MANZINI – Manzini Metropolitan Evangelical Church Elder and Senator Isaac Magagula has urged churches to embrace regulation to restore moral order and safeguard the integrity of religion.
Speaking during the church’s Pastor’s Appreciation Day in Manzini yesterday, Magagula said the growing wave of immoral behaviour now visible within religious spaces once known for peace and discipline could no longer be ignored.
Warning that the body of Christ was under serious attack from acts of misconduct and disorder, Magagula said: “The church and religion in this era are under severe attack from the devil’s schemes. We now see antichrist acts within churches — things once unheard of in environments meant to uphold social and spiritual order.”
He emphasised that his call was not an attempt to lobby for churches to fall under parliamentary regulation, despite his role as a legislator. “I am not speaking here as a parliamentarian, but as a senior citizen concerned about the moral direction of our nation,” he said. He expressed concern that acts such as gender-based violence, femicide, rape, passion-related crimes, cultism and power struggles were now surfacing within churches, threatening unity and dignity.
Magagula clarified that church regulation was not about government interference, but rather about establishing an effective framework to ensure accountability and harmony between churches and the State. “It is not about government poking its nose into church matters,” he explained. “It is about creating a self-regulatory structure that ensures churches function properly and contribute meaningfully to social order and democratic governance.”
He revealed that the issue of church accountability had been discussed several times in Parliament, focusing on curbing misconduct that brings disrepute to the church and undermines public trust.
“The government cannot be a spectator,” Magagula said. “It must play an oversight role because, at the end of the day, the buck stops at its doorstep.”
However, Lubombo Region Member of Parliament Futhi Ngcamphalala cautioned that regulating churches was a sensitive matter that must be handled wisely. “Regulating churches is almost like regulating God,” Ngcamphalala said. “Churches differ in their ways of worship and organisation, so regulation must be done carefully to avoid destroying what God has created.”
This follows recent calls in Parliament and public debate over regulating churches by developing a national policy for religious institutions.
The Ministry of Home Affairs, led by Princess Lindiwe, has made it clear that the intent is not to control sermons or police belief, but to bring clarity, accountability and order by ensuring that churches are registered and known to the State and remain regulated by their own recognised mother bodies; the League of African Churches, Conference of Churches and the Council of Churches rather than by direct government interference. This approach is meant to address concerns about unregulated churches and internal conflicts while protecting the independence of worship. The ministry’s consultations and proposed policy aim to create a formal registry and framework so that churches can operate freely yet within a clear structure, with oversight through their respective umbrella bodies.
Manzini North MP Mashayinkonjane Nhlengethwa shifted focus to empowerment, urging church members - especially the youth - to use the Regional Development Fund (RDF) to start income-generating projects.
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Members of the church in song as they bring their offerings. (Courtesy pic)