Day's Diary

June 18, 2007 ~ Masika

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Masika is harvest in Chichewa. This is harvest season in Malawi and so it is Masika in the churches. Masika is celebrated by people bringing part of their harvest to the church, to be given as an offering. The church here follows the instructions given to the children of Israel to bring the first fruits of their harvest and offer those to God (Exodus 23:19). This offering is for the pastor and for the congregation where there is need during the coming year, just as is described in scripture. Churches set their own time for Masika, but it is sometime during May and June, since that is harvest time. Because Malawi is an agricultural country (almost everyone has a garden of at least a half acre), Masika is a natural offering.

I have been assigned by Zomba Presbytery to Namitungwi prayer house as the associate pastor. That happened at the Presbytery meeting in April, but I have not had the opportunity to go to the prayer house until this week which was the first opening in my schedule. This is a prayer house of Mbedza congregation, which Takuzi Chitsulo pastors. Takuzi made arrangements with the Presbytery clerk, Rev. Njala, to come and present me to the congregation. I was told that I would preach and it was Masika, so the sermon needed to be appropriate. I prepared accordingly. We all rode together in my truck, out into a remote area just beyond Zomba.

Namitungwi has been a prayer house since 1997. It is large enough and strong enough to become a church on its own. The elders have petitioned the Presbytery and the Presbytery has set a target for them to reach in independent support and then they will be made a church. This is an eager, committed group of people who hope to be a congregation by the first of January. Masika is a beginning for them.

When we arrived, there were already offerings sitting on the steps to the church building.  We went inside to prepare for the service, but the preparations outside continued, as more offerings were brought. After my introduction to the congregation and all the other events of worship, including the sermon, it was time for Masika. This is done during the offering time, for these are the offerings of the people. Offerings are always brought forward in worship (no passing of the plate in this culture.) So Masika is brought forward as well. Takuzi called for the offering and the congregation left the building to go and gather their offering and bring it to the front of the church. Masika includes all the crops that are harvested, so in procession come 50 kg bags of maize, bowls of rice, baskets of sweet potatoes, stalks of sugar cane and fruit of all varieties. All were brought to the front. The baskets and bowls were emptied into large piles in the center of the straw mats that were placed by the chancel. The bags of maize were stacked. As all of this was happening, the congregation was singing the old hymn “Bringing in the Sheaves,” for that was precisely what they were doing, bringing them with rejoicing. The offering was a more festive spirit than is usual. People danced down the aisle with their produce. When everything was presented, I was then asked to pray for the offering. It was a humbling experience to stand amidst all that food, realizing that these folks were truly giving an offering of their harvest, not just representative money, as we do in the US. This was the best of their crop, their food supply that they were offering to God. They were making a sacrifice and trusting that God would provide for their needs during the coming year.

When the service ended, we went to the vestry for the closing prayer. After the prayer, one of the elders quietly asked me if the back of my truck was unlocked. I said yes and that was all that was said. When we came out to the truck, after lunch with the elders, the truck was loaded with five 50 kg bags of maize, a stack of sugar cane and other fruits and vegetables – the pastor’s share of the harvest offering. It went to Takuzi, since this will be his harvest eating for the coming year, too. This is a biblical church. They take the directives of scripture seriously. Masika is one of them.