Pastors do not have to fight Maama Fiina

Maama Fiina has a kind of leadership role in some sections of people who believe in the power of traditional African spirits.
Joseph Serwadda also has a kind of leadership role in some sections of people who take very literally the power and dramatics of Jesus and the Holy Spirit in confrontation with evil spirits. 

At different times, in their different churches, these people describe themselves as Pentecostal, Evangelical or Born Again Christians.

Because Maama Fiina’s mythological world is not properly documented, practitioners can creatively reshape or add to it. However, non-practitioners can also easily dismiss it.

On the other hand, because Christian mythology is documented, fundamentalist preachers go to absurd lengths to validate the written word. And they often fight each other, not only in competition for followers, but over text interpretation. 

As far as I know, Maama Fiina does not own a radio or television station. Joseph Serwadda has both; namely, Impact FM and Dream TV.

Clearly, regarding airwaves, Maama Fiina is the underdog. She has no personal mass audience platform where to promote her beliefs or undermine Serwadda, while Serwadda has round-the-clock broadcast reach to promote his beliefs and to undermine Maama Fiina.

The problem with Serwadda, of course, is that he takes his apostolic claim too seriously. 
He believes that he has a divinely bestowed and incontestable right to his religious beliefs; and that Maama Fiina is completely mistaken in her beliefs, and he is fully entitled to attack her.

So, last Sunday, at his usual Impact FM morning talk show, the ‘apostle’ was furious about someone who had apparently suggested that Maama Fiina be made head of the Pentecostals. Presumably, this would in addition to heading her Africanist spiritualists.

Serwadda described Maama Fiina’s faith system as ‘empty religion’. He gave the same description to a renegade Catholic cleric’s charismatic outfit in the Namugongo area, not far from his (Serwadda’s) home.

For some strange reason, an otherwise articulate Serwadda cannot understand how he and his ilk have brought the Christian faith so much closer to African pagan worship forms.

When their congregations roam with raised arms, chanting and shrieking and tongue-babbling like dazed zombies from an ancient tribe calling up the spirits, they are virtually replicating kusamira (a local term for traditional African worship, often inaccurately referred to as witchcraft).

Two hours after last Sunday midnight, on the same Impact FM, one of Joseph Serwadda’s protégés, Pastor Jamada, was working his husky voice as rapidly as the words ‘demons’ and ‘witchcraft’ could fly out. He was driving off demons of every undesirable human experience under the sun, and neutralising any witchcraft. Oh – in the name of Jesus.

People called into the programme and outlined their health and other challenges, naively expecting Jamada to help. Wearily, even absentmindedly, Jamada commanded their troubles to go away… in the name of Jesus!

It is hard not to see this kind of circus as empty religion.
Serwadda speaks of the world around us in the language of demons and witchcraft. Jamada and other Serwadda-mentored preachers see demons and witchcraft everywhere.

But, surely, this is Maama Fiina’s world. They are playing crude games in her world and denouncing her from their broadcast stations to overcome their guilt. Evidently, she is far more at peace with herself in that world than them. 

So, why don’t pastors make her the Presiding Luminary of the whole guild? She might even be able to reconcile the pastors who are always fighting each other when they are not fighting her. 

Mr Tacca is a novelist, socio-political commentator.
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