Introduction

This study interrogated women and girl child rights within the context of religious beliefs and practices of the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church in Zimbabwe. Anecdotal evidence together with extant literature indicate that women and girls’ rights are compromised in some religious establishments not only in Zimbabwe but throughout the world (United Nations, 2012; Elkayam-Levy, 2014). A reflection on what happens within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church brings out nuances that are unique and contributes to establishment of new knowledge through provision of recommendations for possible transformative development. The aim of the study is to reflect and question the issue of women and girls’ rights in the context of this local church that is headquartered in Bocha District in the Manicaland Province of Zimbabwe. A lot of reports which focus on compromised rights of women and girls within religious settings have been circulated through the media and other sources. However, little scholarly research focused on the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church (Madziyire, 2013; Musevenzi, 2017). This study therefore contributes to establishment of new knowledge claims while informing policy on girl child rights. The motivation is to bring to the fore issues that ordinarily would not be brought forward for public scrutiny because of the ‘sacredness’ of religious issues, particularly within the context of the Johanne Marange Apostolic sect.

Background

The Johanne Marange Apostolic Church was founded in 1932 by Johanne Marange who was born in 1912 as Muchabaya Momberume (Musevenzi, 2017). Muchabaya Momberume (hereafter referred to as Johanne Marange) was a last born in a family of three and his elder brothers were Konoriyo and Arnold. It is believed that Muchabaya Momberume who was son to Fuleni Momberume received the Holy Spirit at the age of five and it is the Holy Spirit which is said to have renamed him Johanne the Baptist (Jules-Rosette, 1980). Because his father was working for Chief Marange and had married the Chief’s daughter but failed to pay lobola (bride price), Johanne was adopted by Chief Marange as compensation for unpaid lobola. Muchabaya who had been renamed Johanne became to be known by his adoptive surname Marange which also became the name of the apostolic church that he later founded in 1932. Initially, the church comprised of close family members but later spread across different communities in Manicaland and other countries in the region such as the Democratic Republic of Congo. It is alleged that Johanne Marange was able to converse in languages of those countries without special training as he was ‘taught’ by the Holy Spirit to speak in different languages (Jules-Rosette, 1980). It is based on this assertion that congregants particularly women are discouraged from going for formal education (Murphree, 1971). However, Johanne passed on in 1963 and was replaced by his nephew Abel (son to Arnold) and when Abel passed on in 1992, his younger brother Noah Taguta took over the leadership of the church. Congregants believe that the spirit of founder Johanne Marange is upon Noah Taguta and is worshipped as a Jesus Christ of the moment (Musevenzi, 2017). This is supported by the study findings in which an observation was made that the church does not rely on the bible for spiritual nourishment and guidance, but its faith is based on its own version of a ‘Holy Book’ called ‘The New Testament of the Apostles’/Humbowo Hutsva HwevaPostori. This book is written and centred on the life and experiences of Johanne Marange.

Methodological Framing

The methodological and epistemological engagements that directed the drawing of empirical field–based evidence were within the qualitative research framework. The study borrowed Holloway’s (1997) perspective about employing qualitative research methodology and this enhanced a deepened understanding of the phenomenon of women and girls’ rights. The thrust for this study was understanding, interpreting, and explaining social relations dynamics within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church. This qualitative study of women and girls within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church fitted into Maxwell’s (2013) argument that diversity of meanings, motives of practices, and beliefs within the church require a constructivist research philosophy to be engaged. Synonymous with the interpretivist philosophy, the constructivist philosophy is attributed to Max Weber and his concept of ‘verstehen’ meaning the understanding of something in its context (Holloway, 1997). Thus, the study aim as it engaged this philosophical direction of ‘verstehen’ was to interpret research participants’ world views and vantage positions from a naturalist position (Charmaz, 2006). That way, the study produced socially rich contextual and situational data through conducting in-depth interviews, feminist narrative inquiry, and researcher observations. This avoided the general tendency of mainstream research methodologies which tend to ignore women’s ways of knowing (Jayaratne & Stewart, 1991). The actual data collection engagements were done by utilizing a semi-structured interview guide and researcher observations.

When researchers first approached a church gathering in Budiriro suburb in Harare and expressed the intention to conduct a study on the state of women and girls’ rights for academic purposes, leaders of the church advised the researchers to first join the church and be baptized members. The team was told that the church does not permit outsiders to conduct academic research except when such outsiders decide to be converted. A church Evangelist is quoted saying to us;

We do not sanction academic studies by outsiders. When you intend to do any business with us, you must first be converted by receiving the baptism of water. That way, we become a one people. We will only permit you to carry out this study on two conditions: number one, be baptised as I have indicated and number two, make sure you do not publish names of our church members. Your findings, yes, publish them but leave out names of our congregants.

Due to the need to obtain an understanding of women and girls’ rights from an Indigenous perspective within the church, the researchers complied with the requirement. They were two males and one female who was acceptable in terms of interviewing females. Thus, it was not only easy to arrange for an interview with the research participants, but the research provided an opportunity for an ‘insider’ vantage point.

