Reforming Pentecostal marriage theology in the aftermath of a schism

African Journal of Pentecostal Studies

 
 
Field Value
 
Title Reforming Pentecostal marriage theology in the aftermath of a schism
 
Creator Mupangwa, Terence
 
Subject Humanities; religion; gender Apostolic Faith Mission of Zimbabwe; church; liberative; marriage; oppressive; Pentecostalism; schism; theology
Description Background: Several scholars have mentioned the Pentecostal paradox, in which Pentecostal churches seem to be liberatory and at the same time very oppressive. Pentecostal churches have been observed to encourage the oppression of women in marriages through their literal translation of the Bible and the support of oppressive cultural practices. The theology of marriage in the Apostolic Faith Mission of Zimbabwe (AFMOZ), a Pentecostal church, changed because of the schism in 2018.Objectives: This article explores how the theology of marriage changed because of a schism in the AFMOZ.Method: Qualitative data were collected from the 35 purposively selected members of the AFMOZ.Results: Contrary to the oppressive teaching on marriage, which most Pentecostal churches are associated with, the AFMOZ is now teaching sharing of household chores, submission from both husband and wife, and divorcing or separating in case of gender-based violence, among other things.Conclusion: The article concludes that this teaching on marriage ushers a positive amendment in the attitude of AFMOZ to marriage, although it still manifests fundamental patriarchal assumptions.Contribution: This article fills that gap in the literature by highlighting how the AFMOZ Pentecostal church has changed from being oppressive to being liberatory through teaching a marriage theology that gives women agency.
 
Publisher AOSIS
 
Contributor
Date 2026-02-04
 
Type info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion — Qualitative
Format text/html application/epub+zip text/xml application/pdf
Identifier 10.4102/ajops.v3i1.82
 
Source African Journal of Pentecostal Studies; Vol 3, No 1 (2026); 8 pages 3005-6136 3105-434X
 
Language eng
 
Relation
The following web links (URLs) may trigger a file download or direct you to an alternative webpage to gain access to a publication file format of the published article:

https://ajops.org/index.php/ajops/article/view/82/340 https://ajops.org/index.php/ajops/article/view/82/341 https://ajops.org/index.php/ajops/article/view/82/342 https://ajops.org/index.php/ajops/article/view/82/343
 
Coverage Africa 2018-2024 men and women; Shona
Rights Copyright (c) 2026 Terence Mupangwa https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
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