Once again, the opposition MDC seems primed for another treachery. This is not new, as they fell for it in 2009 and 2017. The so-called pastoral elders have come up with a sweet-sounding treachery. Apparently, too good to be rejected by the only promising opposition party in Zimbabwe. MDC is a political party whose popularity has remained resolute, for the last twenty years—yet, unbelievably susceptible to ZANU PF treacheries.
The pastoral leaders suggest that Zimbabwe needs a seven-year Sabbatical. They use Biblical terms, to an easily credulous populace, who assume that piety implies suspending one’s own intellectual aptitude and common sense. Scriptural references are carefully chosen, to soothe the gullible into seeing religious value where there is none, whatsoever. There cannot be any value in the pastoral suggestions of a national Sabbatical, if common sense was to be allowed to take effect.
Zimbabwe would be the first country—the world over—to suspend its own constitution in order to be guided by the long discarded Jewish Laws. While appearing as attractive—to score the first, for Zimbabwe—the unworkability of this suggestion is so obvious, as not to need meticulous scientific analysis. The most logical thing to do, when you fall into some state of confusion, is to ask yourself, what you did, just before the confusion.
There must be a time that you were not confused. The question is: What did you do, to get into confusion? The Zimbabweans adopted the country’s constitution, as recently as 2013. Why should it be difficult to implement that constitution? The gullible marched in their mammoth numbers in 2017, to help the army to remove the constitutionally elected former president, Robert Mugabe. That alone was a display of lack of sincerity, even by those who consider themselves as democrats.
The Zimbabwean populace is unable to respect its own constitution. This is just as the main opposition, with vast support, also assumed it was prudent to support the Army, in removing a constitutionally elected President. Although, there remains to be a question, whether Mugabe had been constitutionally elected into power, or not?
If not, who else was to be entrusted with constitutionalism—if the MDC party had seen no reason in doing so? And what lessons did MDC learn from such goofs? I suppose the new constitution has provisions—in the event that someone violates it? What is important is simply to follow due processes, than blaming anyone.
The Zimbabwean populace, through those pastoral deceivers, seem to be now warming up to a narrative that Zimbabweans are capable of respecting Jewish laws? Even though having all along, failed to respect their own constitution? To start with, the Jews, on who the Old Testament laws were conferred, failed to sustainably conform to those statutes. The high sounding Sabbatical rest for the Zimbabwean nation should be seen as fallacy, more than it is religious, for many reasons, but a few being mentioned as:
- Zimbabwe is not a Jewish nation. The proponents of this Sabbatical garbage claim to be Christians—therefore being followers of Christ. But Jesus never spoke about it. There is no other way of deducing error from truth—for those appreciating what Jesus taught: “So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31-32) (ESV). As long as having no link with what Jesus taught, whatever is said by anyone, is obviously untrue. Common Sense dictates that one cannot be one thing and be another, at the same time. In other words, when claiming being a follower of Christ, one follows Christ’s teachings, without fail. When a Jew, a person follows the teachings of Moses, without fail.
- Close to forty years, Zimbabwe has been swimming in a pathetic sewage of economic mess, due to irresponsibility. But, it seems the general populace fails to learn from such mistakes. To them, Mugabe was a symbol of failure, yet Mugabe represented their own stupidity. Granted independence as far back as 1980, why should Zimbabweans have abdicated responsibility on matters of governance? Wise people uses history for drawing lessons from it. The foolish ones will repeat the same mistakes over and over again, without learning anything from such mistakes. Common sense dictates that, having observed the previous mistakes, there remained opportunities to learn from them. Or, alternatively, learning from what was done, that should not have been done, but was done.
- Since the early eighties, Zimbabweans have been butchering one another, since the Gukurahundi debacle in the early eighties, out of political ignorance. The so-called religious people could not dare stand up to oppose such inhuman behavior by ZANU PF. Instead of taking responsibility to curb evil, the religious leaders, chose to bestow responsibility on God. They took a stand, in assuming that the iniquitous behavior of ZANU PF was ordained by God. The naïve populace was therefore fed with such religious sounding verbiage—stating that there is nothing ordinary people could do about it. Common sense dictates that a person cannot allow another person being killed, without doing anything about it. This is, just as one would not like being killed when others just watch, and do nothing about it. This is symmetrical to the law that says: What goes around comes around.
- In the animal kingdom, rarely do animals being preyed on, come to rescue one of their own, when attacked by a predator. This should not be the case with humans, created with sentient minds to solve problems. It seems Zimbabweans would rather be on the side of the attacker, rather than side with the victim? In Zimbabwe, most religious people, actually, consider it sinful, being involved with opposition politics. When focused on the shared goodness, common sense dictates that another person’s problem should be regarded as one’s own. Therefore, it is only the shared goodness that should lead the behavior of humanity.
