The growth of Christianity in the non-western world has resulted in the notion of an African-centred Christendom that shifted its gravity to the ‘Third Church’ in the global south. This chapter seeks to critique the media reports on the allegations of social injustices within the Johane Masowe Gorejena Penyeranyika Church in Zimbabwe led by Madzibaba Ishmael Chokurongerwa. The chapter posits that in spite of the assumed ‘sacred canopy’ of a church claiming to live by the central gospel values of justice, truth and mercy, this religious institution has faced criticisms and allegations regarding its involvement in perpetuating social injustices, particularly on women and children. This qualitative chapter drew insights from a RARE leadership model as its theoretical framework anchored on being Responsible, Accountable, Relevant and Ethical. The chapter gathered data through a review of existing literature and documentary analysis of the print and electronic media. The findings of the chapter encompass controversies emerging from the rescue of 251 minors by the State, which reveal suspected criminal activities such as child marriages, child labour, failure to send children to school and unregistered burial of some members at his Lily Farm in Nyabira, known as “Canaan Camp”, located 30 km west of Harare. The chapter concludes that the dynamics of social injustice within the church shed light on the ‘ambivalence of the sacred’. The realities of abusing the provision of the state-guaranteed freedom of worship and the need to re-imagine the goodness of RARE leadership within religious and broader societal contexts in Zimbabwe come to the fore.

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Social Injustice Under a Sacred Canopy: Critical Reflections on Johane Masowe Gore Jena Penyera Nyika Church, Zimbabwe

  • Ellen Sibanda,
  • Fortune Sibanda

摘要

The growth of Christianity in the non-western world has resulted in the notion of an African-centred Christendom that shifted its gravity to the ‘Third Church’ in the global south. This chapter seeks to critique the media reports on the allegations of social injustices within the Johane Masowe Gorejena Penyeranyika Church in Zimbabwe led by Madzibaba Ishmael Chokurongerwa. The chapter posits that in spite of the assumed ‘sacred canopy’ of a church claiming to live by the central gospel values of justice, truth and mercy, this religious institution has faced criticisms and allegations regarding its involvement in perpetuating social injustices, particularly on women and children. This qualitative chapter drew insights from a RARE leadership model as its theoretical framework anchored on being Responsible, Accountable, Relevant and Ethical. The chapter gathered data through a review of existing literature and documentary analysis of the print and electronic media. The findings of the chapter encompass controversies emerging from the rescue of 251 minors by the State, which reveal suspected criminal activities such as child marriages, child labour, failure to send children to school and unregistered burial of some members at his Lily Farm in Nyabira, known as “Canaan Camp”, located 30 km west of Harare. The chapter concludes that the dynamics of social injustice within the church shed light on the ‘ambivalence of the sacred’. The realities of abusing the provision of the state-guaranteed freedom of worship and the need to re-imagine the goodness of RARE leadership within religious and broader societal contexts in Zimbabwe come to the fore.