BiAS 7 – The Bible and Politics in Africa
prophecy when the extent of looting of national resources showed only
one possible outcome: increasing decline! To blame “spirits and de-
mons” in such instances was to refuse to accept that flesh and blood
humans were behind the demise of the Zimbabwean dream. Indeed, a
quick appeal to Jeremiah 4:18 would have been highly informative: “your
ways and your doings have brought this upon you.”
Third, 2 Chron 7:14 had the unintended consequence of singling out
Christians as the only ones who were “called by God’s name.” This chal-
lenge does not lie in the text itself. It was an outcome of the preferred
interpretation of the passage by most of the Christian readers. In forego-
ing sections I indicated that the passage served to invite Christians to
forge a common identity and to contribute to political activism. How-
ever, the Christian community in Zimbabwe tended to operate as if
Christianity was the only player on the religious market. It overlooked
the presence of other communities of faith that also sought to address
the Zimbabwean crisis. Greater collaboration with other communities of
faith would have given the voices from the faith community greater
urgency and appeal. Thus:
To a very large extent, church leaders have not sought to interact with lead-
ers from the Muslim and other communities. Perhaps due to the higher
percentage of Christians in the country, the church has not cooperated with
other religions. However, this domineering approach is counterproductive.
There is so much to learn from other communities of faith. Furthermore,
joint action is more effective (Chitando and Manyonganise 2011: 100).
Fourth, many readings of the passage suggested that a utopian era
would descend upon Zimbabwe the moment Christians “turned from
their wicked ways” and God began to “heal their land.” This confirms
the underlying tension brought about by a simplistic appeal to the gospel
of prosperity. Instead of interrogating systems of death, it tends to
preach a “pie in the sky in the sweet bye and bye” message. While I have
acknowledged the role of such a message in mitigating the crisis by
instilling a sense of hope, ultimately this can a dangerous form of hope.
Hope that is not built on transforming systems of death to systems of
life is hopeless hope!
Fifth, some readings of 2 Chron 7:14 had the effect of blaming the vic-
tims. When emphasis is placed on the need for believers to “turn from
their wicked ways,” there is a tendency to suggest that they are as re-
sponsible for their suffering as those who are at the helm of the appara-
tus of the state. This is an unfair interpretation. Law-abiding citizens