Traversing the Thin Line Between 'Chibhoyi' (Indigenous Spirituality) and Miracle Working

Abstract

It is almost coming to or over a decade now since the media has been awash with news about the miraculous wonders being done through the hands of some pastors beyond the Zimbabwean borders. It was thus a common phenomenon in Zimbabwe to find Bible lovers attached to their TVs watching people like Pastor Chris, Jimmy Swaggart, Prophet TB Joshua and others. Of late, however, things have begun to change as there are locally bred pastors who are now performing the same wonders people used to see on TV. This has seen people rushing to the City Sports Centre, for example, to listen to Prophet Makandiwa or attend Uebert Angel’s deliverance sermons. The wonders being done by these local pastors have taken the media by storm to such an extent that it has become commonplace to find names like Makandiwa on the lips of young kids, even small as those still attending kindergarten. While much has been popularized about Makandiwa and Angel, very few people know that in the small town of Gweru there are also miraculous performances being done by Prophet Khuleya of the Impact for Christ Ministries. This development in Gweru has generated interest for this chapter to explore details about this man, hidden as it were from the general public and from the outside world. In the first part of this work I shall look at the ministry being carried out by the Impact for Christ Ministries in Gweru, paying particular attention to the ministry of Prophet Khuleya and in the second part, I shall try to examine the broader ministry of deliverance and healing against the background of African traditional religion, for it is my assumption that there is an …