Greed kills. Wars are fought over the hidden treasures of this earth. Oil may “oil” the machinery of one military power, while diamonds and gold fund the fighting machine of the other. “Blood diamonds” devastate a country, they do not build it.

Businesspeople may commit ritual murders to outdo their rivals through witchcraft. Economies are destroyed and people become paupers because of corruption enriching the so-called “elite”. Luxury mansions are being built while the majority live in hovels and shacks, causing deep social divisions and class conflicts.

The church’s mission is to work towards justice and equity. The prophets of Israel demanded mercy and compassion for widows and orphans and denounced merchants and rich landowners. Jesus warned the rich whose hearts belong to wealth, without mercy for the poor. Have we forgotten the parable of the rich man and Lazarus? Do we not remember Jesus’ saying, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven” (Luke 18 : 25)?

Again and again in her history great wealth was a threat to the integrity of the Church and the truth of the Gospel. Francis and Dominic in the High Middle Ages preached the Gospel to the poor in self-chosen poverty, which restored the church corrupted by living in luxury and reconciled her to the poor majority.

Preaching against super-capitalism and warning the racketeers of today, alone, does not restore the imbalance between the haves and the have-nots. The gifts of the Creator — food, water, land, animal and plant life, and energy — must not be wasted. It would be an insult to the poor and an outrage to the needy.

The preachers themselves have to live a modest lifestyle and be in solidarity with the needy. Religious communities of sisters and brothers can be found in poor quarters and working with slum dwellers. The words of bishops demanding justice for the poor are fine and necessary, but only the presence of the church among those who live in the shadows makes a real impression.

Families suffer and break up if they do not share.

Jesus “had nowhere to lay his head”, but he did not live in absolute misery. Women supported him and his disciples “out of their resources” (Luke 8 : 1 – 3). Jesus and the Twelve had a common purse even though the bursar was a “thief” (John 12: 6).
The church cannot live from nothing. From the beginning the faithful contributed to the upkeep of the Christian community.

Paul was a tent-maker and supported himself by the work of his hands, but he did not deny that the “worker was worth his wages”. But the “widows and orphans”also belong to the church and part of the offerings must go to them, which must never be forgotten.

The church may ask from her members what is necessary, but she must never become a club for the rich and promote affluence.
Paul judges justly: “If we have food and clothing, we shall be content with that. Those who want to be rich are falling into temptation and into a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires, which plunge them into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is the root of all evils.” (1 Timothy 6: 8 – 10).

What the people contribute belongs to the church, not to the pastor. Ministers and church workers need to receive a moderate salary to sustain their families or communities. But everything else belongs to the church and must be administered by trusted members of the congregation. Such a finance committee must make use of the professional expertise of accountants and bankers among the members, provided they are men and women of integrity.

Some members want to get “rich quick” by bidding for church projects and overcharging the community. Let them hear Jesus’ message: “Woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.” (Luke 6: 24). The church is not a dairy cow to be milked by all and sundry.

The real poor must be taken care of. But not necessarily through “free hand-outs”. What are their skills and abilities? Can’t we imbue them with a spirit of initiative and start them off as small entrepreneurs, working for their own upkeep?

Let us not pray so much for prosperity, houses, cars or money-spinning careers, but for the virtue of honesty and the spirit of sharing and generosity so as to increase the welfare of all.

Among religious communities of sisters or brothers (in the Catholic, Anglican and Orthodox churches and some others) income is shared. Salaries, honoraria or stipends go into one common fund. That is their way of driving out the spirit of selfishness and possessiveness, and there must not be any cheating. It is an example for the whole Christian community and indeed society as a whole.

For some people this is quite an attractive idea since it promises security. Famous is the letter of a young boy to his parish priest, “Dear Father, since life is hopeless I have decided to become a priest.”

But a Christian community should not be so much a haven of security, as a community of “men (or women) for others”, sharing not so much in times of prosperity, as in times of need, seeking not private property, but the common good.

Property is not a bad thing, it secures a certain independence. But it has also a social dimension and must be shared. But what belongs to all in the community must also be respected by all.

GOSPEL artiste, promoter and dancer based in the United Kingdom, Nkosi Ndlovu, will be in the country on September 28, for a national tour.

Ndlovu will perform in Harare, Bulawayo, Victoria Falls, Nkayi and Hwange.

His latest albums Umusa-Grace, Hamba Jonah and My Journey have become gospel bangers in UK. Ndlovu has promised his gospel music fans a tour to remember.

