ABSTRACT:
Christianity takes a lion’s share in the Zimbabwean religious market particularly when compared to other non-indigenous religions like Islam, Buddhism and Judaism. What is interesting is that, even though Christianity is a religion that has been associated with equality and freedoms of every human soul, the status of women in relation to polygamy in the apostolic sects have topped the debate. Critics of apostolic sects have argued that, women in these apostolic churches are there to serve the sexual appetite of men hence ‘the apostolic diet of wives’. This article seeks to interrogate the practice of polygamy in the Johane Marange sect in the light of HIV and AIDS. The purpose of this research is to show that until and unless there is a paradigm shift on the beliefs, teachings and practices of apostolic sects in terms of a deeper HIV and AIDS awareness programmes targeting these sects, the Zimbabwean women will continue to suffer.
