The priest died at St Anne’s Hospital in Harare this morning.

Father Riberio was born in 1935 into a strong Catholic family. He was ordained a diocesan priest on 13 December 1964.

Before he was ordained as Catholic priest he was responsible for composing the first Shona hymns for the church. His first song was named “Gamuchirai Mambo mupiro uyu”. It started being sung in 1961 and continues to be sung to this day.

Some of his other popular compositions include, “Alleluia munyika dzose”, “Tauya nezvipo zvemupiro”, “Mambo Mwari wamasimba”, ”Hwayana yaMwari”, Mwari Ngaarumbidzwe”.

The priest didn’t only make an impact in the church. Outside the church he is also took the roles of nationalist and novelist. He was one of pioneering Shona novelist alongside Solo Mutsvairo. He wrote Muchadura.

During colonial Rhodesia he was a prison chaplain. He was the go between the nationalist & the outside world. He used to smuggle prison letters for the nationalist to the outside world.

Ribeiro was also part of the committee that designed the Zimbabwean flag.

Many people are certainly going to miss him.

What are your thoughts?

Let us know in the comment section below.

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The Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting showcased, on their twitter page, a video of the President present as the consignment of the Sinopharm vaccines arrived. President Mnangagwa announced that the consignment consisted of 400 000 doses of the Sinopharm vaccines.

95 000 more doses are said to follow. These will include 75 000 inactivated Covaxin from India and 20 000 doses of the Sputnik V vaccines from Russia. US$100 million has also been set aside by the government for the procurement of the vaccines.

President Mnangagwa shared the following remarks on this occasion,

“The fact that we are the only country in Africa which has to date received the second batch of the vaccine doses from China, attests to the strong,comprehensive and strategic nature of our partnership.”

It is also reported that the government intends to put church leaders at the forefront of receiving the first jabs out of this second batch of vaccines.

A citizen’s comment on this development summarized what might be most people’s sentiments on this issue. It simply said “kkk violence”

With the resistance portrayed by a large number of citizens  could this move be another attempt of coercing the masses into getting vaccinated?

The influence of the church and their leaders is no secret. Even Hitler understood this and some historians point out that he at some point made the reading of  the Mein Kempf (his political manifesto) mandatory even among congregants.

While we are not comparing anyone to the vile dictator, we are highlighting the indisputable influence of church leaders on the masses. Could this be a tool being used to compel citizens to be vaccinated?

What are your thoughts on the matter?

The post Church Leaders next in line for Covid-19 vaccination appeared first on Provoker Magazine.

The resolve is clear. Pope Francis stated that the Catholic Church cannot bless same sex unions. Part of the basis of this decision was said to be that the it ¨is not licit¨ for the church to bless relationships that involve sex outside of marriage.

Pope Francis further clarified this with the statement,

¨The  presence in such relationships of positive elements, which are in themselves to be valued an appreciated, cannot justify these relationships and render them legitimate objects of an ecclesial blessing¨

Massioli Faggioli, a professor of religious studies at Villanova University had this to say on this verdict,

¨This is an important document because it shows how far Pope Francis is willing to go and where he wants to stop¨

But, is it really the Pope’s decision to make?

The internet was taken by storm by this decision and expressed different very heated views on the subject. Below are some sentiments expressed :

The above sentiment expressed by many can be said to coincide with the Bibles viewpoint. A screenshot of a bible passage condemning the act can be seen below;

One would think that the above scripture alone would clearly show Gods view on the subject. If such acts can deter one from entering into the the Kingdom of God, then is it not a reflection of his condemnation of homosexual acts?

The other view expressed online can be summed up by the comment below

However, does love by definition boil down to the acceptance of every and any act? Could it be more cohesive with the Word to instead view matters is this way; God is love and that never changes, so would He then deny us of anything that would benefit us tremendously? Or does it mean that since He is love, he is no longer allowed to set standards for those that choose to worship him to abide by?

Some have argued that this is an infringement of the gay society rights . However, there is also the right to worship. Which is more important? Is this verdict really being forced on the gay society or its for those that, in this case, choose to worship in this way?

What are your views on the matter.

Let us know in the comment section below.

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