“I’m coming to Zimbabwe before September 22 and I will be playing my latest tracks from a new album for the first time in the country. I will travel to different parts of Zimbabwe showcasing my talent to the gospel music lovers and my fans,” he said.

Popularly known as Nkosi ka Ndlovu, the musician who boasts of three albums, broke into the music industry in 2007 and is now working on a new album to be released before the end of the year.

“My new album is going to be out soon and through it the fans will see the other side of Nkosi ka Ndlovu and it is titled, Nkosi Sings Hymns. This album is purely hymns only,” he said.

His music is available on iTunes and CDs and most of the proceeds he gets from his music are channelled to his former school, Ezidulini Primary School, for the purchase of books and furniture. The musician, who ventured into music at 13, has a strong following in the UK. He was born in Nkayi and he grew up in Bulawayo.

IF you want first-class professionals you enquire about their studies and character formation.

Nowadays the public is concerned about the low moral calibre of certain church ministers, and of government ministers that are hardly better.

Pastors who are accused of rape, seduction of married members of their flock, sexual abuse, or corruption give the Church a bad name. People feel let down.

We must ask — what kind of training and formation have these ministers received? There are four areas that need attention: Forming the human character and instilling good moral qualities; spirituality and life of prayer; academic studies giving the future pastor a deep knowledge of Scripture and theology; pastoral skills in relating to people.

The elders of the Church who consider a candidate must ask the one crucial question: What is his/her motivation in wanting to be a minister of the church or pastoral worker? Do candidates merely look for a comfortable social position? Or for economic security? Is personal ambition driving him/her? Or are they truly called by the Lord of the Church and have a genuine vocation? This needs testing over several years. Not only Church authorities have a say in this. Even ordinary church members should be invited to give their views.

Nobody is appointing himself as shepherd of the flock. In the early church, as reflected in Scripture, the elders of the Church selected the persons they wanted to send on a mission and laid their hands on them as a sign of their call. Even today the Church is doing this. Bishops ordain candidates after years of training and testing by the laying on of hands.

If there are failures we have to seek the cause in insufficient character formation and spiritual training. Academic excellence alone does not make for good and caring and responsible ministers, ready to serve rather than rule as bosses.

But can it be taken for granted that there are in fact responsible authorities guiding a church community? Unfortunately not. Going by the number of churches, religious movements, spontaneous prayer groups and sects, one might say Zimbabwe is a deeply religious country. In purely statistical terms this may be true.

But if we ask if the true spirit of the Gospel is present in this myriad of religious movements, we might find that many are fraudulent, more interested in the contents of the collection plate than in the Gospel. Some gullible women find out too late that they have joined the “sex industry”.

I remember years ago when a taxi driver came to interview me about how to start a new church. Ropafadzo Mapimhidze asked recently: “Who should monitor men of the cloth?” (NewsDay, June 13, 2015). In the case of such self-styled “pastors” or “ministers” there just is no one to “monitor” them.

And their number rises every day. If you are out of a job, but own a Bible and can talk, and do not want to risk the crocodiles when swimming across the Limpopo on the way to our more prosperous southern neighbour, starting a new church congregation or miracle campaign is about the next best thing.

Or ministers who have a row with their church superiors can always declare “unilateral independence”, cut the ties to the mother church and start with a new outfit.

There are several umbrella bodies which should set certain standards for churches that have joined them, e.g., the Evangelical Fellowship, The Christian Council of Churches, or the Heads of Denominations, and a few others. But they do not have real authority to discipline members.
And most new “ministries” do not belong to them anyway.
The problem is gullibility, sheer greed and ambition for power and wealth. How come people join “prophetic movements” where the 10 Commandments (do not kill, steal, give false witness, commit adultery….) are not known, let alone practiced?

Which is not to say that there is no need for “monitoring” even in more traditional churches. Just in recent days the Vatican announced that a new tribunal is to established to deal with bishops who have failed to protect children from abusers among their clergy.

The Church has laws which must be enforced. Every bishop or religious superior has a little manual which tells him/her exactly how to “monitor” an offender against Church law. Church ministers are not outside State law either, and the Church is obliged to report criminal offenders to the police. There is no “protection” for them.

But maybe prevention is better than cure. Which means selecting only truly worthy candidates for the Church office of pastor (which means “shepherd”) or minister (“servant”).

And this is, after all, a problem government shares with the church: How to avoid choosing truly disastrous “ministers” who do not serve the people, but only themselves.

Anglicans celebrate their return to Mizeki Shrine (photo:M Chibaya).

