By Hynd Shongwe

On behalf of Concerned Church Leaders, we want to correct a Sunday Times article "Deal with Comrade Pastors" attributed to Senate President Pastor Lindiwe Dlamini-Gwebu and Senator Isaac Magagula, the National Commissioner.

 Is Pastor Lindiwe and Senator Magagula who is a Church Elder or Deacon of the Metropolitan Church, implying that other Christians should be killed and crucified, when they have not committed any offence, what kind of society are we breeding with such hostility hatred even within the Christian fraternity?

Maybe lets hasten to add that even our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ whom we worship, was persecuted and crucified by the captured, corrupt religious system of His time.

Let's hasten to remind the two, that they're presiding over a Government, that has killed over 100 and maimed innocent emaSwati and others had their legs amputated and left bedridden with no source of livelihood and with no care and accountability from the Government, but these two Christian leaders have the audacity and abuse of the media to say such, when they have not called for the perpetrators of such to be dealt with or brought before the court of law for justice to take its course.

Let's remind them too, that there are no “Comrade Pastors” but true Men of God (and not pharisees, hypocrites and brood of vipers as Jesus Christ used to call them in the context of the whole Matthew 23), who stands for God's Righteousness, Truth and Justice, where there is injustice, abuse of power and resources, oppression, exploitation etc, they are called to stand with God's People and the suffering, we worship a God who takes the side of the poor, oppressed, marginalized etc and not ONLY a God of the elites and ruling class.

You can't afford to separate the Church and Politics, the Church is part of the society and must address any of its social ills, be it political, economical, social, religious and spiritual, the Church must be the voice of the voiceless, and pronounce God's Devine Authority (Isaiah 1: 17 "Learn to do what is right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed.Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow"). So kindly don’t drag us along in your religious and doctrinal illiteracy and bankruptcy.

We are very saddened with the calibre of these two Christian lawmakers, because as God's ambassadors, we expect them to pass social/political/economical/religious laws and policies which advance God's Kingdom here on Earth, but unfortunately with such calibre of our law makers, we are seeing the opposite and contrary, they must circumcise their tongue and stand for what’s just and true.  

We are not called into the Ministry by earthly principalities, but by God and we will stand on the side of God and His People, we will not bury our heads in the sand, we will choose where the People are, the People we preach to and pastoral care for, are the suffering and imarginalized and we will not betray them for a plate of curry.

God is concerned about the welfare of His people, hence He is God Emmanuel, even in our distress, despair and actively involved, as the greatest revolutionarists to have ever graced the face of the earth, ensuring the wellbeing of His people "I have heard, seen the misery of my people and have come down to deliver them from the hands of their oppressors".

Pharoah once pleaded for ethical and righteous leadership, amazed at the outsanding fearless leadership of Joseph, he asked “Can we find anyone like this Man, in whom the Spirit of God is upon?  Because I need more of such people to lead this land” Genesis 41:38.  

This article was written by Hynd Shongwe - Methodist Lay Preacher & Social Justice Activists, on behalf of the many Concerned Church Leaders and true genuine, undiluted/uncaptured Church of God.