An analysis of New Religious Movements' income generating projects and their contribution to Sustainable Livelihoods in Zimbabwe

The history and teaching of the gospel of prosperity can be traced back to Pentecostalism whose history is contested due to overlaps with the first (missionary evangelism) and second (classical Pentecostalism) wave of Christianity that intersect with the African Independent/Initiated Churches. There is the third wave that gave birth to a form of Charismatic Christianity influenced by classical Pentecostalism and the charismatic movement. This wave is regarded as comprising the post-denominational churches and fellowships that have mushroomed onto the scene since the 1980s. Its main teaching has been the gospel of prosperity and its emphasis on miracles, providing a message of hope for the poor, and preaching breakthroughs through giving and positive confession, and asking believers to simply believe, profess, and give money to the prophets or pastors in exchange for miraculous blessing. The gospel of prosperity has been contested and questioned in terms of its benefits to the congregants and whether initiatives occasioned by such teaching contribute to sustainable livelihoods. This paper explored the main teaching of the New Religious Movements (NRMs), its contribution to the needs of individuals, and to sustainable livelihoods. A qualitative methodology was used by way of interviews, focus group discussions, and non-participant observations to collect data, which was analysed using thematic analysis. The study provided an analysis of how the congregants responded to the gospel of prosperity within the context of the projects emanating from that gospel, and their contribution to sustainable livelihoods in Zimbabwe.