© 2023 Dr Margaret Sheppard

This is another church where sacrifice services may be held. It is led by Arch Bishop Boitshewarelo Motse. His brother is the man who is reputed to have introduced Zionism into Kanye (other than the Z.C.C.). However he has now left this church and has joined St. John, which belongs to a Type 2 category.

Kanana was started in Johannesburg in 1965 by J.J. Maseko, and the Arch Bishop had been introduced to the church by his elder brother who had then gone on to start a branch in Kanye. He told me that they had both joined the church because they were interested in it and not because they were ill. He worked as a policeman in the mines in South Africa, where there are three other branches. There are five branches in Botswana. He said that in Kanye there are about 102 members and between 100-200 members at each of the other branches.

In 1978 he had started trying to register the church in Gaborone at the Ministry of Home Affairs and it was then they had changed the name to "Kanana" as they had been told that "God is Love" was too long a name.

This church has its own square, mud-walled, tin-roofed church in the Arch Bishop's yard. The mud walls are decorated with stars in white mud. At one end there is a platform with a small pulpit and some chairs and benches. The church uniform follows the same general pattern of the other churches although it was changed in about 1979 from the old uniform which was basically green and white, to a new one of blue and white. The adult women have a special way of tying their head scarves, unlike the younger girls who wear ".flowing" head scarves. In Kanana when the uniform was changed the women wore white hats. Even non-members are expected to cover their hair at services and not to wear jewellery.

Kanana (Canaan)

(formerly known as "God is Love")

Preaching

Church Choir

Dancing to the hymns around a woman who has asked for prophesy. The dancing helps to call Moya (Holy Spirit) enabling the prophets to prophesy

Inside God is Love Church - later renamed Kanana. The members built the church themselves, digging the clay for the bricks, forming the bricks and then decorating the walls with coloured muds. The roofing was also completed by members and all contributed towards the tin sheets, nails etc.

Kanana Church built in the yard of the Arch Bishop

Members were keen to pose for photographs after a Sunday Service. At this time there were few cameras in Kanye.