Livingstonia Synod burns fingers over active politics
Livingstonia Synod of the Church of Central Africa Presbyterian (CCAP) says its flock have faulted the synod’s active involvement in politics.
Synod moderator the Reverend John Gondwe said in an interview yesterday that its members have also questioned the synod leadership to explain where they got the mandate to reportedly meet Malawi Congress Party (MCP) first vice-president Richard Msowoya on party matters.
Msowoya
He said: “Members of the church are asking us [the leadership] why we sent a delegation to Msowoya. I am under immense pressure. But I tell you that the synod did not send anyone. Those that went [to meet Msowoya] did so on their own, they had no blessing from the synod. This is the reason we want Msowoya to come and tell us who he met and what they discussed.
“If Msowoya tells us who he met, the synod will commence disciplinary proceedings against those clerics because they were not supposed to do that. As a church, we are not supposed to do what they did, I repeat, they acted on their own.”
Gondwe was commenting on a failed meeting the synod planned to have last week Friday and last evening in Mzuzu with Msowoya, who is also Speaker of the National Assembly.
The moderator’s sentiments come against a background of reports that a four-member delegation of the synod’s clerics went to meet Msowoya.
The Nation has withheld the names of the purported delegation’s members because we could not independently verify claims that the team indeed met the Speaker as some said they had no knowledge of the issue while others could not be reached.
During the purported meeting, according to an unverified communiqué posted on social media, the clerics allegedly told Msowoya that the synod wanted to support MCP towards the 2019 polls, but were concerned with prevalent cracks, especially between Msowoya and party president Lazarus Chakwera.
Msowoya has already expressed interest to partner Chakwera in the 2019 polls, but the Speaker, together with four other top party leaders, has of late been challenging the MCP boss’ leadership style.
Some observers say Msowoya’s swings at Chakwera stem from the entry into MCP of Lower Shire Valley political heavy weight Mohammad Sidik Mia, who is also positioning himself for the party’s number two spot.
Msowoya also said he was not aware that the synod had summoned him to meetings last Friday and last evening.
When asked if he could meet the synod leadership when invited, the Speaker said: “I don’t answer hypothetical questions. Thanks.”
Gondwe maintained the synod was following up on information that some clerics met Msowoya. n
Of course, we encourage close church and state relationships, for both are God’s agents to minister to his Malawian people, as Paul teaches in Romans 13, ” Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.” Let politicians and theologians engage for a better Malawi. That’s how our freedoms started in 1992’s Pastoral Letter, and that’s how Emperor Constantine and the Pope created First World Western Christian Socities from 312AD. Please, don’t kill this relationship.