Tribute to Benjamin Langa, first Mozambican district superintendent

Africa Region

Thursday, February 4, 2010

Benjamin "Benji" Langa, the first Mozambican district superintendent, went to be with the Lord on January 25.

Born on January 8, 1924, Langa accepted Christ at an early age. He attended the Bible college in Siteki, Swaziland, from 1947-1949 and his first pastorate was in Mangonde, Macuacua, Mozambique, where he opened a Portuguese middle school.

In 1951 he married Alice Isaias Nduvane, who had attended primary school in Tavane and Maputo.

The Langas were asked to move to the Tavane Mission station in 1952 when all the Nazarene schools outside the station were closed by the government. Benjamin Langa then taught at Tavane Bible College and served as pastor of the Magaiza church. He completed additional Bible college studies in 1956-1957 and was ordained in 1958.

Langa, along with Isaac Mandlate, was an evangelist in the great revival of Tavane in 1958. This was one of the greatest revivals the church has ever seen in Mozambique.

He was elected as the first Mozambican district superintendent for the Church of the Nazarene in Mozambique in 1964, overseeing the 85 churches of the Northern District.

When missionaries were forced to withdraw from Mozambique in 1975 due to the revolution, Langa told them, "I want you to know that whatever may happen in our country, we are going to be Christians."

The mission station was nationalized by the government in 1977 and everyone had to hand over the keys to their homes. With nowhere to sleep that night, they slept in the church; men on one side and women on the other. And they sang, "All the Way My Savior Leads Me." All of the mission books were declared "obnoxious propaganda" and the Christians were not allowed to keep any of them. Instead, the school children were ordered to collect and dump them into a large pit where they were burned.

During those difficult days, police often came to visit Langa to take his furniture, house, and car. They said the mission property now belonged to the revolution. Langa told them that God had given it all to him and that, "You can take everything, but you cannot take Jesus away from me." On their next visit they told him to stop preaching or he would be killed. His response was, "You can kill me, but there are 13,000 Nazarenes in this country who would rather die than stop witnessing about Jesus." The harassment then stopped. Langa reported in 1991 several Nazarenes on the district had been killed by terrorists. In 1994, the last soldiers left from the Tavane Mission, leaving it very much in ruin.

Langa retired as superintendent of the Manjacaze District in 1993. He would then serve for a number of years as the chairman of the Board of Trustees of Seminario Nazareno em Mozambique (SNM) in Maputo.

His daughter, Margarida Langa, now principal of SNM, said this of her parents: "As a member of the family of Rev. and Mrs. Langa I have learned a lot concerning the Christian life. I have learned to trust Jesus even in times of need, because He always cares about His people. My parents never complained about the ministry, even when they encountered difficulties and problems. They always praised the Lord even in times of need and suffering. My parents - throughout their lives - have also taught me to remain faithful to God even though it means paying a price and even if I would have to go to jail because of my faith."

Langa is survived by Margarida and seven other children: Veronica, Isaias, Violeta, Luisa, Maria, Bessie, and Benjamin, as well as a large number of grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his son Casimiro (1982), and wife Alice (1998).

"We commend this great and faithful servant of God into His hands."
--David Restrick, SNM academic dean, & Paul Dayhoff for NCN News-Africa

 

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