- In an impoverished country, such as Zimbabwe, there are those whose life-styles are comparably flamboyant. Most religious leaders are in the category of such people. It behooves them to desire that the status quo remains intact, as resonating with the plunderers. Those presently enjoying comfort in the current dispensation, cannot desire changes that could affect their comfortable life-styles. Naturally, the effect of losing some benefit, implies that another person gains. This is regardless of whether such transaction would be legitimate or illegitimate. Obviously, those gaining when the majority are losing, cannot desire to advocate changes that would potentially reverse their comfort. While genuine Pastors are expected to be on the side of the subjugated majority, the so-called pastoral leaders have exposed themselves as having all along been benefiting from the status quo. Common sense dictates that, a person who feels the pinch of what currently goes on, cannot wait for another year to change things, for the better. Let alone, the suggestion of another seven years in such condition. May the Zimbabwean populace see the predators in sheep’s clothing and focus on good ideas, leading to positive changes in the environment? This is like our beloved Professor Maduku having recently stated that his main reason for involvement with POLAD is to save ZANU PF from collapsing. Most people believe in what he says, because he is a professor. Under normal circumstances, an authentic political party seeks to sell its own workable ideas, for the voters to be informed, in making choices. While good to care for those in the opposition, the idea is bringing an alternative.
There is no need to despair, as long as what is offered is considered as representing the wishes of the people. It is true that most people have been wallowing under deception for a very long time. But it takes hard work and tenacity to educate people to come out of deception. Where you have two forces opposed to each other, one would be right where the other would be wrong. Democracy enables informed choices to be made.
What is right can analytically be evaluated in terms of how the majority benefit. The reason why the idea of subjecting the country into a Sabbatical, is not workable, is that it gives people hopelessness. Through Jesus, we have power at our disposal. It is faithlessness that causes us to fail to access that power.
Jesus actually, said: “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son” (John 14:12-13) (ESV).
Consider what Jesus told those confronted by the turbulent conditions, in the middle of the sea. Those people were with Jesus, who, apparently, had gone to sleep—possibly to test their faith. In their hopelessness, His disciples sought His services—as common with most people, even today. They had assumed having no power to handle the terrible situation that confronted them:
“And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. And they went and woke him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm” (Matthew 8:23-26) (ESV).
In His display of frustration Jesus, stated: “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Here, Jesus reveals that the inability to solve problems is lacking faith. As we saw in John 14:12; “whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father”
Apparently, the idea of despair is not consistent with the teachings of Jesus, but the devil. There is need to be guided by truth. It is not impossible to apply our own constitution and get results, thereof. Why should God be held responsible for our own stupidity? The Sabbatical idea cannot be of faith, but coming from people who desire to elongate the hemorrhaging of the already washed-out, and impoverished nation.
The conditions of our country need immediate change. The excuse that there is undesirable political logjam, as causing polarization in Zimbabwe is lame and sickening. On July 2018, ZANU PF won the mandate to govern this country. Why can’t they govern, according to their manifesto? To say ZANU PF cannot govern properly because there is a formidable opposition, is as nauseating as the Sabbatical suggestion. Why should a one party state narrative convince those—having already seen its devastating and ruinous effects since 1980?
I would have excused those coming up with this Sabbatical suggestion, if coming from the central committee of ZANU PF or the so-called Politburo. But why should those claiming to be Christian leaders come up with such a treacherous suggestion? Zimbabwe is currently on auto-pilot, although with people who blissfully celebrated having won the elections, resoundingly.
The former President of ZANU PF, is the one credited with orchestrating and christening this idea of putting value in winning elections, more than effecting positive development. The philosophy of “Pamberi nekuwhina ma election” is a ZANU PF everlasting mantra that has destroyed this country. The naïve people remain so stupefied, as unable to ask what it is that makes winning elections important.
It is only a cancerous human body that has some of its cells fighting against other body cells—assumed as antagonistic to the entire body. This is why the current president fails to observe the devastating ruin, in what the ZANU PF warped philosophy has caused to this country. It sounds as if there is magic wand in continuing to sing the tune: Pasi ne mhanduuuu?????
The people he ascribes as enemies of the state are those not in agreement with him. Our clerical leaders assume that such opposing forces need to be pacified by a seven-year Sabbatical. Those clerical leaders appear as unable to identify the cause of Zimbabwean problems, being what comes from wrong politics. But, my assumption may not be wrong—these are the people having benefitted from this system, since 1980.
When Jesus was here, He spend most of His time lambasting the Pharisees, who were the religious leaders of that time—calling them hypocrites. Only on rare occasions, did Jesus lambast politicians—but the hypocrites—masquerading as being religious, when the opposite was true. If this country has problems, it is these treacherous clerical leaders that should carry more blame.
These are our own Pharisaic leaders, like those that Jesus contended with. Only the naïve put faith in them, because of ignorance. They appear to love the Holy Bible, yet using it for treachery. Let us all be wary of their treachery. Zimbabwe needs sober thinkers, to solve the problems of this nation, more than idolizing the corruption-riddled politicians, supported by our modern-day Pharisaic clerical leaders.
Andrew Masuku is the author of Dimensions of a New Civilization, laying down standards for uplifting Zimbabwe from current state of economic depression into a model for other nations worldwide. A decaying tree provides an opportunity for a blossoming sprout. Written from a Christian perspective, the book is a product of inspiration, bringing reliefs to those having witnessed strings of unworkable solutions––leading to the current economic and social decay. In a simple conversational tone, most Zimbabweans should find the book as a long awaited providential oasis of hope.
The Print copy is now available at Amazon.com for $13.99
Also available as an e-copy at Lulu.com for $6.99