The ELCZ was established in 1903 through the efforts of the two Swedish Missionaries (Helldén and Liljestrand families) and an African Evangelist Jeremia Makhubu coming from Zululand in South Africa where the Church of Sweden was already established.
In obedience His (Jesus Christ) command the Swedish Lutheran Church began a mission in Natal, South Africa, in 1876. Two decades later about 20 Swedish missionaries were gathered in a conference in Natal. One told his colleagues that he had met a missionary from another church who had traversed Zimbabwe and who said that there was no Christian mission in the southern part of Zimbabwe and that the people there spoke Zulu.
Because of this information the Swedish missionary conference at Ekutuleni in 1898 decided to send Revs A.R. Kempe and J.F. Ljungquist on an exploratory journey to Zimbabwe. The two missionaries travelled by train to Bulawayo and by donkey cart to Hope Fountain, a mission station which the London Missionary Society had built 5 km from Bulawayo. There they were told that there was no other missionary society working in the Mberengwa area and that most people there spoke Ndebele, a Zulu dialect. Kempe and Ljungquist felt that this information was sufficient and returned to Natal.
On the basis of the exploratory journey and recommendations of the missionaries in Natal, the Church of Sweden Mission (CSM) decided in 1900 to undertake mission work north of the Limpopo river. Had the CSM known that the people in the Mberengwa area were Karanga-speaking, they would have been more hesitant. However, even mistakes can serve God’s purposes. The CSM decided that Kempe should go and work in Zimbabwe. For several reasons this decision was never carried out.
The Boer War 1899 – 1902 lasted longer than expected and additional work in Zululand emerged. But in 1902 the CSM gave the commission to Revs A Liljestrand and A Helldén, who were missionaries in Zululand, to go and work in Zimbabwe. Both were married and felt that they should investigate the situation before they brought their families with them.
They asked the Zulu evangelist Jeremia Makubu, whom they knew to be a brave and devoted Christian, to accompany them. The three men travelled by train to Bulawayo and proceeded on foot into the Mberengwa area. To their disappointment they discovered that the common language was Karanga, not Ndebele. Helldén wrote later to the CSM: “A missionary in this area must learn Karanga. If he does not speak the language spoken by the local people he will to a certain extent remain a stranger.” At the end of October they reached the lofty Shurugwi. Makubu was then seriously ill with malaria. The three travellers rested at Shurugwi but after twelve days Makubu passed away. Obviously Makubu had been aware of the risks he took when he had agreed to go to Zimbabwe.
A missionary in Natal wrote to the CSM: “When Makubu was asked whether he was willing to go to Matabeleland he consented and when he was asked what his wife Tabita would say, he replied: “She and I are unanimous that the work of the Lord should always have priority.” When the two missionaries were back in Natal they conveyed to Tabita the mournful tidings of her husband’s death. They also gave a report to the missionary conference and to the CSM about their findings. The report was not encouraging. The climate was unhealthy, the distances between villages were great and the ability to speak Zulu was not sufficient for a missionary in Mberegwa – Shurugwi. But the fact that no other church preached the Gospel in this area weighed very heavily for the missionaries. Like St. Paul they wanted to preach about Christ to those who had never heard the good message (Rom 15:20- 21).
Therefore the CSM decided to open the new mission field in addition to the mission in Zululand. The following year, 1903, the families Liljestrand and Helldén left for Zimbabwe. In the Liljestrand family there were three small children, all under five years of age, while Rev and Mrs. Helldén, recently married, had one baby, two months old. The Helldén family left Ekutuleni on June 4th and arrived at Shurugwi one month later. They travelled almost the whole journey by train which made it much quicker and more convenient. In Bulawayo, they stayed a fortnight to buy various necessities.
In Shurugwi a white farmer transported the family and their utensils 20 km into the bush to Ndema Mountain. Helldén was given a friendly reception by the local people, from whom he got helpers to build a house for his family. They moved into their house on the first day of October. In a few words Helldén describes how a pioneer missionary worked: “Every Sunday I visit the kraals. I preach in Zulu which some can understand but not the majority. I have not noticed any obvious susceptibility to the Gospel albeit some people listen attentively to the Word. During the week-days I conduct morning and evening devotions with the young men who help me with the building work.” The journey of the Liljestrand family to Mberengwa turned out to be more adventurous and protracted than that of the Helldéns. On May 26 they left Oscarsberg in Natal. Not until three months later did the family arrive at Mberengwa.
