“Mwendoni-ire ZK” Reconstructing the Memory of Z. K. Matthews in Southern Africa (1901-68)

Abstract

In this article, Professor ZK Mathews is not only seen as a responsible leader in his own right but more importantly, he is seen as a prominent educationist in the complex socio-political situation of apartheid South Africa. “Mwendoni-ire Z K” (beloved ZK) became the first African to obtain a Bachelor of Arts Degree (BA) at the University of South Africa, in 1924. His other public roles as ANC founder, Ambassador, an educationist, activist for social justice, a Pan-Africanist, and an ecumenist makes him one of a kind. As both a community and church leader, the article seeks to assess his display of social responsibility in the dark period of African history when separate development was the vogue. Did he act responsibly in addressing social issues during his heydays? What didn’t he do during his lifetimes? Are there critical communal issues that he failed to do yet he had an opportunity which he did not exhaustively utilize? To this end, this article builds on the premise that the spread of Christianity in Africa, its shape and character, has been the by-product of responsible Leadership, both in the Mission Churches/mainline churches and in the African Instituted Churches, and even from within the emerging afro-Pentecostal churches. Without responsible leadership on the part of the Africans themselves, the spread of Christianity in Africa would have nose-dived. In categorising the three brands of Christianity in Africa, it is critical to acknowledge that, Mission Churches are those that evolved directly from the outreach of Western denominations; afro-Pentecostals are those who consciously or unconsciously allow a measure of dialogue between Pentecostalism and some elements of African culture in their discourses; while African initiated Churches are those Churches which were born in Africa, and were primarily begun by Africans themselves as they protested western intrusion and subjugation of their cultures as Africans. In view of this, ZK is viewed as a responsible leader who confronted social ecclesial matters with a reasonable degree of success.