Two ministers who were invited to grace the Anglican University in Zimbabwe ground-breaking ceremony in Marondera yesterday failed to turn up.

 Provincial Affairs minister Ambrose Mutinhiri was not at the event as he was reportedly hosting a party at Mahusekwa Growth Point to celebrate his appointment as minister.

His Higher and Tertiary Education counterpart Jonathan Moyo was also expected to make a guest appearance, but did not do so.

Moyo’s reasons for his failure to attend the function could not be established yesterday as he could not be contacted on his mobile phone.

Addressing the crowd which had gathered to witness the ceremony at Rufaro Longlands Farm, Church of the Anglican Diocese of Harare of the Church of the Province of Central Africa, Bishop Chad Gandiya said the invited guests had failed to grace the event due to pressing commitments.

Meanwhile, the Anglican Church leadership is begging its members to contribute resources in cash or kind towards the construction of the $3 million university, which is expected to be the first of its kind in Mashonaland East Province.

Speaking during the event, chairman of the steering committee, Christopher Mutambirwa pleaded with church members to support the project.

“When the Zimbabwe Council for Higher Education, through the minister, gave us the provisional licence a few months
ago, we felt emboldened and empowered to move on with the project.

“This Anglican University in Zimbabwe project needs people. That is all of us to put together the resources required to get it growing from strength to strength and become, as Bishop Gandiya has said, the Oxford [University] of Zimbabwe,” Mutambirwa said.

“Therefore, our quest and goal is to set up and run this university as the legacy of this generation to several, maybe uncountable generations, after us. To accomplish this project requires much capital resources.”

If constructed in time, the university will be the first ever in the province despite government and the Methodist Church in Zimbabwe also planning to establish their own universities.

IT HAS been widely reported in the media how contemporary churches are making thousands, if not millions, of dollars through selling religious paraphernalia. Perhaps there will probably be no time in history when churches have made so much money from selling religious merchandize as in this time.

The merchandize, ranging from wrist bands, anointing oils, bracelets, necklaces, stickers to car posters, has now become a common sight in most public places. Churches are actually opening shops selling the highly sought after paraphernalia. Hardly does one get into a public gathering and fail to notice one or two people wearing religious paraphernalia of some sort.

While there should be no harm in any object being inscribed with a spiritual message, the religious gear emanating from contemporary prophetic churches deserves closer scrutiny given the reverence being ascribed to the paraphernalia. Many will remember a story which broke out early this year when a Kadoma accident survivor attributed his escape to the wrist band on his left hand bearing a particular prophet’s name. He thanked the particular prophet for ‘protecting’ him in the accident.

Also a well-known university lecturer who is a staunch believer in the new prophetic movement openly tells people that a sticker emblazoned with the face of her church prophet and his prophetess wife is always ‘pasted’ on her tummy as she goes about her daily routine as it ‘protects’ her from harm or evil. Just last week, at a Bulawayo hotel, many were surprised when one seminar participant put a sticker on his hotel room door decorated with the face of his prophet leader. Asked by fellow colleagues, he said the prophet’s face chases away evil spirits and protects his ‘children’ as they sleep.

So strong is the faith being put in the paraphernalia that I was shocked to hear one prominent prophet telling congregants that they could call out his name when confronted with danger. In fact, an Epworth man appeared in the Herald newspaper claiming that thieves fled during an attack when he called out the name of a particular prophet.

Even more, one can only listen in wonder how much faith has now been conferred on the so called anointing oils. Anointing oil sells more than any food item. Time and again it has been reported that unscrupulous people have been packaging bottles with stickers of prominent prophets and profiting from it. Anointing oil is believed to be a panacea to a host of social ills such as bad luck, poor finances and joblessness.

Multitudes have developed profound faith in the oils. A heartrending Star FM radio programme which normally features people suffering from terminal diseases provides ample proof that people’s faith is now firmly embedded in these paraphernalia. As part of advice, radio callers commonly ‘advise’ the sick to buy prophet so-and-so’s stickers or oil.

Now, I have always pointed out that the ultimate aim of prophetic churches which deify church leaders is nothing but an attempt to usurp the mandate of God. You may ask: if a sticker can ‘protect’ one from an accident, what would they need God for? If wearing a bracelet inscribed with a prophet’s name can fend off evil spirits during the night, would one really need God for protection? If one can scare away armed robbers simply by calling out their prophet’s name, would they really need God’s power? If some anointing oil is the panacea to all our earthly suffering of what use is God the Creator?

