Abstract:
Marriage, for the Ndebele of Matetsi in Zimbabwe, is a spiritual practice, and
they believe it is ordained by God and the ancestors. The process of marriage
among the people of Matetsi is conducted according to patriarchal spiritual
systems, which require a woman to be introduced to her husband’s ancestors
through certain rituals. This paper explores the traditional marriage rituals of
the Ndebele of Matetsi that connect the bride to her husband’s ancestors, and
the role this practice plays in the way a wife makes decisions in the context of
abuse. Written from the perspective of African feminist cultural hermeneutics,
this paper seeks to explain how marriage rituals that connect a bride to her
husband’s ancestors imprison her in the context of abuse, and obliges her to
remain married to her husband through ‘thick and thin’. In addition, the paper
offers a pastoral response that addresses the African spiritual nature of
marriage in the context of abuse of women, with particular reference to the
Ndebele of Matetsi, and suggests pastoral interventions in an attempt to liberate
wives who are imprisoned by these rituals. This was an empirical study that
followed a qualitative participant observation approach, which allowed the
researcher to observe the customs and practices of the traditional marriage
process in Matetsi, which she participated in her marriage process as a young
woman.