Narayan (1993) argues that an insider may be understood anthropologically as a ‘native researcher’ or Indigenous member of the community. In this study, the researchers managed to conduct observations and carried out interviews that would ordinarily be impossible to conduct from an ‘outsider’ position. It should be highlighted that researcher participation was at the level of observation as members of a congregation on certain occasions and not participation in child marriages and other human rights abuses. Through snowball sampling technique, the researchers were able to be linked to young mothers who were victims of child marriages. Of the twenty participants, fifteen were women and five were male members of the church. Semi-structured interviews were conducted after church services, and these provided a relaxed atmosphere in which participants were free to air their views in a relaxed environment. Researchers attended church services of the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church every Saturday and learnt a lot about the closed community.

In terms of interviewing women within the church, a female researcher interviewed women that were eighteen years and above. The other two male researchers could not interview women since this would make females uncomfortable sharing some of their intimate experiences to male researchers. Before interviewing each participant, everyone was informed of the purpose of the study, and they had to give individual verbal consent before the start of the interview. Each participant was informed that they were free to withdraw their consent at any stage of the interview. Of particular importance is the fact that each interview was conducted in the absence of men or other family members; this was purely a one-on-one interview between a female co-researcher and each individual participant.

Data collected was analysed using the thematic data framework which also included the dialogic narrative analysis which focused on analysing the dialogic process between the storyteller and listener (Creswell, 2013). Data that was collected through non-participant observation was analysed using visual narrative analysis. According to Merriam (2009), visual narrative analysis incorporates images into narrative analysis alongside written or spoken text.

During observations done during church services and at congregants’ home steads, the researchers captured short video footages and pictures which they later replayed and viewed during data analysis. This was done to buttress the experiences that were narrated by study participants during semi-structured interviews. Before capturing pictures and videos, researchers sought for permission and individual consent from every individual participant. Every individual participant gave both written and verbal consent to have their pictures and videos captured. However, both researchers and participants agreed that all pictures and videos must be deleted after data analysis. Having agreed to that, researchers deleted all the videos and pictures which were captured during data collection. At church gatherings, it is permissible to take videos and pictures. All the pictures and videos captured during church services were deleted just after data analysis. For ethical reasons, researchers did not take any pictures or videos of children.

Theoretical Grounding

The study adopted a feminist human rights–based approach to understanding issues of women and girls’ rights within the religious environment. Aspects of women and girls’ rights within the church offer prospects for the deployment of a feminist human rights–based approach to unravelling aspects of human rights abuse from a feminist standpoint. Applied to a gender and development context, a human rights approach fosters the empowerment of abused and disadvantaged excluded groups in society (Ghai, 2001). Adlys et al. (2000) also posits that a human rights–based approach to development seeks to secure freedom for a life of dignity and expanding the choices and opportunities of the people, in the context of this study, the rights of women and girls. A feminist human rights–based approach to investigating girls’ rights within the church is premised on fostering promotion and protection of women and girls’ rights.

There are better prospects for development of debates and practices particularly in church processes. Thus traditionally, it is only in the post–World War 2, the Cold War, and post-colonial era that the approach started to filter into disaster issues. In 1986, the UN General Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights to Development which was reaffirmed by the World Conference on human rights in Vienna (Broberg & Sano, 2017). Consequently, in 2003, the UN bodies agreed that UN development policies must be guided by the principles of human rights which include (a) universality, (b) individuality, (c) interdependence, (d) accountability, (e) participation, and (f) non-discrimination. According to Broberg and Sano (2017), promotion of human rights does not see the issue of women and girls’ rights as charity work but part of efforts to fulfil rights of people.

Findings and Discussion

The findings that are presented in this section are based on fieldwork that deployed an in-depth interview guide and researcher observations, complimented by a documentary analysis. The findings are organized into themes as depicted below.

Religious Belief System of the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church

Data solicited from participants indicates that the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church has a set of beliefs that are mostly unique, strong, and peculiar to it. It is this set of myriad beliefs that directly and indirectly lead to the subjugation of women and girls’ rights in the church. Generally, the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church consists of a unique church doctrine that appears oppressive to all congregants.

Of uniqueness is that the church’s religious values are based on gender inequality in which they argue that Johanne Marange’s teachings project males as superior and divinely positioned to dominate. According to participants and as also observed by the researchers, polygamy is a highly encouraged practice within the church. As marrying many wives is encouraged within the church system, the processes encroach into the rights of women and children. Since church leaders from Johanne Marange to the current Noah Taguta are equated to Jesus who holds the keys to heaven and hell, it is widely believed that polygamy is a good practice as women must bear more children who will fill the mansions in heaven.

One other common practice within the church is that the use of any medicinal substances is forbidden. The church anchors this practice on the teachings written by Johanne Marange in their reference book called ‘The New Testament of the Apostles’/Humbowo Hutsva hweVapostori. It is believed and written within the church’s reference book that Johanne Marange was instructed by the Holy Spirit to teach all congregants to treat any ailments using holy water and prayers. Partly, women subordination within the church is biblically based on the story of creation in the book of Genesis in which the story of Adam and Eve is projected to represent male leadership and patriarchy. Together with the unique teachings of Johanne Marange and Noah Taguta, the church leadership holds on to this presentation and representation of male leadership which eventually is converted and deployed in the abuse of women and girls’ rights. One young woman said;

We as women are required to be submissive to our husbands. The husband is the ruler of the family. We must listen and obey everything that they say to us. Women who often object what their husbands say are labelled as Eves. Like Eve who misled Adam, such women only lead their husbands to hell. However, sometimes our church mandates our men to have dictatorial tendencies towards women. What the man says is supreme. I can’t object it. Personally, I sometimes feel oppressed.

