Mapanza

Mapanza was intended to be the 'sending-out' point from which priests would minister to far-scattered congregations.  Once there was a convent there; now the sisters have dispersed and the house is a burnt-out shell, through the advice the diocese has been given is that it is structurally sound and the Bishop is very keen to raise funds (the estimate they need is £3,000) to restore it and use it to house an assistant priest to help with the many stations of the mission.  But because there is no realistic prospect of being able to have priests in all eighteen stations, some of Fr Rivett's work is concerned with training lay catechists to lead services of Morning and Evening Prayer in the absence of a priest, and to prepare candidates for baptism, confirmation and holy matrimony.

Fr David McConkey was able to make a short trip to Mapanza around New Year 2005.  His description of the parish church and the school was reported to the Parish of Swindon New Town in the monthly magazine. 

"The parish church of Mapanza was built in 1912.  I suspect that many of you would find it quite startling, though to me it was unsurprising.  A few naked bulbs hang from ceiling rafters.  There are a few bits of stained glass, probably brought from the UK at some time or another by an enterprising missionary.  Most of the windows, though, are just openings to the fresh air, without glass or screens of any kind.  Some of the brickwork has been whitewashed, but mostly the colour of sand-red brick predominates.  A very ornate, carved wooden Calvary group is attached to a rood beam above the altar.  A simple banner depicting a woman in her Mothers' Union uniform reminds one of the vitality of that organisation throughout Africa.  A few drums could be seen, left behind on the previous Sunday, but no other musical instruments.  In the almost completely empty sacristy I couldn't help noticing the presence of two obviously long disused thuribles. 

St Bartholomew's Church also has a number of large, worrying cracks in its external facade.  But there was more to see as well, for Mapanza Mission Station boasts a residential school for six hundred boys.  The school has a distinguished history and an active alumni association.  Its chapel, quite in contrast to the parish church, has orderly rows of benches and a decor which, though simple, would probably remind many of collegiate and school chapels in England.  (The Anglo-Catholic ethos of the Diocese of Lusaka, though, is reflected in the fact that six tall candlesticks, set into a brick reredos, adorn the high altar.)"

Fr Peter Rivett is the Priest-in-Charge of Mapanza Anglican Parish, with responsibility for 15 outlying parishes.  He is also chaplain to St Mark's Secondary School and helps to oversee the Maurice Katowa Homecraft Centre, which is run by the diocese and trains women and girls in tailoring, childcare and various domestic skills.  Peter's wife, Susan, is one of the centre's trainers.

Life can be tough in Mapanza.  There is virtually no employment so the local population does its best to scratch a living as subsistence farmers.  The nearest grocery store, post office etc is an hour-long car journey away.

The parish church of Mapanza is dedicated to St Bartholomew (the sign in front misspells it as 'Bartholemew'.