Clearly they are taking things that should be a preserve of the Almighty and apportioning them to mere mortals and inanimate objects like wood and paper. They are robbing God of his supremacy. God is very unwavering about this practice, even stamping his authority through his second commandment; “Thou shalt have no other gods.” Idolatry, according to the Bible, consists of anything which closely or remotely seeks to come in the place of God.

And Satan, being the chief deceiver and evil spirit he is, knows that no one in this age would really bow to a graven image thus he ushered in a subtle form of idolatry, namely religious paraphernalia which thousands of purported Christians can’t even perceive. The devil has actually made people excited and proud about things which, in reality, are a subtle form of idolatry.

The truth of the matter is this: prophets, anointing oils, bracelets and stickers have absolutely no power to save anyone; it is God who sustains life’ It is God ,the creator of heaven and earth who keeps alive all that is on earth including those who ridicule and reject him. He alone deserves faith not any another human being or substance as we are seeing in prophetic churches.

My message to all whose faith is anchored in prophets and stickers is exactly as stated in the Bible, “Thou shalt have no other gods.” Cursed be one whose faith is in human beings or substances. Believe in God; only he is the truth, the Way and the Life.

Officials believed to be from Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) yesterday caused a scene at the Prophetic Healing and Deliverance (PHD) Ministries headquarters, demanding to see Prophet Walter Magaya over his numerous donations.

Zimra officials are understood to have demanded a list of people who have benefited from Prophet Magaya’s donations since he started his PHD church. The officials were not interested in being helped by PHD officials who handle information that might be of use to Zimra and instead demanded to see Prophet Magaya, who was not there at that time. He only turned up later for the Sunday Service.

While there was no immediate comment from the Revenue Authority, Prophet Magaya last night confirmed receiving news of the raid. He believes Zimra’s guys were triggered into haunting him after his highly publicised donations to Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals, the First Lady and national soccer teams. Prophet Magaya added that Zimra’s actions will discourage charity work as PHD prayer partners were disturbed by yesterday’s incident.

“I have not been given an outline of what Zimra want from me and on what basis. But from what is coming out, our donations to charity sparked this raid. Our gesture in buying First Lady Amai Grace Mugabe’s book and the donation to Parirenyatwa sparked the unfortunate incident.

“This is God’s ministry and all the funds being channelled to help people are coming from people who grasped the vision of my ministry. I have always put it on record that PHD prayer partners are behind all this,” said the visibly shaken Prophet Magaya.

While acknowledging Zimra as the revenue authority, Prophet Magaya was not happy with what he called “unprofessional” behaviour by the officials who reportedly clashed with his followers.

“I am told that when they arrived, they were rude and refused to be attended to by relevant people within the PDH structures with regards to whatever information they needed pertaining the donations. Instead, I am told they were saying ‘toda kuona anozviti Magaya wacho’. It disturbed PDH prayer partners so much and they asked me if helping people is what Zimra are against or they are meant to destroy the ministry that God has established.

“Among their demands is a full list of the people I helped with money and you wonder where their question is coming from and what they are up to,” said Prophet Magaya.

MEMBERS of some apostolic sects in Gutu district are reportedly taking to the mountains and hiding there with their children to avoid a national measles immunisation campaign due to start next week.

The families are said to be avoiding health officials who are moving around the district encouraging parents to take children under 15 years for vaccination at local health centres.

Some vapostori sects still shun medical treatment saying it is against their religious beliefs.

At least 5 million children aged between nine months and 15 years are set to be vaccinated against Measles Rubella in a national campaign that will run from 28 September to 2 October this year.

Gutu paramount chief, Edmond Masanganise, said cases of apostolic sect members hiding from health officials were widespread in the Chiwara, Shenjere and Maungwa communal lands.

The chief said he has since approached the police to round up the defiant groups to ensure their children are immunised when the campaign starts.

“We have approached the police to assist us after a number of families especially from the apostolic sects took to their heels, children strapped on their backs heading to the mountains when health officials visited homesteads just to encourage people to heed the vaccination calls.

“What will be the situation like during the immunisation days? As a community, leader I cannot afford to have a situation where the health of a community is jeopardized by a small group of people who are stuck in religious beliefs in this day and age,” said the chief.

A health official who refused to be named for professional reasons said some families were prepared to stay in the mountains until the immunisation days are over.

“There is need for intensive campaigns to members of the apostolic sects that no child should die from vaccine-preventable diseases.

