Ecclesiological Renewal for a Relevant Ministry and Church Polity, with reference to UCCSA and UPCSA in Zimbabwe

This article is a critique of Reformed Ecclesiology, particularly as regarding ministry and church polity. It is argued herein that a static ecclesiology results in church ministry that is seemingly deficient in responding to the context. This is seen in the current church polities and ways in which different denominations explain and carry out their ministry in the face of the new religious environment of the 21st century. This critique demands imperatives from the church, especially now in the advent of the emerging church, virtual ministry and such pandemics as Covid-19. The church cannot afford to remain ambivalent; her relevance is at stake. This article deals with Reformed Ecclesiology and polity in the context of Zimbabwe, with a special focus on the United Congregational Church of Southern Africa (UCCSA) and the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa (UPCSA) in Zimbabwe. These two denominations are in a “prolonged” engagement for church unity. From a strategic perspective, a possible ecclesiology will be proposed that can facilitate this renewal in the context of a Calvinistic ecclesiology. It is argued that a change in ecclesiology will result in a refined church ministry and polity. This is done by investigating the “church as epiphany.”

The Anglican Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Zambian Church History

Using the representations of the Anglican Cathedral of the Holy Cross in the media, this article retrieves the Cathedral’s role in public life in Zambian church history in order to tease out its significance in post-independence Zambia. In drawing on a case study and social capital theory, the article shows that the Cathedral of the Holy Cross, as a pre-independence religious building, was represented as a national house of worship, a heritage site and a political shrine. By this, it was a national worship space that played a role in hosting functions of varied nature, and a symbol of religious heritage. As a political shrine, the Cathedral was a space for guiding the nation and fostering reconciliation in the critical political moments of the country. These representations not only revealed the dynamics of the church’s role, but also closely aligned to the Cathedral’s social capital in public life through the intersection of the church and state relations in post-independence Zambia. The article argues that the Cathedral of the Holy Cross, although not a popular aspect of Zambian contemporary church history, was a religious, material cultural site and a space that allowed the church to contribute to post-independence church history in the country.

Jean-Marc Éla’s Hut and Empty Granary: Rethinking the Social Significance of Theology in Africa

Jean-Marc Éla, in his book My Faith as an African (1988), articulates a pastoral vision for the church in Africa. According to Éla, the “friends of the gospel” must be conscious of God’s presence “in the hut of a mother whose granary is empty.” This awakening arises from the capacity of theologians “to catch the faintest murmurs of the Spirit,” and to stay within earshot of what is happening in the ecclesial community. The vocation of an African theologian, as a witness of the faith and a travelling companion of God’s people, obliges him/her “to get dirty in the precarious conditions of village life.” Decades later, this thought of Éla echoes in Pope Francis’ pastoral vision: “I would prefer a Church which is bruised, hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a Church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its security” (Evangelii Gaudium, 49). The purpose of this article is to espouse the pastoral vision of Éla in light of the liberating mission of African theologians. This mission goes beyond armchair theologising toward engaging the people of God “under the tree.” With the granary understood as a metaphor for famine—and famine itself being the messenger of death—the article will also argue that the “friends of the gospel” are not at liberty to shut their eyes and drift off to sleep with a clear conscience, amidst a declining African social context.

Revisiting the Mystery of Life in the Hereafter: Reflections of Fr Augustine Urayai of Zimbabwe

The quest for knowledge regarding life after death is indispensable and paramount to most cultures and religions, including African spiritualties and mystery cults. Fr Augustine Urayai was a Roman Catholic priest and exorcist and this paper critically examines his theological reflections on death and life after death, particularly his idea of the “liminal/transitional phase” in the upward movement of spirits from earth to heaven for restoration and re-unification with God. The compulsory “liminal phase” or “zones” (magedhe) where all spirits pass through before their fate is ascertained comprises the resting, treatment, judgment, and feasting respectively. The article first examines the milieu in which Fr Urayai’s theology emerged and developed. As a way of analysis, it explores the age-old question of the immortality of the soul and its link with other religions, cultural and philosophical traditions. As it probes deeper, the article critically examines the ramifications and impact of Fr Urayai’s new theology on the Zimbabwe Christian landscape. The main argument developed in this article is that, even though Fr Urayai’s theory of life in the hereafter appears to be a breakaway from celebrated mainstream theological formulations, it has the potential to hatch useful insights into possible new areas of theological reflection in the ongoing discourses on the link between Christian anthropology and different African spiritualties.

Expanding Historical Theological Perspectives through Transdisciplinary Meta-methodological Engagement

Transdisciplinarity emerged at the end of the twentieth century and has come to be conceived of as a meta-methodology that seeks to transcend the different methodologies of segregated disciplines. The meta-methodology of transdisciplinarity finds expression in four different frameworks advanced by Rimondi and Veronese. This paper will expand historical theological perspectives by engaging with this transdisciplinarity meta-methodology. Since transdisciplinarity inherently goes beyond any one discipline, it can therefore influence historical theology without becoming it, and vice versa. Transdisciplinarity is set to increasingly influence theology with transdisciplinary theologians seeking to perceive more clearly the boundaries and potentialities of theological reflection.

