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And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. (Rev. 21:2)
On January 8, 2011, I had the great privilege of attending the wedding of The Revd. Fletcher Matandika and his bride Angella Moyo in Lilongwe, the capital city of Malawi. Business in the UK in the previous week provided the opportunity to travel south and join the celebrations. I am very grateful to Fletcher and Angella for the invitation and to their respective parents for their kind hospitality on a day that began at 7am and ended late in the night.
The wedding itself was led by Revd. Thompson Chipeta, who described himself a Fletcher's "grandfather" (in the faith). His own story is quite remarkable - an orphan founding a school for orphans and a "home that raises children to the fullest potential and is the best in Africa".
Having grown up in England, I have a certain preconception of how a wedding should be - my own was a relatively formal event. Not the sort of wedding where the bridesmaids dance down the aisle to meet their respective groomsmen dancing down another aisle. But they did as the congregation cheered and the ladies ululated.
And then Angella appeared, her parents on either side, in a beautiful white dress, dancing slowly, joyfully down the aisle. And then there was Fletcher, his parents on either side, dancing slowly, joyfully, towards his bride. And the noise of celebration was almost deafening. It was wonderful - and a beautiful picture of the day when the Bridegroom will come to claim His Bride for eternity!
After the wedding was over, we drove in a long convoy to a home for the official photographs; the cars swayed from one side of the road to the other in celebration. Lunch in various homes and then off to Africa Bible College, just outside Lilongwe, for the reception in their gym.
More music, more dancing, and Fletcher and Angella were seated on a sofa covered in white high on a platform to observe the proceedings. As the afternoon progressed, so the room filled with friends, family, ABC students and a large contingent from the village of Dzuwa, in which Fletcher has invested so much of his life. The Master of Ceremonies, himself an evangelist, soon announced "The Revd. Fletcher and Mrs. Angella Matandika" in a deep, loud voice that resonated round the hall; I doubt I will ever forget the sound.
Two particularly memorable moments were the bride's speech to her friends and the cutting of the cake. For Angella, her marriage to Fletcher means leaving her family, friends, and her country and traveling 10,000 miles to a new home and a new life in very different circumstances. Her "farewell" was gracious, thoughtful, and Christ-centered. The cake was in fact several cakes and after one was cut, Angella presented another first to Fletcher's parents and then to her own. Beyond all the celebrations of this fine event, there was also a great sense of honor paid to both parents.
The day concluded with a dinner for both families and friends - it was quite a privilege to be invited.
I am very grateful for Fletcher's friendship and for the opportunity to attend this fine event. I hope that my own daughters' weddings will be characterized by this same sense of honor and celebration. And I hope all of us will keep our eyes fixed on that day when the sound of celebration will resound all the way to heaven, and clothed in His perfect righteousness, we will finally see our Bridegroom face to face to be with Him for eternity.
Michael Kane is the Vice-President and Board Chairman of Joy to the World Ministries (US and Canada respectively), and is working with Fletcher to establish the first classical and Christian school in Southern Africa. He and his wife Juliet live in Beaverton, OR where they have 4 daughters, none yet of marriageable age.
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Rev. T.J. Chipeta giving the marriage certificate to Rev. & Mrs. Matandika
Rev. & Mrs. Matandika
Rev. & Mrs. Matandika with Mr. & Mrs. Moyo (bride's parents in white) and Rev. R. A. & Mrs. Matandika (groom's parents)
Rev. & Mrs. Matandika with Mr. Michael Kane
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