Divorce escalation among the Basotho people of Lesotho : a challenge to pastoral care

Abstract

The core of this thesis is to investigate the role of the church in the community districted by divorce. More especially the role of the Catholic Church as it is one of the mainline churches in Lesotho. The process is to research how care of the people of God is undertaken, and to heal those who are affected by divorce because the Basotho men are separated from their wives while in the mines. How do we care for people especially those who walk alone and suffer quietly because no one cares. Never before in the history of Lesotho were we faced with such a problem of couples divorcing. Divorce has touched the Basotho lives badly, especially those who were known to be having a profound love in the marriage. My investigation throughout this thesis will be based on a question; what has gone wrong in our marriages especially to those people who were known to be loving people? They are now divorcing. Several questions come to mind. What has gone wrong? What is the church doing in order to rescue the situation? Why so many divorces among Basotho people? I will examine the role of the Catholic Church in Lesotho, which has more members in the country. I will also finally propose some of the tentative solution to the problem of divorce, which seems to be escalating.