FROM CHINAMWALI TO CHILANGIZO:

1. INTRODUCTION
Ntchembere yanzeru, mwana wake akatha msinkhu, amamuitanira anamkungwi
namuuza mwambo wa makolo asanapite kumpingo.
(A wise mother, when her daughter experiences her fIrst menses, calls one or two
anamkungwi to instruct the girl in the customs of our ancestors [mwambo wa makolo]
before she goes to the church.)
The above statement by a traditional instructress of initiation rites reflects the impor­
tance of ancestral customs among the Chewa people even in the twenty-first century. It
also shows that she perceives 'Church' or the Christian message as an after-thought and
perhaps inadequate to deal with the deep issues of life. One chief also expressed that he
wished his people underwent the traditional initiation rites first then join the church
afterwards. This raises the question as to whether the Church has adequately understood
cultural practices associated with the initiation rites or been able to appropriately allow
Scriptures to interpret rites. The problem is that the way the Christian message has been
presented it has failed to helpfully interpret cultural traditions and beliefs. In an attempt
to integrate the Gospel with culture, the early Western missionaries to Africa had to
grapple with some cultural aspects that seemed to be incompatible with the Christian
faith. This became more evident with respect to rites of passage as performed by Afri­
cans. Realizing the importance of such transition rites in peoples' lives, the early mis­
sionaries attempted to give a Christian response to the traditional customs and practices
surrounding the life cycle rituals. The American Southern Baptist missionaries in
Malawi have been no exception in facing the same struggle.
Like other missionaries in Malawi, the Baptists responded by introducing a 'christian­
ized' initiation rite called chilangizo 1 in place ofthe traditional rite commonly known as
chinamwali. Both are collective terms referring to initiation rites for girls and boys
which include, 2 puberty rites for girls, marriage rites, first pregnancy and childbirth
rites. The problem, however, is that chilangizo for girls upon their puberty, does not
adequately help the young women to go through the transition from puberty to adult­
hood.
1