When Russian President Vladimir Putin made good on his threat to invade and unleash war on Ukraine Feb. 24, 2022 — one year ago today — not many people in Africa, thousands of kilometers away, imagined they would pay a…
Zimbabwean pastors flee ministry to join more lucrative care work in the UK
Zimbabwe is blighted by a fearsome 240% inflation rate, one of the world’s highest. The nation’s pastors, although dedicated to the calling of Christ’s work, are struggling to eat or pay bills just like their impoverished congregants. “We can’t dance…
As inflation hits, Africa’s largest indigenous church clings to a tea obsession
Global food inflation has not spared South Africa, but amidst the high prices, millions in Africa’s biggest indigenous church cling to a tea ritual obsession despite rising prices of ingredients. “It’s the tea of faith; a sip kicks off bad…
If your pastor hasn’t had a pay increase in several years, now is the time to make it right
On multiple occasions in the last few weeks, I’ve had conversations with pastor friends who have said in passing, “I’ve not had a salary increase since I got here.” These pastor friends are not bitter, and they weren’t complaining. They…
Want to lower grocery prices? Urge Senate to pass Farm Workforce Modernization Act, panelists say
Those who think immigrants are stealing American jobs not only are wrong but are imperiling the American economy with their unsubstantiated views, a panel of agricultural leaders said July 27. “Each year, we see the end of generational farms because…
In Africa, inflation and a food crisis threaten not just the economy but people’s lives
While inflation troubles the United States and economies around the world, the rising cost of food and essential commodities is having a deadly effect across Africa. The challenge on the African continent is not just about the rising cost of…
Pastors dabble in brewing and mining to survive Zimbabwe’s burning economy
Father Chukucha cuts a lone figure as he circles the withering garden of his parish in Mberengwa, one of the poorest districts of the middle of Zimbabwe. While 250 miles away in another district, Pastor Noel Fengu, a Baptist minister,…
As joblessness rocks South Africa, fake pastor diplomas are in demand
Chuggy’s dim bedroom has a tiny table, copies of “important documents” and what he calls his “cash tools.” They are a Lenovo laptop, laminator, printer, forgery stamps and boxes of blank paper. He works from the underworld, printing fake theology…
‘It’s still the economy, stupid’
Think what you will about the raging culture wars, but that’s not the major driver of public opinion today any more than it was when Bill Clinton first ran for president in 1992. That’s when Clinton campaign analyst James Carville…