THEN AND NOW:

GENERAL MISSIONARY CONFERENCES OF NORTHERN RHODESIA 1914-1944


After reporting on the latest UCZ International Partners Forum and this year being the 100^th anniversary of a first meeting, I thought it might be interesting to look at how in the past, Churches regularly met to discuss, cooperate and tackle mutual problems.

 

The ecumenical roots of the United Church of Zambia can be traced back to this meeting and the formation of the General Missionary Conference of Northern Rhodesia which first convened 100 years ago in 1914 in Livingstone.

 

Below is a table of their meetings between 1914 and 1944. In 1945 the GMC’s place was taken by the Christian Council of Northern Rhodesia which in turn at Independence became the Christian Council of Zambia, to which the UCZ belongs

 

CONFERENCE	VENUE	YEAR	PRESIDENT
1st GMC	Livingstone	1914	Rev E W Smith Primitive Methodist
2nd	Livingstone	1919	Rev A Jalla PEMS
3rd	Kafue	1922	Rt Rev Alston May UMCA
4th	Kafue	1924	Rev Malcolm Moffat CofS
5th	Livingstone	1927	Rev CP Pauw DRCM
6th	Broken Hill (Kabwe)	1931	Rev S D Gray WMMS
7th	Ndola	1935	Rt Rev A May UMCA
8th	Lusaka	1939	Rev H J Barnes LMS
9th	Chalimbana	1944	Rev H J Barnes LMS

 

Prior to the formation of the GMC there had been much informal cooperation amongst Missions in the areas of fellowship, hospitality, linguistics, medical, maternity and dental treatment amongst themselves. Health, education and social justice were even then national matters and areas of ecumenical cooperation. The divisions of denominationalism were more keenly felt back home in Europe or North America than at work here in the mission field.  The 1910 Edinburgh World Conference did much, by starting to repudiate sectarian division and demonstrating the inner and essential unity of the Church.

 

 

The objects of the GMC were to provide:

*cooperation and fellowship in the areas of evangelization,

*public sensitization on Mission and

*oversight of the interests of the indigenous people.

 

The denominations represented were;
Paris Evangelical Mission Society (French Protestant)

London Missionary Society (Congregationalist)

Church of Scotland

Reformed Church

South African Baptist Mission society

Seventh Day Adventist Mission

Brethren in Christ Church

Universities Mission to Central Africa (Anglican)

South Africa General Mission (Evangelical)

The Salvation Army

Bible Class Mission

Pilgrim Holiness Church

United Missions in the Copperbelt (LMS, CofS, UMCA, MMS, SABM & USCL)

 

The main business at the 1914 meeting, at which only the Paris Mission, Methodists, Anglicans, Mennonites and Wesleyans were present, was the need to have a common national curriculum and for regular government subsidies for mission schools.

 

CHRISTIAN COUNCIL OF NORTHERN RHODESIA 1945 -1963

 

70 years ago in 1944 the General Conference met for the last time. Of the 16 Mission Societies at work in the country, 14 were present, the Roman Catholics were not authorized to attend and the Church of Christ sent their apologies. The agenda covered post-war education, agriculture, relations with Colonial authorities, Churches in mining areas, youth ministry, health, African literature and moral and social questions regarding the returning military. It was agreed to form a Christian Council of Northern Rhodesia, similar to other countries, uniting all the Churches and replacing the GCM with it. This new body would also collaborate with the Councils of Central and Southern Africa especially Nyasaland. A provisional Council was made responsible for preparing its organization and its constitution.

 

It held its inaugural meeting at Mindolo and held bi-annual meetings till 1963

 

COUNCIL MEETING	VENUE	YEAR	PRESIDING
1	Mindolo	1945	Pres: Rev  E G Nightingale Sec: Rev A J Cross
2	Livingstone	1947	G R Suckling Rev G Hewitt
3	Mufulira	1949	Rt Rev R Selby-Taylor Rev G Hewitt
4	Lusaka	1951	Rev G Fraser Rev B T Foster
5	Kitwe	1953	Rev G Hewitt P S Walton
6	Chikankata	1955	Rev G Hewitt PA Musgrove
7	Lusaka	1957	Rev M Temple Rev E Matthews
8	Mindolo	1959	Rev E Nightingale Rev M Temple
9	Mindolo	1961	Rt Rev O Wilkinson Rev E Nightingale
10	Mindolo	1963	Dr A Thuma Rev E Nightingale

 

In 1964 the 11^th meeting in Mindolo changed its name to the Christian Council of Zambia with Rev Safeli Chileshe as President and Rev Philip Kazhila as Secretary. The CCZ membership consists of 21 Protestant Churches and 15 Church related bodies. Its name was later changed to the Council of Churches in Zambia. There is another ecumenical body the Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia and the Catholics have their Episcopal Conference of Zambia. All three bodies try to work together where they can.

 

Rev Suzanne Matale presently serves as the General Secretary for The Council of Churches in Zambia (CCZ) It is the official ecumenical umbrella organisation for most mainline Christian churches. CCZ seeks to promote cooperation and fellowship between Christian churches and organizations in the nation. It serves to strengthen Christian unity and to promote social justice, peace and development. For example at the moment, with other bodies it is involved in the constitutional review process, gender, poverty and other social issues. Its ministry is promoting human dignity to member churches, organizations, and to the people of Zambia by facilitation, advocacy, capacity-building, and networking to the glory of God, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The CCZ has a website which is presently being updated http://www.ccz.org.zm