Who are the Rangi people?
The Rangi live in north central Tanzania in the hilly region. They are primarily farmers, growing crops such as maize and millet. Travelling in search of of permanent water sources, their ancestors were water diviners. They believe that their ancestors travelled across Ethiopia and Kenya, south to Tanzania through the Rift Valley, until they reached Haubi, where they are now known to be originated from. At one stage there was a large lake there, but this has dried up in recent years.
What do they believe?
The predominant religion among the Rangi is Islam, but their traditional beliefs have been incorporated too. There are lots of reports of witchcraft and sorcery too, which has sometimes generated a fear among people from the surrounding areas. A very small percentage has been influenced by Christianity from outreach from the Catholic church. Many evangelists and pastors from non-Rangi Protestant backgrounds have worked among the Rangi, but this has so far had very little impact.
What is being done to reach them?
So far, there have been two teams who have lived and worked among the Rangi, the first from 1998-2000 and the second from 2012-2014. There are some missionaries still living among them. Although the whole Bible or New Testament isn’t yet available in the Rangi language, there are portions of the Bible that are, and translation work is in progress. The Jesus film in Rangi has recently been completed, and a Rangi believer travels from village to village showing the film.
