- Author:gospel
- Category:Sermons
The word for
Evangelist in Shona is Muvangeri and in Kiswahili it is Muinjilisti. In the
Gospel of God Church, unlike other cadres who operate at various levels,
Evangelists primarily are members of the top councils (or Dares) including Dare
Pitros (the council of Peter) based in Kenya and Dare Jacobo (council of Jacob)
in Zimbabwe. As mentioned elsewhere in all the councils at various levels
including those not in mention, pastors, prophets and teachers will be found. Unlike
elsewhere there are no bishops in this church and the work that a bishop would
do would be done by an evangelist or pastor. Since the Council of Peter was the
first to be formed and is indeed the Evangelical Council, it shall be in focus.
It is based in Kenya after early times spent mostly in South Africa, Zambia and
Tanzania.
Due to the very
diverse readership, it will be important to remember that the role of an
evangelist in this church would be difficult to compare with another
institution. If we take the Anglican Church for a comparison and understanding
purposes, in that particular institution an Evangelist if fairly junior
compared to a Reverend – who in some respects can be compared to a pastor. From
this blog post, one will learn that there is a lot of specialization and
separation as far as roles are concerned. An evangelist does not do the work of
a pastor. Neither would a prophet. Even in the case where the pastor is also a
prophet or teacher, he usually plays one role at the time.
Some of the
historical or pioneer evangelists who come to mind include Saizi Sithole, and
Cyprian Nyathi (read Nyati) or also called Cyprian Nedewezo. Nedewezo is a name
associated with his origins more like some speak of Jesus of Nazareth or some
Kenyans call Barrack Obama “Jakogelo” – the man from Kogelo. Many of us did not
see Evangelist Saizi but he is often mentioned and quoted – but hopefully
will be written about him and others via this site in days to come. Coming after them were other
Evangelists including Philip Muregerera Ndoro and Nathan Kidiavayi.
Cyprian
Nyathi
Apart from Saizi
another most mentioned and quoted Evangelist is Cyprian. For those who
interacted with him, one of the most notable things was his humility. He was a
down to earth person and preached against people exalting and elevating
themselves – a lesson he demonstrated by example. Cyprian was strict in his
adherence to rules and commandments but was very merciful and caring. Having
been a pioneer Evangelist he was privy to a lot of information but did not like
portraying himself as knowledgeable. He was the kind of person who could easily
ask for forgiveness from a person of whatever status if he felt that he has
transgressed against the individual.
Philip
Muregerera
In the more recent
past Evangelist Philip Muregerera Ndoro was in service. Like many, prior to
being an evangelist he served as a pastor. His path to pastorship was however
rather unusual. He is probably the only pastor in memory who was first ordained
as a prophet and then as a pastor. In the case of multiple gifts or callings
the converse usually happens. Importantly, for those who will read or observed further, a person usually plays one role at a time. An evangelist doesn’t do
the tasks of a pastor such as convening meetings of calling prayers. A pastor
can be a prophet or teacher, depending on the occasion. The lesson here is that there are very clear boundaries between different roles
even when one and the same person is involved.
Muregerera’s calling
as a prophet first was however not unusual compared to some who came before
him. In earlier days of the founder, was known to have woken up and
decreed or declared that an Evangelist was coming to church on a particular day.
When the intended person arrived later on the day he would be appointed as an
Evangelist even as members of the church were seeing him for the first time.
Back to Evangelist
Phillip, he was some of those of his generation who became accomplished
scholars and teaches of the written word. On spiritual matters he read widely –
beyond the Bible that we know. Including a lot of works and commentaries of
other writers, and several ancient scripts. For people who had not spent much
of their lives in schools and institutions of learning, he was one of the
self-made scholars. He also shared his knowledge and readings generously.
This shows that a lot can be learned and understood by exploring, studying
and being open minded. This is food for thought for present generation that have
unlimited access to information courtesy of the internet and other changes.
Nathan
Kidiavayi
Another pioneer Evangelist worth mention was Nathan Kidiavayi. He was among the first Kenyans to be appointed to this position and served with dedication and distinction. He was soft spoken, and frank. He was good at mentoring and was a pillar of evangelism. A number also have memories of him telling stories and teaching through narratives. Like all the others, more about him could be revisited.
These are just a few
of the pioneer Evangelists and the lessons and attributes that we can borrow
for them. The purpose of this write up was to put things in context because
many are the times some of these words are used. Hopefully one has gained some
knowledge of the ways of Gospel of God.
P/S: On the photo is
Galton Fenzi which will be revisited. The gospel is the huge sun on the
direction labelled northerly. This is not a depiction of the sun everyone knows that
rises on the east and sets in the west.
The next post will discuss some historical pastors.
