Women, Religion and Leadership in Zimbabwe, Volume 2: Engagement and Activism in Religious Institutions

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Zimbabwe has invested in women’s emancipation and leadership while articulating a strong Pan-Africanist ideology, providing a valuable entry point into understanding the dynamics relating to women’s leadership in Africa. It is also characterised by radical religious pluralism, thereby facilitating an appreciation of the impact of religion on women’s leadership in Africa more generally.  This volume reflects on the role of Zimbabwean women in religio-cultural leadership, with a specific focus on roles within religious organizations. It begins by examining Zimbabwean church women’s leadership roles in long established faith communities. The chapters then hone in on the emergence of churches or ministries founded by women in Zimbabwe, starting from the pre-colonial era and advancing through the last forty years of independence. Hence, the book offers a comprehensive assessment of the challenges and opportunities women in leadership face in religious institutions in the country, before exploring the impact of the pandemic on the ability of women to lead. It will make a major contribution to the advancement of scholarship of gender and leadership in emerging markets. Praise for Women, Religion and Leadership in Zimbabwe, Volume 2 Contents Notes on Contributors List of Tables 1 Introduction: Women, Religion and Leadership in Zimbabwe Introduction Women and Religious Leadership in Zimbabwe Attitudes Towards Women’s Leadership in Christianity in Zimbabwe Religious Women’s Agency: Negotiating, Subverting and Resisting Patriarchy Section A: Women’s Visibility in Positions of Leadership Section B: Women’s Leadership in New Religious Movements and Cultural Traditions References Part I Women’s Leadership Engagement and Activism in Zimbabwean Faith Communities 2 Women’s Transformative Leadership and Africa’s Holistic Development: The Role of the Churches Introduction Threats to Social Progress in Africa: An Overview The Churches, African Women’s Transformative Leadership and the Continent’s Transformation African Women’s Transformative Leadership Liberative Readings of the Bible for African Women’s Transformative Leadership Working for Economies that Work for All Enhancing African Christian Women’s Transformative Leadership: The Role of the Churches Conclusion References 3 Visibility and Leadership Opportunities for Muslim Women in Zimbabwe Introduction Feminism and Gender Discourse Methodology and Theoretical Framework The Status of Women in the Pre-Islamic Period (Jahiliyyah) Female Infanticide Women’s Visibility and Leadership Opportunities in Islam Muslim Women’s Visibility and Leadership Opportunities in Zimbabwe Woman as the Queen in the Home Women as the First Teachers Hajar Makwinja and Fatima Zahra Women’s Organization Fatima Zahra College Fatima Zahra Women’s Organisation Orphanage International Summit on Religion and Climate Change Conclusion References 4 Women’s Leadership Roles in the Reformed Church in Zimbabwe (1891–2020) Introduction Liberal Feminism Lenses on Women’s Leadership An Analysis of the Bible and Women’s Leadership Old Testament Perspectives Women as Religious Leaders Women as Hero-Saviours The Inferiority of Women in the Old Testament Presentation New Testament Nuances of Women’s Leadership Inferiority of Women in the New Testament Contested Interpretations of the Bible and Women Women’s Leadership Trends in the Reformed Church in Zimbabwe The Pioneering Phase: 1891–1983 Leadership Positions Which RCZ Women Were Denied During the RCZ’s Pioneering Phase The Office of the Elders The Office of the Deacon Ministerial Training The Liberal Phase: 1984–2020 Women in Ministerial Training Women in Church Boards Women in the Moderature of the RCZ The Future of Women’s Leadership in the Reformed Church in Zimbabwe Conclusion References 5 Gender Dynamics in the Apostolic Faith Mission in Zimbabwe (AFMZ) Leadership Hierarchy Introduction African Women’s Theology and Feminist Ecclesiology as a Theoretical Framework Methodology History of the Apostolic Faith Mission in Zimbabwe The Roles of Women in the Apostolic Faith Mission in Zimbabwe Women’s Attributes and Leadership The Zimbabwean Government and Gender Equality Findings and Discussion The Majority of Women Do Not Vote Encouraging Husbands of Female Pastors to Become Pastors as Well Doubting That Women Are Also Called by God to Become Pastors Women Are Just Given Ceremonial Titles The Constitution Is Discriminatory There Has Never Been a Female President Nor Overseer in the AFMZ Conclusion References 6 Women’s Leadership in the Guta Ra Jehovha Church: Towards the Construction of ‘Soft Masculinities’ Introduction Women and Leadership in African Communities: An Overview A Background to the Gender Inequality Crisis in Zimbabwe Masculinities and Gender Relations Matenga and the Guta Ra Jehovha Church Women Leadership and Masculinity Construction Conclusion References 7 Exploring the Status of Women in the Zion Christian Church Since 1913 Introduction The Zion Christian Church: A Historical Perspective Samuel Mutendi’s Wives Prophetesses and Midwives in the Zion Christian Church Ruwadzano: A Complex Mix of Women in the Zion Christian Church Deconstructing the Myth of Patrilineal Dominance in the Zion Christian Church Conclusion References Part II Women’s Leadership in New Religious Movements and Cultural Traditions 8 The Emergence of Churches and Ministries Founded/led by Women in Zimbabwe Introduction Methodology and Theoretical Framework Leadership in the New Testament and Early Church Western Missionaries Manyano/Ruwadzano Women in African Initiated Churches Women in Pentecostal Churches Calling Versus Title Female Founders of Women’s Ministries in Zimbabwe Focusing on Women’s Experiences in the Ministries Obstacles Faced by Female Founders of Women’s Ministries in Zimbabwe Pushing the Frontiers Against All Odds Conclusion Bibliography 9 Religio-Cultural ‘Clamps’ on Female Leadership in Zimbabwe: Towards a Liberating Hermeneutic in Mainline Churches and African Initiated Churches (AICs) Introduction The Plight of Zimbabwean Women in the Traditional Context The Era of Women’s Rights Women as Masters of Their Own Destiny Women’s Leadership in Zimbabwe’s Mainline Churches Women’s Leadership in Zimbabwean African Initiated Churches The Marginalisation of Women in African Independent Churches Elevated Women in African Initiated Churches Executive or Derivated Powers? Interpretation of Scriptures Liberating Hermeneutics Conclusion References 10 Zezuru Women’s Leadership Roles in the Death Rites of Passage in Zimbabwe: A Pastoral Response Introduction Methodology and Theoretical Framework Death and the “Living-Dead” in the Zezuru Culture The Pre-burial Rituals Burial Rituals Post-burial Rituals Pastoral Care, Culture and Healing Conclusion References Index