“We are glad the traditional leaders listened to us. Also, the inclusion of police before and during the vaccination days will improve the number of children who will receive the vital dose,” said the official.

Development partners that include the World Health Organisation (WHO), UNICEF, Maternal and Child Health Integrated Programme (MCHIP) and the Lions Club have offered financial and technical support towards the success of vaccination campaign.

Immigration officials at Hosea Kutako International Airport yesterday detained about 160 members of a foreign-based church, because they did not have the required travel documents to enter the country.

The group, among them 12 children, are from the Johane Masowe Echishanu Apostles Church, which is based in Zimbabwe.

They are believed to have come to Namibia to attend a religious conference in the capital. They were denied entry to the country.

Home Affairs and Immigration Permanent Secretary Patrick Nandago yesterday, when asked why the group was detained, responded: “Non-compliance with the law.”

Nandago said the group consists mainly of Zimbabwean nationals and others from Botswana and South Africa. “You can only travel without a visa if you are a tourist and in this case they did not have the applicable permit. Since it is not the case, they were supposed to apply for the relevant permits. The next step is for them to go back to their countries,” he said.

Nandago did not provide a due date by which the group should leave the country.
“They are actually supposed to leave with the next available flight.” The group was detained in the old terminal building at the airport.

Nampol’s head of public relations, Chief Inspector Kauna Shikwambi, said the group would have to be deported to their countries of origin.

Shikwambi said they had applied for visas sometime back, but the request was declined.
“Despite not getting visas, they still had the audacity to come here,” she said.

According to Shikwambi, the group applied to stay in Namibia from September 27 to October 14 2015.
They jetted into the country aboard Air Namibia.

Airlines are supposed to check whether travellers have the required travel documents before allowing them to board a flight.

Air Namibia however downplayed any wrongdoing.

“We are aware of the passengers, however it is an immigration issue,” said the airline’s spokesman Paulus Nakawa.

The Namibian Police yesterday refused the media permission to speak to the group.

Three Roman Catholic employees were summoned to court yesterday for allegedly squandering more than US$500 000 meant for humanitarian relief.

Cornelius Hamadziripi, 49, Dadirayi Nyamasuka, 34, and Wonder Mufunda, 40, were remanded to October 10 by regional magistrate Noel Mupeiwa.

The complainant is Zimbabwe Council of Bishops Conference (ZCBC), represented by Father Fradreck Chiromba.

Hamadziripi is national director of Caritas Zimbabwe, Nyamasuka the finance administrator and Mufunda the programmes coordinator.

ZCBC is the administrator of all Catholic departments including Caritas, whose mandate is providing humanitarian aid to vulnerable and needy communities, emergency response and relief work in Zimbabwe.

Sometime in 2013, Caritas presented a project proposal to the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development seeking funds to assists of political violence during 22013 harmonised elections.

They received US$30 400, which was to be released upon approval by an emergency response committee chaired by David Lukio.

The relative peace in the elections did not warrant release of funds and the whole amount was supposed to be sent back to Cafod but the accused persons only remitted US$4 999,20, the court head.

A forensic audit established that US$25 400 was converted by Hamadziripi and accomplices to their own use, the court head.

In a bid to cover the offence, the accused persons allegedly misrepresented that US$12 800 was distributed to eight dioceses and produced fictitious disbursement sheets.

When the dioceses were interviewed, they denied receiving the cash. It was further alleged that the accused persons would award themselves advance salaries which would not be paid back but written off the end of each financial year.

As a result, they withdrew US$174 004,63 in advance salaries, the court heard.

Between January 4,2012 and January 2014, and on 60 different occasions, the accused persons allegedly withdrew US$208 586 purporting to fund the petty cash account.

A total of US$525 410,05 was lost and nothing was recovered.

Female police officers in Harare yesterday accused their bosses of violating their constitutional rights by forcing them to attend a Christian prayer service.

The female cops alleged their bosses forced them, under threat of US$5 fines, to attend Glad Tidings Church service in Highfield.

The cops were also forced to put on African attire for the prayer meeting.

They alleged the top bosses also broke a law that prohibits them from placing a burden on serving members’ ability to worship as they please.

The prayer meeting was organised by Dorothy Marufu, the chairperson of the Police Women Network- an entity within the Zimbabwe Republic Police established in 2009 ostensibly to empower and uplift female police officers.

Marufu confirmed organising the prayer meeting but would neither explain its purpose nor the need for African dress.

“The meeting is taking place in Highfield but I am driving now I will call you after 30 minutes,” she said.

