A church in Khayelitsha is paving the way for like-minded couples to meet at a match-making service intended to unite couples in holy matrimony. Male congregants get the opportunity to pick a possible wife from a group of single women.
The couple then walks hand in hand toward the pulpit, where the pastor will test the seriousness of their decision before giving the couple a blessing.
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Speaking to City Press, spokesperson Elvis Ka Nyelenzi said that this is the fifth year that the Shekainah Healing Ministries church is hosting the match-making event.
“The purpose of the event is for our members who want to get married and don’t have the money to do so to immediately stand before the congregation and get prayed for, so that one day, when they are ready, they can start with the marriage path, including lobola.
“It is a spiritual event and people need to believe in the actions that will follow. We have many testimonies from here where people are still married even today, from standing in front of the pastor with their partners and being prayed for.
“Some people who [have been] courting for a while also come forward and stand before the pastor with their partners and get prayed for.”
Ka Nyelenzi said that it’s not a quick fix to getting married, it’s a process of making sure that couples are perfectly suited for one another.
“You can’t just pick someone in front of the congregation. It is a process. You can’t just do that in front of the church before you go through their family or pay lobola. They come to the church as a faithful step to go public.”
Shekainah Healing Ministries is one the biggest churches in Cape Town with more than 8 000 congregants. The match-making ceremony is open to all, with many visitors attending the service.
“People from outside our church attend that event in big numbers because who does not want to get married? Even people who already have boyfriends come to attend the service, knowing that they will leave church with great hope that they will get married soon … About 90% of our church is married because of efforts from this event.”
This church may just have pivoted the dating scene for anyone looking to get married without having to kiss a few frogs on the way to meeting their prince or princess.
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Picture: Unsplash