‘Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved. How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed’ (Romans 10:13f). Information is important and without it people can not make decisions. If they do, they make uninformed decisions. Romans chapter ten is the bases of my call into the ministry of information provision.
Being employed in a theological institution offers me great opportunities for ministry which could be impossible in a non-Christian setting. As a librarian serving a tertiary and evangelical college I am responsible for carrying out bibliographic instruction so as to portray, as Robert (1990, p. 105) puts it, ‘writing as a vehicle for Christian ministry’.
I do not consider myself to be a theologian but I consider myself as a partner in the ministry of theological training. Andrew (1996), portrays theological librarianship as a ministry on five grounds:
its connection to theological education
its relational character
its occupation with religious materials
its vocational nature
and its relation to church ministry
Theological educators are ministers and hence as a theological librarian involved in theological education I am a theological educator. Generally speaking education does not only take place in the classroom setting. The library is an equal partner with classroom in that it shares mutually in the task of forwarding the institutional goal. In other words the work of education that starts in the classroom is completed in the library. The goal of every theological institution is to equip men and women for ministry which is always complimented by the library.
Pastoral work is ministry because it is relational. Its focus is on changing human lives. Similarly theological librarianship is ministry because it is relational. Pastoral work is about dealing with people and their characters which I strongly believe theological librarianship is all about. As a librarian I deal not just with books but with people in a very vital way. My task is, using information sources shape student understanding, view point and philosophies. At the end of the day you have a student with totally different ethical and moral perception than he entered college with. Direct or indirect I am involved in shaping character and destiny of men and women in theological institutions.
As someone who acquires and manages information sources which contribute to the spiritual growth of students and staff my work has a spiritual dimension in the institution. In other words what I am saying is theological librarianship is a calling. When I entered theological librarianship, it was in my view, at that time; a way into ministry. Through it I thought I would be able to support myself in ministry but thank God now I realize I am already in ministry. Thanks to Mrs and Dr Liddle who introduced me into the ministry through this window. They did not only introduce me but encouraged and supported me through and through. May the Lord bless them richly? For those studying theology I encourage you to consider theological librarianship as a way of serving the Lord.
In 1988 I went for theological training intending to come back and pastor my local church Epworth Evangelical Church. When I graduated in 1991 I came back and started serving as a member. The church did not have money to hire a fulltime pastor but I was happy to serve them because I was working already as an assistant librarian at Harare Theological College Library. When I got married we made a decision to move to a church were we could not only teach but could be taught so we moved to Cranborne Community Church. We did not stay for a long time at Cranborne because through Mugava, the Harare Church requested if I could come and teach their Sunday School. We accepted the challenge and went. After a year at Harare Church we received another call to go and pastor Tafara Evangelical Church. In January 1996 we started work in Tafara. Bishop Nyamhondoro took us and introduced us to the church.
Our task was as we understood and took the challenge; to teach the church and grow it to a point were they could call for a fulltime pastor. We accepted and pastured this church without any salary from the church. We enjoyed it. Of course I should admit that when we took the challenge we were still very young and always felt it was a too big challenge to tackle. By God’s grace we pastored this church until 2002 when the church had enough money at the bank and was willing to hire a fulltime pastor. The church first asked us if we could resign from our jobs and take the church fulltime. For us our joy was to move and give the same help to another church.
In 2002 the same year we left Tafara church we got involved in starting Green Valley Evangelical Church in Hatfield. What I know about that church is it was growing like wildfire until it died a very painful death in 2005 through Operation Murambatsvina (government embacked on destroying what they called informal settlements) which I also think activated the death of Chidzanga Edward. The church was started after a death of a child within this community. The child drowned in a dam and as members of the community we went for the funeral in the evening. Most of us we were not known in this community apart from my late friend Edward Chidzanga who took us there in his car (Mark 2). We went to the funeral with Nyamakawo Tigere (pastor of Cranborne), Chidzanga Edward, myself and other two brothers I can not remember their names. Being the oldest in the team I was asked to preach and the father of the child (Kasere) and two more men came to the Lord. I can not describe the feeling but it was great! A church had started which is something God had planted in me even before the funeral took place.
The following day pastor Nyamakawo and others went to burry the child and from this day several miracles happened in the Kasere family and the community at large. By God’s grace I might in the future write about these miracles. For now the reason for writing is to share with my brothers and sisters my philosophy of ministry.
Those who have seen me during those years have always thought I would be one day in fulltime ministry as a pastor. Some now even ask me questions. ‘Why have you left ministry’. My simple answer is, I have not left ministry at all. I am in the ministry. To be specific I am in theological education ministry. I know very well that I will never be regarded as a minister in the same way as pastors, reverends and missionaries but I am a minister in my own right. When I perceive myself as being in ministry, there is a theological and spiritual focus to my work that adds to my satisfaction and contentment. I am taking part in the equipping of men and women for ministry in Namibia and the world beyond.
My desire is to identify and train a Namibian who can continue the work of acquiring, organising and disserminating information sources to staff and students of NETS when i have gone back home to Zimbabwe.
Reference:
Andrew, J. K. ‘Information or divine access: Theological Librarianship within the context of a ministry,’ In: The American Theological Library Association: Essays in Celebration of the First Fifty Years, ed. M. Patrick Graham, Valerie R. Hotchkiss, and Kenneth E. Rowe (Evanston, 11.: ATLA, 1996), 172-82
Robert, A. K. (1990) . Bibliographic Instruction and the Ministry of writing: exploring some possibilities and resources, In: Christian Librarian 33 (August, 1990, p. 105).
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Saturday, July 24, 2010
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