our man in botswana
From MMEGI:
St Paul's Anglican Church, Molepolole, nearly turned into a battlefield on Sunday when a group of irate members wanted to assault Bishop of the Diocese of Botswana, Trevor Mwamba. A furious young man tried to block Mwamba from leaving the church building in the middle of a heated meeting. He had tried to close the main doors in front of the bishop but was overpowered by a priest.
Members were demanding answers from Bishop Mwamba about the way he is running the church. This was after the bishop addressed the congregation on the suspension of licences for seven priests whom he said had violated church cannons. He said that he had tried to talk to the priests for a period of a year to stop associating with a fired bishop in Zimbabwe. He said that he learnt from The Herald newspaper of Zimbabwe about a meeting that took place between the priests, some church members and the outlawed Bishop Dr Kunonga. He said that the bishops of Central Africa region of the Anglican Church agreed that any member who associates with Dr Kunonga should be kicked out of the church.
9 comments:
He said that the bishops of Central Africa region of the Anglican Church agreed that any member who associates with Dr Kunonga should be kicked out of the church.
I guess we have to add that to our list of Anglican distinctives. There's commom prayer, of course; liturgical worship; oh, and kicking people out of church.
Bishop Mwamba clearly needs the help of Mma Ramotswe of the No 1 Ladies Dectective Agency. He certainly knows her, for it was he who officiated at her wedding to Mr J L B Matekoni a couple of years ago. And I'd bet a bob or two that the said Mma Ramotswe could sort out friend Nolbert Kunonga a good deal more quickly than the provincial structures...
I cannot keep straight any more just what the h... is going on with Christians (of whatever stripe) in Africa. Someone, anyone... please do a definitive explanation on it all. Where are Gilbert and Sullivan when you need them?
You know...I don't believe in kicking people out of church. But I have to say that Bishop Kunonga's followers have a very strange idea of what "church" entails. Apparently it involves physically assaulting people with whom they disagree.
Can you worship effectively when people are threatening physical violence?
Although you may misunderstand because of the terseness of the report, but Revdsmo. Mwamba is a progressive bishop, accused by Kunonga of being too gay friendly, working to keep the Province of Central Africa together, against the shenanigans of the likes of deposed Revdsmo. Kunonga, friend of the tyrant of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe, who has tried to pull a Revdsmo John-David Schofield, by declaring his diocese independent of the Province, and whose followers are known to attach anyone who gets in Kunonga's way.
"Molepolole" Wonderful name. Bet Gilbert & Sullivan could have constructed a pretty good patter song around it, D C Walker.
Our man in Botswana
But more importantly, God's man in Botswana! :-)
Kunonga has brought confusion in Zimbabwe and I am praying that he does not export it to Botswana. He has persecuted Anglican priests in the Diocese of Harare and fired the the good priests and instead ordained untrained priests who were beholden to him. Now that he has been replaced by good Bishop Bakare his priests are working as his bodyguards and they are refusing to handover the cathedral to the parishners of the Diocese of Harare. The deposed priests were given fair warning. Do not mourn for them instead mourn over the chaos and disrepute to the Anglican church that Kunonga has brought in Zimbabwe.
Rudo
We do, Rudo. Bishop Mwamba is well loved round these parts and I'm looking forward to meeting him later in the year when he visits my diocese.
Post a Comment