Focus: Prostitutes turn to Church for solace

Louise Munyana (not real names) is a single mother with a little child, tussling with life to raise her child. She has just got a job and happy with what God has done for her in four years of transformation. “The name of Jesus Christ is powerful, I never thought of ever recovering my descent life that I had lost at a tender age,” says Munyana, a member of Prayer Palace Church, Remera. In her late twenties, Munyana says she joined prostitution at the age of 15. “After loosing my aunt to the 1994 Genocide, I sought refugee to a friend in Remera who influenced me to go for commercial sex,” Munyana said. She remembers looking around all corners with no one to help her, the only person close to her was a hopeless friend. “I was born in Eastern Province, after birth, I was dumped by my own mother but I was lucky that God caused one of my aunt’s children to find me in a bush,” Munyana recalls how she ended up in commercial sex business. She remembers when she was wandering the streets, up and down confused, not knowing what to do or where to start from and later she decided to start putting her body at any man’s disposal for survival as the last alternative. After few weeks, Munyana says she became addicted to almost every drug including alcohol, trying to look for survival, happiness, joy and peace not until she met Jesus Christ through Pastor Jane Kanyange, the senior pastor of Prayer Palace Church who preached to her. She remembers how she escaped police several times, surviving death and how her friend she had sought refugee ruined her life into prostitution. “I believe God spared me for a purpose, I cannot imagine how I did not acquire HIV/Aids, I had condoms with me but some men did not want to use condoms, simply because some stubbornly did not want to use condoms, after getting saved and becoming a committed Christian”. “I tested myself and found out that I am HIV negative,” Munyana adds with a smile on her face. She recalls nine month of her pregnancy after being abandoned by a man who pregnant her and sent her in to thinking of abortion or committing suicide. “God works every time and has mercy for each one of us all the time, that is why you will see the rejected, addicted people become very useful people in the any community trying to build the society after years of disgrace,” Pastor Jane Kanyange said. Pastor Jane Kanyange says that what looks to be impossible for man is simply possible before God. Kanyange says that she is never surprised to see former prostitutes, thieves, drug addicts and other community rejects turning to Jesus Christ. “This is what God called for, my passion goes to the rejected people in the society, Jesus Christ came for sinners like a doctor can not nurse a health person but the sick one,” Pastor Kanyange adds. Kanyange says, it is not easy to believe that prostitutes can become better persons but that is one of the miracles churches have or should recognise. “Most rejected people in our communities are hard hearted and uncompromising, however, the gospel is meant for them and any other person who really want to go God’s way,”she said. The female pastor started by attending to prostitutes, drug addicts and street children among other rejected people in the community of Migina, the area popularly known for notorious residents. Kanyange said about 100 people have been transformed from wasted kind of life and become members of her congregation. Some of the former prostitutes have got married and now have stable families. Kanyange’s call to service A single mother of a 19-year old girl, Pastor Kanyange did not know that she would ever become a pastor but found herself overwhelmed by the love to serve the rejected members in society. After living a hard life in Kenya where she graduated in Computer programming, Kanyange went to Uganda in mid 80s and worked with Uganda Post Office. As a young Christian then, she had a big heart for the vulnerable. Her penetration into the missionary work was triggered by an American woman, Rosary Edwards who worked with Living Water Ministries which also had a Bible school in Uganda. Up to now, Kanyange considers Rosary Edwards as her spiritual mother who mentored her and gave her a foundation for the life that she lives today. “In 1998, I was the coordinator of the Living Water Ministries and I heard a voice telling me to come to Rwanda. I did not know what I was coming to do but I deeply felt the need to help the rejected members of the society like prostitutes, street kids, orphans and drug addicts among others,” Kanyange says. It was not easy for her to start off her mission. She was not confident of herself to be a pastor and later carrying out pastoral work. So, she decided to work under Rev. Constantine Gasore of Restoration Church in Rwamagana, who sharpened her Christian shrewdness. She later moved to Kigali with no idea of where to start from and joined a group of intercessors and later found her way to Calvary Temple where she worked with the church’s senior pastor Patrick Twagirayezu. Kanyange later gained confidence and started her own ministry called Mission Restore International (M.R.I), which gave birth to a steadily growing church called Prayer Palace Church. She oversees a congregation of between 800 and1000 people in just few years the church existed. Kanyange appreciates government for many things including emancipating women to become public speakers. Even though she was backed by the government laws about women emancipation, she says she has gone through a lot to lead a church as a woman. She at one time had inferiority of imagining how she could stand in front of men and lead them as a senior pastor. Though church still carries a bad image it attained during the 1994 Genocide, she says all Christians and the church as a whole should confront and resist that negative forces.She is a humble and incredibly compassionate church leader. And, like Jesus Christ, you will find her hanging out in bars in the company of prostitutes, as a way of winning their souls back to Christ. Her community, Migina, is like any other red light area with bars that almost work 24 hours during weekend and has attracted patrons of prostitutes, drugs sellers and facilitates crimes. Migina inhabits many sex workers which has created a community rife of trouble and crime. It is also a place God called her to build a church, Prayer Palace Church among bars. The compounds to the fact that Jesus Christ came not to condemn but to seek and save the lost. According to pastor Kanyange, the Kingdom of God breaks addictions, prostitution and invades the red-light area of Migina everyday. Prostitution have been on a raging growth in nations be it western or African nations where even some countries, prostitutes have campaigned for being represented in the parliament and have a working license. Governments, associations and Non-government institutions from generations have been tussling with bringing back prostitutes into descent lives. Many societies have been against prostitution proclaiming it is an unacceptable habit in the society to the extent identifying the habit as a curse. Several approaches have been applied and giving semi complete positive results while others have showed temporally results. Some pastors have approved Jesus Christ name as powerful to win prostitutes souls whom they say HE changes in their life completely. Ends