Dear Pastor Harrington Akombwa,
Greetings to you in the wonderful name of our lord and savior Jesus Christ.
I am a baptized and fully committed member of Seventh – day Adventist church who happens to have a full knowledge of our beliefs and convictions as a church.
I have decided to write you this mail following the story that appeared in Zambian online and print media regarding Brother Hakainde Hichilema who is aspiring to be the executive leader of our country – Zambia. In that story it was reported that “Seventh-Day Adventist are offended by the remarks that HH is a Satanist”.
Personally as a fellow servant of God, I feel that we have more important issues to address as a church instead of getting involved into political battles that has no biblical or spiritual support of any kind.
The SDA church just like any other church in the world can and is a hub of sinners who are looking for reformation by being in touch with the lord through its undiluted messages of repentance. The fact that br HH is part of our church does not guarantee that he can’t be involved into any sinful acts that comes with life or love of money.
I, therefore, found it gross that the whole church management spent its precious time to leave the busy spiritual work in order to get involved into issues of politics. As a Christian church, even any other church in Zambia, we SDAs have no mandate to defend any of our members accused of things we are not sure off. Our job is leading them to Christ as much as we can. But should they decide to get involved into double life and be engaged into Satanism, adultery, stealing or mason-ism, etc, our church will not take sides with them. The church must always take a neutral stance and defend no one.
As a CEO of SDA’s in Zambia, you can never know exactly what all your members do after sun set on Sabbath to the next Sabbath sunrise. The truth is there are Satanist and adulterers in SDA church just as they are in all other churches.
The church has no legal right to prove that HH is not a Satanist or Masonic and that we can never prove even if we decided to because we have never been part of that society. So we are better of leaving that to Bishop Chomba who accused HH of being involved in such to prove it to the courts of law since this issue is now in court. We will never be a witness in such speculative and non factual quarrels.
What would the church do if Bishop Chomba proved beyond doubt that HH was really once a Manson member as such facts can easily be proved especially by those who joined with him? It’s well speculated that once a Masonic always a Masonic because strong covenants are entered into before someone is initiated into such cults.
While it is well understood that the church can be a shelter of criminals, it can’t be the protector or defender of such. Even you pastor Akombwa, this church shall never protect or defend you should the society accuse you of being an adulterer because we are not sure of what you do behind the darkness of Lusaka city after leaving the church buildings.
Finally, please Br Akombwa, spear our church a bad name, next time don’t involve the body of Christ into petty issues of politics. Leave HH and his men to explain that accusation to Zambian people and not our church. It would have been more prudent for you to speak in your personal capacity as a Zambian citizen. It is very possible that any SDA member with evil mind can be a Manson and still work as elder or deacon in the church.
Yours in service,
Elder Brown Bwalya Chofwe – USA