Siphefumula ngenxeba Rethinking a transformative missional ecclesiology as standing in the gap in the context of pandemics like COVID-19 and GBV

Abstract

Pandemics are not only a reality in human history; similar cases are also recorded in biblical texts like Numbers 16:41-50 and are still happening today, as in the case of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and Gender-Based Violence (GBV). This article affirms that pandemics are either a creation of humanity and/or a creation of God, as is the case in Numbers 16:41-50. It became clear in this article that humanity either struggles to breathe or breathe through the wound (siphefumula ngenxeba) when pandemics strike or when God uses pandemics to punish humanity for their rebellion, as is the case in Numbers 16:41-50. A missional reading of Numbers 16:41-50 defines life and ministry in the context of pandemics as standing in the gap—between the angry God and rebellious people of God, and between the living and the dead in the efforts to mediate life over judgement.