Sermon at the Installation of Dean Terry Lester of St George's Cathedral, Cape Town

Installation of the Ven Terrence Ian Lester as 16th Dean of Cape Town and Rector of the Cathedral of St George the Martyr

The Feast of the Presentation of our Lord in the Temple

2nd February 2025 @ 16H00

Readings: Amos 8: 1 - 8; Psalm 10: 13-20; Luke 19: 45 - 48

May I speak in the name of God who calls, informs and transforms us. Amen.

Sisters and brothers in Christ, members of the St George’s Cathedral Church family, thank you for joining us this afternoon to celebrate this important day in the history and life of our Diocese – the installation of our 16^th Dean and Rector of this Cathedral.

A warm welcome to Bishop Josh and our fellow Bishops who are here, to members of Chapter from our own and sister dioceses, to the clergy and bishops present and your spouses, as well as the honoured guests who grace this occasion, including members of the Order of Simon of Cyrene. A special welcome to the Dean-designate Terry, your dear wife Nikki, your children, Timothy and Safya, Claire and Michael (Portugal), Amy and Dean, Sydnee and Kathryn, your sister Desiree, your mother, Mrs Joyce Lester, your sisters-in-law Kim and Charlen and your grandchildren Rosa, Frances, Atlas and Jude. And thank you, Professor Richard Burridge, former Dean of King's College, London and Terry's long-time friend and colleague from Nottingham, for travelling all the way from the UK to be present.

Thank you, diocesan staff and liturgical team for working tirelessly preparing for this service. Thank you, Cathedral staff, Church Wardens, Verger and team for your practical arrangements and your warm welcome on our arrival here this afternoon. Thank you to Mfundisi Mcebisi Pinyana for holding the fort here as Priest-in-Charge during the interregnum, and to Canon Grant Walters, the Revd Abigail Hopley, and other staff at Bishopscourt for their support.

Dean-designate Terry, your installation takes place on the Feast of the Presentation of our Lord in the Temple, which is also known as the Purification of St Mary the Virgin or Candlemas. Saints and Seasons notes that such a variety of names is a testament to the wealth of spiritual meaning that generations of Christians have discovered in this small incident. As Anglicans, our title for this Feast is a reminder that every first-born son had to be dedicated to God in memory of the Israelites’ deliverance from Egypt, as enshrined in Jewish law. However, when Mary placed Jesus into the arms of Simeon, the Patriarch, it marked the meeting of the Old and the New Testaments. Thus, the old oblations were done away, and the new and perfect offering was now presented to the temple. Moruti Terry, it is in the same spirit that you are installed today as the 16^th Dean of this Diocese.

In today’s Gospel passage (Luke 19:45ff) there is a sudden change of tone as Jesus turns to look at the city spread before Him and utters a sorrowful prophecy about its fate. He longed that even at this late stage it might repent and seek that which would advance its welfare, given how little the conduct of the people of Jerusalem reflected its name as the city of peace. The time would come when the city would be besieged with tremendous loss of life, and all because it failed to recognise that God was longing to save it.

Sisters and brothers, it was against this background that Jesus entered the Temple and drove out those who were carrying on commerce within its precincts. Their trade was associated with the needs of the pilgrims, like a modern souvenir shop under the shadow of a cathedral selling Bibles along with picture postcards. But in their case, the trade was conducted in a manner that had grown to alarming proportions. The court of the Gentiles had become a thieves’ kitchen instead of a place of prayer. This was the beginning of Jesus’ teachings in the Temple, to the accompaniment of rising opposition from the authorities and strong sympathy from the crowds who appreciated His words.

As the people of this Cathedral church, as people of the Diocese of Cape Town, what can we learn from this gospel story? How can this passage assist in building the kingdom of God in this church?

I believe it underlines the need for ministry in and from this Cathedral to continue in the tradition of which Dean Terry has already long been a proponent in this Diocese and congregation, namely to call out the way in which – in this city, Province and country – the people of God, and particularly the most vulnerable and marginalised, are treated at the hands of the powerful; of those, in the words of Amos, “that trample on the needy, and bring to ruin the poor of the land.” Interestingly, it has been suggested that the reference to the Nile (v.8) in this passage may have been intended to remind Israel of God’s acts of judgement against the whole of Egypt in the plagues; that this God can be expected to act if necessary in similar fashion against the people He once worked to redeem.

Even as we give thanks for new beginnings in this Cathedral church today, we are called to speak up for those who suffer, from the emaciated miners rescued at Stilfontein, to our soldiers under attack in the DR Congo as a consequence of standing up for the rights and safety of innocent Congolese men, women and children, from the survivors of abuse and gender-based violence to victims of ethnic cleansing in Gaza. At this distressing time in Gaza and the West Bank, we are grateful for the prophetic ministry of the cathedral to the Middle East. While we are grateful for the current limited ceasefire in Gaza, I am concerned that it holds and that the West Bank will not be the next to suffer the fate of Gaza. On the basis that, under international law, ethnic cleansing can be defined as genocide, war crimes or crimes aganst humanity, we must protest against any prospect of the people of Gaza being “cleansed” and sent to Jordan and Egypt. They must be able to rebuild their lives, and the Western countries which have shamefully aided and abetted in the destruction of Gaza must step up and pay for its reconstruction.

Moruti Terry, it is my prayer that your ministry here at the Cathedral brings about a new song – full of new possibilities. This is the re-assurance of God’s sufficiency for present needs and the prospects of greater blessings yet to come. You do not lack experience, but you will nevertheless need assistance from God to advance his will for this Cathedral church. So, as you take up your new responsibilities, I bring you, on behalf of the Diocese, of the wider church and on my own behalf, congratulations on your appointment.

