Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Illustrations
- Acknowledgements
- A note on sources and terms
- Map
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Who was Enoch Mgijima?
- 3 1907—1918: Unokuzaku wokugqibela: Ambassador of the Last Days
- 4 1919—October 1920: ‘We won't move’: The Passover Gathering at Ntabelanga
- 5 November—December 1920: ‘They must remember they are fighting God’
- 6 January—April 1921: ‘Do you people still pay taxes?’
- 7 May 1921: ‘If there is death, let us die through our belief’
- 8 Understanding Bulhoek: Voices down the years
- References
- Sources for further reading
- Teaching approaches
- Questions for discussion
- Index
3 - 1907—1918: Unokuzaku wokugqibela: Ambassador of the Last Days
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 16 February 2020
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Illustrations
- Acknowledgements
- A note on sources and terms
- Map
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Who was Enoch Mgijima?
- 3 1907—1918: Unokuzaku wokugqibela: Ambassador of the Last Days
- 4 1919—October 1920: ‘We won't move’: The Passover Gathering at Ntabelanga
- 5 November—December 1920: ‘They must remember they are fighting God’
- 6 January—April 1921: ‘Do you people still pay taxes?’
- 7 May 1921: ‘If there is death, let us die through our belief’
- 8 Understanding Bulhoek: Voices down the years
- References
- Sources for further reading
- Teaching approaches
- Questions for discussion
- Index
Summary
On 19 April 1907, Enoch Mgijima had an experience that transformed his life. He had gained a reputation in his region first as a lay preacher and then as an independent evangelist or someone who actively spread the Christian faith around his area. One day he had been hunting small game when the spirit of God touched him and he had a vision in which an angel revealed many things:
An angel snatched him and took him into the heavens. He grew wings and flew. When he had flown into the heavens, he looked down and saw a blackboard. There was a light which emanated from the heights which illuminated even the minutest object on the blackboard. And then the light was withdrawn and he could not even see his hand in front of him. Then the angel said to him, ‘I'm sending you to people who see clearly today but nothing tomorrow. If you do not carry out this mission, I will take all the sins of the people and hold you accountable. I have sent you to these people because I am worried that although they worship me, they are not honest in their worship of me. I want you to worship me according to your old traditions.’
The angel next took him across the sky and asked him, ‘Do you hear the rumbling sound in the distance?’
Mgijima replied, ‘Yes.’
But when the angel asked, ‘Do you know the cause of this sound?’ he had to admit he did not. The angel explained: ‘There are rumours of war in the north. Look to the east instead. That war will not come from the north, but from the east.’ When the final cataclysm came, the angel related, nothing would be spared – the birds in the air, the fish in the sea, not even the meerkats (mongoose) in their holes. Only those who worshipped God faithfully would be saved.
After experiencing his vision, Mgijima did not know what to do. He tried to think of ways of avoiding God's call. But finally he accepted his calling and began to preach in his home area. He was a powerful speaker, and he attracted a large following as an evangelist.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Because They Chose The Plan of GodThe Story of the Bulhoek Massacre of 24 May 1921, pp. 7 - 12Publisher: University of South AfricaPrint publication year: 2012