Ad Laos - To the People of God - April 2024

 As published in Good Hope, the newsletter of the Diocese of Cape Town:

During Eastertide this year, in the weeks leading up to Pentecost, we have embarked on the Diocesan Mission Season announced by Bishop Joshua in last month’s Good Hope. During this process, we are looking at the Anglican Communion's Five Marks of Mission in order to move us to a more mission-focussed Diocese in the wake of Covid-19.

The Five Marks of Mission:
The mission of the Church is the mission of Christ
    • To proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom,
    • To teach, baptise and nurture new believers,
    • To respond to human need by loving service,
    • To transform unjust structures of society, to challenge violence of every kind and pursue peace and reconciliation, and
    • To strive to safeguard the integrity of creation, and sustain and renew the life of the earth.

We are  being asked in this season: when did we last invite another to church for a discipleship occasion; and when have we given testimony of the workings of the Holy Spirit, Jesus, in our lives? At a Mass for the 175th anniversary of Bishops Diocesan College recently, I spoke about spiritual renewal, emphasising that connecting the concept of the Kingdom of God to the regeneration of the Spirit was important to Jesus, because it described the essentially spiritual character of that kingdom, and the way in which our experience of it impacts our lives. 

This must lead us to ask: where and how do we see the Spirit moving in our personal lives and places? For myself, I felt it and touched it in an informal settlement recently, when I went with Bishop Josh and others on a Walk of Witness to provide a ministry of support to people who had lost their homes and their possessions in a devastating fire. Those of you who responded so generously, both with your monetary donations and your prayers, touched me deeply. Thank you. Enkosi. Baie dankie. Do please continue to give to the Provincial Disaster Fund so that we can make a difference to those who have lost everything. (ACSA-Provincial Trusts Board, Standard Bank, Account no: 070562423 / Universal code: 051001) 

Thinking of those and others who suffer in their daily lives, I dedicated honorary degrees which I recently received from Rhodes and the University of the Free State to those excluded and on margins of society. I also gave thanks to all of you and to God for having given me a voice as your Archbishop, enabling me to speak out and recommit our church to working for peace and justice. (You can find the texts of the addresses I delivered on this blog. 

When you read this, it will be less than six weeks before our national and provincial elections. Please study the manifestos of the political parties, then go and vote. Then ensure that you hold to account those you have voted for, especially in ensuring a change in our socio-economic architecture—what I describe as the New Struggle for a new society, a society in which there is equity and equality of opportunity, the kind of society in which the promises of the Constitution are fulfilled. We cannot go on like we are at the moment, with people aggrieved and struggling to meet their everyday needs—we need real socio-economic change and for all to benefit, not only those with power.

I write this as our roads are shut and those wonderful athletes run through our city, enjoying our good roads and the beautiful weather, hoping to finish, to earn a medal and celebrate their achievement. Like those runners, no one can just compete, we all have to practise. So I commend to you the Mission Season Bible studies as an opportunity for us to sharpen our relationship with Christ Jesus, as well as our resolve to seek his justice and peace in God’s world. 

Let me conclude by saying thank you to Dean Michael for his leadership and pastoral care within our diocese and cathedral. As St Paul would say about runners, well done, good and faithful servant, you have run and finished the race. Thank you for your leadership, friendship and ministry. We hope that the race is not ended for you and your beloved spouse, Dr Bennett, in public ministry.

God bless.

††Thabo Cape Town