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Christian Women's Organizations in Zimbabwe : Facilitating Women's Participation in Development Through Advocacy and Education

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Christian Women's Organizations in Zimbabwe : Facilitating Women's Participation in Development Through Advocacy and Education University of Massachusetts Amherst ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014 1-1-1996 Christian women's organizations in Zimbabwe : facilitating women's participation in development through advocacy and education. Barbara Jean Huff University of Massachusetts Amherst Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_1 Recommended Citation Huff, Barbara Jean, "Christian women's organizations in Zimbabwe : facilitating women's participation in development through advocacy and education." (1996). Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014. 2282. https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_1/2282 This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. It has been accepted for inclusion in Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014 by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. For more information, please contact [email protected]. CHRISTIAN WOMEN'S ORGANIZATIONS IN ZIMBABWE: FACILITATING WOMEN'S PARTICIPATION IN DEVELOPMENT THROUGH ADVOCACY AND EDUCATION A Dissertation Presented by BARBARA JEAN HUFF Submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Massachusetts Amherst in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF EDUCATION May 1996 Education 1996 (£H Copyright by Barbara Jean Huff All Rights Reserved CHRISTIAN WOMEN'S ORGANIZATIONS IN ZIMBABWE: FACILITATING WOMEN'S PARTICIPATION IN DEVELOPMENT THROUGH ADVOCACY AND EDUCATION A Dissertation Presented by BARBARA JEAN HUFF Approved as to style and content by: David C. Kinsey , yChair ABSTRACT CHRISTIAN WOMEN'S ORGANIZATIONS IN ZIMBABWE: FACILITATING WOMEN'S PARTICIPATION IN DEVELOPMENT THROUGH ADVOCACY AND EDUCATION MAY 1996 BARBARA JEAN HUFF B. B. A. , CLEVELAND STATE UNIVERSITY M.A. , SCHOOL FOR INTERNATIONAL TRAINING Ed. D. , UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Directed by: Professor David Kinsey Christian women's organizations in Zimbabwe have a long history. Prior to independence, both the Catholic church and the major Protestant denominations had mother's unions or women's clubs. These groups met at the congregational level weekly for prayer, singing, Bible study and support. Educa- tion was also an important function of these groups. After independence, many ecumenical and non-denominational Chris- tian women's groups were formed. The purpose of these groups was to assist in national development and in women's devel- opment . This dissertation explores the role of these women's organizations in facilitating women's participation in development. The premise of the study was that the church in Zimbabwe plays a large role in development and that women iv are heavily involved in church life, it was not clear, however, that women's involvement resulted in their benefit- ing from the church's development activities and efforts, it was assumed that women's organizations would be one way that women could access those activities and the resultant bene- fits. The literature review includes feminist theories, women in development (WID) and women's organizations. This provid- ed a foundation for exploring the theoretical underpinnings of WID efforts and women's organizations, as well as the appropriateness of those theories, efforts and organizations for women in Zimbabwe. The field research consisted of in-depth interviews with the heads of various types of Christian women's organi- zations as well as leaders within the Christian Council of Zimbabwe. Unpublished documents produced by the organiza- tions were analyzed. And observations were done of one indigenous community development organization and one church-related women's club. The data revealed that women are benefitting from church development efforts and that women's organizations are largely responsible for that. Also, that women's organi- zations on their own contribute greatly to community devel- opment. Christian women's organizations in Zimbabwe have a major role to play in facilitating the full participation of women in development. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT . iv Chapter 1. THE ROLE OF CHRISTIAN WOMEN'S ORGANIZATIONS IN ZIMBABWE: INTRODUCTION TO A STUDY 1 Working Definitions 2 Focus of the Study Development in Africa 5 Statement of the Problem 9 Overview of Design and Research Questions ll Significance of the Study 13 Overall Approach of Study 14 The Setting - Unit of Analysis 16 Data Collection Methods 17 Sampling Choices and Negotiation for Access .... 20 Data Management 24 Data Analysis 26 Trustworthiness 27 Organization of Chapters 29 2. TOWARD A THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK: LITERATURE REVIEW . 