Zimbabwe is well known for the beauty of the land where it has “Victoria Falls on the Zimbabwean border is neither the widest nor the deepest waterfall in the world – but many claim it to be the largest in sheer volume of water. More than a mile (1.6 km) wide, cascades of water plummet 350 feet (108 m) to crash on rocks below. The roaring falls kick up such a heavy spray that you can’t even see the base of the falls during the wet season.”
Victoria Falls is only one of many stunningly beautiful sights in Zimbabwe. Located in southeast Africa, Zimbabwe (formerly Southern Rhodesia) lures travelers from all over the world to experience its national parks, wildlife, beauty, and culture.
Whether you want to travel with a wildlife safari or try your hand at white-water rafting down the thundering Zambezi River, Zimbabwe has a lot to offer—including a thriving community of Latter-day Saints.
here are more than 23,000 members of the Church living in Zimbabwe. Membership has grown swiftly in the last 35 years. Prior to 1980 for example, there were just over 1,000 members.
The prophetic declaration issued by President Spencer W. Kimball (1895–1985) on June 8, 1978, that “all worthy male members of the Church may be ordained to the priesthood without regard for race or color” (Official Declaration 2) had a positive impact on the growth of the Church in Zimbabwe.
Many Latter-day Saints have helped strengthen the Church in Zimbabwe. Here is a brief look at some of those pioneers.
Missionaries were sent to Southern Rhodesia for a limited time in the early 1930s. Yet by 1935 all missionaries were pulled from Southern Rhodesia (then part of the South African Mission) and the area was closed because of the shortage of missionaries and the distance from the mission home in Cape Town, South Africa.
In September of 1950, eight missionaries were sent to reopen Southern Rhodesia. Five months later, the first convert baptism in the area took place.
Born in England in 1926, Hubert Henry Hodgkiss moved to Salisbury, Southern Rhodesia, in 1949. He initially learned about the Church from a friend who was investigating the gospel. Hugh had doubts about the restored gospel and set out to prove to his friend that the Church was not true. Instead, after searching the gospel closely, Hugh developed a testimony of its truthfulness and decided to be baptized. “I was wrong,” he told his friend. “I am joining the Church.”
Hugh was baptized February 1, 1951, marking the first convert baptism in Southern Rhodesia. He enjoyed being around people and made friends everywhere he went. His friendly nature allowed him to make great contributions to the growth of the Church in the area.
In 1959 Hugh became president of the Salisbury Branch. His counselors were also local members. This was the first time this branch presidency consisted of local members. Before this, full-time missionaries had always filled the responsibilities of the branch presidency.
Ernest Sibanda met two Mormon missionaries on bicycles—Elder Black and Elder Kaelin—in December 1978. They left a Book of Mormon with him. Before their visit, Ernest had already spent many years studying religion. In fact, he had been a teacher for his church for nine years and a pastor for three years.
The night Ernest received his copy of the Book of Mormon he stayed up until 2:00 in the morning reading enthusiastically. He couldn’t wait to meet the missionaries the following day. Ernest told them that he had learned more from Joseph Smith about Jesus Christ than all the ministers he had ever met. Ernest was baptized shortly thereafter, followed by his wife and children a few weeks later.
Of his baptism day, he wrote, “I felt very free. I felt released from every evil. I found there was love in me for my family. I found there was love within me for the Church.”
Ernest Sibanda proved to be a great strength to the Church. He served as Sunday School president, branch clerk, and second counselor in a branch presidency. He also fulfilled an assignment from the South Africa mission president to translate hymns from English to Shona.
Reference:
https://www.lds.org/ensign/2014/03/zimbabwe-land-of-beauty-people-of-faith?lang=eng
To answer the following question
How does this impact your original thinking (stereotype, bias, neutrality) of the country?
I honestly thought that Africa was a very poor country but after taking this class you will be aware of the reasons behind this. Also because of my several researches about Zimbabwe I came to know that Africa is a very beautiful country but no only that the people are trust worthy as well. What I find interesting through our class discussions is that we are so ignorant about Africa and only view Africa in a stereotypical perspective.