Pietism and Discipline
The Basel Mission (BM) was founded in 1815 and saw itself in the tradition of «good, old, sound Pietism».[1] Pietism was one of the most significant religious reform movements in European Protestantism between the Reformation and the Enlightenment. The aim of Pietism was the biblical renewal of societal and church life through the spiritual rebirth of the individual.[2] Several years after its founding, from the 1820s onwards, the BM embarked on independent evangelical work. The initial attempts at missionary work in Eastern Europe and Liberia were unsuccessful – missionaries were prepared but not sent out. However, in 1828, the BM succeeded in sending its first missionaries to the Gold Coast, eventually marking a successful endeavor.[3] After initial setbacks, the BM managed to establish mission posts and schools in various places across southern Ghana. The mission’s main objective was to spread the message of the gospel, as the BM was not affiliated with any (state) church. From the beginning, individuals from Lutheran Württemberg and Reformed Switzerland were involved in the mission society. While there were religious, regional, and social differences in terms of origin, a common pietistic conviction helped bridge these differences, at least to some extent.[4]
„Without Christianity, there is no true education“[5]
To spread the gospel and convert people, missionaries utilized education, among other things, which they could, in turn, use for the (Christian) upbringing of individuals.[6] According to theologian Julia Mack
Education did contribute to a mature[7] Christianity, but the distinct hierarchy between missionaries and converts, teachers and students, remained unaltered. […] In the mission field, it was often evident that missionaries, during their training, had not only learned humility and patience but also the disciplinary system of authority and command from the ground up.[8]
The missionaries saw themselves as so-called «co-knowers of God» and spread God’s plan among the local people. The missionary work of the BM, aimed at spreading the gospel, was strongly intertwined with education on one hand, which in turn was closely linked with upbringing, itself heavily associated with morality and discipline.
One word, many meanings
When we talk about discipline, we quickly realize that the term has a broad meaning. It can refer to both the disciplining measures that someone applies to a person as well as the self-discipline that someone applies to themselves. However, chastisement or the German word Zucht, for which there is no adequate translation into English, also falls into this semantic field. All these terms can be roughly divided into two groups. The first group are terms such as (self-)discipline, obedience, and Zucht, which refer not to an action but to an (idealized or desired) character trait of a person. The other group includes the terms (self-)disciplining, chastisement, and Züchtigung. They describe actions or activities that are carried out in order to achieve this character ideal. They refer to actions that can be both physical and psychological (through language).
Even if these terms differ, there is one goal that unites them, especially when we look at the BM: Christian education and the maintenance of the Christian pietistic lifestyle and church morals.
These factors were crucial for a successful conversion. However, to warn against deviating from this path and to guide people who had made mistakes back onto the right track, discipline, also known as Kirchenzucht (church discipline), was employed. Kirchenzucht refers to «measures aimed at protecting and ensuring church order».[9] This differs from self-discipline, which can be understood as the individual regulation of behavior according to certain moral concepts – such as those prescribed by Christianity – for example.
Although the word «discipline» cannot be found in the German Bible, the German word «Zucht» (order/discipline/obedience) is present – especially in the Old Testament in the Book of Proverbs. The Proverbs of Solomon, also known as the Book of Proverbs, exists in both the Luther Bible of 1912 and the Unity Translation of the Holy Scripture of 2016. However, it is noteworthy that the Unity Translation often uses the word «Erziehung» (upbringing/education) instead of «Zucht» (order/discipline/obedience). Certainly, here are two exemplary Bible verses translated into English that relate to discipline: Proverbs 13:2 (Luther Bible, 1912): « A wise son heeds his father’s instruction, but a mocker does not respond to rebukes»;[10] as well as Proverbs 13:24 (Luther Bible, 1912): «Whoever spares the rod hates their children, but the one who loves their children is careful to discipline them soon.»[11]
150 Years: The Legacy of Discipline in Education and Upbringing
Discipline in the form of physical or corporeal punishment as a means of education in schools or at home remained commonplace in Switzerland, the homeland of the missionaries, for a long time. In 1978, explicit rights to corporal punishment in Switzerland were abolished. Instead, Article 11 of the Federal Constitution contains a provision for the protection of the integrity of children and adolescents.[12] Also in 1978, the Presbyterian Church of Ghana (PCG) celebrated its 150th anniversary. To commemorate the first arrival of Basel missionaries in the Gold Coast in 1828, the PCG published a jubilee brochure, which included a chapter on “Presbyterian Education”.[13] After the departure of the BM, the PCG took over not only the church communities and the church organization but also the schools. In addition, many new schools, around 1886 of them,[14] were founded and established in Ghana.

In the chapter “Presbyterian Education”, discipline and disciplining, also in the form of corporeal punishment are central themes:
All of us who were educated in Presbyterian schools should remember our Tuesday catechism classes, Thursday recital of hymn verses and the cane lashes inflicted on those who could not recite their catechism texts or hymn verses.[15]
Furthermore, the «boarding school discipline»[16] and the «strict, firm and kindly discipline of our teachers flowed from the attitude of former missionaries and teachers some of whom had been either German Prussian military officers or had been influenced by them»[17] are mentioned. Particularly interesting here is the mention of both physical punishment and strict yet friendly disciplining with military undertones. The latter could indeed be understood as a form of literal discipline, reprimand, or correction without physical punishment. However, discipline is considered a legacy of the Basel missionaries.
The brochure reports about the
well-known Presbyterian discipline of respect for parents, adults, teachers and authority without question; Presbyterian efficiency and thoroughness, a practical attitude to life, never fearing or shirking our duty, work-obligations and responsibility.[18]
An obvious connection to Pietistic morality is evident here, emphasizing hierarchical structures and a clear, strict approach to work. The church acknowledges external prejudices labelling Presbyterians as “‘bush’, unsophisticated and timid people”[19] but does not reject these accusations. Instead, it points to a simple – pietistic – way of life that PCG members strive to achieve.
Personal thoughts and experiences
Various conversations with young individuals that I had during my journey in Ghana revealed that physical disciplining is for many an important part of upbringing. What surprised me was that most did not perceive the disciplining measures or physical punishment as traumatic or negative at all. Instead, some expressed gratitude to their parents, relatives, and teachers for the disciplinary measures. A lot has changed in Switzerland over the last three generations. From my grandfather to my father to me, there has been a clear change in the way children are being disciplined and brought up.
Discipline is an integral part of upbringing, and upbringing, in turn, contributes to education – this assertion applies to Ghana but also Switzerland or Germany, the homelands of the former missionaries. However, it is essential to distinguish between different forms of discipline, as demonstrated. Disciplinary upbringing can imply different measures for various people, cultures, and countries. Yet, a comparison with the missionaries in Ghana reveals that not only location and culture but also comparisons over time can show both continuity and significant differences.
The disciplinary measures – such as the teaching of self-discipline – in Ghana’s Presbyterian Schools and education seem to remain closely aligned with those of the BM and the movement of pietism: Effective disciplining is integral to a good upbringing, which, in turn, leads to self-discipline, successful education, and a productive life following Christianity. Individual success is rooted in a Christian upbringing, a pious life, strict discipline, and a good education.