Christian emergence among Batlhaping ba ga Phuduhucwana tribe in Taung : the London Missionary Society

Abstract

The Batlhaping people, like other communities, nations and countries have encountered difficulties such as invasions, war and conquest and, in some cases, have stood up to defend themselves against their enemies (one well-known battle in which they successfully defended themselves was the Battle of Dithakong against the Difeqane/Mfecane (Madise 2002:276)). In spite of all these difficulties, missionaries still found their way to evangelise and convert the Batlhaping. This article is intended to show how Batlhaping ba ga Mankuroane came to embrace Christianity from 1829 onwards through the London Missionary Society. A number of denominations made inroads into Taung and established themselves among the tribes who lived in this area, the main denominations being the Methodists, the Anglicans, the Catholics and the United Congregationalists. In this article, however, I will focus mainly on one denomination, the United Congregational Church.