Christians and non-Christians alike were forced to attend the service.

” The force can’t tell people which god to pray to, or whether to pray at all,” said one of the cops.

Another officer who attended the meeting said: “We do not understand the importance of this prayer session but we were threatened  with disciplinary if we absconded while those who failed to buy the African dresses will pay US$5 fine.

“Nothing of substance was discussed at the meeting that we must continue to part with our money in contributions to the network which vary from district to district, depending on their projects.

“Nobody wanted to come because some of us are not even members of this church but the woman (Marufu) would not listen to us when we raised the issue of freedom of worship.

This is a clear case of abuse of authority but what other option did we have when it is an order from higher authorities?”

Some of the officers who were made to abandon their duties for the prayer session alleged that their bosses were the biggest beneficiaries.

“Apart from being forced to buy clothes for the prayer, nobody even considered that our religious beliefs may not be the same,” another officer who attended the meeting said.

National All-Night Prayer hosted by Apostolic Flame Ministries

Venue: Great Zimbabwe monuments

Date: 16 October

A SHAMED preacher who sexually assaulted members of his flock is back in the fold at the church he helped create.

Self-styled “prophet” Walter Masocha dodged a jail term earlier this year for groping a deaconess and molesting a schoolgirl.

Zimbabwe-born Masocha carried out the attacks while leading the Agape for All Nations church, reports the Daily Record.

After his conviction, the Stirling church said they “apologised for any harm done to those affected” and announced the 51-year-old was suspended.

But the pervert preacher is still a central figure in the organisation.

A video posted on Agape’s website shows Masocha front and centre during a church event in July – just a month after he was sentenced to a community payback order.

Wearing a bright blue blazer, he smiles during an event in Barnsley Metrodome.

He doesn’t preach but the camera lingers on him standing in the front row.

The mum of his schoolgirl victim – who can’t be named for legal reasons – said: “I have a child who is still suffering and has still not recovered.

“She has hallucinations and is in counselling. There is nothing we can do. This is a paedophile and nothing has been done to him.

“Even now, we hear that he tells people that the community service he was given is good.

“He has no conscience or no guilt over what he has done. He is utterly proud.

“He does not qualify to be on the streets, let alone in church. They are mocking God.”

Victims’ relatives reacted with fury when Masocha escaped with 250 hours’ community service and a year on the sex offenders’ register.

In April, the former Stirling University lecturer was found guilty of sexually assaulting a deaconess and kissing and caressing a girl, 14, at the church.

He was cleared of inducing a 13-year-old girl to massage his naked body with oils. Another charge that he acted inappropriately with her sister was dropped.

Meanwhile, registered charity Agape were cleared of financial wrongdoing earlier this month after a probe by the Office of the Scottish Charities Regulator uncovered no evidence of irregularities.

The Record revealed in April that Agape made £3.3million in four years while Masocha was at the helm.

He and his wife say they were each paid about £40,000 a year. Former members claim they took a lot more in the form of “love offerings”.

It was reported how disgruntled former members labelled the church as a “cult” where rags used to collect Masocha’s sweat were considered “blessed by the prophet”.

A spokesman for the church said: “Dr Masocha is in the process of mounting an appeal against both conviction and sentence.

“Dr Masocha has voluntarily resigned from his official paid position with the church.

“He has no role in the church and carries out no public duties on behalf of the church although he remains a member and continues to attend services.”

The spokesman said Masocha may conduct private prayer meetings at his home but these would be a matter for him.

Apostolic Flame Ministries founder Bishop Tarugarira Chipunza has lined up an all-night prayer dubbed “Economic Restoration” at the Great Zimbabwe expected to pool traditional, political and religious leaders in praying for the nation.

“The reason why we are doing that is we are praying to God in order for Him to restore our economic blessings as individuals, families, businesses and as a country,” Chipunza said.

“Everybody whether it’s a political leader, a family or anyone called by the name a Zimbabwean, you would find out we are all crying mainly on the economic side.

“But the Bible said in 2 Chronicles 7 v 14, ‘If my people who are called by my name, could pray, confess their sins, humble themselves’, God says ‘I will hear them and I will heal their land.”

He said the prayer has been cleared by the director of National Monuments and Home Affairs.

The all-night prayer will be held on October 16, at the Great Zimbabwe monuments.

“The reason why we have chosen Great Zimbabwe is that’s where our name originates,” he said.

“We believe that Great Zimbabwe monument was designed by God.