A Quarter Century of Structural Unity in the Apostolic Faith Mission of South Africa: A Socio Historical Analysis

The Apostolic Faith Mission (AFM) of South Africa is one of the largest Pentecostal churches in Africa, with other denominational Pentecostal churches like the Full Gospel and the Assemblies of God. Since its inception in 1908, the AFM of South Africa has been divided into four main sections, namely: black, white, mixed race and Indian, for about 88 years. The church followed the divisions under apartheid in South Africa that divided people according to race, colour and ethnicity, with white people at the forefront of that division. It was only in 1996 that the AFM of South Africa decided to unite under one umbrella, with one constitution governing the structures and the members of the church. The 25 years of unity within the AFM of South Africa call for an evaluation of both the successes and the failures of this unity. Through a socio-historical analysis, it will be possible to identify the achievements of this unity on the one hand, and the loopholes on the other. The paper will show that the identified loopholes are detrimental to the unity of the church and its future. Therefore, in order to experience true unity, the church should address the challenges that compromise this unity by returning to the biblical basis of unity, dealing with structural impediments and encouraging multicultural fellowships. When the above is done, not only will the church experience true unity, but also maintain its growth that the church has experienced over the years of its existence.

Evangelicalising Black Pentecostalism: The Mechanics of Change at the Apostolic Faith Mission Sharpeville Congregation (1981–1985)

A recent study argues that black Pentecostalism in the Apostolic Faith Mission (AFM) of South Africa became evangelicalised through the agency of white missionaries. The study was national in scope and drew from archival as well as secondary sources. This article, on the other hand, seeks to contribute to an understanding of how evangelicalisation worked in a concrete situation of a specific congregation by analysing oral historical and archival material related to this process in the AFM Sharpeville congregation, between 1981 and 1985. The article answers the following question: How did evangelicalisation of black Pentecostalism happen at the congregational level of the AFM? The findings suggest that evangelicalisation at the level of the congregation happened through the appointment of (an) evangelical pastor(s), the use of evangelistic and revival campaigns, as well as pastoral discretion in deciding what to relent to, what to refrain from, and what to emphasise in their engagement with the congregation.

The Dutch Reformed Church and Multi-cultural Ministry: Angolana, a Rural Challenge

The article deals with the complexities of a multi-cultural ministry within the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa (DRCSA). Although the DRCSA is an “open” church where anyone from any race, culture or language is welcomed, the praxis of multi-cultural ministry is not always feasible. This article sets out to explore some of the reasons why the synodical declarations and decisions did not influence or help a rural congregation, particularly a non-white rural congregation in the DRCSA. Herein, the decisions of the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa are deliberated, particularly regarding multi-cultural ministry and the implications thereof for congregations like Angolana. Specific attention is given to Angolana because of the socio-political and cultural contexts of this congregation. The role and the calling of the church in a context where a community is challenged by forced removals are also considered.

The Apocryphal Paul as Divided Martyr: The Rhetoric of Schism and Legitimacy in Early Christian North Africa

Neither the epistles of Paul (authentic or disputed) nor the Acts of the Apostles address the death of the apostle, but this is a focus in the later apocryphal acts. This article examines the importance of this image of Paul as a martyr for the development of early Christianity in North Africa. Evidence from Tertullian, from texts describing the death of Cyprian of Carthage, and from the writings of Augustine, demonstrates that Paul was the model martyr for the African church. Paul’s status as such became a major point of contention in the competing claims to authority and legitimacy during the Donatist Controversy. The article analyses rhetorical claims to the Pauline legacy from the Caecilianist side (the writings of Optatus of Milev and Augustine) and the Donatist side (a mosaic from Uppenna and the Acts of the Abitinian Martyrs). Each side claimed that their martyrs were the true successors of Paul, and therefore they were the true Christians in Africa.

Africanising the Four-self-leadership Formula in the Church of Christ in Zimbabwe

The Church of Christ in Zimbabwe (COCZ) has adopted Western philosophies of Euro-American cultures originating from the Victorian age during the Restoration Movement (RM) of the American Second Great Awakening (SGA). This exclusive, divisive and oppressive culture denied women, the poor, and the young, the opportunity to lead. The RM emphasised going back to the founding charism of the New Testament Church, with Christian unity and ecumenism as central elements. Its doctrines became rigid, denying female leadership, constitutions, central headquarters, and further ministerial formation as worldly. This study raises these aspects as indispensable to the contextualising, inculturating and incarnating framework of the gospel in an African context. This reflection takes account of the four-self-leadership formula, as inspired by Magwidi’s PhD study (2015–2021), as well as other sources like the minutes of church board meetings and contextual writings by COCZ’s local clergy. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews that were collated with written sources and heuristically interpreted by the African Cultural Hermeneutics Approach (ACHA) (Kanyoro 2002; 2001). A synthesis of missionary ideology with African narratives of the Christian faith (using ACHA) interpreted the data to understand the “how” of contextual, cultural and religious transformation in the COCZ. The study recommends new, inclusive and transformative modes of leadership empowerment for an authentic African Church.