During a church service, a preacher was recorded saying the following.

Haleluyaaaaa! Africa! The Messenger Noah is asking and encouraging you to marry many wives and never cease marrying more women. The reason why the Messenger Noah is encouraging males to be polygamists is that most houses in heaven are still empty. We must bear more children who will occupy the mansions in heaven.

The above observation made by the researchers synchronizes Cheater’s (1981) submission that the Johanne Marange Apostolic sect’s families are characterized by the social institution of polygamy in which the function of ideology is to consolidate the beliefs of the whole group. There are many other biblical verses that are used to promote polygyny. However, we share an argument with Landman and Shumba (2020) in that there is a distortion particularly on the story of human creation in which God creates a male first and a female second inferring that the ‘first’ is superior and the ‘second’ is secondary and inferior. Based on this, the word of God is used as a source of male power and domination. Thus, the church only has male leaders and male ‘messengers’ and subtly discourages girl child education beyond primary school level. As such, we noted that the church’s male leadership determines how women and girls behave, their sexuality, what to wear and when not to congregate with others at church, and marriage arrangements. As a virtue, the man is the head of the family whether within a polygamous marriage or a monogamous one. One female participant made the following claim to support this argument.

In this church, there are no leadership positions for women. Women only act as midwives. In this church midwives are called Varapi. Women also do not preach at church gatherings. Our duty is to look after the husband and the children. Most importantly, women’s major duty is bearing children.

It was confirmed by all study participants that as head of the family, the man has powers to make unilateral decisions for and on behalf of his whole family. Unilateral decision-making among family men of the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church was also confirmed to be a common phenomenon by one male congregant who made the following submission.

We went for a yearly church conference at Kurai in Gutu District of Masvingo. Towards the end of the conference, there was a church colleague who had seen my teenage daughter bringing us food at our tent. He confessed to me that he had liked my daughter’s mannerism and wanted to marry her as a fourth wife. I conceded his request. I called my daughter; I gave the men the floor to make his proposal. My daughter agreed and they married there and then.

This position about women being passive recipients while men make ultimate decisions concurs with Mukonyora (1993) who posits that despite women comprising most of the population within the sect, their status is marginalized. It could be argued that the relegation of women in decision-making on issues that concern their daughters and themselves originates from the church’s biblical belief system that all leadership positions such as being a Baptist and Evangelist are reserved for men (Bourdillon, 1987). With men monopolizing leadership within the church, there is a probability that they would also want to monopolize decision-making within their families as it is something they are used to at church.

It is also a requirement within the church for all congregants, males, females, and children alike to shave their heads. This is a practice which was observed by the researchers as they joined the church. Before baptism, the three researchers shaved their heads. Within the church, all male congregants are required to keep their beard and should not trim them. When male members of the church meet and greet, they kiss each other on the lips, three times. Sometimes, men and women can also kiss on the lips when they meet and greet. Additionally, when a male in the church shares a dream of marrying a particular girl, that dream is taken wholly, and a marriage arrangement made based on the dream. This is done without any regard for the age and interests of the girl. To that effect, many young girls are forced to marry when they are still below the acceptable age limit. One other young woman made the following claim.

I got married when I was a young teenager after my husband to be who was in his early thirties confessed to church Evangelists and my parents that he had had a dream in which he received an instruction to marry me. At first, my father objected to that. The following night, my father also had a dream in which a voice instructed him to let the man marry me. The following day, I was married off. Now, I am about to complete my teenagerhood and I have four children. Presently, I am pregnant.

It was also learnt during the study that a man who marries a woman who is not a member of the church will be required to force the woman to be baptized within the church or that man becomes an outcast. Men who become outcasts will not be required to put on the white garments during church services and they are not allowed to partake in any church-related activities such as taking the Holy Communion. Having visited some homesteads belonging to members of the church, we observed that of all homesteads visited in Mufakose, Highfields, and Budiriro, each man had more than one wife and many children. At one homestead of congregants visited in Harare, the father of that house had four wives and all the four confirmed that they were married before the age of eighteen years. With the four wives, the man had sired thirteen children. During the discussion on the church belief system, the male researchers were asked if they were married. The two of us as male researchers were encouraged to marry many wives. The male congregant made the following comment.

You did a very good job by joining this church my friends. I am very happy. I have thirteen children and seven are females. Since you are two gentlemen, you can marry each of my eldest three daughters. They are thirteen, fourteen and fifteen. You are welcomed to marry here. Even if you are married as you have just confirmed, a man should never stop marrying. A monogamist is like a one-eyed man.

From this and many other similar submissions, it was learnt that besides polygamy being a highly practised phenomenon within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church, forced girl child marriages are rampant.