“It is something that has outlived history, it has been there since time immemorial so we are going there as a place that we believe our founding ancestors there were engaging in various economical activities in accordance to the information that is in the national archives.

“So where God once blessed our ancestors , we believe even we the decadent when we go there and cry to Him, He will remember the old covenant he had with our ancestors.”

MUTARE: A man who sent text messages accusing a fellow church member of sleeping with his wife was slapped with a $100 fine for contravening Postal and Telecommunication Act.

Tigere Wasara, 38, of Hospital Hills, pleaded guilty when he appeared before magistrate Nyasha Kuture on Saturday.

Wasara reportedly sent two offensive texts in Shona, insulting Owen Mutasa recently.

Asked why he committed the offence, Wasara said he was responding to a whirlwind of messages he had also received from Mutasa.

“Your Worship, I was just responding to what he had sent to me. He irritates me,” said Wasara.

But magistrate Kuture said Wasara should have taken the legal route instead of taking law into his own hands.

Prosecutor, Donald Mudadirwa, told the court that on the first count, Wasara sent a text message which translates “You fool; a drunkard that only feeds your stomach with beer…and you go and have sex my wife”.

Wasara also sent another second message calling Mutasa “faeces, dog and dirty anus”.

Mutasa then made a report to the police leading to Wasara’s arrest.

WALKING in Harare’s busy streets, one cannot help but notice colourful banners on high rise buildings of smartly dressed men and women with the caption, “Come and witness miracles, deliverance and receive financial breakthroughs at X or Y ministries”. The banners always underscore that the church is founded by bishop X or prophet Y. This trend has grown into a real normal practice in recent times.

The trend has also seen many young people fresh from Bible colleges immediately forming their own churches with a ‘ministries’ end note. Even established pastors who had served in recognised churches are branching to form their own denominations and this has become a really widespread practice. One would naturally question why the proliferation of churches at every street corner purporting to preach the same Gospel.

Even more, it is now a cliché that everyone forming their church immediately assumes the title ‘apostle’ or ‘prophet’. However in sharp contrast to the biblical narrative, prophets never formed churches but they were actually found within the established church system fulfilling their own distinctive work. They were not the all-and-all of the church but were cogs within the church’s system.

Now, the practice of churches being founded by human beings has had fatal consequences over the years and the evidence is before our eyes every day. We have all seen where it leads to when human beings are entrusted with ultimate authority. Even in politics, it has always proved fatal when an individual is heaped with ultimate power. The philosopher was spot-on who said, “No man is good enough to be trusted with absolute power.”

The major trouble with churches founded by human beings is that, more often than not, a person becomes the symbol of worship. He becomes a demi-god whose lifestyle, beliefs and even dressing is followed to the letter. Their brand of Gospel, since it’s centred on individuals tends to gravitate towards human worship. Strangely, and in occult fashion, we have seen some individuals forsaking their family names instead opting for the prophets’ names.

For example, social network Facebook is awash with many people who have adopted Uebert Angel’s name. They call themselves ‘sons of Prophet Angel.’ The same is true for Emmanuel Makandiwa and Walter Magaya. The practice is even more rampant in some apostolic sects where the deified church founder is the point of reference and the emblem of the church. Worse, even his word is taken as law and this is increasingly clear where prophets and church leaders are actually quoted and their personal philosophies weighed against biblical teaching?

Discussing with many who attend the human founded churches, one is sure to see the depth of influence on the laity. We have people who trust and believe in their leader more than the bible. Some have even joked but in essence truly saying the truth that if one where to insult God they would get away with it but they would be beaten to pulp should they insult some deified church leaders. And this has proven true many times; some have been manhandled for daring say the truth about these church leaders. They become a god of some sort as it where. We have seen thousands kneeling before church leaders yet in the bible there is no such order.

The Bible states that “God exalted Jesus Christ and gave him a name which is above every name; that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow of things in heaven and things under earth (Phil 2:9-10). At one time, Cornelius bowed to Peter and worshipped him but Peter took him up saying, “stand up: I myself also a man” Acts 10:25, 26. Some people when they saw apostle Paul and Barnabas, they likened them to gods and wanted to offer sacrifice to them but when Paul and Barnabas heard about it, they tore their clothes saying “…why do you do these things? We are also men of like passion with you…”Acts 14:11-15.

We have even witnessed rampant abuse of women occurring all due to the apportioning of ultimate power to human beings. Walter Masocha and Martin Gumbura have been accused of women sexual abuse all bringing shame to the name of God. Human beings are sure to abuse power if deified as we are currently witnessing.

