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Leroy Dzenga : Features Writer
There is always a familiar question in Christian circles: What makes Seventh Day Adventists unique? Besides worshipping on Saturdays, which they believe to be the Sabbath instead of Sunday, according to their interpretation of the Bible, the church has an approach it abbreviates as “NEWSTART” — nutrition, exercise, water, sunlight, temperance, air, rest and trust in divine power.And it is the “trust in divine power” part of NEWSTART that seems to have created a unique phenomenon in 12-year-old Benoni Mutukura of Mount Hampden just outside Harare.
Benoni recently became an Internet sensation after the City of Harare posted his sermon during a full council meeting on its Facebook page, getting 635 hits in a short period of time.
The video went viral, also garnering hundreds of views and shares on YouTube and WhatsApp platforms.
However, Benoni has his own match in young brother Penuel (six), who lays claim to pushing the Word as espoused in the Bible.
The two brothers traded toys for the Bible, embarking on a ministerial journey at an age when most of their peers still struggle to say a meaningful set of words.
Their father Evangelist Justice Mutukura validates the idiom “an apple does not fall far from the tree”.
At their tender ages, Benoni and Penuel have already had numerous stints on the pulpit.
The pint-sized Benoni shot to prominence by displaying remarkable biblical eloquence during the meeting at Town House.
Evangelist Mutukura said he identified Benoni’s talent when the boy was just three-years-old.
“I realised that Benoni was different from other kids when he was three-years- old. I was teaching him the picture roll with different images from the Bible and the way he remembered the images when we were revising showed me that he possessed a special gift,” Evangelist Mutukura explained.
A picture roll is a calendar like banner with images and brief narrations of biblical characters.
Benoni started by leading family devotions, handling them expertly that the family helped him create short sermons for church.
Armed with a razor sharp memory, he eased into the role.
Church-mates pushed the family to continue nurturing his rare talent.
“When he was five, we moved from Alaska Mine in Chinhoyi to Harare.
“Upon our arrival at the Westgate SDA Church, he was tasked with delivering a verse pass.
“His smooth delivery of a 20-minute sermon we had helped him prepare cast away any doubts on his preaching call.”
Benoni led his first service at six-years-old.
He instantly became popular at the Good Hope Seventh Day Adventist branch.
Since then, he has been invited to preach at different congregations and events. The big break for Benoni came in 2013 when his father enrolled him into a group called “Back to the Bible”, made up of pastors, trainee pastors, retired pastors and other religious enthusiasts.
His astute biblical knowledge has been outstanding.
Uniquely, Benoni is not even half the age of most of the Back to the Bible members.
Scheduled to preach in Johannesburg, South Africa, on September 26, Benoni appears like any other child when off the pulpit.
He cites his father as his inspiration in doing the work of God.
“Most people think that I am always doing Bible work. But I still find time to water the garden, play soccer with my sibling here at home as well as friends at school,” he said.
Benoni feels at ease when he is on a pulpit.
He will be fulfilling the call to spread “his Father’s Word”.
Answering to the title “evangelist” at 12 is not easy.
Adults take years to attain the title under a rigorous orientation process.
Benoni believes the title does not give him any pressure.
“The truth is that I do not understand everything, at times my father helps me with editing my sermons just to give them more impact.”
Benoni’s ability to communicate confidently has landed him leadership positions within his spheres.
At Alpha Bricks Primary School, he is a prefect while at his church branch he leads the Pathfinders, a group of adolescent congregants.
“I am grateful that I have friends who understand how passionate I am about preaching and prayer.
“So they listen to the sermons when I am working with them. They are my imaginary audience when I prepare,” he said.
Sometimes neighbours ask Benoni to give them more insight into his sermons and the young boy does it with ease.
There is a method to his fellowship as he has a routine he follows religiously.
“When I have an invitation to preach over the weekend, I spend most of my spare time rehearsing my sermons as well as coming up with other content just in case I am given a topic to preach on.”
Benoni is also adamant that he would live his life leading congregants.
“God willing, I want to go to Solusi University and study to become a pastor. I do not see myself doing anything else other than the work of God,” the pint-sized preacher said.
Like any other religious leader, his journey has not been short of challenges.
“The devil does not like me to do the work of God. Sometimes I get mysterious headaches when I am supposed to prepare for an important invitation. But with prayer, I soldier on.”
In 2015, Benoni could have shared the stage with SDA global leader Ted Wilson during his visit to Zimbabwe had it not been for a last minute logistical glitch.
But Benoni still gets his moments on the stage.
“He usually gets booked every Sabbath and Sunday,” Evangelist Mutukura said.
“Sometimes we decide to rest him when we feel like the schedule has been too heavy.”
Benoni also lays back when he is preparing for examinations.
“We avoid accepting invitations for him when we feel his performance at school may be compromised,” he added.
Benoni’s Grade One brother Penuel is, however, still learning the ropes in evangelism.
He is definitely showing bright sparks in devotion.
Evangelist Mutukura says it was by accident that he found out that his last-born son could preach.
“Penuel likes to stay alone most of the time.
“So one day he was in his room as usual and we heard him imitating his brother’s sermons,” he said.
But at four, Penuel’s parents did not want to push the toddler.
They did not know whether he was following up on Benoni’s trail.
“Penuel did not strike me as a person who would be keen on preaching, he is reserved.
“But his understanding of the Word and insistence left us with no choice but to support him”.
Penuel declares his ambition to become a pastor when he grows up.
“I love the Word of God because it helps me in many things. I also want to be like my father and brother who share the Word of God with a lot of people,” he said.
Since he started preaching, Penuel gets about two to three invitations to preach per month.
Sometimes he assists Benoni in joint sessions.
The pair’s mother, Pretty Mutukura says apart from his preaching, the sensational Benoni is also a prayerful young man.
“From a tender age, Benoni loved praying. He would wake up in the middle of the night to pray as the whole family was fast asleep.”
The young evangelist’s prayerful ways have seen his parents erecting a small tent in the family yard to serve as a makeshift prayer room for him and his young brother.
Surprisingly, despite a heavy schedule, his school work has not taken a knock.
Last term, he was 10th in a class of 44 pupils.
His parents expect him to amass at most 10 units when he sits for Grade 7 final examinations in October.
“Both children are so passionate about Christ, even when we are fasting as a family, they go to school without eating and they break the fast when they come back,” Mrs Mutukura said.
She also revealed that while people used to look down upon Benoni and Penuel because of their modest background, their calling has changed people’s perceptions of them.
“At this point, there is no pulpit that the boys consider sacred, they can preach to any congregation in any place,” she said.
The entrance of Penuel into ministry assisted Benoni to be a better preacher.
The younger preacher pushes his brother to work hard.
Sometimes they are invited to the same event and they deliver sermons in collaboration.
Benoni and Penuel Mutukura join the wave of child evangelists who are becoming esteemed preachers globally.
Eleven-year-old Ezekiel Stoddard made waves in Maryland, USA, with his videos streaming across the world.
He is now one of the main evangelists at the Temple Hills Church in Maryland.
Maria De Graca Silva (13) is also another case of early Christian leadership.
She leads her own church in Jardin Bandeirantes, Sao Paulo in Brazil.
If preaching is the food of life for the two brothers, let every moment they spend on the pulpit feed their hunger for the Word of God.
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