A 10-year-old power struggle that tore the Calvary Christian Church at Tshaulu apart is finally over.

The war, which had claimed a lot of casualties and caused a lot of pain and heartache between the two leaders and their followers, had a happy ending at the weekend when the two smoked the peace pipe and put the past behind them.

The two, Pastors Joseph Nemutanzhela (80) and Samuel Khumela (63), both of Tshaulu and members of the Calvary Christian Church at Tshaulu, went their separate ways after misunderstandings in the church and each went away with his own followers. The two finally came to their senses after Calvary Christian Church pastor David Mufamadi brokered peace between them.

Their coming together was formalised when a big celebration was held at one of the two churches in the village. During the emotional reunion, the two were seen hugging each other and were close to tears with joy.

Those who attended and were witnesses included, among others, the local traditional leader, Chief Ntsedzeni Bohwana, Tshaulu Pastors Forum executive member Dr Joseph Mutambedzo, and Dr Maxwell Masakona, founder and head of Calvary Christian Church, who also gave a fitting sermon.

There were also pastors from Pretoria and Nzhelele, which are also branches of the Calvary family.

In his testimony to the church, Nemutanzhela said it had been a long and haunting 10-year experience for him after parting ways with Khumela. "Apart from being a fellow congregant, Khumela is my relative and when we met, I did not know what to say to him. I became very lonely when I thought of the good old days we worked together as servants of God,” he said.

Nemutanzhela said the division was also affecting his health and he could not bear it any longer. “Besides being a burden to ourselves, we were giving Pastor Mufamadi sleepless nights. He had to visit my church the other weekend and visited Khumela’s church the next. We are just happy that he did not lose faith that one day we would reconcile. This is God’s victory and miracle. Here we are together again, and we just pray and wish that this will be a lesson to others,” he said.

Khumela said he had God to thank for visiting their hearts and giving them a chance to repent and swallow their pride in order to forgive each other. “Our separation did not work to our advantage. We were blocking the way for God’s people, and I am sure we were going to be judged for having put God’s work in disrepute," he said.

Dr Maxwell Masakona, founder and head of Calvary, said the reunion signalled a year of good things for the church. “It could not have happened in any other year, but waited for 2012. This is a year of comfort, victory and great things for the church,” he said.