| dc.description.abstract | One of the most crucial problems the church faces in Rwashi District is how
to deal with polygamous men. Currently there are different views among Seventh-day
Adventist Church members in Rwashi District, regarding the admission of
polygamous converts as regular church members. Some church members claim that
polygamous men are not wrong at all, therefore they should be admitted in the church
without any conditions; while others contend that they should not be accepted.
The assertion of the first group is that there are many God’s people in the
Old Testament who were polygamous while serving God. They refer to people such
as Abraham, David, Solomon, Jacob etc. The second group disapproves that opinion,
because according to them the ideal marriage as intended by God is monogamy. For
this group polygamous should not be accepted as regular church members because the
Bible does not approve such marriage practice. So each group stands for its opinion
firmly.Most church members contend that this issue should find a solution, because
in the past early missionaries accepted a husband as a church member with all his
wives. With this background in mind, the researcher made a study among Seventh-day Adventist church members in the Rwashi District, located in South-Katanga Field
in the Democratic Republic Congo. Findings revealed that only few members support
the opinion of admitting polygamous as regular members in the church. On the
opposite, the majority of members are not of that opinion. Those who are favorable to
polygamy might be ignoring the truth regarding the biblical view on monogamy, and
not being aware of polygamy’s consequences. The study showed that even though
some of God’s servants had practiced polygamy, in reality it was not so in God’s
initial plan. Polygamy is a result of sin. It was introduced in human race by the
descendants of Cain.
This project has suggested a program which could be implemented to teach
church members in Rwashi District, so that they can have more information regarding
the advantages of monogamy and the disadvantage of polygamy. An evaluation of the
program was done for a period of one month, starting with the time of teaching for
those polygamous who wish to adhere to initial marriage system and be accepted as
church members. The program proved to be effective, and thus it is recommended to
churches facing the similar problem. | en_US |
