The Drama of Infertility: Reading Isa 56:1-8 from a Krobo Perspective

Abstract

In most cultures in Ghana, both male and female infertility are believed to be a curse and a sign of an unfruitful life. The ability to procreate thus defines the identity of the person and his/her existential value in relation to others. Furthermore, childlessness becomes an overwhelming drama as it is perceived to depict an inferior state of being or a life of incompleteness. This type of social identity construction raises serious hermeneutical issues in its engagement with the Judeo-Christian message of inclusiveness. Against this backdrop, this study reads the drama surrounding infertility within the Krobo worldview from the horizon of Isa 56:1-8, using the Communicative hermeneutic approach. Our findings are that an engagement between the Krobo worldview and the Isaian text creates both tension and transformation. The tension comes about because of the contrast of views; and the transformation resides in the change of perspective. The text provides a rich and an alternative understanding of infertility: another way of being and not a curse.