The Church and Women Rights

It was learnt during the study that women’s rights within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church were at a precarious state. The ways through which women rights are violated are explained in the sub-themes below.

Denial of Access to Clinical Services and Birth Control Measures

According to the church doctrine of the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church as confirmed during interviews, women are not allowed to adhere to scientific family planning methods such as use of family planning tablets. Female participants alleged that their duty within the church is to bear children for their husbands and it is the husband who decides the number of children a woman should bear. The following is what one female participant had to say;

As per teachings of the Messenger of God, Noah, we are not allowed to take any family planning tablets. We are meant to bear children. That is our duty. We can bear as many as one can if one is still fertile. I personally have so far given birth to many children. Five passed away while they were still infants. I am left with a few who are alive. I need to have more children while I am still fertile because I need to replace those who passed away. Currently I am pregnant.

Besides women being forbidden from taking any scientific or medical family planning measures, all congregants are not allowed to visit the hospital even when they are ill. Because of that doctrinal requirement, women are required to give birth at home and not at the hospital. This church requirement violates Article 25 (1) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which states that everyone has a right to a standard of living which is adequate to health and wellbeing of that person. Access to medical care is a requirement that constitutes one’s right to a standard of living sufficient to health and wellbeing. All the fifteen women that participated in this study confirmed that during pregnancies, women are not allowed to seek for any medical advice from the hospital. Instead, it is a requirement that women give birth at homes of church midwives who are popularly known as Varapi. This finding also correlated with Chiketo’s (2021) establishment at a Johanne Marange Apostolic Church shrine in Nyamana village in Chitora where pregnant women visit to deliver their babies with the help of a 69-year-old woman who is the midwife. According to Chiketo (2021), the midwife who helps hundreds of pregnant women at that shrine in Nyamana village confirmed that during the process of delivery, some of the women may die due to complications. Such a position which was testified to be part of the church regulations that does not allow women to use any scientific family planning measures and seeking medical treatment from the hospital deviates from the legal requirements within Zimbabwe’s constitution and international statutes to which Zimbabwe is signatory. As in terms of Section 76 (1) of Zimbabwe’s Constitution, every citizen and permanent resident of Zimbabwe has the right to have access to basic health care services, including reproductive health care services. By being citizens and permanent residents of Zimbabwe, women within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church are also fully entitled to this right which is being violated by the church’s doctrine as female congregants are not allowed to seek any medical advice concerning reproductive health care services. Besides being a violation of a human right that is enshrined in the country’s constitution, the practice also inhibits Zimbabwe’s attainment of Sustainable Development Goal number 3 that speaks to good health and wellbeing.

The Right to Life

Testimonies of maternal mortality resonate with one case of fourteen-year-old Memory Machaya who passed away while giving birth at a shrine at a Mutare rural church conference in July 2021 (Mangirazi, 2021). The fourteen-year-old deceased bled to death due to complications which the midwives were not able to bypass. While it was acknowledged that most cases of maternal mortality go unreported and hence are often excluded from the national statistics, it is also clear that this practice is contributing towards a high maternal mortality ratio which the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (2019) established to be at 462 deaths per 100,000 live births, and a neonatal mortality rate of 32 deaths per 1000 live births.

Given such reports of pregnancy complications that often result in death as women are denied the right to basic health care services, it is arguable that the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church doctrine violates Section 48 (1) which grants every person with the right to life. This right to life is also enshrined within the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to which Zimbabwe is signatory. Article 3 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that everyone has the right to life, liberty, and security of a person. Since it was confirmed by participants that even in circumstances of pregnancy complications that result in death, midwives are not allowed to consult any medical experts, and the right to life and security from harmful religious practices is violated. It was thus learnt that if any patient is taken to the hospital and passes away having gone to the hospital, by church doctrine standards, believers are not allowed to bury such a deceased. Gleaning our thoughts from a human rights perspective, the decision to consult any medical experts is a personal choice and persons are also entitled to seek treatment from any facility of their choice. Article 16 (1) of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights grants the right to enjoy the best attainable state of physical and mental health to every person.

Barring church members from being treated at hospitals thus violates the concerned members’ human rights and liberties. Since the doctrine does not require pregnant women even in emergency situations such as bleeding to be taken to the hospital, there is also a tendency of violating the security of such pregnant women as no efforts will be made to secure them from death. It is also arguable that such a requirement does not offer the concerned parties security of the persons from avoidable maternal mortalities. Arguably, the practice also violates Article 3 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which grants every human being with the right to life, liberty, and security.

Subjugation of Women

As once illustrated above, the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church is a patriarchal society in which the man by being the head of the family has the power to decide for and on behalf of his family including his wives. In one sermon, a preacher made the claim quoted below.

Men, you should always be man enough to decide for your families. Haleluyaaaa! Africaaaa! You should not be led by your wives. Do not be decided for by your wives. Imagine, if you have seven wives as I do, if I allow any one of the wives be it the senior wife or the junior, I will be misled. Imagine each of the seven trying to say something. Yes, men who allow their women to lead them in decision making won’t enjoy the kingdom of heaven!

In support of the above claim, a young woman from a polygamous marriage said;

We have come to terms with the fact that as women, we are inferior to men. In fact, we are incomplete human beings. Because we are not full human beings, we cannot decide for our own course or decide for our biological children. Our husband holds the key to every decision making and so is the case in every family.

