Living in the Great Rift Valley of Tanzania is a tribe of hunters and gatherers whose god, just two years ago, was the sun. Advent pastors befriended them and told them about a God who is above all gods. The response has been miraculous. The Word of God has since affected upwards of five settlements of Hadzabe, leading many to repent and to surrender their lives to Jesus Christ.

When the Lord Jesus Christ enters a society, he teaches them a better way. Bit by bit, the Hadzabe have willingly chosen to glorify God by adopting new traditions:

• Prayer is a common practice before a hunting trip;
• Camps join to hear the Word of God and form a dancing circle of praise to the one true God.
• The fear of death if one is submerged in water has given way to rejoicing when one goes “under the earth” with the Lord in baptism.

Now we see the gospel’s impact on still another important fabric of the Hadzabe culture; that of marriage.

Pastors Johnson Odoyo and Amos Komanya were scheduled to journey to our friends in December, but they received a very insistent invitation. Four couples were to marry, involving two camps. They MUST come in November to teach them God’s way and speak God’s blessing over the new couples. Pastors Johnson and Amos therefore made the two-day trip to see their friends with the goal of teaching God’s view of marriage. The Hadzabe view held a stark contrast.

Hadzabe Customs – The interested young man must prove his worth as a hunter and gatherer by giving the bride’s family two baboons and many liters of honey. Having accomplished this feat, he may without ceremony bring his bride back to his camp simply with the approval of the camp(s) leaders. Hadzabe commonly sleep under the open sky, so marital relations similarly take place in the open, in full view of any casual observer. The union is held intact only until the man tires of his wife and seeks a different one (a frequent occurrence). His new mate may be an estranged wife or even one still married. To lessen the tension between parties the offending man may ask the leader of the camp if he can take his new bride and leave the village. If granted approval, he will go to another camp, or he may dwell in the bush alone. Loyalty to the camp runs deeper than one’s loyalty to a spouse.

For two weeks our friends travelled between the two camps bringing to them God’s view of marriage. Once again, Hadzabe willingness to follow the Lord brought societal changes. Two days of feasting and celebrating were marked by the couples pledging lifelong faithfulness and service to each other under God. Shelters were constructed to grant privacy for all couples. Now in the evening the camp’s leader will make certain that all couples are inside their respective shelters with their respective spouses.

All of these changes were made willingly because the believers have a heart to know and to follow God’s way.