The Zimbabwe Assemblies of God Africa (ZAOGA) church founder Archbishop Ezekiel Guti, has been declared a national hero. Archbishop Ezekiel...
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The Zimbabwe Assemblies of God Africa (ZAOGA) church founder Archbishop Ezekiel Guti, has been declared a national hero.
Archbishop Ezekiel Guti, a prominent evangelist, educationist, philanthropist and author died aged 100 on 5 July 2023, two months after celebrating his centenary.
The conferment makes him the first ever Zimbabwean preacher to be granted the highest honour of the land purely on the basis of his works as a man of the cloth.
Previously, the national hero’s status has traditionally been the preserve of politicians who were outstanding in contributing towards the country’s liberation war back in the 1960s and 70s.
To break away from the set tradition, in 2019, Oliver Mtukudzi was declared a national hero, after he died at the age of 66 at Avenues Clinic in Harare, Zimbabwe after a long battle with diabetes mellitus.
However, the musician regarded as an icon, with over 60 albums, was buried in his rural home in Madziwa, Mashonaland Central.
The ZAOGA church, also known as the Forward in Faith Ministries International, established in 1960, remains one of the biggest in Zimbabwe with branches around the world.
On 12 May 1960, according to the church's website, Ezekiel responded to God’s special call, a call which led to the birth of the ministry under a gum tree, and in one of the most primitive countryside of Zimbabwe called Bindura.
According the church website, "An International presence of now over 100 nations and states worldwide, and one of the most powerful movements in post-biblical Christianity, Forward in Faith Ministries International (FIFMI) is changing millions of lives through the vision given by God to founder Archbishop Dr. Ezekiel H. Guti.
The conferment makes him the first ever Zimbabwean preacher to be granted the highest honour of the land purely on the basis of his works as a man of the cloth.
Previously, the national hero’s status has traditionally been the preserve of politicians who were outstanding in contributing towards the country’s liberation war back in the 1960s and 70s.
To break away from the set tradition, in 2019, Oliver Mtukudzi was declared a national hero, after he died at the age of 66 at Avenues Clinic in Harare, Zimbabwe after a long battle with diabetes mellitus.
However, the musician regarded as an icon, with over 60 albums, was buried in his rural home in Madziwa, Mashonaland Central.
The ZAOGA church, also known as the Forward in Faith Ministries International, established in 1960, remains one of the biggest in Zimbabwe with branches around the world.
On 12 May 1960, according to the church's website, Ezekiel responded to God’s special call, a call which led to the birth of the ministry under a gum tree, and in one of the most primitive countryside of Zimbabwe called Bindura.
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| Archbishop Ezekiel Guti: Why Cleric was Declared a National Hero |
"Rarely does an organization with such a vast world-reach hold a testimony of simplicity, and a genuine “humble beginnings” story. However, this is a story beginning with one man, and his One God, leading to now millions of believers equally hungry for a deeper union with the same God and His Son Jesus Christ."
In 1963, as the Apostle prayed in the Bindura caves, God spoke to him and said, "Learn and read the English bible and learn to preach in English because you shall go to many countries with my word.”
He did so in the caves everyday with prayer and fasting. The Holy Spirit gave him, "The tongue of the learned." "...That I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary. (Isaiah 50:4)
Today millions of people across the continents have given their lives to Jesus Christ in response to the teachings of the Archbishop Guti.
In 1963, as the Apostle prayed in the Bindura caves, God spoke to him and said, "Learn and read the English bible and learn to preach in English because you shall go to many countries with my word.”
He did so in the caves everyday with prayer and fasting. The Holy Spirit gave him, "The tongue of the learned." "...That I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary. (Isaiah 50:4)
Today millions of people across the continents have given their lives to Jesus Christ in response to the teachings of the Archbishop Guti.
In 2010, FIFMI celebrated it 50th anniversary jubilee, which featured the grand jubilee celebrations broadcast live. In 2012, he established the Ezekiel Guti University in Bindura, reportedly at a cost of US$100 million. He and his wife, Eunor Guti, were the joint chancellors.
Archbishop Guti had seven children with Eunor – daughters Sarah Rusere, La-Verne Simukai, Fiona Arthurs, Dorcas Jaricha, Gracious Chikore and Ethanim Nyajeka. Their only son, Ezekiel Junior, who had a speech impairment and physical disabilities, died in a drowning incident in 2017.
He is credited as the author of over 80 Christian books and oversaw the construction of the Mbuya Dorcas Hospital in Harare, which opened its doors in 2012. Archbishop Guti founded Bible schools in Zimbabwe, Ghana, Zambia, and Mozambique where he has trained over 4,000 pastors from more than 55 nations.
He also founded the Forward in Faith Orphanage Center, F.I.F Children's Ministry, F.I.F College and High School Ministry, Gracious Women's Fellowship International, along with the Husband's Agape International Fellowship.
On the international arena, Dr. Guti has accepted invitations to preach and teach in several African nations, Europe, USA, Asia-Pacific countries, and the Bahamas. He has spoken in Bible schools, colleges, universities, and on Television and Radio programs. - Online Sources
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