6. Women’s Leadership in the Guta Ra Jehovha Church: Towards the Construction of ‘Soft Masculinities’

Like other parts of the world, Southern Africa has been rocked by a crisis of gender-based violence (GBV), resulting in the extreme suffering of women and children at the hands of some men hiding behind certain notions of masculinities. As the African society continues to search for lasting solutions to this crisis, hope can be drawn from religion and culture. In Africa, religion is a way of life and the majority of membership in the numerous religious circles are women. Ironically, when it comes to taking up leadership positions in most religious sectors, women remain in the shadows while men dominate the leadership hierarchies. By the same token, when it comes to the perpetration of GBV, there are more women at the receiving end of GBV as compared to men. The thrust of this chapter is to take stock of some successes and challenges in relation to the goal of stemming the tide of GBV in Zimbabwe. In this light, the chapter outlines several lessons that can be drawn from one of the oldest and widely followed woman-founded African Indigenous Churches, the Guta Ra Jehovha. The chapter discusses how female leadership in the hands of Matenga (Mai Chaza born Theresa Nyamushana) has positively contributed towards the deconstruction of harmful masculinities. It also illustrates how such initiatives have opened inroads towards creating soft masculinities that are more life-giving and positive in gender relations in Zimbabwe. The second section of this chapter discusses why it is important for Zimbabweans to reflect on women’s important contribution in religion. Emphasis is placed on how women’s involvement has contributed towards solving societal challenges through inculcating positive humanity, especially how they are moulding peaceful men. The third section proceeds to present the background of the gender inequity crisis in Zimbabwe using the Guta Ra Jehovha Church as a case study. It discusses how masculinities are defined and constructed as well as articulating the relationship of masculinities constructed in the Guta Ra Jehovha Church to gender relations. The chapter will conclude by presenting an analysis of how female leadership in religion has contributed in formulating soft masculinities, offering a glimmer of hope for the future.