The drive for an independent Zambia found a secure home in the churches. "The Christian Church… formed a crucial part of the associational landscape in many Sub-Saharan countries, consisting not only of a forum for spiritual communication but also a sanctuary for secular resistance." Phiri noted that "the mission centres provided a place where the contradictions between Christianity and the politics of racism and colonialism could be discussed in relative freedom… The effect of this was that the anti-colonial struggle in Zambia was clearly driven by Christian beliefs and packaged in Christian social action."