Day's Diary

March 2 ~ Mrs. Mgeni

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Now that I have been here for about two months, I am getting to know some for the students, more than just their names and faces, but getting to know them as people called by God to this place. Some students stand out from the rest more quickly than others. That was the case with Mrs. Mgeni. Part of this is her big smile and quick laughter. Part of it is that she is an older student. Most of the students are in their twenties or thirties. Mrs. Mgeni is in her late fifties. Part of it is that she is female. There are only 8 female students in the school, so all the females stand out, but especially one who is Mrs. Mgeni’s age. She is really “agogo,” a grandparent (agogo can be male or female). She has raised 8 children of her own and has 5 grandchildren, 3 of whom are living with her and her husband. She really functions as agogo even among the students. She is the one they go to for advice.

But that may not be because of her age. She knows Zomba Theological College. Mrs. Mgeni worked at the college for more than 10 years as one of the teachers in the wives’ program. Part of the unique program of Zomba, so different from the seminaries in the States, is the women’s program. Second and third year students have brought their families to the campus to live. This year, because of college finances, only the third year students’ families are here. While the men study, their wives have classes, too, training in how to be a good pastor’s wife. That is very important here. The pastor and his wife minister together. In these classes, the women learn to lead Bible studies and they take part in worship leadership every day in chapel .Each Tuesday, one of the women from the wives’ program preaches for the chapel service. They also learn housekeeping and homemaking skills, since some of the wives have come from the village and are not familiar with the lifestyle of the city. They learn how to sew and how to be good hostesses. (In my church visits, I have benefited from some of this training as the pastors’ wives have entertained me so graciously.) Mrs. Mgeni was eminently qualified to teach in this program, since she is an Anglican pastor’s wife. This makes her unique among our theological students. She is the only Anglican in the program here. She is a third year student, but this is her first year in the program ZTC. She earned her other two years of credit through TEEM (Theological Education by Extension in Malawi). It is a correspondence course, run in conjunction with the college that trains lay leaders. This year is the first year that the college decided to allow independent students (non CCAP or other churches not part of the college training agreement) to enroll as full time students. There are just two this year and Mrs. Mgeni is one of them. Her TEEM credits qualified her for enrollment. She is thrilled for the opportunity to study full time. She has taken a leave of absence from the Women’s ministry program, to finish her theological education. This has worked, since the program is smaller this year because the second year students’ wives are not here.

Mrs. Mgeni is studying diligently, all the while knowing that she will not be ordained when she finishes her program, because the Anglicans here in Africa will not ordain women. She knew that when she began. She is not out to change the system. She says she is here to learn so she can be a better Christian and a better pastors’ wife. She also believes she will be better equipped to return to teaching in the Women’s program. She is a student at heart.

All the CCAP students live on campus, but as an independent student, Mrs. Mgeni does not. Of course, that is fine with her. She and her husband have a lovely home they are building near Rev. Mgeni’s church. The house is about 5 miles down the tarmac road from the college and then back about 3 miles into the village. Mrs. Mgeni walks to the tarmac road every day to catch a mini bus, which drops her close to the back gate of the college. Each day she walks past my house on the way to classes. Then she reverses the travel pattern each evening as she walks to the minibus and then from the bus to the village and their home. Last week, because she was late at the college, and it was getting close to dark, I offered to take her home. She eagerly accepted, not just to be spared the walk and the minibus ride, but to show me her home. It is off the tarmac, off the dirt road, on a path and into a maize field. The house is large and, what is finished is lovely. Like many Malawian homes, it is a work in progress, with work being done as the money is available. For the Mgeni family, that will be longer in coming since they have put their money to Mrs. Mgeni’s education this year. That is a point of delight for her husband, who is a soft-spoken man who enjoys his wife’s accomplishments. He is quick to tell all of how proud he is of her and all her work. The house is situated on a large tract of land that offers great fields for ground nuts and pumpkins as well as maize. They share generously from their bounty, and are even able to have a small business of selling roasted ground nuts (peanuts, which are delicious). But the real joy of the house is its location, in the shadow of the Zomba plateau. The view is wonderful. The house and the grounds feel like a retreat center. It would be so easy at her age and her stage in life for Mrs. Mgeni to just be the pastor’s wife and stay at home caring for her house and her gardens and her grandchildren. But she has felt God’s call to study and be better equipped as God’s service, in whatever way God decides to use her education. Her joy in what she is doing shows. Maybe that is what makes her stand out among the students!