Zimbabwe Council of Churches pastoral letter to the nation

Pastoral Letter to the Nation.

Theme: "Let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever flowing stream" (Amos 5:24)

Preamble

To the people of God in Zimbabwe; young and old, male and female without distinction as created in the image of God for the glory of God: Grace and peace to you from God our Creator and the Lord Jesus Christ our Redeemer.

We, the Zimbabwe Council of Churches (ZCC) have reflected on the varied issues that affect our Nation and our being; and in the light of the Word of God and our authentic Mission, we have discerned what we now share with you in the context of our Salvation and Redemptive History and the spirit of our liberation as we move to celebrate Easter and our national Independence Day.

Our National Context and Challenges:

As the ZCC, we declare that we are called upon to be the Light of the World and are mandated by our divine Mission to faithfully promote justice and righteousness in the land.

While our mandate is to promote the common good for all, we must admit that amongst us are wolves in sheep's skin that have taken advantage of the innocent and vulnerable children of God.

We call upon the state institutions mandated to maintain law and order in our land to deal with those found guilty of perpetrating inhumane and unethical conduct of social and moral evil such as rape and all forms of abuse without fear or favour.

In the spirit of our Mission, we unequivocally condemn all acts of abuse of women, children and other vulnerable groups through warped schemes and vices of the false ‘prophets' that purport to be men and women of God while they use unorthodox religious methods, values and declarations to kill and destroy people's dreams just as the Bible says: "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy" (John 10:10).

2. All Churches are encouraged to ensure that they have robust internal mechanisms to deal with any forms of errancy and to encourage their leadership at all levels to uphold high ethical standards when discharging their duties.

While we acknowledge the role of the State and Civil Society in promoting justice and peace in the land as well as in providing for the needs of the citizens; we are extremely concerned with the glaring crisis of accountability and poor corporate governance which is manifest through: poor service delivery in both public and private sectors, corruption across all sectors of our society, obscene salaries earned by a few individuals in Churches, Private and State Institutions.

We are disturbed by the growing levels of poverty amidst the growing rate of loss of employment, the failure by the government to drive the economy toward the publicly declared Millennium Development Goals, the deflation crisis which has the capacity to lead to massive social suffering, the exploitation of natural resources which seems to be shrouded in secrecy and mystery, the lack of preparedness of the Civil and State Organs in dealing with natural disasters as has been the case at Tokwe Mukosi, Tsholotsho and other affected areas where human life is under immense suffering because of floods.

Thus, we conclude by affirming once again that God is just because God cares for what is right and hates all forms of injustices and does not want to see people suffering.

God's desire is for the earth to be filled with happy and healthy people, as the prophet Isaiah declares: "... I have purposed it; I will also do it" (Isaiah 46:11); and as Jesus declares: ‘I cam that they may have life and have it in abundance" (John 10:10b).

Our Prayer for the People of Zimbabwe

Since this is a Holy Christian Season which marks the redemptive work of Christ on the Cross; we conclude our Pastoral letter by offering a prayer for the Nation which is a cry for justice and peace to prosper over our ‘wretched' situation.

The prophet Ezekiel decried such a situation: "Look, this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: she and her daughter had pride, fullness of food, and abundance of idleness; neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy" (Ezekiel 16:49).

"Jesus Christ, you are the compass that directs humanity to the fullness of life; lead us into a blessed future where all people will enjoy the fruits of liberation.

3. As we celebrate our political Independence which coincides with Good Friday which is also an act of God's liberative work, we declare that the forces of evil and darkness will indeed not prevail over the will of God for the people of Zimbabwe. May our beautiful Zimbabwe, enjoy justice and peace which conquers fear and failure. Oh Lord Jesus, you are the resurrection and the life; you alone can change our human condition of despair into a pedestal of hope!

Lord of peace and life; raise us to take part in your ‘acts of salvation' toward the enjoyment of peace, prosperity and tranquillity in the land you gave us".