Can one be an active member of ZINATHA (Zimbabwe National Traditional Healers Association) and still remain a dedicated Catholic? This was a question that confronted Catholic students who gathered at Bondolfi Mission in Masvingo from August 10 to 13, 2012 for their annual conference.

What started as an ordinary witchcraft discussion–whether it’s a reality or paranoia–with two panelists Sekuru Chikunya (provincial secretary for ZINATHA in Masvingo) and Mrs Muzenda turned out to be something else when Chikunya stunned the students by claiming to be a faithful member of the Church despite having narrated his many deeds in the magical world.

Perhaps the biggest lesson from the engagement became the issue of how  lightly people take their Catholic faith, or simply how misinformed they are about their belief and what it means to be Catholic.

But besides this moment of truth that confronted the 300 students from various tertiary institutions, there was a lot in store for them to digest in the two days that they met. 

Throughout the conference, Fr Clyde Muropa SJ, the national chaplain for the National Movement of Catholic Students, said daily masses for the students and reminded them that they ought to always see all their endeavours, be they academic or nation-building, in the light of the Gospel message.