http://localhost:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/5 Welcome to Practical Theology Collection 2026-03-19T16:30:07Z http://localhost:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/29 Title: An inquiry into the effects of COVID 19 to the church: a case study of the Brethren in Christ Church-Nkulumane (2020-2021) Authors: Dube, Rumawu Abstract: The novel covid-19 pandemic led to change in lifestyles and other social activities including religious gatherings. In Zimbabwe, the government restricted attendance of worship places in March, 2020 to help curb the spread of covid-19. This study sought to make an inquiry into the effects of COVID 19 to the Brethren in Christ Church. A case study was carried out in BICC Nkulumane, one of the oldest branches in Bulawayo as a representative of other BICC churches. Questionnaire and interview guide were used for data collection. 40 questionnaires were distributed to the targeted group and group interviews were carried out to obtain enough information within a short space of time. Key leaders of different church ministries, the pastor, and randomly picked congregants saved as the participants. The study found out that church gatherings have been affected forcing services to be done online. Online services were a challenge for the church at Nkulumane. Moreover, leadership challenges were also discovered not forgetting the negative impact on the faith of the believers. In as much, offerings have taken a nose-dive trend at Nkulumane contributed by a combination of different factors. After the findings, recommendation were proposed with the hope that they may provide a solution to the prevailing challenges caused by the outbreak of COVID 19. Description: Research focused on the effects of Covid 19 pandemic to the BICC in Nkulumane. 2022-03-01T00:00:00Z http://localhost:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/28 Title: An investigation into the problem of syncretism among Emakhandeni Christians Authors: Chihuri, Muchatenda Abstract: Emakhandeni is an area that is open to the gospel of Jesus Christ; however it has been observed that the problem of syncretism among Christians is prevalent among Christians. The researcher intended to find out how much of African traditional religion (ATR), have been imported and infused into the Christian faith, because involvement of other beliefs in Christianity renders Christianity irrelevant and ineffective. The research was restricted to Rock of Ages, Methodist and Emakhandeni community churches. Syncretism has been investigated using qualitative methodology and phenomenology design. The targeted population was one hundred participants out of six hundred people from the three churches. Data was gathered through interviews and questionnaires, whilst secondary data from journals, newspapers and electronic reading material were used. Data presentation was done in the form of pie charts, tables and bar graphs. One of the major issues discovered was Christian identity meaning whether one is an African Christian or Christian African, for which without a clear understanding, syncretism may be practiced ignorantly under the influences of ATR. Moreover, research findings concerning traditional and spiritual problems, cultural practices and social issues were uncovered. Suggested recommendations sought to empower pastoral leadership and congregants to seek true biblical Christian practice through theological training, personal research and to fully depend on the work of the cross through Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit should also be given room to teach and guide Christians to the whole truth of God’s counsel. Description: Research focused on why there continued to be the practice of syncretism in the church among Emakhandeni Christians. 2022-03-01T00:00:00Z http://localhost:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/27 Title: The impact of Christianity and modernity on the burial customs of the Ndau people of Rusitu Chimanimani Authors: Mhembere, Mercy Abstract: The research focuses on the impact of Christianity and modernity on the Ndau burial customs of Rusitu, Chimanimani. This research was born out of the realisation that United Baptist Church Zimbabwe (UBCZ) members who profess to be Christians turn back to their traditional customs, in this case, burial customs. The research sought to find out the impact of Christianity and why in the first place the Ndau people were convinced by missionaries to convert to Christianity, abandoning their traditions. Data regarding Ndau people’s understanding of burial customs was collected using in-depth semi-structured and focus group interviews. It was analysed using the discourse analysis. This research is qualitative in nature and the aim was to develop an understanding of how the world is constructed, in this case the Ndau world. The major findings showed that the Ndau were more attracted to the civilisation brought by the Europeans who brought the UBCZ in Rusitu than the Christian gospel message preached by the missionaries. Therefore, according to this research, UBCZ members go back to their burial traditions because the church has proved to be unable to meet the essential needs of the Ndau people. Recommendations are for the church leaders to help the church understand what it means to be Christian and how issues to deal with Ngozi (avenging spirits)/ misfortunes which are believed to come if they fail to bury their dead properly can be understood and dealt with, without practising religious syncretism. Description: Research focused on the syncretism practiced by Ndau people of Chimanimani in their burial customs. 2022-03-01T00:00:00Z http://localhost:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/24 Title: The low recruitment of female workers at FOCUS Zimbabwe Authors: Vhukani, Nelson Abstract: This study explored the reasons for the low intake of female workers at FOCUS Zimbabwe and gave recommendations to address the anomaly. Women constitute a more significant population percentage in the Christian circles, but their full-time ministry participation remains low. Most of the research done so far tends to emphasise leadership or power relations of women towards the ministry without probing or unleashing why few females are recruited. This explains why they are few female workers in FOCUS Zimbabwe. The following objectives guided the research; to examine how the patriarchal culture has a bias on women recruitment, evaluate how the hermeneutic differences cause women not to be recruited and suggest possible solutions to mitigate the problems of gender imbalance in recruitment. The study adopted the qualitative approach to conduct the research using questionnaires and interviews as primary research instruments. The data processing and analysis were done using google form and excel sheet and was presented thematically. A total of 21 out of 27 expected responses were received, thus attaining about 78 per cent response rate. This study identified several reasons behind the low female staff recruitment at FOCUS: hermeneutic differences, patriarchal culture, and power relations. In addition to the highlighted factors, there was an indication that the leadership was not intentionally recruiting women. The study also established that the involvement and interest of women in FOCUS were low because of FOCUS's long working hours versus the low financial support. Based on the findings, the study made several recommendations: FOCUS leadership needs to be more intentional and radical in addressing the gender imbalance within the organisation, FOCUS leadership should have a responsibility to do more external awareness with a focus to educate their stakeholders that it is biblically permissible for women to serve with FOCUS. The sharp hermeneutic differences among theologians make the body of Christ disagree with women taking leadership roles in the church. However, they agree that women can do what FOCUS is doing: evangelism, discipleship training, writing articles, counselling, etcetera. Description: Research focused on why there was low recruitment of female workers at FOCUS Zimbabwe. 2022-03-01T00:00:00Z