29 Mar 2016

In the thick green forest behind Molapo Crossing in Block 6, Gaborone, Johane Masowe church followers, draped in white garments and walking barefooted, were seen on Good Friday worshiping under trees; but do not be fooled, they do not celebrate Good Friday.

“Our church does not observe Good Friday because we believe that on this day Jesus is on the cross suffering and we cannot celebrate his suffering,” said a church elder who identified himself as Mr Madzibaba Knockstage.

Mr Knockstage said Good Friday fell on their normal worship days and that it was a coincidence that they were at church on the day.

Mr Knockstage thanked the government for exercising religious tolerance, adding that unlike other Christians, they did not read the Bible but instead relied on the Holy Spirit for guidance in their services and when prophesying people.

“We believe that the Bible that Christians read was written by people who were guided by the Holy Spirit but, with us, we tap directly into the Holy Spirit rather than have a second person narrate to us in writing,” he said.

The church elder said during the colonial era in Rhodesia (Zimbabwe), the church’s founding father, Johane Masowe, rejected the Bible because Africans did not originally have books.

He revealed that their founding father believed that there was one universal God and that the same God that the whites were worshiping was the same ‘Mwari’ they found in the Shonas. He said he could not accept white Christianity as it required Africans to get educated in order to preach or come closer to God.

Furthermore, Mr Knockstage revealed that their founding father believed in direct revelation from God as opposed to the mediation of white people or African ancestors.

“We live according to the 10 commandments as revealed to us by God because we believe that it is important to live right,” he said.

Quizzed on why they worship under trees, he said they did not erect permanent structures because Jesus preached everywhere, and that it was a sign that they were on a pilgrimage. He added that worshiping under trees brought them closer to God.

Meanwhile, on the same day, I caught up with Roman Catholic Bishop, Valentine Seane at Kgale Hill after a dramatic demonstration of Jesus Christ being crucified on the cross on Good Friday.

“Catholics do this every year the world over to remember Jesus Christ who died for us on the cross.

It is a crucial weekend for Christians the world over and a sign of victory for us,” he revealed.

Explaining the history of Good Friday, Bishop Seane noted that Jesus Christ was betrayed by one of his disciples, Judas on the night of the last supper where he washed his disciples feet. He said the following morning he was arrested for calling himself King of the Jews and was sent to Pontius Pilate who reluctantly ordered his crucifixion.

Furthermore, Bishop Seane said after Jesus was sentenced and soldiers tormented him by flogging him, crowning him with thorns and ridicule and forcing him to carry his own cross to the place of execution where he was nailed to the cross and crucified between two thieves.

He added that during the last few hours of Jesus on the cross, darkness befell the whole land, and an earthquake which was powerful enough to open tombs occurred and cracked the temple walls.

He said this was all the reason why the church celebrates a larger than life figure who lived, died and rose again and indeed still lives today, adding that his crucifixion was a sign of love for humanity. Ends