Such sentiments indicate that by excluding women in decision-making even in matters that concern them, Section 80 (2) of Zimbabwe’s Constitution which grants equality between men and women is breached. On that basis, it could be implied that within the church, women are treated as less equals than men. The practice of sidelining women from taking part in decisions that concern them and their children also affects Zimbabwe’s desire and efforts to attain Sustainable Development Goal number 5 on gender equality which promotes human rights and dignity. According to Kabeer (2005), gender equality implies equal enjoyment of rights by men and women. Article 19 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights also states that all people shall be equal, and the equality guarantees both men and women to enjoy the same respect and same rights. In terms of this article, nothing, including religion, can justify domination of women by men. On that basis, it could be implied that within the church, women are treated as less equals than men. The same right which is violated by the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church is also a universal human right as Article 7 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that all people are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. The practice of sidelining women from taking part in decisions that concern them also affects Zimbabwe’s efforts to attain Sustainable Development Goal number 5 on gender equality which promotes human rights and dignity. According to Kabeer (2005), gender equality implies equal enjoyment of rights by men and women. By letting men enjoy monopoly of leadership positions in the church and make decisions on behalf of their families on religious grounds, the church’s belief system relegates women to social nonentities.

Women’s Right to Employment/Occupation

Due to the patriarchal nature of the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church, participants pointed out that some men decide for the type of job and education level that his wife/wives can get. This is because besides the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church encouraging men to do self-help jobs (Musevenzi, 2017), certain types of jobs are deemed unfit for a woman who worships God. Such trades of employment that were labelled unsuitable for women include full-time employment jobs such as being an army officer, police officer, and nursing. To support this claim, one young woman claimed;

It is not permissible for a woman to become a soldier, police officer or a nurse in our church. The best that a fortunate woman may do is being a teacher. I personally had dreams of being a medical doctor. However, our church does not permit people to work in hospital or clinical settings.

Most of the interviewed participants also pointed out that some men even have problems with their women being employed at all. However, some of the women raised concerns that despite their polygamous men being unable to adequately fend for their families, they still have problems with their women engaging in self-help jobs such as vending. One woman who is married to a polygamous family made the following allegation.

Our husband does not take care of any of his wives. We are many wives to one husband. He does not have a formal job. I decided to set up a vending stall by the roadside near our home, but my husband punished me by denying me conjugal rights for three weeks. We were only helped by church leaders later.

Denying women their freedom to choose the trade of employment they are willing to venture into may have an implication on Section 80 (1) of Zimbabwe’s Constitution which states that every woman has full and equal dignity of the person with men, and this includes equal opportunities in political, economic, and social activities. To that effect, this implies that the decision to what type of employment a woman must undertake must rest within the concerned individual woman. The decision by some male members of the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church to decide for their women in terms of employment trades also violates the right to freedom of profession, trade, or occupation. The right to freedom of profession, trade, or occupation is enshrined in terms of Section 64 of Zimbabwe’s Constitution which states that every person has the right to choose and carry on any profession, trade, or occupation, but the practice of a profession, trade, or occupation may be regulated by law. While on this section, it should be noted that a male congregant in their capacity cannot regulate an occupation that their woman ventures into, but it is the law that has the mandate to regulate the profession. Also, denying women from partaking in certain trades of employment violates Article 23 (1) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which grants everyone the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work, and to protection against unemployment.

Women’s Marriage Choice

It was also learnt through observation by listening to sermons during church services and interviews that women are encouraged and required to marry men who are believers within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church. In circumstances whereby a woman from the church marries a non-believer, the parents are encouraged by church regulations to not accept any lobola payments from such a son in law. It was further confirmed by participants that parents are encouraged to take away their daughter from a man who is a non-believer. One male participant had the following to say;

It is not proper for a woman to marry a non-believer. Accepting lobola payments from a son in law who is a non-believer can be equated to eating pork in our church. As a parent, I have a right to take away my daughter and find for her the most appropriate men to marry her. If she resists, in the event of any causalities such as death, I will not attend the funeral.

Such a practice was confirmed to be a phenomenon within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church even though Zimbabwe has a Constitution that in terms of Section of 78 (2) requires no person to be compelled to enter marriage against their will. Analysing the phenomenon from this constitutional standpoint, the practice of deciding who should marry who is tantamount to forced marriages. The freedom to choose a marriage partner is a right enshrined within Zimbabwe’s Constitution and it is also recognized by international statutes. According to Article 16 (2) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, marriage shall be entered into only with the free and full consent of the intending spouses. Therefore, when a parent decides for their daughter who they should marry, it violates this article.

The Church and Girl Child Rights

According to the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, a child means every human being below the age of eighteen years. The Constitution of Zimbabwe in terms of Section 81 (1) also defines a child as every boy and girl under the age of eighteen years. Basing on study findings, the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church’s belief system violates the rights of children, particularly the girl child in ways that are indicated below.

