It's hard to pinpoint the moment when a revolution begins to unfold. Sometimes there's a tea party, other times group leaders are murdered and made into martyrs for the revolutionary cause.

However, almost every time, there is a battle of words — an ideological fight between two sides over who is "right" and most justified in their actions.

In the case of Zimbabwe, a South African country freed from racist white rule by democratic elections in 1980, revolution is once again in the air. Last month, Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe ordered the arrest and torture of the country's top opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, a Zimbabwean politician and trade unionist. He was taken from a political rally after federal police broke up the event and then brought to a jail where police officers cracked his head against a prison cell wall.

Western governments were outraged by Mugabe's authoritarian-style attack, and, despite the silent response from governments at the Southern African Development Community summit in Tanzania, Zimbabwe's opposition has begun to mount an offensive against Mugabe.

Last weekend, the Roman Catholic Church posted Easter messages on churches across the country demanding Mugabe leave office or face open revolt.

The strongly worded and direct message closed with a simple thesis: "In order to avoid further bloodshed and avert a mass uprising, the nation needs a new people-driven constitution that will guide a democratic leadership chosen in free and fair elections."

Mugabe is a harsh ruler who is still remembered as the man who ordered the killing of 20,000 citizens of the Zulu ethnic group Ndebele. The group opposed his rule in the 1980s and now enlists "hit - squads" to go door-to-door hunting for opposition activists.

Mugabe has been frequently compared to Uganda's tyrannical leader Idi Amin, who was made famous by actor Forest Whitaker in the award-winning film, The Last King of Scotland. Many Zimbabweans undoubtedly would like to see him either tried for his crimes or murdered outright, while others have bought into his anti-white rhetoric and see him as an anti-colonialist battling the giants of Western, racist capitalism.

At this point, Mugabe may be running out of time, as nationwide strikes have closed universities, primary and secondary schools and hospitals throughout the country. Mugabe has handled the situation by beefing up his police force and cracking down on the opposition, using late-night "hit squads" to terrorize the populous.

The Catholic Church has gotten a lot of flack lately, and it's often forgotten how influential religion is in the political discourse of many nations. The odds of citizens hearing a politician's speech in most countries are much lower than those of hearing a priest on Sunday.

Just as in El Salvador in the 1980s, Zimbabwe's Catholic bishops are at this moment speaking out against the corrupt and authoritarian government. In El Salvador, the words of Archbishop Oscar Arnulfo Romero led to his assination by the right wing junta and sparked a 12-year civil war.

Finally, after nearly 30 years of Mugabe's rule over Zimababwe, priests are stepping forward demanding political change, democracy and a new constitution. Now all that's left is a high-profile murder to create a martyr for the opposition's revolution and maybe a revolutionary tea party, if Zimbabweans feel so inclined.

Reach columnist Jake Sommer at news@thedaily.washington.edu.