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Patrick Chitumba
Midlands Bureau Chief
THE Zion Christian Church (ZCC) witnessed an astounding congregation of over 200 000 members at the Defe Dopota Shrine in Gokwe North District.
The event, graced by President Mnangagwa showcased an unprecedented surge in attendance, with thousands of congregants participating in Saturday’s morning service before embarking on a prayerful ascent up the mountain.
President Mnangagwa, a familiar face at past ZCC conferences, stood in awe at the massive turnout, saying it was the grandest assembly he had addressed in his life. Church authorities reported a remarkable attendance figure exceeding 200 000 members.
The President captivated thousands of ZCC followers with his remarkable command of scripture.
During the Zuva raSamere church service at ZCC Dopota Shrine, he surprised many by inviting someone to read verses from the Bible, including passages from 2 Timothy 4:7-8, Psalms 23:12, Matthew 7:15, Matthew 13:16, James 1:22, Genesis 3:19, Psalms 67:6, and more.
President Mnangagwa then masterfully delivered an evangelistic interpretation, reciting each verse word for word to the astonishment of the crowd.
The festive ambiance enveloping Defe Dopota Shrine was orchestrated by a multitude of congregants, guided by Bishop Nehemiah Mutendi as they commemorated the 47th anniversary of Reverend Samuel Mutendi’s passing.
The shrine, now a beacon of religious tourism and hope, has an array of development projects initiated by ZCC headquarters.
Buses and vehicles of different types and sizes brought congregants from different corners of the country and beyond to participate in the memorial week. The event’s growing popularity has attracted not only devoted participants but also inquisitive visitors as well as traders who reap substantial economic benefits from engaging with the pilgrims.
There was music throughout the days and nights, courtesy of the evergreen ZCC Dopota brass band and choral ensembles representing parishes from across the region.
Rev Mutendi’s legacy, symbolised by his passing 47 years ago, instilled a sense of optimism and anticipation among ZCC members for blessings yet to come.
Defe, the ZCC headquarters located on the fringes of Chirisa Game Park some 95 kilometres due west of Gokwe town in Gokwe South (off Nemangwe road) in a formerly tsetse infested area, is the premier heritage site of the Zion Christian Church.
This place was chosen by the Lord and revealed to Rev Samuel Mutendi in the early seventies, who in turn showed it to his son Nehemiah the Bishop long before the church established its mission station there.
Members of the ZCC kicked off this year’s celebrations with a lot of joy and hope for anticipated blessings to coincide with the 47th anniversary of the death of their founder.
Guided by the unshakable leadership of Bishop Mutendi who inherited the mantle from his father, the church has experienced unprecedented growth and global expansion.
A former teacher, Bishop Mutendi has taken the church to greater heights as instructed by his father who told him to spread the gospel beyond the borders of Zimbabwe. He has indeed done so spreading the ZCC to neighbouring countries like Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia.
The church has also established branches or representatives in Australia, Canada, China, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. Bishop Mutendi has also expanded the number of schools from three to 14 including the state-of-the-art Samuel Centenary Academy in Belvedere.
Addressing the church members President Mnangagwa said in 1964, after training for the liberation struggle in countries such as Egypt, China and Tanzania he went back home where he saw that parents with children who had taken up armed struggle were being victimised.
“I remember mothers with children who went to war would go to fetch water from the river when others had left. Some would say my son is a teacher, mine is a nurse and my auntie used to say mine went to train to kill people. I am glad that she died after we attained independence,” he said.
The President said he went to the then Fort Victoria (Masvingo) as the leader of the famous crocodile gang.
“The other day we ran away and went towards the Nyika area, we would sleep in mountains, or somewhere warm. One day we were looking for food at Rev Samuel Mutendi homestead. As we were having the food, Rev Mutendi summoned us and told us that in a race one will win or become the leader and he raised his mantle and laid it on my head. Now it makes sense what it meant. By then I didn’t know,” he said.
President Mnangagwa said it’s now 111 years since the founding of ZCC.
“This is by the grace of the Lord that the church has grown significantly across the world. As I stand here I can’t even see where the last person is sitting in all directions because you are many here. Today this is just too much, I have seen crowds but this is huge. There are multitudes of people here,” he said.
President Mnangagwa called on ZCC members and the nation as whole to pray and speak the language of love, peace and unity.
“When people go to church and as politicians we will be happy because we know the church will be praying for us. Psalm 33:12 says blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord; the people he chose for his inheritance. We are meeting here, let’s thank the Lord and the gospel he gave us and the inheritance,” he said.
President Mnangagwa said Bishop Mutendi was chosen to preach the word of God and to lead the church.
“That’s why you see numbers swelling here today. The church has grown tremendously. If it was his own thinking we were not going to witness this growth,” he said.
President Mnangagwa said Rev Mutendi walked a difficult journey adding that his journey was not simple as he preached against colonisation.
“He faced a lot of problems, a lot of trials but because he had a vision and the word of God was with him, he succeeded and today we are meeting here,” he said.
President Mnangagwa said in the Bible are Kings who include David and Solomon and other prophets whom he said were there for the people of Israel. In the same vein, the President said the country also has prophets such as Bishop Mutendi to pray and intercede for the country and its leaders.
“As the Second Republic, we will always listen to the word of God from the church. Nyika inovakwa nevene vayo, inotongwa nevene vayo, igonamatigwa and that is what we are doing today. We pray in the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
“As ZCC, Zanu PF and Second Republic we are one and you won’t separate us. We speak of production, production and productivity and ZCC works go hand in hand with our philosophy. ZCC is building churches and schools and we must work together as the Government and the church.
“We are seeing a lot of foreign countries’ national flags here, we have people coming from outside the country and I welcome you all who have come from the region, continent and abroad. You are here because you know that here we preach peace, love and unity, you are here to benefit from the word of God. As Zimbabweans we see no difference in colour or creed. We love all the nations and the good Lord blesses those nations that love other nations,” he said.
Quoting the book of Mathew 13 vs 16, President Mnangagwa said; “But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it. The word here is the word of life. If you have heard the word then put it to action.”
The President said according to James 1 vs 22, people must put word into action.
“When the children of Israel left Egypt for Canaan, there were some who were doubting but when they got there they then started building their country brick by brick and each nation must build its own nation. As the Second Republic we promote this word, work for yourself, work for the country,” he said.
Touching on Genesis 3 vs 19, he said God blessed the earth to give the inhabitants food to eat.
“But the Lord said we should eat from our sweat and that is what we must do and what we are advocating as the Second Republic. Each year we have rain and so we need to work and produce. That’s why I speak of production and productivity.
“Psalms 67 vs 6, God said he will bless our hands, he will bless the work of our hands. Nyika inovakwa nevene vayo, igonamatigwa nevene vayo,” he said.
In closing he said; “I am 81 years old now, I have honoured my father and mother. It’s up to you to honour your parents. We always call on you to teach your children the good ways so that they are upright in life. If a child does wrong, discipline them,” he said.
Online Reporter