Forced Child Marriages and Sexual Exploitation

A common phenomenon under which girl child rights are violated within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church is forced child marriages. Basically, Section 78 (1) of Zimbabwe’s Constitution grants the right to found a family to persons who have reached the age of eighteen years. This implies that this right is not granted to human beings who are below the age of eighteen (children). Basing on the definition of a child, it was learnt during the study that it is a common practice for girls to be married off before the age of eighteen. It was confirmed by all participants that girls within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church are married as young as twelve years. The five male participants for this study all claimed to have married girls as young as fifteen years. All the fifteen women in this study also testified to have married before fifteen years of age. One male participant who confirmed to have married three girls before their fifteenth birthdays made the following report.

In this church, we do not allow our girls to marry off at an advanced age. We catch and marry them young. I personally have three wives and when I married them, their ages were below fifteen years. The world, however, levels a lot of allegations against marriages within our church. They say we marry young girls. Fine, but tell me, do you think that someone who is able to mensurate is still a child?

A young woman is also quoted saying: ‘generally, girls are married around the ages of eleven, twelve and thirteen. A sixteen-year-old girl will be more than ready for marriage’.

Another young woman also made the submission quoted below.

The definition of a woman in our church is purely contextual to what we believe in. A woman is anyone who has developed breasts. Even eight-year-olds get married in this church. Personally, I married off before I became a teenager. My first daughter married before attaining teenagerhood and the same also applied to the second daughter. The age at which a girl marries is decided by the parents.

Another male participant who is a prophet also seemed to concur with the above participant by making the following statement.

Yes, we marry them before the age of eighteen because it is necessary to catch them before they are spoiled by secular staff out there.

As claimed by all twenty participants, most of the marriages that take place within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church are forced child marriages. Different sentiments were thus raised on how the child marriages are forced. One research participant, a mother at a polygamous setting, narrated how she was raped by her sister’s husband as a way of forcing her into marriage. The matter was just handled as a family issue and a regular marriage procedure within the church despite her young age. These narratives and lived realities support the argument that girls are forced into sexual intimacy against their will by married men which is a criminal offence under the Sexual Offences Act in Zimbabwe. The girls are equally forced to marry any other male with whom they are believed to have had a sexual relationship. Such circumstances in which the girl child within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church is forced into marriages contradict Article 4 (1) of the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. According to Article 4 (1) of the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, in all actions concerning the child undertaken by any person or authority, the best interests of the child shall be the primary consideration. Given circumstances of coercion towards marriage which girl children are reported to experience, the best interests of these children are overlooked.

Besides learning of forced child marriages through interviews that were supported by the above submissions from participants, the researchers also identified at different participants’ homesteads, some young pregnant women who by physical looks looked way younger than eighteen years. Constitutionally, as in terms of Section 78 (1), women should found families at the age of eighteen. This means that as per the constitutional requirement, marrying children before the age of eighteen is unconstitutional. Also, in a historic constitutional ruling in 2020, the Constitutional Court outlawed child marriages (Plan International Zimbabwe, 2016). Besides, according to Section 81 (1) (e) of Zimbabwe’s Constitution, children have a right to be protected from economic and sexual exploitation, from child labour, and from maltreatment, neglect, or any form of abuse. By forcing the girl child into marriages on different grounds, some members of the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church can be said to be sexually exploiting the children. Article 27 of the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child requires States Parties to protect children from sexual exploitation. Forced child marriages within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church are a form of sexual exploitation that require the Government of Zimbabwe to intervene and protect the girl child.

Child Labour and Denial of Access to Education

The violation of the girl child’s rights through child marriages results in multiple other rights being violated. As child brides get tasked with family responsibilities, they are subjected to child labour for them to fend for themselves and their families. As bridal girls are forced into marriages, it affects the child’s right to access education. This is because the bridal children are pulled out of school as soon as they get married. So, it can also be argued that forced child marriages within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church are violating the right to education. According to Section 81 (1) (f) of the country’s constitution, every child, every boy, and girl under the age of eighteen years, has the right to education, health care services, nutrition, and shelter. Article 11 (1) of the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child also guarantees the right to education for every child. The right to education for every child is also recognized by Article 28 (1) of the Convention on the Rights of the Child which mandates States Parties to recognize the right of the child to education. In support of the fact that forced girl child marriages within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church violate the girl child’s right to education, one research participant who lost out on her education had this to say;

I am a victim of child marriages myself. I was married before fifteen and I was in form one (1) by then. I had only done the first term of my form one (1) secondary school education. I have many children, of which the oldest is already married. Guess what, she too married off as a teenager. I am always pained each day as I remember my personal experience and the fact that my children go through the same path.

Arguably, this practice contributes to high illiteracy levels among the female population in Zimbabwe as the International Labour Organisation (2016) established that women constitute 60% of the illiterate adult population as female students’ school dropouts remain high in the country. Coupled with high levels of school dropouts, 34% of girls in Zimbabwe are married before the age of eighteen (UNICEF Child Marriage Database, 2020).

Unemployment in Later Life

There is also a direct consequence that emanates from bridal girl children’s failure to access basic education which was explained by participants. It was learnt that since bridal girl children fail to access education as they struggle with day-to-day family responsibilities, they are also said to have no chances of getting formal employment on the labour market later in life. It was said that it is shortage of skills among the bridal children that makes them grow into unemployed women who can only serve as housewives in polygamous marriages. If this is analysed further, there are high chances that such individuals may continue to be entangled in the cycle of poverty.

