A grieving young man came to my office with this story.
“My name is Thomas. For two years I dated my beautiful girlfriend, Rotenda. I worked as a security guard until her pastor, Pastor Madembe, recruited me to his church as a maintenance worker and chauffeur. Rotenda had recommended me, and soon I was living in a room at the church, driving the first lady to her errands and serving faithfully.”
Thomas explained that he trusted Pastor Madembe. He treated him like family. But one day, everything changed.
“Rotenda asked me to charge her phone in my room while she attended a youth meeting. A WhatsApp message came through. Curious, I opened it. The message was from Pastor Madembe: ‘I am missing you. What are you busy with?’
“Another message followed quickly: ‘I am alone right now. Vho Mme will only return late tonight. Please, I need you now babe.’ It ended with love emojis,” he said.
Thomas added that his heart sank. He scrolled through the chat history on Rotenda’s phone. What he found left him devastated. The messages included pornographic images, flirtatious exchanges and semi-naked photos of Rotenda and Pastor Madembe together at a resort.
“I forwarded everything to my phone as proof. Then I called Vho Mme, the pastor’s wife. She was at a women’s conference, and I was scheduled to fetch her later. I insisted we meet immediately.
“When she came out, we sat in the car. At first, she doubted me: ‘Do you realize these are false accusations against a man of God?’ But when I showed her the pictures, she broke down in tears.”
Thomas and the pastor’s wife drove home in silence. She occasionally sobbed uncontrollably, but Thomas said he was too angry to console her.
“At the house, we found Pastor Madembe lying on his bed, watching pornography on TV. Vho Mme stormed in, ripped the plasma screen from its stand and smashed it to the floor, screaming at the top of her voice.
“The pastor, startled, turned to me for help. He thought the issue was only about the porn on TV. He didn’t know I had already exposed his affair. As he rushed toward me, I lost control. I hit him with a punch that floored him. He gasped for air, motionless,” said Thomas.
Thomas then had to restrain Vho Mme as she hurled more objects at him. He left shortly afterwards, saying he was “furious, broken and terrified” that he might have killed the pastor.
“I packed my belongings and walked away. Fortunately, later I learned he regained consciousness. But that was my last day in the church, and the last day I saw Rotenda. Vho Mme confronted her afterward. I am told she also beat her severely.
“As for me, I no longer believe in pastors or churches. I returned to my old ways, spending time with friends in taverns. And strangely, I feel happier. That is my story.”
VKRA Remarks
Pastors are human beings. They live in flesh and blood, and like all people, they are vulnerable to temptation. They should not be placed in a position of perfection.
Faith should not be placed in individuals. Whether they are called pastors, prophets or men of God, they remain human. Faith must rest in God alone, through Jesus Christ.
* Disillusionment should be guarded against. When leaders fall, many are tempted to abandon the church altogether. However, the church belongs to Christ, not to any individual. False preachers do not erase the truth of the Gospel.