Taking Integral Mission to the Back of Beyond in Zimbabwe: A Case Study of the Assemblies of God Church, Hwange – Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe’s rural areas are politically, socio-economically and environmentally volatile and in dire need of the integral mission of the Church. Many publications confirm that the Church in Zimbabwe has talked and walked much about its integral mission in urban and peri-urban areas. This is commendab...
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Noyam Journals
2025-06-01
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| Series: | E-Journal of Religious and Theological Studies |
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| Online Access: | https://noyam.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/ERATS20251162.pdf |
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| author | Kimion Tagwirei |
| author_facet | Kimion Tagwirei |
| author_sort | Kimion Tagwirei |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Zimbabwe’s rural areas are politically, socio-economically and environmentally volatile and in dire need of the integral mission of the Church. Many publications confirm that the Church in Zimbabwe has talked and walked much about its integral mission in urban and peri-urban areas. This is commendable, as urban residents who have enjoyed the transformative fruits of integral mission can eventually apply its teachings in their various spheres of influence. However, a gap exists in Zimbabwean rural grassroots buy-in, ownership, involvement and development. Thus, this paper acclimatises the Church with the need to take an integral mission to the countryside, to contextualise and empower villagers to proclaim and demonstrate the gospel in their communities, and to achieve inclusive sustainable development and transformation. The study applied a qualitative case study research design, and literature review coupled with purposively sampled in-depth interviews, observation and interpretive data analysis. The study uncovered that the majority of churches have done very little in rural areas due to economic incapacitation. Drawing lessons from the Assemblies of God church in Hwange, which has exemplified a sustainable integral mission in rural areas, it concludes that reaching out to grassroots interconnects urban with rural God-given gifts and resources to achieve inclusive sustainability and transformation. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-61369fb731614eccbfa042c459c43035 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2458-7338 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | Noyam Journals |
| record_format | Article |
| series | E-Journal of Religious and Theological Studies |
| spelling | doaj-art-61369fb731614eccbfa042c459c430352025-08-20T02:21:24ZengNoyam JournalsE-Journal of Religious and Theological Studies2458-73382025-06-01116 246258https://doi.org/10.38159/erats.20251162Taking Integral Mission to the Back of Beyond in Zimbabwe: A Case Study of the Assemblies of God Church, Hwange – ZimbabweKimion Tagwirei0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2109-1170The Unit for Reformational Theology and the Development of the South African Society, Faculty of Theology, North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa.Zimbabwe’s rural areas are politically, socio-economically and environmentally volatile and in dire need of the integral mission of the Church. Many publications confirm that the Church in Zimbabwe has talked and walked much about its integral mission in urban and peri-urban areas. This is commendable, as urban residents who have enjoyed the transformative fruits of integral mission can eventually apply its teachings in their various spheres of influence. However, a gap exists in Zimbabwean rural grassroots buy-in, ownership, involvement and development. Thus, this paper acclimatises the Church with the need to take an integral mission to the countryside, to contextualise and empower villagers to proclaim and demonstrate the gospel in their communities, and to achieve inclusive sustainable development and transformation. The study applied a qualitative case study research design, and literature review coupled with purposively sampled in-depth interviews, observation and interpretive data analysis. The study uncovered that the majority of churches have done very little in rural areas due to economic incapacitation. Drawing lessons from the Assemblies of God church in Hwange, which has exemplified a sustainable integral mission in rural areas, it concludes that reaching out to grassroots interconnects urban with rural God-given gifts and resources to achieve inclusive sustainability and transformation.https://noyam.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/ERATS20251162.pdfchurchintegral missioncontextualizationsustainabilitytransformation |
| spellingShingle | Kimion Tagwirei Taking Integral Mission to the Back of Beyond in Zimbabwe: A Case Study of the Assemblies of God Church, Hwange – Zimbabwe E-Journal of Religious and Theological Studies church integral mission contextualization sustainability transformation |
| title | Taking Integral Mission to the Back of Beyond in Zimbabwe: A Case Study of the Assemblies of God Church, Hwange – Zimbabwe |
| title_full | Taking Integral Mission to the Back of Beyond in Zimbabwe: A Case Study of the Assemblies of God Church, Hwange – Zimbabwe |
| title_fullStr | Taking Integral Mission to the Back of Beyond in Zimbabwe: A Case Study of the Assemblies of God Church, Hwange – Zimbabwe |
| title_full_unstemmed | Taking Integral Mission to the Back of Beyond in Zimbabwe: A Case Study of the Assemblies of God Church, Hwange – Zimbabwe |
| title_short | Taking Integral Mission to the Back of Beyond in Zimbabwe: A Case Study of the Assemblies of God Church, Hwange – Zimbabwe |
| title_sort | taking integral mission to the back of beyond in zimbabwe a case study of the assemblies of god church hwange zimbabwe |
| topic | church integral mission contextualization sustainability transformation |
| url | https://noyam.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/ERATS20251162.pdf |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT kimiontagwirei takingintegralmissiontothebackofbeyondinzimbabweacasestudyoftheassembliesofgodchurchhwangezimbabwe |