Isaiah Shembe (Prophet of the Nazareth Baptist Church)

Isaiah Mdliwamafa Shembe was born into a Zulu family in the Drakensberg region of Natal. As a young farmworker, he experienced repeated spiritual encounters during violent thunderstorms, culminating in a vision where lightning struck near him, commanding him to renounce worldly pleasures, wine, and firearms to serve God alone.

Ekuphakameni and Nhlangakazi

In 1911, Shembe founded the holy village of Ekuphakameni ('The Place of Spiritual Upliftment') near Durban, followed by the annual pilgrimage to the sacred Mount Nhlangakazi. He taught strict Sabbath observance, absolute teetotalism, self-reliance, and mutual agricultural aid, restoring pride to an indigenous Zulu population devastated by colonial wars and land dispossessions.

The Great Hymn Book

Possessing an unearthly poetic gift, Shembe was awakened in the middle of the night by celestial voices humming melodies; he recorded hundreds of hymns that form the Izihlabelelo ZamaNazaretha. These hymns, accompanied by traditional drums, cow-hide shields, and rhythmic sacred dancing, created one of the most vibrant and enduring indigenous religious movements in African history.