About the course itself...

Rooted in Jesus is a discipleship course designed and written for Africa. Originally developed in response to the needs of the people of the Diocese of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, it is now in use in many African countries. It covers the basics of Christian faith and ministry from an African cultural perspective.

Rooted in Jesus takes its inspiration from Matthew 28.19-20 (go and make disciples) and 2 Timothy 2.2 (who will be able to teach others also). Anyone can join a group - a non-believer will find faith in Jesus, and a believer will learn how to live as a disciple of Jesus and become active in ministry to others. Many people who have completed the course have grown so much in their faith that they have gone on to become licensed evangelists or ordained pastors.

Because Rooted in Jesus is not a conventional Bible study course but an interactive programme designed to facilitate practical discipleship, it may be used by people of any educational background. Rooted in Jesus has been enjoyed both by bishops and their staff, and by groups of people in rural areas who have received no formal education. Deliberately simple in format, it is spiritually challenging — experience shows that if the group leader follows the books as they are written and prays faithfully for group members, he or she will find that lives are transformed, churches changed and communities touched. Certificates are awarded to group members who complete a book and are able to repeat the memory verses and give a short personal testimony.

Rooted in Jesus Book 1 can be previewed on Google books here.
Rooted in Jesus Junior Book 1 can be previewed on Google books here.

Sample sets of Rooted in Jesus and Rooted in Jesus Junior (in English) can be ordered from the Mathetes Trust website here.

Book One : Making Disciples

The first book of Rooted in Jesus helps group members understand what it means to be a Christian. It starts by going back to the beginning of time. Why did God create us? How does he feel about us? How do we connect with him - what is the problem? Who is Jesus, and what response is he looking for from us? It then looks at the work of the Holy Spirit. How can we be sure God will never leave us? What difference does it make if we have the Holy Spirit within us? How do we know we are forgiven? Finally, this book helps the group to begin to grow in their faith, so that the change is seen in their lives. How do we pray? What does it mean to belong to one another and to love one another? How does God speak to us through the Bible? How do we pray, not just together in church, but privately and personally, using the Lord's Prayer?

Book Two : Growing as Disciples

Book 2 helps the group to find out more about Jesus, about the Holy Spirit, and about the Bible. Who was Jesus? How can he be both man and God? Will he come back? What does it mean to make Jesus the Lord of your life? Who is the Holy Spirit? What are the gifts of the Spirit, and how do we learn together to use them? How do we pray for healing? How do we recognise and defeat Satan and evil spirits? What about traditional medicine and traditional religious practices? And then the Bible. How do we use it? How do we find out about how God wants us to live? How do we claim his promises in our lives?

Book Three : Disciples Together

Book 3 is a very practical part of the course. It's aim is to help people change their daily lives so that they live not just as believers but as disciples of Jesus. Members learn to forgive those who have hurt them.They learn how to handle suffering. They learn how to deal with temptation and live by the truth. They look at what the Bible teaches about marriage and family life (including some of the problems raised by AIDS), and about work. They look at money - how does God want a Christian to handle money, and why should we give money to the church? They look at the dangers of alcohol and of ungodly speech. And finally they learn what it means to belong to the body of the Church, and to live together as the family of Christ - this includes a discussion of the implications of biblical teaching on community life and tribal identity. This book concludes with two sessions explaining what is happening in baptism, and what is happening as we take communion.

Book Four : Disciples in Ministry

Book 4 prepares people for ministry and mission. It covers how to listen to God, how to live by faith and how to live as disciples of Jesus. It looks at the ministry of women and at leadership in the church - what does God require of the Christian leader? There is a module on evangelism, which examines both traditional religion and Islam, and equips group members to share their faith confidently and effectively. The final module is about ministry to the community - what are the spiritual needs of the community? How can the group pray for the community? And what particular ministry is God calling each person to next?

Book Five : Tools for the Job

Over the years many people have asked us ‘What happens when we complete the RinJ programme?’ The answer, of course, is that disciples are called to make more disciples – we hope that graduates of RinJ will have gained the skills and confidence to minister to others, each according to their own gifting and calling. But prayer and fellowship remain important, and the final book of Rooted in Jesus, Tools for the Job, is designed to support group members in their own journey of discipleship as they minister to others. To find out more visit our blog here.

Using Rooted in Jesus

Rooted in Jesus is designed to be used by a trained leader with small groups of between 6 and 20 people. Each session has been carefully planned to include time for prayer, for worship and for fellowship as well as for teaching. If a group completes one lesson every two weeks, on average, they will finish the course in two years. Many of those who do complete it go on to lead their own groups; others become involved in the healing ministry, in prayer, evangelism and community support.

The syllabus for Rooted in Jesus was written by Roger Morgan and the course books created by Revd Dr Alison Morgan, working in association with Stanley Hotay, now the Bishop of the Diocese of Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania, and a small group of clergy, qualified teachers and experienced small group leaders from Leicester. There is a Leader's Guide for group leaders and a Team Manual for team members.

Rooted in Jesus Junior

Rooted in Jesus Junior is an adaptation of Books 1 and 2 of the adult program. Designed to be used in Sunday Schools, confirmation classes and primary or secondary schools by leaders who have themselves completed the adult course, RinJ Junior is aimed at young people aged 8 to 14. Each lesson includes simple interactive activities using commonly available materials, and the only additional resource required is a Bible. In order to allow the children time and space to absorb the material in appropriate ways, each lesson of the adult course has been adapted to form two lessons in the Junior version. For more information click here.

The Rooted in Jesus syllabus