(Churches And Clergy Making Headlines This Past Week)
October 30th, 2021
The Headlines:
👉🏻Churches Demand Citizen - Centred Response to Sanctions
👉🏻ED Fires Warning Shots At Churches Promoting Child Marriages
👉🏻Paul Mwazha Celebrates 103 Years
👉🏻Lupane Clerics Call For Social Cohesion
👉🏻New Brooms At Ministers Fraternal
👉🏻Mwazha Church Wrangle Rages
The News In Detail:
Churches Demand Citizen - Centred Response to Sanctions
CHURCH leaders have called for the establishment of an international re-engagement forum on Zimbabwe while dismissing President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s re-engagement drive as secretive and not citizen-centred.
The clergy under the banner, the Zimbabwe Heads of Christian Denominations (ZHOCD), made the call on Friday during a briefing with visiting United Nations special rapporteur Alena Douhan, who is on a 10-day visit to probe the impact of targeted sanctions on Zimbabwe.
The ZHOCD urged Mnangagwa to address issues raised as conditions for the removal of the embargoes through a citizen-centred approach.
“One big challenge is that the sanctions conversation has excluded the participation of citizens. For this reason, we are grateful that in your fact-finding mission, you have decided to engage citizens,” ZHOCD said.
ZHOCD brings together four church mother bodies namely the Zimbabwe Council of Churches, the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops’ Conference, the Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe, and the Union of the Development of Apostolic Churches in Zimbabwe Africa.
“Real participation happens when an international re-engagement forum on Zimbabwe is established in which different citizens’ groups are involved,” the clergy added.
ED Fires Warning Shots At Churches Promoting Child Marriages
President Emmerson Mnangagwa has called on religious organisations to put to an end unlawful cultural activities such as child marriage.
He was speaking at State House on Wednesday where he launched a spotlight initiative high-level political compact on ending gender-based violence and harmful practices. He said:
The importance of the role being played by our religious and traditional leaders as custodians of our religious and traditional customs cannot be overemphasised.
Our democratic system has given space for people to affiliate with cultural and religious groupings of their choice.
However, repugnant practices such as child marriages, which undermine the rights of our children, have no place in our country and should stop forthwith.
Similarly, all religious and cultural practices must remain within the confines of what is legal and constitutional.
The compact is a strategic initiative and commitment for an effective response towards the elimination of gender-based violence, largely perpetrated against women and girls.
European Union ambassador to Zimbabwe Timo Olkkonen and UN resident coordinator Maria do Valle Ribeiro, whose organisations extended technical support to the initiative, attended the event.
Also present were representatives of religious organisations, traditional leaders and civic organisations.
Olkkonen commended Zimbabwe for successful implementation of the programme which he said warranted it to get additional funding from the EU.
Paul Mwazha Celebrates 103 Years
African Apostolic Church (AAC) founder Bishop Paul Mwazha celebrated his 103rd birthday on Saturday in Waterfalls at a well-attended gathering.
Over 16 000 congregants of AAC, popularly known as VaApositori vekwaMwazha, mainly from Harare and Chitungwiza converged in Waterfalls for what they call Gumhano, a monthly church service gathering and took the opportunity to celebrate their leader’s birthday.
Born on October 25, 1918, Mwazha is believed to have started preaching at the age of 16.
In an interview on the sidelines of the celebrations, Alfred Kushamisa Mwazha, the son of Bishop Paul, who is one of the church Bishops, said the huge gathering showed that everything they are doing as a church is in the right direction.
“We have gathered here for prayers, thanking the Almighty for taking care of our father Paul Mwazha. He is now 103 years old and we are happy as a church and family for that, hence the huge gathering you are witnessing here.
“This gathering is a testament that the servant of God, Paul Mwazha, was given a gift by God. A gift to win peoples’ hearts through teaching and preaching His word to them.
“My father started preaching at the age of 16 and now he is 103 years old, you can imagine all the years he has been doing God’s work. More than 80 years, he has dedicated to God’s work.”
Bishop Alfred added that the entire family and church were happy with the protection that their founder was getting from God. Bishop Elson Tafa, who is also the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the church, said they were humbled by the huge turn-out for the celebrations.
“Gathered here is also the Priesthood Council who are the three sons of Paul Mwazha weAfrica. They are Bishops Edward Ngoni Mwazha, Alfred Kushamisa Mwazha and James Mwazha. This Council is the one which represents Paul Mwazha as you know that he has advanced in age and walking is now difficult so in his absence, his three sons are here in his place.