Invasive Virginity Testing

Invasive virginity testing was also confirmed to be a highly upheld practice within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church. According to study findings, virginity testing is conducted every year at church conferences across the country. It is said that elderly women conduct these tests compulsorily. With the help of male prophets, the elderly women categorize the tested girls into two groups: the virgins and the non-virgins. Researchers learnt that the girls go back to the main conference after virginity tests and a male prophet makes a major announcement to the church gathering concerning the two groups of girls; the group for girls that would have passed and another group of those that would have failed. It was noted that girls who are confirmed to be virgins are said to have passed and those found to be non-virgins are labelled as failures. The researchers managed to attend one conference at Kurai in Masvingo where such an announcement was made. The announcement was made to give a chance to men who wished to marry girls from either of the two groups. Soon after such an announcement was made, men started to go for girls from either of the two camps.

Analysing the practice of invasive virginity testing from a feminist human rights–based perspective, this practice is a flagrant violation of the right to privacy that is enshrined in terms of Section 57 of the country’s constitution. Additionally, exposing the girl child to inhumane treatment of invasive virginity testing and then exposing them before a public congregation by labelling them as a group of ‘failures’ is not in tandem with the constitutional requirement of Section 51 of Zimbabwe’s Constitution. In terms of this section, every person has inherent dignity in their private and public life, and the right to have that dignity respected and protected. Invasive virginity testing and labelling non-virgins as failures not only erodes the dignity of the girl child but it may also result in lowering the self-esteem of the victims. Also, Article 10 of the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child speaks to protection of privacy of the child. The article states that no child shall be subject to arbitrary or unlawful interference with his or her privacy, family home or correspondence, or to attacks upon his honour or reputation.

Denial of Child Immunization

As per the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church doctrine, children must not be immunized. This finding correlates with the establishment by Dudzai et al. (2022) that immunization of children within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church is forbidden. The research established that newly born children are only prayed for while being fed with mother’s milk and holy water. This was confirmed during semi-structured in-depth interviews when one research participant claimed;

Immunization of children is not allowed in this church. I really want to be truthful with you, there are high levels of child mortality within this church because we are not allowed to immunize our children against diseases. In my life, I have given birth to more than ten children. Many of my children succumbed to measles. I am only survived with a few children after I sneaked out to seek medical assistance at a local clinic without my husband’s knowledge. The belief is that all ailments should be treated using holy water.

The right to health for every child which is violated within the church is stated in terms of Article 14 of the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child and Article 24 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

This finding correlates Maguranyanga’s (2011) view that child mortality rate is still high in Zimbabwe due to some religious beliefs that still shun the utilization of medical facilities. This violates the infants and children who are inclusive of the girl child the right to health care services and consequently, the right to life is put at stake. Not only is this a violation of child rights but it makes the attainment of Sustainable Development Goal number 3 on good health and wellbeing difficult.

Fieldwork Reflections

Researchers witnessed multiple actions leading to violation of women and girls’ rights. Before stating on the actions that researchers undertook to deal with some of the cases, we start by explaining the political status of the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church. The Johanne Marange Apostolic Church is well known by community members, the Zimbabwe Republic Police, the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission, and the Government of Zimbabwe for its violation of the rights of its followers. The said institutions have often released statements of concern in the events of death of children at church shrines while giving birth. However, members of the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church seem to be immune to the rule of law in Zimbabwe because there is a political relationship between the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church and the ruling ZANU PF party. The political relationship is such that leaders from the ruling ZANU PF party visit Johanne Marange Apostolic Church Passover ceremonies (where most of the human rights violations take place) to conduct political campaigns (Dudzai et al., 2022). The church congregants are encouraged to support and vote for ZANU PF and in turn, ZANU PF promises to protect the church and claims that the church’s freedom of worship is guaranteed if ZANU PF remains in power. The leaders of the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church from the recent late Noah Taguta Momberume to the current Nimrod Momberume have always taught congregants to vote for and support the ruling ZANU PF party. Of particular importance is that different academic publications have reiterated that the ruling ZANU PF party itself does not show respect for human rights as the party is associated with political intolerance and partakes in political violence against opponents. Arguably, the ruling ZANU PF party benefits from free votes from members of the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church while the church’s leadership is indirectly guaranteed of getting away with human rights violations. Often, there are media reports of child marriages and children passing away while giving birth and such reports are even given by the national broadcaster, the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation. However, law enforcement agents appear to have no power to arrest the perpetrators of violence. Citizens have held social media campaigns, calling the government to hold the perpetrators in the church to account but it is a commonality that the perpetrators continue to walk scot-free. Arguably, there is a probability that the government would not want to disappoint its political support base and government agents therefore turn a blind eye to that issue.

The case of the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church which commands a sizable following (which could be more than two hundred thousand members in Zimbabwe alone) appears to have been accepted as normal in Zimbabwe and probably, state institutions and community members have left it to the individuals who are members to either look for their own freedom by ceasing to be members of the church or to continue having their rights violated by continuing to be members of the church.

