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By Priscilla Muzerengwa*

7:00 A.M. EST Sept. 7, 2010 | OLD MUTARE, Zimbabwe (UMNS)

Edith Bwawa (left) and Rachel Mukoyi pray at Chin’ando in Old Mutare, Zimbabwe. UMNS Web-only photos by Prisicilla Muzerengwa.

The women walk slowly down the dirt road from Old Mutare Mission in the afternoon sun, passing an orphanage and a school. A young boy briefly skips along in front of them, a dog following, until they tire of the game.

Edith Bwawa, 49, and Rachel Mukoyi, 48, do not break stride as they veer to the left, along a smaller path barely visible under the tall grass on both sides. Reaching the side of a large hill, they wind their way up large rocks and slippery stretches of loose stones and dirt, holding on to bushes and boulders for support.

Nearing a clearing, they begin to sing, “Mwari mubastiri wangu,” or “God is our helper.”

At the top of this steep part of the hill is a small tree surrounded on three sides by walls loosely constructed from piles of stones. Bwawa and Mukoyi take off their shoes before approaching the open side.

There, in bare feet, they kneel on rocks that litter the ground and pray.

Like generations of Zimbabwean women before them, they have made the pilgrimage to this natural shrine on the hillside to encounter God. Here, in the place called Chin’ando, they know they will not be disappointed.

“Pray for something you want seriously,” Mukoyi says, “and God will answer your prayer and you will be shocked.”

A spiritual refuge

Chin'ando, named after the Chin’ando tree at the site, was discovered in 1938 by Lydia Chimonyo, a pastor’s wife who was searching for a place to encounter God. Churchwomen believe she was inspired by the Holy Spirit to the site on the side of the hill.

Bwawa and Mukoyi kneel in prayer.

In time, other wives of pastors followed. “She chose to go up the mountain to a silent place where they would sing, cry and pray without any fear of disturbing anyone,” Bwawa said.

Martha Mudzengerere, 100, the only surviving pastor’s wife from the time Chin’ando was discovered, said the site once was surrounded by big trees, which made a good cover at the top for people to go underneath and pray.

Now there are small trees surrounded by big and small stones.  Woven through the branches are letters with personal appeals to God. 

Churchwomen throughout the country come as individuals or in busloads to the sacred site. Many people come to find answers about their lives.  It is believed that many barren women have had their wombs opened, that marriages have been restored and that those without jobs have found work.

“I am a testimony of the Chin’ando; my mother had problems with conceiving, and after giving her request at Chin’ando, she gave birth to me in a normal delivery,” said Rudo Bingepinge.  “I was taught by mother to go to Chin’ando when I was still a young girl, and I also taught my children. People go there to share their secrets of life.  It is an empowerment place; you feel strong and confident to face any challenge after visiting this place.”

An encounter with God

Bwawa and Mukoyi sang praise to God as they approached the site on a recent afternoon. “You go up the hill with so much faith that God can do great things in my life,” Mukoyi said.

The two women knelt before God, but there is no order of worship at the site. “People take whatever position that best enables them to empty out their burdens to God. Some lie down on the ground, some kneel, some cry and so on,” Mukoyi said.

The messages to God are accompanied by more petitions.

“When you tie the fibers on to the trees, you will be in deep prayer, singing a song that conveys your message,” Bwawa said.

As thousands of women have done before them, Bwawa and Mukoyi before they left placed stones on top of the existing piles as a symbol of leaving their burdens to the Lord’s care.

“I leave everything to you,” one of the women said.

They then made their way down the hill in silence.  

*Muzerengwa is a United Methodist communicator for the Zimbabwe East Annual (regional) Conference.

News media contact: David Briggs, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.