A Mission Divided: The Jesuit Presence in Zimbabwe, 1879-2021

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ELEVEN JESUITS SET OUT FOR THE INTERIOR OF SOUTHERN AFRICA BY OX-WAGON IN APRIL I 879 ON A MISSION TO PREACH THE CHRISTIAN GOSPEL TO THE PEOPLE BEYOND THE LIMPOPO RIVER; WITHIN A YEAR AND A HALF, THREE OF THEM WERE DEAD. They shared the same ignorance of Africa as their European contemporaries concerning disease, geography, culture, religion and the political rivalries of the people among whom they came. They also shared a narrow frame of reference towards the continent and the failure of imagination that went with it. Further, as people of their time, they saw - and were seen by - other denominations as rivals, and far from co-operating, the churches indulged in an unseemly competition. And yet these men were, in their own way, heroic and faced the difficulties eagerly, even joyfully. Their failures and disappointments far outweighed the little progress they appear to have made but they laid the foundations for what was to follow after 1890 when the colony of Southern Rhodesia was established. This event inaugurated a ninety-year period, when relations between church and state waxed and waned. The missionaries welcomed the order - even if it could not be called peace - and the infrastructure the colonisers introduced. The speed of travel, for instance, went from about 15 km a day by ox-wagon, to 30 km an hour by train. But the Church - and the Jesuits were for long the drivers of what we mean by Church - never managed to decide on a coherent policy vis-a-vis the white government until it was too late. They were divided; the majority of Jesuits worked with blacks but there was a sizeable number who worked exclusively with whites. So, while we can document the enormous and fruitful work that was done over the decades after 1890, we have to acknowledge the failure to give a united witness in confronting the nakedly racialist policies of the state. If we had been able to do this in the 1920s and '30s we might have contributed to the evolution of a more harmonious society and avoided the terrible bloodshed of subsequent years. Cover Title page Copyright page Contents About the Author Avant-propos Dedication Introduction 1. The Mise en Scene White missionaries and white conquerors A sustained and imaginative commitment Mechanics or gardeners? The Jesuits The Jesuits in Zimbabwe Occupation or process A ‘degraded’ people Dispossessed of their land A damaged environment 2. Ox-wagons and Mosquitoes 1879-89 Goncalo da Silveira (1521-61) Henri Depelchin Kimberley, May 1879 Shoshong, July 1879 Tati, August 1879 Bulawayo, September 1879 Tati, January 1880 Umzila’s, Tshamatshama, May 1880 - October 1881 Mweemba’s, Zambia, May-October, 1880 Mission to the Lozi, Zambia, 1881 Gubulawayo Empandeni Conclusions 3. Putting down Roots Chishawasha Empandeni again Embakwe The first Chimurenga: the Ndebele and the Shona rising,1896/97 The impact of the risings The railways Kutama (1912) Driefontein Gokomere Schools 4. Growth and Questions Musami (1915) The ‘Jeep’ years The approach of war 6 February 1977 ZANLA at Musami The end of the war Independence Mhondoro (1925) Makumbe Fort Victoria (Masvingo) (Gokomere), Bikita (Silveira), Macheke (Monte Cassino) Wedza (Hwedza), Gwelo (Gweru), Wankie (Hwange) Christian villages Outstations Mariannhill leaves Mashonaland All Souls (1930) Chikwizo, St Martin’s (1960) 5. Reaching the Zambezi Kutama (1912) Marymount (1949) Kariba (1957) Mhangura (1958) Chinhoyi (1954) Karoi (1963) Murombedzi (Gangarahwe), St Kizito’s (1964) Banket (1964) Hurungwe, St Boniface (1968) Makonde (Magondi), St Rupert’s (1964) Sipolilo, St Edward’s (1958); Guruve, St Joseph’s (1980) Chitsungo, St Raphael’s (1964) Kangaire (1970) Mutorashanga (St James) (1979) Alaska (St John the Evangelist) (1973) Mount Darwin (Kristo Mambo) (1973) St Joseph’s farm (1965) St Albert’s Mission (1962) Abduction of students Hedrick Mandebvu Chinhoyi Rural Training Centre The Diocese of Chinhoyi (1986) 6. Urban Tensions Bulawayo Harari (Mbare) in the early twentieth century Elizabeth Musodzi Charles Mzingeli Mbare in the late twentieth century Highfield, Dzivarasekwa and Mabvuku The Cathedral in Salisbury and Campion House Mount Pleasant, Mabelreign, Marlborough, Braeside and Rhodesville Enkeldoorn (Chivhu), Umtali (Mutare) and Gwelo (Gweru) Que Que (Kwekwe) (1915, 1953), Gatooma (Kadoma) (1915, 1964) and Umvuma (Mvuma) (1921, 1946) Marandellas (Marondera) (1952) Bindura (1964) 7. Mission and Culture Local sisters Local priests Welcoming communities of Religious Welcoming local-born Jesuits A mischief-maker or a prophet? Charism and culture 8. A ‘Dual Mission’? St George’s College 9. Education for Development St Ignatius College St Peter’s Kubatana Silveira House Rural credit 10. Justice and War The Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace The Zimbabwe Project Jesuit Refugee Service ‘Healing wounds, healing a nation’ The violent deaths of seven Jesuits Martin Thomas (1932-77) John Conway (1920-77) Christopher Shepherd-Smith (1943-77) Desmond ‘Gussie’ Donovan (1927-78) Gregor Richert (1930-78) Bernhard Lisson (1909-78) Gerhard Pieper (1940-78) 11. ‘And there was much else …’ Small Christian communities University chaplain Prisoners People living with HIV/AIDS Young people on the streets Shingirirayi People living with disabilities Abandoned babies Meteorology, astronomy, entomology, apiculture and archaeology Retreats Education co-ordination Theological reflection Communications ‘Intellectuals’ Liturgy and church d cor Finance Archives and libraries Richartz House 12. Into the Future Appendix. Jesuit Foundations in Southern Africa 1875-2021