There are some church members who requested the researchers to assist them in any possible ways. Researchers managed to refer some of them to the Department of Social Development, the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission, and the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights. Referral to each institution was based on the nature of request given by each participant. Contact details and addresses for the institutions were given to some of the participants as per each participant’s request. Some of them were referred to non-governmental organizations which assisted them with school fees for their children and food items. Some of the participants were however content with their circumstances and to that effect, they confessed that being subjected to abuse is what qualifies one to enter the kingdom of heaven. Each participant’s decision was respected.

Recommendations for State and Non-state Actors

This section proffers recommendations for different actors in Zimbabwe on how they can deal with the problem of women and girls’ rights violations in the context of religion. Social workers from both government and non-state institutions should embark on awareness campaign programmes in communities that have high populations of Johanne Marange Apostolic Church congregants. Since social workers are trained to work with communities as part of their spectrum, they need to carry out advocacy awareness campaigns to raise awareness within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church. These awareness campaigns can be conducted at church conferences.

In an endeavour to eradicate violence against women and girls, there is a need for the Government of Zimbabwe through the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission to implement the constitutional provision of Section 26 (b) which states that the state must take appropriate measures to ensure that children are not pledged into marriage. Since study findings point out that some family members within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church pledge their daughters into marriage, there is a need for the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission to investigate and expose cases and perpetrators of child abuse within the religious sector. Once exposed, the state prosecutor’s office must takeover by effecting arrests and suing of any community members who abuse the girl child by pledging her into marriage, invasive virginity testing, and child marriages. To be more effective in eradicating violence against women and girls, crimes such as child marriages should be punished in accordance with the law. Due to fear of the legal punishment, perpetrators may desist from harmful practices such as child marriages. This can be backed up by establishing a legislation that considers child abuse in religious settings as a crime against humanity. There is also a need to establish a policy that deregisters religious sects that abuse vulnerable members such as children. With all due respect to the right to freedom of conscience, we hold the opinion that religious sects that foster violence against women, girls, and members in general must be investigated by the government. The ministry responsible for oversight of affairs such as religion must suspend such sects. If investigations about human rights violations are proven to be true by the government, there is a need for the Government of Zimbabwe to ban churches such as the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church to liberate women and girls from religious bondage.

Legally, children facing different forms of abuse within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church qualify to be children in need of care. As such, it is essential for social workers, particularly those that are employed within the Department of Social Development, to identify such children whose rights are being violated on religious grounds and place them in places of safety. Child care workers in Zimbabwe should always assist in identifying and alerting social workers of any cases of child abuse within the religious sector. This may also mean that child care workers, social workers, and Zimbabwe Republic Police officers must attend church conferences of the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church so that they help safeguard against various forms of child and women abuse at church gatherings. Church conferences can also be effective platforms where institutions such as the Zimbabwe Gender Commission and the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission may utilize to raise awareness on women and girl child rights. It may be argued that when church members get informed of the fact that they are being watched over by law enforcement agencies, they may reform from harmful practices.

Currently, there is absence of social workers in Zimbabwe’s rural villages. It is within rural villages where abuse of the girl child through religion is a common phenomenon. Social workers are based at district level and the district offices are far away from the villages where violation of women and girls’ rights is rife. There is a need for the Department of Social Development to place social workers at village level where they will work hand in glove with chiefs and village heads in identifying any cases of child and women abuse. Given any reports of child abuse, social workers based in the villages must assist in investigating the matters and report them to the police. Social workers must identify aggrieved victims of religious abuse and assist them in seeking for justice. Village social workers must also work with village leaders in educating villagers about women and girls’ rights.

Implications for Future Research

During the time of compiling this write up, researchers learnt that the leader of the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church, Noah Taguta, passed away on 17 April 2022 and was buried on 20 April 2022. His death created an environment for leadership complications, hence, the implications for further research. The deceased Noah Taguta is now succeeded by one of his sons, Nimrod Taguta. Future research should establish how new leadership of the church under Nimrod Taguta may facilitate and manage institutional reforms in relation to upholding human rights in the church. It is quite interesting to note that at the time of his death, Noah Taguta was putting on spectacles after experiencing eyesight problems for over a decade. Believers believed that Noah Taguta might have got the spectacles at the recommendation of an optician. This is despite that church congregants were discouraged from seeking medical care at hospitals. It will therefore be significant for future research to establish how separate laws for leadership and general congregants are deployed in the church.

Conclusion

The study has through its interrogative exposure brought out the intricate religious and doctrine aspects of the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church which infringe and contradict the basic women’s and girls’ rights. Deploying a feminist human rights–based approach compounded with a qualitative research design in the data generation, the study shared how the church doctrine contradicts with girls’ rights to education, freedom of choice, and right to health. The study argues that the religious beliefs within the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church provide a fertile ground for the violation of women and girls’ rights. The violation of women and girls’ rights due to religious beliefs affects attainment of gender equality and general social development. To that effect, the study argues and recommends that the state as a primary institution with the responsibility of protecting the interests of women and girls in such cult-based churches ought to take a vigilante and protective stance. Complimentary responsibilities come from non-governmental organizations and the private corporates.