The Sunday News
Vincent Gono, Features Editor
THE successful inclusion of Apostolic sect churches in the campaign against gender-based violence, child marriages, health and education programmes did not only provide a marked relief to the country’s fight against the flagrant abuse of women and children’s rights, but has been a commendable Damascus moment as previous engagements had proved futile and painful.
The success can be attributed to the holistic approach by the First Lady Amai Auxillia Mnangagwa and the appreciation of nation building values by the bodies representing Apostolic churches. Courtesy of the First Lady’s involvement in social community work, a number of Apostolic churches have turned the corner and are now telling tales of how they have been primitively living in the name of religion.
Features Editor Vincent Gono (VG) talked to Bishop Tongai Vushe (TV) who is the president of the Association of Apostolic Churches in Zimbabwe who applauded the First Lady’s charitable work and urged the church to take a cue from the values of Ubuntu, love and peaceful co-existence that she has been practicing with undiluted passion.
Below are excerpts of the interview where Bishop Vushe reiterated the need for the church to take a leading role in building a morally upright society that abhors violence, discrimination, crime, tribalism and all other -isms that do not provide the right tonic for a progressive Zimbabwe.
VG: Can you briefly tell us about the association you lead and its objectives?
TV: The association is called Association of Apostolic Churches in Zimbabwe (AACZ) and was formed in 2007. It is an organisation that incorporates Apostolic churches in the country and is arguably the biggest Apostolic church association with more than 500 recognised Apostolic churches under it. Membership to the association is voluntary and very open.
The objective of AACZ is to create a body that represents the interests of the Apostolic churches and voice all concerns as a unit. We are guided by the aphorism that there is strength in unity than in individualism and it also creates a semblance of order and accountability in our affiliate churches.
The association makes it easier and possible to engage at any level with all the stakeholders without the hustle of gathering each and every small group. It also provides a platform for easy participation in various programmes, be they Government or community that the association sees fit as well as curb issues of bogus prophets that have been haunting the church.
VG: How far have you gone in achieving your objectives?
TV: It’s work in progress but I can say we are very happy with what we have achieved so far. We are engaging with all stakeholders and a lot of doors are opening. We are making headway in opening some minds that were shut by church doctrines and the appreciation is commendable. We are very happy that the Government, especially the First Lady, has been helping out in raising awareness on a number of things that a number of our members thought were right when in fact they were violating the law.
VG: What are those?
TV: Some Apostolic church sects were known for resisting interventions by the Government in dealing with health, educational as well as moral issues such as child marriages. We are happy that most of the Apostolic church denominations are seeing the light. They are now seeking treatment in clinics and hospitals, they are now sending children to school and they now appreciate the dangers of child marriages. All these are Constitutional provisions and we are happy that the blanket of ignorance seems to be thinning in most of the denominations that used to resist such. It is such practices that are a brazen violation of the civil, moral and legal codes of conduct that have seen Apostolic churches being labelled primitive, uncivilised and archaic. We are not against polygamy, we are worried about cases of child marriages that have for long been viewed as normal in Apostolic communities. The First Lady has on several occasions made us aware of the complications that child marriages create. They lead to maternal deaths, child mortality and fistula and we are happy the message is sinking in and bringing transformation in the country’s communities. We therefore urge those that dream to do so but this time dream marrying widows and single mothers and leave our girl children to pursue education and career paths.
Some of the staunch Apostolic sect children have no birth certificates making it difficult for Government to plan for them since they are not known to exist as they can’t be enumerated.
VG: We have seen a number of church organisations dabbling in politics and later sinking with the politicians behind their formation. Are you politically biased?
TV: We are not into politics but we support the Government of the day for that is what the Bible teaches us in 1 Peter 2:13-14. Like I was saying about the First Lady, everyone who is progressive can see that she is doing a good job that deserves support from the church and the community. We also lobby the Government to continue empowering women and the girl child in Apostolic churches through Government supported projects so that they are not abused in the name of religion.
VG: Are there any prospects of you working together with bodies representing Pentecostal Churches?
TV: Yes, prospects are very fertile. We are clearing the ground and preparing our members through leadership workshops. We are happy we have members who are educated among our congregants who we are drawing wisdom from on leadership. We have been holding a number of seminars on leadership for our affiliate churches so that people appreciate accountability and minimise the splits that are now the order of the day in churches mostly because people are taking churches as their personal projects, as commercial entities which should not be the case. There is no reason why we can’t work together with other Christian churches as long as our common denominator is Christ.
We all preach unity, peace and love and speak against all forms of social injustices so there is nothing that can stop an amalgamation of church bodies.
