Former church leader Reverend Gwinyai Muzorewa asked the current United Methodist Church Zimbabwe bishop to let church members vote about homosexuality. He sent Bishop Eben Nhiwatiwa a letter pushing for a special meeting where Zimbabweans could make their choice. This comes after the main church decided to accept homosexuality starting May 3. The Book of Discipline paragraph saying homosexuality goes against Christian teaching has split the church into different camps.
Muzorewa wrote on October 21 that African churches never got the chance to speak up. He called this a forced change by Western churches that hurts African spiritual values. He wrote that the days of colonial rule had ended, and Africans should choose practices that match both scripture and African culture. Muzorewa reminded the bishop that as head of the African College of Bishops, his name might forever be linked to bringing homosexuality into Zimbabwe and the entire continent.
The reverend believes a special meeting would fix problems with an earlier church statement from September. He said both Zimbabwe church groups deserve equal rights to decide their path just like American church groups did. Muzorewa mentioned that church members showed respect to the bishop at recent October meetings. He asked why the bishop would damage his reputation instead of letting people choose.
Muzorewa thought that allowing this vote would create a better legacy for the bishop than forcing people to follow Western decisions against their wishes. He sent copies of his request to many other church officials, including the central conference president, Bishop Daniel Wandabula. Beyond his church work, Muzorewa leads a political party called the United African National Congress that ran candidates in last year's national elections.
Muzorewa wrote on October 21 that African churches never got the chance to speak up. He called this a forced change by Western churches that hurts African spiritual values. He wrote that the days of colonial rule had ended, and Africans should choose practices that match both scripture and African culture. Muzorewa reminded the bishop that as head of the African College of Bishops, his name might forever be linked to bringing homosexuality into Zimbabwe and the entire continent.
The reverend believes a special meeting would fix problems with an earlier church statement from September. He said both Zimbabwe church groups deserve equal rights to decide their path just like American church groups did. Muzorewa mentioned that church members showed respect to the bishop at recent October meetings. He asked why the bishop would damage his reputation instead of letting people choose.
Muzorewa thought that allowing this vote would create a better legacy for the bishop than forcing people to follow Western decisions against their wishes. He sent copies of his request to many other church officials, including the central conference president, Bishop Daniel Wandabula. Beyond his church work, Muzorewa leads a political party called the United African National Congress that ran candidates in last year's national elections.