“So this gathering has Paul Mwazha’s blessings through the Priesthood Council. Whatever we do is approved by this Council.”
Bishop Tafa said as they celebrated Bishop Mwazha’s birthday, they also prayed for the nation, President Mnangagwa and his administration.
He said the church was also praying for Zimbabwe’s economic prosperity.
Source - Herald
Lupane Clerics Call For Social Cohesion
There is need for local dialogue processes in Lupane in order to bring social cohesion between residents, business, local authority and government departments.
Pastors who attended a one day reflection and planning process Thursday said it is critical that local jobs be availed to local people.
They said employment of non - residents to do manual jobs is one cause for conflict in the district.
"We want social cohesion because it is the solution to the impasse between business and the community and residents and local authority. Only peace and reconciliation is the way forward and the Church must begin to engage all stakeholders in order to bring a lasting solution." Said Pastor Rennick Sibanda. (Assemblies of God Church)
Rev Promise Ngulube (African Methodist Church) said tender processes should be opened to local people first and advertised to outsiders only when it is discovered that there is no capacity in Lupane.
Apostle Tamuka Nyoni (Pentecostal Church of God) said engaging key people and departments is the way to go.
In their peace plan submitted at the end of the workshop, Pastors said in their social cohesion efforts, they will engage residents associations, business community, the women, youth and the men.
They applauded a social forum for men 'Enkundleni yabobaba' as a powerful tool for reflection of social issues and finding solutions and pledged to engage these men the soonest to bring dialogue from social media to reality.
Rev Shadreck Ncube and Runyararo Chilenje from the Zimbabwe Christian Alliance facilitated the process.
New Brooms At Ministers Fraternal
The Lupane Ministers Fraternal has experienced a leadership renewal with Apostle Tamuka Nyoni of the Pentecostal Church of God scooping the chairmanship post at its Annual General Meeting held Thursday.
Pastor Nyoni replaces Major Sydney Barson who has completed his second term at the helm of the Fraternal.
For the first time the Fraternal has included women in its executive with the election of Pastor Mrs. Muteshe of Eagle Life Ministries as the Vice Chairperson.
Pastor Jairosi Mweembe of Brethren In Christ Church was retained as Secretary. He will be deputized by Mrs. Codelia Ngwenya of Holiness in Christ Church.
Lieutenant Pamela Barson of The Salvation Army emerged treasurer as Rev Promise Ngulube (African Baptist Church) and Pastor Mengesi Ndlovu (AFM of Zimbabwe) become the committee members.
Mrs Donga will represent women in the fraternal.
Rev Shadreck Ncube from the Zimbabwe Christian Alliance was the Presiding Officer.
The new executive team officially begins their 2 - year term on November 01st. The Lupane Ministers Fraternal has more than 25 members.
Mwazha Church Wrangle Rages
There seems to be no end is sight to the fight over control of the African Apostolic Church (AAC) founded by Paul Mwazha as his estranged son, Alfred Kushamisa, continues to disregard a Supreme Court order which barred him from purporting to be the archbishop and successor to his aged father.
In early October, the Supreme Court upheld part of a High Court ruling on the succession dispute in the AAC nullifying the appointment of Kushamisa as successor to his father and founder of the church.
But according to Nickiel Mushangwe, the lawyer representing the aged church founder, Kushamisa at the weekend organised a meeting to confer him as church leader against the Supreme Court ruling which stated that he could not replace his father while he was still alive.
“We have filed an urgent chamber application in the High Court against Kushamisa and his team,” Mushangwe said.
“They held a meeting against a court order where they deliberated on the issue of succession. The matter is set for today. They are claiming to be in charge of church affairs on the basis that they held this meeting of the priesthood council, which at law was illegal and fraudulent.
“They did not invite other members who must sit in that meeting. We want to stop them from acting in the purported capacity of the archbishop.”
Two weeks ago, Supreme Court judges Justices George Chiweshe, Susan Mavangira and Tendai Uchena concurred with High Court judge Justice Tawanda Chitapi’s decision to nullify Kushamisa’s claim to be the successor of his aged father.
The judgment read in part: “Further, we are not persuaded by the appellant’s contention that the court a quo erred and misdirected itself in holding, as it did at paragraphs 1 and 2 of its order, that the nomination or appointment of the first appellant as successor to the archbishop was unconstitutional and, therefore, null and
void.
No comments:
Write comments