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Simba Jemwa, Sunday Life Correspondent
MUCH of Zimbabwe’s society has some view or the other about apostolic churches, mostly negative.
Churches such as the Johanne Masowe Chishanu and others have long been viewed with disdain and maligned by most of the country’s citizenry.
Evidently, most of these views offer very little in the way of substance but heavy with rhetoric and uneducated opinion.
When this publication accompanied Bishop Emmanuel Mutumwa on a tour of Beitbridge and Binga, the popular Prophet was at pains to explain to congregants about the church, its rich history and its grounding. Bishop Mutumwa was also aggrieved at the public’s often baseless insistence that their faith is for the uneducated or ridiculously poor, both spiritually and materially.
Bishop Mutumwa was deeply touched at society’s fundamentally flawed perception that apostolic churches are for congregants with limited or no appreciation of the spirit man and the tenants of religious worship.
To many, these apostolic ‘types’ of churches are but mere cults. Members of such churches are often maligned and ridiculed by their supposedly more accomplished religious peers from Christian congregations, especially modern day Pentecostals.
Oh how so wrong the broader society has been in its outlook and the misconception about this very popular branch of God worship.
While they appear unsophisticated in comparison to more established and popular faiths and religious denominations, believers of the apostolic movement stands firm behind their leaders and their faith.
Yes, they do not read the bible or quote biblical verses.
And yes, they do not have a bible of any sort, but too few have ever questioned the relevance of this unique worship.
Few have deigned to wander into this world and interrogate the fundamentals of this faith!
“We are not a faith for the uneducated or the poor yet this is how many view our faith.
For the most part, our more accomplished brothers and sisters in religion have painted a picture of us that suggests we are some sort of uncouth sect,” Bishop Mutumwa told hundreds of congregants that had travelled from in and around Beitbridge.
“They think we don’t have wealthy congregants like they do.
I dare say they are mistaken and do not yet understand who we are and what we are,” he continued.
The enigmatic Madzibaba went on to highlight the success of the faith over the years and its continued growth.
“But be as it may, we have grown from strength to strength in spite of the adversities that we have always faced and the criticism of our faith which is unstinting.
The world is catching up with us and beginning to understand the fundamentals of our faith,” he told congregants.
But perhaps a closer look at the faith and its basic quirks by naysayers is key to this narrative!
In the first place, what is it that they believe in that has separated them from the rest of the God world?
On the surface they like the Moslems, the Jews and modern Christians firmly believe in God.
Too, they strongly believe in Jesus the Son of God and the Saviour of this world.
They also hold fast to the acknowledgement of angels like Gabriel!
But they choose to worship outdoors and choose not to use the bible, any bible!
As Bishop Mutumwa addressed his congregants, the basis of his teachings were messages directly imparted to him as a messenger of God, touched by an angel and sent to share this wisdom with the world.
A superficial analysis of the man’s teachings are reminiscent of the biblical Moses tasked by God to deliver the children of Israel to the promised land.
A study of most apostolic churches and their preferred garb also reveals a curious resemblance to these times: long flowing robes being the centrepiece.
So, is Bishop Mutumwa wrong for demanding that his and other like-minded churches be respected and mentioned in the same breath as the Pentecostals of today and the historic denominations of yesterday?
Do apostolic churches deserve the same honour that society places on their peers?
Are they any less Godly because they believe that like the authors of the bible, they too are messengers sent forth to share God’s will with the world?
Do they not lay hands and heal the sick? Do they not beseech God to bless his creations?
Do they not honour and call on Jesus?
Do their leaders not intercede with God on behalf of their congregants just as all other Christian leaders do?
Will they continue to be judged for (like all other religious denominations) choosing to worship in a particular manner, on a mountain or without the frills of a church building?
And as unsophisticated as this faith may be conceived, the wealthy, the poverty stricken and all who need divine intervention are now followers of this faith.
– @RealSimbaJemwa.
Online Reporter