Former Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) President Nelson Chamisa extended a warm congratulatory message to Mutumwa Paul Mwazha, the esteemed founder and leader of the African Apostolic Church, on his 106th birthday, celebrated on October 25, 2024.
Posting on his X (formerly Twitter) handle, Chamisa wrote:
“Celebrating God’s gift of life! A happy and blessed 106th birthday, Mudzidzisi Paul Mwazha—Approaching a life of service in the vineyard!”
Born Ernest Paul Mamvura Mwazha on October 25, 1918, in Zimbabwe, the clergyman is affectionately known as “Mutumwa” by his followers. Mwazha was reportedly baptized by Father Schmidt, a German Roman Catholic missionary, before later joining the Methodist Church.
According to the African Apostolic Church, Father Schmidt and the congregation present at Mwazha’s baptism were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to proclaim in Shona, “Mwana amutsirwe basa, mwana amutsirwe basa, mwana amutsirwe basa,” loosely translated as “The child has been raised for a mission.”
In 1953, Mwazha was part of a spiritual revival led by Methodist evangelists, an event that included interdenominational prayer sessions and eventually inspired him to establish the African Apostolic Church.
