Bengt G. M. Sundkler (May 7, 1908, Degerfors,Västerbotten, Sweden - April 5, 1995,Uppsala, Sweden) was a Swedish-Tanzanian Church historian, missiologist, professor and bishop ofBukoba.[1][2] Following his death, it emerged that in writing his best-known work Sundkler had plagiarised the work of his researcher,Regina Twala, and other black Africans.[3]
Sundkler was the son of Gustaf Sundkler, a merchant, and Lilly Bergman. His father was the son of Carl Gustaf Sinclair (1849-1919), the last member of the Swedish Counts dynasty Sinclair. After studying at the universities of Uppsala, Strasbourg and Paris, Bengt Sundkler becamedoctor of divinity (teol.dr)1937 with a thesis on the breakthrough of missionary thinking in Sweden by theSwedish Lutheran Mission 1835-75. Earlier, he had already in 1933 published the bookHow old is the sacrament of infant baptism and in Paris in 1937 published studyContributions a l'étude de la pensée missionaire dans le Nouveau Testament. He was then working as aChurch of Sweden missionary inTanganyika 1937-42 and as the superintendent of the Lutheran Haya Church there 1942-45 He then returned to Sweden and was appointed associate professor ofmissiology atUppsala University in 1945 and was the 1942-45 research secretary of theInternational Missionary Council in London. Between 1949-74 he was chair professor of Church History and history of Christian missions at Uppsala University. When the Haya Church 1961 introduced the episcopate, he was called back there as the first holder and was Bishop ofBukoba in Tanzania 1961-64.[4]
1961-65, Sundkler was a member of theWorld Council of Churches Central Committee and delegate of the Haya Church at the WCC World Synod in Uppsala in 1968. In 1959-61, he was vice president of the International Missionary Council. He was an honorary doctorate in theology at the universities of Aberdeen, Tübingen, Oslo and Helsinki.[5]
Sundkler was an acknowledged position as a researcher inecumenism and mission work, and was a well known scholar of African church history.[6] He wrote several books on the subject, includingBantu Prophets in South Africa in 1948, which was translated into several languages. As ecumenist he documented Church of South India from 1900 to 1947, a cross denominational church merger in India. The bookChristian Ministry in Africa were published in 1960. As a university teacher in Sweden he publishedMissionens värld in 1963 and a Swedish missionary atlas 1957. He wrote of the Swedish Tanzania Mission's history in the booksYoung Church in Tanganyika (1948) ‘Bara Bukoba’’ 1974. His most comprehensive work is the 1200-page African church historyA History of the Church in Africa, published posthumously in 2000.[4]
Sundkler published several works on the subject ofNathan Söderblom, including in 1968 the biographyNathan Soderblom his Life and Work.[4] Following his death, scholars discovered that much of his best-known work contained extensive plagiarism of black African writers, including his own researcher Regina Twala. Twala died having never received full credit for her academic work.[3][7]
A bibliography Sundkler's publications is included in Sigbert Axelson's book,The Church Crossing Frontiers. Essays on the Nature of Mission in Honour of Bengt Sundkler.[8]
