Redeeming the cursed blessing of church business in Zimbabwean neo-Pentecostalism

Abstract

Background: Since time immemorial, several churches in Zimbabwe have invested in education, health, agriculture and other businesses to advance integral mission and to generate profit for inclusive economic sustainability. Later, native neo-Pentecostals emerged with the gospel of prosperity, and some of them ended up commercialising and commodifying the gospel. Most related literature responded with strong criticism and portrayed all ecclesial entrepreneurship as ill-fated. While churches engaging in commerce attract negative impressions, depending on traditional sources of income is unsustainable in an economically unstable context such as Zimbabwe.
Objectives: This article fills the gap of economic sustainability by troubleshooting church businesses.
Method: This study applied a literature review and the theory of theonomic reciprocity.
Results: The study found that church-owned businesses are essential to sustain the increasing costs of operations and missionary work. However, the opportunity has been spoiled by selfish leaders who commercialised and commodified the gospel at the expense of their gullible followers.
Conclusion: The author concludes that self-serving commerce is a curse for the church. It is fraught with the wrong hermeneutics and theologies, heresies and manipulation as well as diversion of the selfless gospel of Jesus Christ; hence, it must be rebuked and corrected through transformative theological education and Business as Mission (BAM) concepts that correspond with theonomic reciprocity.
Contribution: This article reconciles mission as business with BAM to investigate inclusive missionary and economic sustainability in contexts characterised by poverty.