The Sunday Mail
Veronica Gwaze
AS the New Year begins, different creeds are in the process of launching themes and redefining their focus to firm their foundations in the year ahead.
It is that time of the year when renewed hope is displayed, a year of fresh seasons for believers in their respective religions. While many will be flocking to their places of worship to enter the New Year in worship, for others it is time to appease and thank their ancestors through religious ceremonies.
Fasting, prayer and communion will be the order of the day for the next 10 days to fervent church-goers. Speaking to Sunday Mail Society, believers from different religions expressed their New Year prospects, themes and insight for the year 2018.
President of Zimbabwe National Practitioners’ Association (ZINPA) and traditionalist Sekuru Friday Chisanyu said their theme was derived from how the traditional clergy had decided to go the modern way to gain more acceptance within the society.
“As traditional healers in Zimbabwe our theme for the year ahead is ‘Modern courtship in the traditional mode’. We will be working hand-in-hand with the Ministry of Health and Child Care hosting awareness campaigns and workshops to rescue people with different ailments from being lured by some of our own who are misleading them to dump medicine for conditions such as HIV in exchange for traditional herbs. Also again we want to warn them against some pastors from abandoning their different medications in the name of healing and deliverance.”
Sekuru Chisanyu said together with the Government and the Environmental Management Agency they will establish a programme which will educate and promote planting of medicinal trees to fight deforestation.
“We will also partner Environmental Management Agency (EMA) and Government to create programmes to start traditional medicine farming and promote good harvesting in the country without causing deforestation.
“Instead of cutting down trees to obtain herbs, we need our Government to establish harvesting standards as this will help reduce deforestation,” he said. The Muslim community also expressed their optimism for the year ahead with New Hope Charity Trust, a Muslim institution, focusing on the theme “Benefiting the Community for the sake of God”.
Its head of Arabic Language Department, Sheikh Shuaib Asali, said they will be involved in community activities that will establish a conducive relationship between them and the community.
“As a community we will be involved in various community activities to create a tolerant mutual relationship between the Muslims and other religions and to help them understand our religion better. In this new dispensation we hope for a brighter future characterised by economic breakthrough for the nation,” he said.
While different religions celebrate in different ways, many among the Christian community flock to their different churches for all-night vigils on New Year’s Eve. Apostolic Faith Mission (AFM) New Life Assembly Reverend, Mr Amon Madawo, said AFM does not have a universal theme for the church but within cluster levels.
“AFM New Life Assembly will run under the banner ‘Christ our chief cornerstone’ to continue and encourage people to anchor their lives on Christ who is our chief cornerstone. We want to win souls by rescuing them from the wickedness that has wrecked this world especially as we enter the New Year in this new dispensation, souls need to be reminded of Christ and hope be rekindled,” added Rev Madawo.
United Methodist Church (UMC) Administrative Assistant Rev Alan Gurupira said their theme which was derived from Matthew 28:19 was launched this year and will run until 2020.
“Because Matthew 28:19 orders us to work for the progression of God’s kingdom, we are working to amplify the Kingdom of God,” he said. Tabernacle of Worship Family Ministries International founder Bishop Roger Jeffrey expressed optimism for the year 2018 saying their theme “The season of breakthrough” came from God through prophecy and it was derived from 2 Samuel 5:20.
“We received our theme from God and a theme is a promise from God himself to his people. We are looking at the concept of the whole gospel for the whole men. For breakthrough to manifest, the total person has to be freed from spiritual bondage. We have to war spiritually,” said Bishop Jeffrey.
The United Family International Church hopes to carry out more charity work and spread the gospel of love and righteousness.
UFIC spokesperson Pastor Prime Kufa said: “We are hoping for more social impact through the growth of our charity work and to see the church spreading the message of love and righteousness.” In addition, he said the church seeks to create a Godly and peaceful society embracing all religions come 2018.
Founded by Pastors Davison and Gwen Kanokanga, Impact Christian Centre (ICC looks forward to a prosperous and peaceful year ahead inspired by Psalms 34:8.
“We are expecting people to experience the goodness of God, to share and appreciate his mercies. We have had a tough year and God has revealed his goodness to the nation symbolising that his goodness is not temporary like man’s love.
“In the year 2018, we will be telling people to share the goodness of God and make it a personal experience,” he said. As the 2018 national elections are nigh, Pst Kanokanga said, it is the role of the church to embrace peace within all parties and religions through spiritual guidance.
“As the church it is our role to ensure there is peace across all religions and parties and that we remain prayerful throughout the year,” he emphasised.
Grace Harvest Ministries founder Prophet Tawanda Blessing Bondera believe 2018 as a “Year of great commission” according to Matthew 28:19-20. He said economic challenges and political instability that have bedevilled the nation have in a way diverted people’s focus from Christ and hence the need to win people back to God.
“This is a year of winning souls back to the kingdom of God and establishing God’s kingdom through planting many assemblies worldwide. Our mission being to depopulate hell and overpopulate heaven. The message of salvation is what we will be preaching,” he added. For other churches at the dawn of the New Year is when they will reveal the theme to the church.
“We cannot unveil our theme before New Year’s Day. At exactly midnight of December 31st, we hold a strong and special prayer which heralds the theme. Then after the prayer we are able to tell it to the world. We believe heralding it by prayer is to call upon God to make the congregants understand it better and accept it,” said Pst George Kaseke of Glad Tidings Church.
For the Catholic family, 2018 is going to be a year to focus on Jesus Christ. Roman Catholic cleric Fr Tendai Reki Mashayamombe said come 2018 the gospel of the Lord should resound in and among families.
“The Catholic Church in 2018 will be running under the theme ‘Looking to Jesus: The vocation of the family in light of the youth’.
“As a church we will also look towards better education for children whether Catholic or not. Parents need to consider what they want their children to be exposed to, and this necessarily means being concerned about who is providing their entertainment, who is entering their rooms through television and electronic devices and with whom they are spending their free time,” he said.
