While researching Zambia, the author heard that this landlocked country is drawn up like a butterfly, albeit misshapen, on the map of Southern Africa. As well as a title, this little observation provided a recurring metaphor for his reflection on the nation which calls itself Christian. It also provided an excuse for incorporating Emma Jane Kerr’s beautiful artwork. How a Christian Nation could happen in a century, out of the most unpromising beginnings, is the story. As Butterfly Christian Nation describes it, only God could span the mighty gulf between Livingstone’s Ilala deathbed and today’s Zambia.

Born in Buenos Aires, John Kerr is a Canadian globalist who feels best in the Southern Hemisphere. He and his wife, Ruth, have been teaching on the Zambian copperbelt for twenty-two years, at Trans-Africa Christian University. Masters studies in English LIterature with the late John O'Neill were academic highlights; John also holds a doctorate in New Testament studies from UNISA, South Africa. Along with teaching, John enjoys preaching and church ministry – ministries which have engaged him at various stages for twenty years. John and Ruth are parents of two sons and seven grandchildren.