The Sunday News
Vincent Gono, Features Editor
ZIMBABWEAN politics has been characterised by a coterie of twists and turns and has in the process moulded various overnight celebrity politicians who have managed to ride on the tide of political confusion to claim glory.
The situation has not been helped either with the involvement of forces both internal and external with the intention of instrumentally shaping the country’s politics.
And in the dynamism of politics the church as an institution has not been spared as an important part that commands the respect of its constituency. It remains a vital stakeholder that should be seen to play an important role not only in patterning people spiritually into morally acceptable citizens in society but in the social, political and economic being of the country.
There is no doubt that the church has over the years been playing a crucial role in the politics of the world’s democracies and dictatorships alike, it has become a strategic actor in issues of national interest.
Its role has been that of speaking against injustice, promoting the interest of humanity and holding the political leaders accountable. It has also featured prominently in conflict resolution albeit not in a confrontational role.
This has bred questions on whether the church’s role should be narrowed to that of providing prayers while they avoid being actively involved in politics, whether the church should be partisan and support politics from a party fanatic stand point, or whether the church should be guided by fundamental interests of justice that condemn corruption, cruelty, exploitation, and unfairness.
Political analyst Mr Jowere Mukusha said the role of the church as part of the civic organisations in any democratic society was that of a watchdog. He said churches were supposed to ensure that peace and tranquillity prevails and not to be in the forefront of promoting anarchy.
“The nature of churches in Zimbabwe is such that most of them are no longer institutions to trust. Most of the churches have Western origins and they borrow both ideology and philosophy from their funders. You would agree with me that most of them are juice carded and are no longer operating independently.
“We have seen church leaders engaging in confrontations with the politicians instead of them resorting to peaceful resolutions of conflicts. Such church leaders are fronts of some hidden faces and will be abusing their mandate to create names for themselves and get passports to go to America.
“The Constitution of the country is very clear on demonstrations that they should be peaceful but if they become violent and are led by men of the cloth then questions will be raised on the motivation. Some churches have been applying themselves with double standards leaving people questioning whether they are really churches or just wolves in sheep skin. I do not think even God approves of some of the things that these churches and their leaders do,” said Mr Mukusha.
He added that there were certain churches though that were still independent and that saw things not from a blurred perspective of money hungry cowards but who apply themselves when there was need, while guided by values of democracy and Godly principles.
According to David Kaulemu, many churches, especially those operating from a prophetic perspective, have been guided by values of universal solidarity, the common good, respect for life, and dignity of the human person which values should inform their response to various political occurrences in the country.
The relationship between the church and politics has therefore been one where the church guards against excesses of the politicians. In Zimbabwe the church also took a leading role in the fight against colonial rule where it spoke highly about issues of injustice that were perpetrated by the white regime on the local political scene.
That historical marriage between the church and politics dating back to the liberation struggle cannot be wished away but in Zimbabwe however, the church has failed to produce a towering and somehow permanent outspoken and activist church leader in the mould of South Africa’s Desmond Tutu.
Of course there were church leaders who emerged during the liberation struggle such as Ndabaningi Sithole, Abel Muzorewa and Canaan Banana but their involvement in active politics can be located in the trajectory of fighting the unjust colonial system.
Drawing analogies between those church leaders who emerged and fought in the struggle for independence and current church leaders’ involvement in politics, one will not be far from being factual to argue that the role that some churches are playing now is a bit subtle as it is often coated with imperialist icing.
The events in Harare in recent months are a testimony to that where Pastor Evan Mawarire capitalised on the civil servants organised strike to call for a shutdown. He was however, exposed after his successive calls for yet another shutdown failed dismally leaving him with egg on the face despite having been celebrated by the country’s hostile international community as a hero.
However, that there are divisions among the Zimbabwean churches in their involvement in national politics is there for all to see. The relationship between the church and politics has therefore been one of policing the activities of each other and both cannot operate autonomously although the church has often been regarded as part of the civil society.
Although the church played a significant role in Zimbabwe’s war of liberation, it took a passive role after independence as very few loud voices were heard. Another political analyst Professor Nhamo Mhiripiri said the church was supposed to play an active role in the politics of the country to cultivate and promote the values of peace, stability and justice.
“The church should seek to promote the values of justice, peace and should speak strongly against corruption and injustice.
This however, does not mean that the church should take sides with the majority because it is not always the case that the majority is right.
“As long as the church is not guided by mere partisan politics but a pure and genuine cause to promote the values suitable for the growth of democracy its role in the national body politics and power dynamics is justified because traditionally the church and the State cannot be separated. In fact there should be an alliance between the spiritual leaders and politics,” said Prof Mhiripiri.
He said the history of the country was replete with significant interventions by the men of the cloth in conflict resolution adding that he was not going to mention names or judge whether the actions of certain men of God were in tandem with the values that the church should be promoting.
Some churches have however, distanced themselves from political activities and have confined themselves to prayers and offering guidance on moral issues while others seem to take pride in the deep-seated moral, ideological and political convictions of President Mugabe of African pride, sovereignty and his stance against homosexuality.
