FROM CHINAMWALI TO CHILANGIZO:

Congregational form of government. In light ofthe Baptist doctrine ofthe priesthood
ofall believers,24 a local church should be at the apex ofthe organisational chart, not at
the base.
Baptists prefer a congregational system of church government which keeps the power
and responsibility with the masses of the membership, even though our system is slow
and at times burdensome.
(Sullivan 1983:79-80)
Baptists therefore choose democratic processes in order to magnify the worth of each
individual and the importance of each local congregation. As mentioned above, asso­
ciation and convention meetings are 'checks and balances' where programmes and
activities are updated. The denomination is not structured for the purpose of giving
orders to the churches. The conventions or associations should seek to protect them­
selves from any tendencies toward a hierarchical system.
The form of government and structure of the church, with its absence of a central
authority is not the same as the Chewa cultural view of leadership, and this has some­
times caused confusion. Many members think and wish that the executive committees
were controlling and decision-making bodies, like the chiefs and the elders. Tradition­
ally, people look to authority figures for decision-making and direction, but it is not the
case with the church. Many members still refer to 'kulikulu anati... ' ('at the headquar­
ters, they said this and that. ') Wherever I went to meet with the women in the rural
areas, it was a common comment that 'Inu ochokera kulikulu muzibwera-bwera kudza­
tiphunzitsa' (You, from the headquarters, should come often to teach us).
The concept of kulikulu also has in the minds of the people, the notion of a place.
Lilongwe became the centre for the Mission because ofits fast growing work. The Bible
School was built there; most ofthe meetings were being held at the Bible School prem­
ises. The printing press was built adjacent to them. Throughout the years, until recently,
in the 1990's, Lilongwe has been the centre of all Baptist work in Malawi. It is not
incorrect therefore that people refer to Lilongwe as kulikulu, although it is emphasized
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