There is no human being with authority to found a church at all and the practice is totally against the biblical order. The true church of God has only one founder namely Jesus Christ and unto him worship, honour and glory should be given. Further, Jesus Christ’s church comprises him as the head and the rest are brothers and sisters. No one deserves to be knelt for or deified.

Remember this is the Last Hour.

A Rusape man, Collins Mudzigwa,24, is up for rape, after being caught red-handed raping an under-age girl in the bush.

The court head the incident occurred on the 1st August and Mudzingwa, last week pleaded saying she was his girlfriend.

Mudzingwa spotted the girl walking nearby pentecostal church at around 1600hrs on the day and took advantage of her.

Rusape Area prosecutor Mr Tirivanhu Mutyasira told the court that Mudzingwa waylaid the 13 year old girl into a bushy area close to the Flyover along Wedza Highway where he raped her at around 4pm.

It is the State’s case that the complainant was on her way to church when she met Mudzingwa.

He allegedly asked the complainant to accompany him to his residence but she refused and he forced himself on her, the Prosecutor said.

Mudzingwa was on Monday last week sentenced to 15 years in prison.

Mudzingwa of Vengere village who was not represented and denies the offence, will however serve 12 effective years after Rusape regional magistrate Mr Livingstone Chipadza suspended 3 years.

The Catholic Youth Network for Environmental Sustainability in Africa [CYNESA], from Kenya, Tanzania and Zimbabwe met in Harare on the 25^th of September to discuss how Catholic youths could be roped in and be more involved in conserving and protecting the environment.

The meeting aimed at identifying and discussing environmental issues currently being faced and encourages youths to be part of a “Green Generation”. Afforestation, recycling, cleaning up campaigns, waste, water and energy management are some of the activities that the youths can do to make sure this dream is achievable.

The group was joined by the Secretary to Papal Nuncio in Zimbabwe; Fr. Gabriele who expressed his joy to this appropriate response to the Holy See’s call on the environment. He also said youth should take courage from St Francis of Assisi who was deeply connected and in love with nature, and also happens to be the patron Saint of nature.

The Beatification of Tshimangadzo Samuel Benedict Daswa Bakali on the 13th of September 2015 was not only a big day for Catholics in South Africa only but also for the region and the rest of the world.

Daswa was brutally murdered on 2 February 1990 for his Catholic beliefs. He was 43 years old at the time of his murder and was a father of eight children. Daswa was a catechist and a school principal who became a Catholic at the age of 17 years. He helped to build the first church in his area.

A few months before his death, Daswa had refused to contribute R5 towards an investigation by a diviner to sniff out a witch or the person responsible for causing extreme weather and lightning which resulted in loss of lives. This was at the instruction of the community elders. He justified his refusal by saying that what was happening was a natural phenomenon and believing in witchcraft was against his beliefs as a Catholic.

A violent mob was to attack him, smashing his skull with a club and pouring boiling water down his nostrils and ears to ensure that he was dead. It is said that his last words were; “God, in your hands receive my spirit”.

LITTLE-KNOWN self-styled prophet Lloyd Matikiti has prophesied that former Vice-President Joice Mujuru would rout the ruling party in the 2018 election and form a coalition government with main opposition MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai.

Matikiti, who spends most of his week days preaching in the streets of Kwekwe and is part of the Harare-based Church of God made the prophesy last week while ministering to over 100 members of his church at the Globe and Phoenix Hall in the city centre.

He urged his followers not to pay much attention to First Lady Grace Mugabe and Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa who were currently being touted as front runners in the race to succeed President Robert Mugabe.

“They (Grace and Mnangagwa) are just passing time because when the time comes God will appoint a leader who will free Zimbabwe from these economic problems and this will be the Mujuru administration,” he said.

Matikiti later issued a statement addressed to Mujuru and Tsvangirai and was also currently circulating a DVD which contains the prophecy of Mujuru’s presidency.

“It was long announced to me by the Spirit of God before the so-called factionalism hit Zanu PF which led to the ouster of Mujuru and her companions that such will befall her but she will bounce back. It was highlighted to me that people will refuse to be led by a woman president although despite all these challenges she will eventually rule. Mujuru will therefore and must ascend to the throne of Zimbabwean leadership because God appointed her a long time ago,” Matikiti said.

He told his followers that Tsvangirai would allow Mujuru to lead the coalition.

Mujuru has not yet officially launched her envisaged People First party although she has unveiled the party’s manifesto and expressed willingness to work with Tsvangirai.