Why is everyone so willing to help Kumalo?

Without his own position in the church, Kumalo is not a person who many would want to help.  He is a poor man in the lowest social class in Africa with only his life savings to spend.  To my understanding, even though many people are trying to help the people in the lowest class, here are still many who do not want to help them at all.  Not only is he low in society, but he also needs a lot of guidance to find some of his family members, which takes time, from someone who knows their way around Johannesburg.  Then, after finding some of his family members, he learns that one of them is a prostitute and another is a murderer.  Even in today's time, most people would not help someone whose goal is to protect a prostitute and a murderer.  Kumalo even asks someone who house the prostitute and her son and the murderer's wife.  
One reason that I believe to be why Kumalo is being helped is because the people who he is trying to help is family to him.  Another reason is his connection to the church.  Kumalo is a refer and which gives him connections to other people in the church.  The people in the church are trying to help those in need.  Kumalo is someone in need.  One of the people who is loyal to the church is Mrs. Lithebe.  She has enough money to support herself, but is willing to take a few shillings from Kumalo for him to rent the rooms.  The main reason behind Kumalo getting help is because his connection to the church.