Source: The History of the ELCZ, 1903-2003; Author, Hugo Soderstrom, Stan and Tore Bergman
This section will be updated soon…
To date, the ELCZ boasts of 279 500 membership and the Church has grown up to 3 Dioceses and 6 Deaneries with 71 parishes. The ELCZ Western Diocese is one of the three Dioceses within the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Zimbabwe (ELCZ). Since 1903, the ELCZ was only one church segmented into two Deaneries. In January 2006, due to church growth the Church was re-categorised into three Dioceses witnessing the consecration of three Bishops of the same church in one day, at one place, at the same time.
The Western Diocese stretches from Victoria Falls up to Beitbridge, thus covering the entire regions of Matabeleland (both Mat North and Mat South) within Zimbabwe. The Western Diocese consists of 2 Deaneries, (the Northern and Southern Deaneries).The Northern Deanery has 8 parishes with 31 congregations and two preaching points. On the other hand, the Southern Deanery has 16 Parishes and 113 congregations. This gives a total of 24 Parishes, 144 congregations and 2 preaching points.
More about the Diocese
The Diocese is manned by 27 Pastorate who are in active service, although there are a number of the retired pastors who still assist in many ways in our parishes. In active service, there is 1 Bishop, 2 Deans and 23 pastors, (4 females and 17 males), 4 male Deacons and 2 male student pastors. Also in its mission work, the Diocese has 6 schools (2 High schools and 4 primary schools). Effective 1 January 2020, the Diocese re-introduced the office of the Chaplain in some of its bigger mission stations (Manama, Zezani and Beitbridge). Three pastors were assigned to serve as Chaplains in each of these schools as an effort to enhance Lutheranism and Christian values. Effort is being made to re-possess some of the schools that were taken over by the local governments during the colonial regime. Apart from schools and parishes, the Diocese has 1 mission hospital, a Home Based Care Centre and 1 Bible School.
Opportunities
- We are in a Christian nation which encourages freedom of worship.
- Opportunity to evangelise and to minister to more communities.
- A learned Pastorate that can be encouraged to advance in different disciplines to uplift church growth.
- Very educated lay people from all church organs occupying different portfolios in society.
- Church members occupying different jobs in various sectors within the nation and abroad.
- To engage sons and daughters in diaspora all over the globe.
Possible plans/Way forward
- To intensify Bible-based teaching.
- To be a prayerful church.
- To equip parishes with sustainability skills and encourage practical engagement.
- Establish business units to improve economic standing of members.
- Consider partnerships with like-minded organisations, locally and internationally.
- Engage in Diaconal activities that cater for those in need, the elderly, widows and widowers as well as orphans.
- Payment of statutory obligations and salary arrears.
- Monitoring and evaluation of activities to be intensified.
- Develop practical management strategies and annual strategic plans.
- Newly elected office bearers to be inducted.
- Adhere to church policies.
Strength of the Diocese
- Dedicated and committed church members.
- Willing supporters and partners of the church.
- Demographic coverage across of age groups and gender.
- Diverse skills within membership.
- Well equipped Pastors with passion for duty.
- Trained Deacons who may be used to pursue their line of expertise to improve diaconal activities.
- Good land available for expansion and projects especially in rural mission centres.
- Opportunity to acquire more church stands/ residential stands even in urban centres.
- Existing infrastructures in place, including Chapels, schools and hospitals (though some need refurbishments).
- An evangelism structure in all congregations and parishes.
- Effective good governance structure and clear church policies.
Weaknesses
- Failure to utilize available resources, both human and material resources.
- Weak follow-up process on resolutions.
- Inadequate teaching, especially on Lutheran Identity or Lutheran Doctrine matters.
- Lack of sense of belonging by some congregants.
- Lack of proper induction for newly elected officers.
- Inability to conduct frequent pastors meeting and retreats due to financial constraints.
- Poor implementation of church policies.
- No viable income generating projects to sustain the church systems.
- Poor succession plan.