Founded by Scottish Presbyterians in 1875, it led to the setting up of the Synod of Livingstonia, and 49 years later with the Synod of Blantyre in 1924, the establishment of the Church of Central Africa Presbyterian (CCAP), one of PCI’s global mission partners.
Today the CCAP consists of five synods, three of which are in Malawi, the remaining two are in Zambia and Zimbabwe. The Synod of Livingstonia has 214 congregations and more than 1,600 prayer houses throughout Malawi’s northern region, with around 200,000 adult members, its General Secretary, Rev William Tembo, attended and spoke at PCI’s General Assembly in June.
Accompanied by Rev David McCullagh, minister of Annalong Presbyterian Church and Convener of PCI’s Global Mission Partnership Panel, the two Irish Presbyterians received a warm welcome when they arrived in the capital Lilongwe on Thursday.
On Saturday morning, the Moderator joined the anniversary march from the Synod offices to the Mzuzu football stadium for the public thanksgiving service, which was attended by over 4,000 people. At the stadium, Dr Gribben preached on the theme of the celebration which had been taken from the Book of Exodus: ‘Tell the people to move forward’. The Moderator's sermon was translated in to Timbuktu, the language spoken in northern Malawi.
Speaking after the service, Dr Gribben said, “In advance of arriving I recognised that it was a real privilege to be invited to preach at the Livingstonia Synod 150th celebration service. Having stood before the crowd of several thousand, and preached in the Mzuzu Stadium, it was not just a privilege but it was also an amazing experience.
“There was a real sense of listening as we looked together at Joshua 3 and God's guidance for going into our future, looking to and trusting Him. It was indeed a great honour,” he said.
Following the service, Dr Gribben was presented with a special carved wooden plaque by Synod Moderator, Rev JM Kamisa, which commemorated PCI's contribution to the Church in northern Malawi.
While the President of Malawi was expected to attend, he was unable to. However, he was represented by the Minister of Agriculture Hon. Sam Kawale, who the Moderator met.
Around three quarters of the country’s 22 million people claim membership of a Christian church. PCI’s relationship with Church of Central Africa Presbyterian, which is Malawi’s largest reformed denomination, began in the mid-1950s.
In 1958 Rev Bill Jackson became PCI’s first missionary to go to Malawi and since then more than 90 men and women from PCI have followed in his footsteps. Some of them attended celebrations with Dr Gribben.On Thursday he and Mr McCullagh will travel to the south of the country and visit PCI’s current Global Mission Workers, Volker and JinHyeog Glissmann.
This week, as part of the Moderator's visit, he will meet with the leadership teams of the Synod of Livingstonia and Synod of Blantyre. He will also visit partner agencies supported by PCI, including, Scripture Union Malawi, Bible Society of Malawi and the Student Christian Organisation of Malawi. He and Mr McCullagh will return home on Friday.
Last year Rev Stephen McCracken, Convener of the Council for Global Mission and Heather Clements, Convener of the Council’s Global Mission Committee, presented PCI at the Church of Central Africa Presbyterian’s centenary celebrations in Malawi’s capital Lilongwe.
Photos (1) The Moderator, Dr Gribben, preaching through an interpreter during the service of thanksgiving (2) Dr Gribben marching to the Mzuzu stadium with senior synod office bearers (3) an ariel view of Mzuzu stadium during Saturday's celebrations. Montage 1 (left to right) (i) the start of the march from the Synod offices (ii) the VIP stand at the stadium (iii) Dr Gribben receiving a gift from the Moderator of the Synod of Livingstonia (iv) the Synod's gift Montage 2 (i) visiting the Synod's Department of Health pavilion at the event and (ii) the Moderator with Malawi's Minister of Agriculture.