The reconciliation that went sour

A pastor last week stunned passengers when he interrupted his sermon to recount how a couple in a marital dispute turned against him when he tried to counsel and unite them. Passengers in the bus on Kayonza route sympathised as the pastor stopped preaching and recounted his experience. “Two Saturdays ago,” he began, “I got a call from one of my worshippers who told me he was having a problem with his wife.” The man was one of the most trusted and faithful members of his congregation, and the pastor shelved his other commitments and headed to his home in Rwamagana. The preacher arrived at the man’s house and found his wife standing at the door pleading with someone inside to open. When he inquired, she told him her husband had thrown her out. The preacher phoned to tell the man he was at his door. He opened and ushered the man of God in. His wife reluctantly followed. When the three were comfortably seated, the man thanked the preacher for his swift response. He then began narrating his wife’s misdeeds. He claimed that she had made a habit of receiving calls, away from his hearing, in the dead of the night. When he obtained the number and called, he discovered that the number belonged to someone called Musafiri. When he confronted her with this information, she denied everything. The man, however, insisted he had reliable information from her friends that she was seeing the man. Trying to demonstrate evenhandedness, the pastor asked him to allow his wife to tell her side of the story. At this point in the story, some passengers who had feigned sleep or were loudly conversing stopped and gave the preacher their undivided attention. He went on, “The woman claimed it was her husband who was adulterous and was using her as a scapegoat. She claimed he was cheating on her with a woman who was once our church member. She asked him to swear before me if she was lying but the man declined. “She admitted that she was cheating to revenge on her husband. This infuriated the man who threatened to pounce on her.” The woman interjected, “Let him now feel what I felt when I discovered he was engaged in illicit relationships.” The pastor recalled that trouble started when the woman thanked him for allegedly revealing her husband’s infidelity. She said he had opened her eyes one Sunday after a church service when he asked her why her husband was no longer active in church matters. “I was shocked,” the pastor said. “The look on her husband’s face was murderous. The woman said she investigated my concerns and learnt that her husband was cheating. “I couldn’t believe she had misinterpreted my innocent concern,” the preacher told his keen audience. “When I queried her, she said she knew I was indirectly informing her of her husband’s betrayal.” The man accused the preacher of interfering with the affairs of his house and marriage. He swore never to step into his church again. The preacher offered his apologies but the man declined, accusing him of trying to break up his marriage. “He threw me out saying he could forgive his wife but not me, ’’ concluded the pastor. When he concluded the story, a woman in the bus shouted, “Ayo na mashetani!” (those are demons!) Another shouted “mwizina rya Yesu!” (in the name of Jesus)He resumed his preaching dwelling on man as a sinful animal and at the end of the ‘service’, passengers gave their offerings generously. dedantos2002@yahoo.com