Today's Scripture Reading (August 13, 2026): Ezekiel 20
Robert Mugabe (1924-2019) was
consistently labeled one of the worst rulers of the contemporary world. When he
was elected as Prime Minister of Zimbabwe on April 18, 1980, Zimbabwe was a
model African nation. Its economy was growing, and its currency was stronger
than the U.S. dollar. Then, Mugabe became the nation's supreme leader. His
critics also note that Mugabe's popularity was in free fall from almost the moment
his reign began. Mugabe was accused of repeatedly abusing his position and
cheating against his opposition, and that the only opinion that he really wants
to hear is his own. During the 1988 Zimbabwe elections, it was rumored that
Mugabe told his supporters that he would accept the election results only if he
won (Hmmm, reminds me of someone else). In later elections, he used coercion,
intimidation, and beatings to remain in power. As a result, Zimbabwe is considered
one of the most corrupt and least transparent nations in the world. Political observer
Heidi Holland makes this comment about Mugabe's legacy.
The story of Robert Mugabe is a microcosm of what
bedevils African democracy and economic recovery at the beginning of the 21st
century. It is a classic case of a genuine hero—the guerrilla idol who
conquered the country's former leader and his white supremacist regime—turning
into a peevish autocrat whose standard response to those suggesting he steps
down is to tell them to get lost. It is also the story of activists who try to
make a better society but bear the indelible scars of the old system. Mugabe's
political education came from the autocrat Ian Smith, who had learnt his
formative lessons from imperious British colonisers (Heidi Holland).
As the elders of the Israelites
in exile come to Ezekiel, their visit suggests they wanted to inquire of the
prophet what God would have them do. I mean, why else would you go to visit a
prophet, and in this case, the pre-eminent prophet of the exile in Babylon? But
God sees something else. The truth was that the leaders did not care what God
was saying. They just needed the appearance of going to the prophet to inquire
of God. In the end, all they wanted to do was follow their own desires. And
unfortunately, it does not seem to occur to them that it was the pursuit of their
own desires that led to their exile in the first place.
I wish this were a story
fully contained in the past, but it continues today. Too many people go to
church not because they want to inquire of God, but because they want to give
the appearance of doing so. And too many Christians are too obsessed with
following their own beliefs rather than hearing whatever it is that God might
be saying to them. Too often, it seems the Christian Church would rather lean
on its own understanding than search for the message that comes from God. It is
a situation that needs desperately to change. Our world does not need to hear
more of what the Christian Church thinks; however, it urgently needs to hear
from the God of all Creation.
Tomorrow's
Scripture Reading: Ezekiel 21
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