Former MP urges ELCIN to tackle social ills more aggressively

Former MP Hidipo Hamata has urged the country's Lutheran church to move beyond "event-based ministry" and confront the depression, addiction and family troubles many congregants silently carry into church each Sunday.

In a letter dated 15 June and addressed to the church's leadership, Hamata, a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Namibia (ELCIN), warned that one of Namibia's most influential institutions risks losing its relevance unless it does more to address the country's deepening social ills.

"This is not written as an outsider or critic, but as someone within the church who believes that honest reflection is part of faithfulness," he wrote.

While acknowledging that ELCIN already has structures dealing with youth development, counselling, social support and community outreach, Hamata said many ordinary members do not experience these efforts in a manner that reflects the scale of suffering within communities.

"Every Sunday, people sit in pews carrying burdens that are rarely spoken aloud. Some are overwhelmed by despair," he wrote.

"Some are trapped in addiction. Some are living in broken families or strained marriages. Some are silently battling depression."

The former lawmaker questioned whether churches are adequately ministering to people facing severe emotional and psychological challenges.

"If a person enters church with thoughts of ending their life and leaves unchanged in that same state, can we honestly say they have been ministered to in the fullest sense of the gospel?" he asked.

Preaching remains central to church life but cannot alone address the complex social and psychological problems affecting communities, he warned, urging the church to adopt a more robust approach to guide people through hardship.

Structures needed

Hamata called for the development of coordinated congregational care systems to identify and support individuals facing emotional distress, addiction, family problems and suicidal thoughts.

He also advocated for stronger mental wellness and crisis-response capacity among church leaders, enhanced youth mentorship programmes, expanded marriage and family support services, and deeper engagement with communities affected by poverty and social disintegration.

Hamata further suggested that the church measure its success not only through attendance figures, offerings and infrastructure projects, but through evidence of restored lives, strengthened families and transformed communities.

"Ultimately, the question facing the church is not whether it is active, but whether it is effective in the deepest sense of its calling," he wrote.

He concluded by arguing that Namibia's development requires more than economic progress.

"Namibia does not only need economic progress. It needs moral rebuilding, social healing and spiritual renewal," Hamata said.