Not all churches are for regime change and against the national pledge

It would be an oversimplification for a rather complex issue to say that the churches should rise and condemn evil for what it is in order to eradicate the problems bedeviling the country.  Cleric Ancelimo Magaya, of the National Agreement Platform has urged the government to initiate national dialogue to find a lasting solution to the problems facing the country. Heart-Felt International Ministries (HIM) founder, Tavonga Vutabwashe is also accusing government officials of oppressing Zimbabweans but handling foreigners with velvet gloves. Moreover it is a misinterpretation of reality to say that more churches push for President Robert Mugabe's departure.

Addressing a Press conference in Harare recently,  Magaya urged the government to take seriously issues to do with civil servants' salaries and put to an end house demolitions and illegal parceling out of stands by the so-called land barons. He urged the government to restore the dignity of those in the state security sector, war veterans and pensioners.

It is prudent that the church leaders should plead with the politicians to consider the welfare of ordinary men, women and children. They should also maintain the view that there is more to unite the different political actors than to divide them. Thus they should preach unity in all parties and not to promote factionalism.

We know that the church leaders have by all means tried to interrogate the political, economic and social problems that are rocking the country and have tried to proffer some solutions. The little known cleric Magaya has also joined the bandwagon of church leaders who have joined civil society to demand that elections should only be held when the country has been sufficiently de-militarized.

Clerics like Magaya should be able to read the signs of the times and avoid aligning themselves with partisan political agendas. The so-called man of cloth is criticizing the First Lady Dr Grace Mugabe for donating food and other goods alleging that they are being distributed on party lines. The First Lady invited all the people to join her as the mother of the nation when she was donating the food and goods.

Magaya has gone a step further by urging the people to rise against the legitimately elected government over civil servants' salaries and the demolitions of the illegal structures. We need to remind the so-called top cleric to stop inciting the peace loving people of this country. In fact the man should be reminded that it is illegal to be legal in a society of illegality.

The cleric has also called the government to restore dignity to members of the security sector, pensioners and war veterans. In this endeavour the cleric should not interfere in the running of the government but concentrate on writing positive pastoral letters. The man of the pulpit should stick to the word of God.

The net effect of biased clerics like Magaya has been to divide the church into two broad groups; those in favour of President Robert Mugabe and those opposed to him. Progressive Christians and the like minded people should stick to the word of God and leave politics to the politicians.

Recently Heart-Felt International Ministries (HIM) founder Tavonga Vutahwashe has come out guns blazing accusing government officials of oppressing Zimbabweans but handling foreigners with velvet gloves. Vutahwashe went on arguing that ministers are behind the untold suffering of locals and all the economic misfortunes the country is facing.

In his scathing sermons, Vutahwashe preaches that President Robert Mugabe is surrounded by ungodly people who are unfit to lead the country. He claims that the ZANU PF regime has perpetuated the stereo-type that foreigners are superior to locals as it gives them preferential treatment especially the Chinese.

The clergyman proffers that the current cash crisis can be traced back to the ZANU PF all weather friends the Chinese, who he accuses of siphoning the greenback to their motherland. In this endeavour the man of the cloth is promoting racism as he is against the Chinese and then this becomes a fascinating paradox.

In the current political discourse it has emerged that traditional churches in the likes of Roman Catholic, Methodists Anglicans etc have been concentrating on the word of God instead of criticizing government policies like the newly emerging little known churches. Of late these little known churches are being led by people of dubious religious credentials as they are preaching hate sermons.

Recently some dubious church groups came up together and demonstrated against the schools national pledge. A quick but shrewd glance at the demonstrators shows that they are not churches, they are small opposition parties disguising as churches. If the Roman Catholic Church decides to march the whole of Harare will be closed because of numbers. Not these gangsters masquerading as churches. The normal churches endorsed the national pledge, only misled people keep on talking about Muslim hand in this pledge and yet there is nothing Muslim about it.

It is now beside the point and ill advised to say that more churches are calling for the removal of President Robert Mugabe from power by any means necessary as he had failed the nation. Real churches do not call for confrontation with the incumbent President but pray for economic recovery and prosperity.

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Stewart Murewa <stewartmurewa@gmail.com