33 Feminist Theories 33 Women in Development 4 8 Women's Organizations 59 3. THE HISTORICAL ROLE OF THE CHURCH IN ZIMBABWE ... 79 General History 79 Church History 92 4. THE ROLE OF THE CHURCH IN CONTEMPORARY ZIMBABWE . 126 General Economic, Political and Social Situation . 126 The Role of the Church Today 13 6 5. THE CASE STUDIES 158 Association of Women's Clubs 160 Zimbabwe Women's Bureau 172 Young Women's Christian Association 186 Catholic Development Commission 200 The Ruwadzano/Manyano of the Methodist Church . 219 vi 6. FINDINGS AND REFLECTIONS: PATTERNS, THEMES AND DISTINCTIONS 238 Patterns ’ * * Themes * 2 4 i Women Education * 244 The Church 245 Zimbabwean Feminist Theory 248 Christian Women's Organizations .... 254 Summary 261 7. CONCLUSIONS 265 BIBLIOGRAPHY 287 vii CHAPTER 1 THE ROLE OF CHRISTIAN WOMEN'S ORGANIZATIONS IN ZIMBABWE: INTRODUCTION TO A STUDY Introduction I lived in Zambia for two years in the late 1980s and worked for a Christian relief and development agency. The organization had been working in Africa for about 25 years and is currently present in about twenty countries there. The organization has over the years established strong working relationships with many church leaders of various denominations, with other Christian non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and with the various councils of churches all over the continent. Through my work, as Administrative Assistant for Zambia and Zimbabwe, I had the opportunity to meet regularly with local church leaders and NGO representatives to discuss our work or potential collaboration. Through those professional relationships I was able to visit churches and Christian groups in many parts of both countries. During those visits and through my own church involvement, I observed that women were heavily represented in the church membership and that they were very active members. Church women met together for prayer, singing, Bible study and to co-ordinate the work necessary to maintain the church. This maintenance included both the structure and the community. For example, they cleaned the church, cooked for special occasions, visited the sick and bereaved, organized funerals and weddings. They also met together to organize and pursue income-generating activities such as cultivating vegetable gardens and making school uniforms. However, the money earned from such activities often went back into the maintenance of the church. I began to wonder what women got in return for their devotion to the church. Because from casual observation during my time working there, it seemed to be men who got opportunities for training and employment with the church. Any opportunities that went to women seemed to be at the urging of an outside organization, such as the one I worked with. Was that really true? Did the church give nothing back to its most devoted and energetic followers? Certainly it couldn't be that simple. Women went to church in such large numbers, met frequently in addition to regular services and volunteered many hours to sustaining their churches for some reason. I wanted to know more about those reasons. Working Definitions There are three terms used throughout the study that need defining as they are key to understanding the analysis. I will give my own definitions of the terms because it was those personal meanings which helped me conceptualize the inquiry. The first is the term "Christian". Spirituality and religion are complex and deeply personal things. In Zimbabwe the complexity is partly due to the co-mingling of two 2 strong and very different belief systems. Christianity has been widely adopted in the country but traditional or indigenous religious beliefs and practices remain, even among Christians. However, I do not believe that retaining some traditional beliefs and practices makes one less of a Christian. Nor do I believe that being a faithful church- goer makes one more of a Christian. Keeping in mind that there is also a great deal of diversity in the beliefs and practices of Christians who do not have other religious traditions, I use the term in the broadest and simplest sense. Christianity in this study means the religious system based on the teachings of and a belief in Christ. The term "church" in the study, unless otherwise noted, means the whole of the Christian body in Zimbabwe. That includes the various denominations, congregations, leaders, church members and Christian organizations. However, I also recognize that there is a hierarchy in the church as there is in any social institution. So although every person and group or organization is a part of the whole, they are not all the same. The term "development" is used in different ways in the study and should be considered from the particular context. In general, however, it is used to mean a planned and managed attempt to increase economic productivity of a group of people. This increased productivity is supposed
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