying poverty levels in northern Uganda, for most of

8652-763: The massacres. The military action in DR Congo did not result in the capture or killing of Kony, who remained elusive. During December 2008, the LRA massacred at least 143 people and abducted 180 at a concert celebration sponsored by the Roman Catholic church in Faradje in DR Congo. The LRA struck several other communities in the near-simultaneous attacks: 75 people were murdered in a church near Dungu , at least 80 were killed in Batande, 48 in Bangadi , and 213 in Gurba . By August 2009,

8755-450: The militias. The self-defense group managed to kill three and injure three LRA fighters. As a result, LRA retreated and escaped to the bush. While hiding in the bush, three injured LRA fighters soon died. On 20 and 21 March 2010, LRA attacked Mboki. They abducted six people and killed the chief of Mboki 3 neighborhood. Until mid-2017 Mboki was not affected by Central African Republic Civil War . In June 2017 presence of Union for Peace in

8858-555: The non-combatant population, which in turn further alienated them from the rebels. This self-perpetuating cycle led to the creation of a strict divide between Acholis and rebels—a divide that was previously not explicitly present. Robert Gersony , in a report funded by the U.S. embassy in Kampala in 1997, concluded that "the LRA has no political program or ideology, at least none that the local population has heard or can understand". The International Crisis Group has stated that "the LRA

8961-463: The passage as meaning that God gave mankind responsibility over the Earth, but one of the most distinctive aspects of dominion theology is that it is interpreted as a mandate for Christian stewardship in civil affairs, no less than in other human matters. An example of dominionism in Reformed theology is Christian reconstructionism , which originated in the teachings of R. J. Rushdoony in the 1960s and

9064-574: The political sphere." Likewise, in the National Catholic Reporter , Joshua J. McElwee wrote that Catholic integralists, along with their Protestant counterparts, wish to establish a "theocratic type of state." But ultimately, the goals of Protestant dominionists and Catholic integralists are divergent, as Catholic integralists adhere to the doctrine that the Catholic Church is the " only true church " and that every form of Protestantism

9167-462: The population through heavy-handed tactics. As part of Operation North, the army created the "Arrow Groups", village guards mostly armed with bows and arrows. The creation of the Arrow Groups angered Kony, who began to feel that he no longer had the support of the population. After the failure of Operation North, Betty Oyella Bigombe initiated the first face-to-face meeting between representatives of

9270-503: The range of 300 to 400 combatants, with more than half believed to be abductees. The soldiers are organized into independent squads of 10 or 20 soldiers. By early 2012, the LRA had been reduced to a force of between 200 and 250 fighters, according to Ugandan defence minister Crispus Kiyonga . Abou Moussa, the UN envoy in the region, said in March 2012 that the LRA was believed to have dwindled to between 200 and 700 followers but still remained

9373-443: The ranks of the previous Ugandan army, Uganda National Liberation Army . Many of those groups made peace with Museveni. The southern-dominated army, however, did not stop attacking civilians in the north of the country. Therefore, by late 1987 to early 1988, a civilian resistance movement led by Alice Auma was formed. Auma did not pick up arms against the central government; her members carried sticks and stones. She believed she

9476-457: The rebel LRA and NRA government. The rebels asked for a general amnesty for their combatants and to "return home", but the government stance was hampered by disagreement over the credibility of the LRA negotiators and political infighting. At a meeting in January 1994, Kony asked for six months to regroup his troops but by early February, the tone of the negotiations was growing increasingly bitter and

9579-518: The rebels for it. This forced the town residents to seek refuge at the catholic church. On 8 May 2023, the clash between Azandé Ani Kpi Gbé and UPC reached Mboki downtown and Azande militia controlled 80% of the town. Later, the Azandé militia retreated 7 km from Mboki after MINUSCA forced them to withdraw. Azandé Ani Kpi Gbé attacked the UPC position in Mboki for the second time on 15 June 2023. Although UPC repelled

9682-427: The rules of democracy and defeat conservative Christians—by any means necessary. Joe Carter of First Things writes: [T]here is no "school of thought" known as "dominionism." The term was coined in the 1980s by Diamond and is never used outside liberal blogs and websites. No reputable scholars use the term for it is a meaningless neologism that Diamond concocted for her dissertation. Diamond denies that she coined

9785-469: The same divine vision that revealed the Seven Mountain Mandate in 1975. The mandate proposes that there are seven "mountains" that Christians must control to establish a global Christian theocracy and prepare the world for Jesus' return: government, education, media, arts and entertainment, religion, family, and business. The mandate is based on two Biblical passages: Isaiah 2:2-3, which says, "In

9888-611: The same privilege to vote for people whom they believe share their views about life and government. And that's all I'm talking about." Those labelled dominionists rarely use the terms dominionist and dominionism for self-description, and some people have attacked the use of such words. The journalist and conservative commentator Stanley Kurtz , writing for the National Review , labeled it "conspiratorial nonsense," "political paranoia," and " guilt by association ", and decried Hedges' "vague characterizations" that allow him to "paint

9991-435: The separation of church and state is a moral good. For example, some Catholics have praised the actions of Pius IX in the 1858 Mortara case in which he ordered the abduction of a six-year-old Jewish boy who had been baptized without his parents' consent. A systematic account of Catholic integralism as a coherent political philosophy has been written by the Catholic theologians Thomas Crean and Alan Fimister: Integralism:

10094-518: The signs-and-wonders culture of modern megachurches. Think of it like political Islamism, which shapes the activism of a number of antagonistic fundamentalist movements, from Sunni Wahabis in the Arab world to Shiite fundamentalists in Iran. Berlet and Clarkson have agreed, "Soft Dominionists are Christian nationalists." Unlike "dominionism", the phrase "Christian nation" occurs commonly in the writings of leaders of

10197-466: The term," and argued that rather than label conservatives as extremists, it would be better to "talk to these people" and "engage them." Diamond wrote, "Liberals' writing about the Christian Right's take-over plans has generally taken the form of conspiracy theory" and argued that instead, one should "analyze the subtle ways" that ideas like Dominionism "take hold within movements and why." The authors Robert Gagnon and Edith Humphrey argued strongly against

10300-522: The three LRA commanders Okot Odhiambo and Raska Lukwiya , deputy army commanders, and Dominic Ongwen , brigade commander of the Sania Brigade of the LRA. The five LRA leaders were charged with crimes against humanity and war crimes, including murder, rape, and sexual slavery. Ongwen was the only of the five not charged with recruiting child soldiers. The warrants were filed under seal; public redacted versions were released on 13 October 2005. These were

10403-500: The word dominionism to refer to adherence to Christian reconstructionism. Catholic integralism has been characterized as a form of dominionist theology, but in reality, it is much older and theologically distinct from the dominionism that is espoused by Protestants. Antonio Spadaro and Marcelo Figueroa have said that Catholic integralists have entered into a nontraditional ecumenical alliance with Protestant reconstructionists who share "the same desire for religious influence in

10506-464: Was inspired by the Holy Spirit of God. Auma portrayed herself as a prophet who received messages from the Holy Spirit and expressed the belief that the Acholi could defeat the Museveni government. She preached that her followers should cover their bodies with shea nut oil as protection from bullets, never take cover or retreat in battle, and never kill snakes or bees. Joseph Kony would later preach

10609-419: Was that this domination of politics in Uganda by the northerners was no longer acceptable and had to end. This suggested that until the objective of removing the northerners from power had been achieved and all threats from those quarters removed, the war in the north had to continue. In 2012, scholar Mahmood Mamdani argued that "[t]he reason why the LRA continues is that its victims—the civilian population of

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