As we know this Cathedral has a proud history of being a ‘People’s Cathedral’, seeking to challenge and inspire parishioners to advance the kingdom of God through teaching ministry and evangelism. To achieve that objective, it requires a discernment that produces good decisions based on divine principles. It is therefore our shared prayer and hope that you, together with your team, will discern the common good in whatever decisions you take, just as your predecessors have done, from Tom Savage to Ted King and Colin Jones, from Rowan Smith to Michael Weeder.

Moruti Terry, there are decisions that you will face that you will have to make courageously and collectively. They will have to made on the basis of sound critique, which is key, but it’s not good enough to end there. Your critique and decisions must be wise and reflect a deep sense of discernment and godly steering. Take decisions carefully and wisely, and then don't be too sensitive to pushback. As Emeritus Tutu used to say, too often in our part of the world, the acronym PhD means “Pull him, or her, down.” And as I said in my homily yesterday afternoon at Canon Natalie’s farewell service, the thing about self-justification is that your friends and family don’t need it, and your detractors won't believe it.

As the Feast of Candlemas compels you, in your leading and ministry here, bring the light of Christ that dispels darkness and brings renewal and redemption, even purification, to the Cathedral, the wider church, the city and the world. You are not an interim Dean, you are the Dean of Cape Town, and as such – as we are reminded in the rubric for the consecration of a bishop – no one is sufficient to do all these things but through the grace of God.

Hence, I turn to the congregation, and say to you gathered here today that we rely on you to work with Dean Terry for the common good of all humanity. The concept of the common good is one which is rooted in God's desire that humans may flourish, each according to their own circumstances, and that all will have a liveable standard of material well-being. In its widest sense, a society organised for the common good is one which is stable, safe and just, a society which accords everyone respect materially, emotionally, spiritually, intellectually.

In conclusion, I congratulate you once again, Moruti Terry, on your appointment as 16^th Dean of Cape Town. As I install you in the Dean's seat, where you will serve as a steward, acting on my behalf as Diocesan but also as a leader in your own right in the things of God. I pledge my support for your ministry here for the common good.

God loves all of you and so do I. Amen

* * * * *

A Call to Prayer and an Appeal to the World after the deaths of South African soldiers in the DR Congo

Grieving for the loss of South African soldiers defending the people of the eastern DR Congo, Archbishop Thabo Makgoba, who himself has family in the SA National Defence Force, has composed the following prayer for use in Anglican churches and beyond:

Father God,

We pray today for the souls of our soldiers killed in the eastern DR Congo in recent days,

We grieve with and pray for consolation for their families,

We pray for the recovery of those injured,

And we acknowledge and give thanks for the sacrifices our men and women make on our behalf as they fulfill our obligation to help protect our African sisters and brothers from insurgent violence.

Lord God, we pray that the international community will be moved by your Spirit to show the same compassion for Africans who suffer the horrors of war as those of other nations,

We pray for the force of arms to be replaced by the politics of peace,

And that SADC, the African Union and the United Nations will intensify efforts to achieve longlasting peace and stability to the DRC, Sudan and Mozambique,

As we send our condolences to the families of those who died, we pledge to keep them in our prayers,

For Jesus Christ's sake, Amen

Shaft 11, Stilfontein - Reflections and Condolences - Thabo Makgoba

On his Truth to Power TV interview on the eNCA channel in December, Prof “JJ” Onkgopotse Tabane, asked me: “Father, what is the church doing about the mine workers trapped in the Stilfontein (Shaft 11) mine?” I responded that we are praying; we regret the attitude and comments of government leaders who wanted to “smoke them out”; and I added, “Some SACC [SA Council of Churches] leaders have paid a visit to the site.” *

Today, I am sad as I watch on TV and see the pathology services vans parked near the gaping hole of Shaft 11 and evidence of bodies recovered from up to one or two kilometres underground. (Non-South African readers can see the background to this tragedy here:

https://apnews.com/article/miners-mine-south-africa-dead-80a1a4809371269b592bf3e2695540ba)

Stilfontein Mine, to the west of Johannesburg, where my dad eked out his earnings from miners for our family's livelihood, is now a place where miners lost their lives, not due to the health and safety challenges as a result of poor mining practices, but due to workers having starved to death. Yet again, this tragedy leaves another deep wound in the heart of our nation. It opens our Marikana pain, the pain we suffered from the police killings at that platinum mine in North West Province.

Will the suffering ever end for people on the margins of our society? Yes, we are grateful for the lives of those saved in a difficult rescue operation, and grateful to the mining companies represented on the Minerals Council for helping pay for the rescue operations. But this is a moment of profound grief and shock, and also a moment to reflect on the systemic injustices, the economic desperation, and the human dignity often overlooked in our society.

++Thabo Makgoba

January 15, 2025

* See the SACC's statement here: https://anglicanchurchsa.org/sacc-statement-on-stilfontein-mine-tragedy/

Statement by Archbishop Thabo Makgoba on the Panel of Inquiry into Smyth abuse case

On November 22nd, 2024 I appointed a high-level inquiry into the implications for the Anglican Church of Southern Africa of a Church of England review of serial violent abuse by Mr John Smyth in the UK and Zimbabwe in the 1980s and 1990s. I appointed former Supreme Court of Appeal judge Ian Farlam, former UCT vice-chancellor Dr Mamphela Ramphele and Advocate Jeremy Gauntlett SC KC to conduct the inquiry.

On the evening of Thursday January 16th, 2025 I received a letter concerning a quite separate allegation of abuse, in which the complainant said that if Advocate Gauntlett did not step down from the panel by January 31st, he (the complainant) would make the allegation public. Without further communication, the complainant later that evening published details of his allegations on social media. No complaint is known to have been made to Safe Church (ACSA’s specialist safeguarding body) or to the church itself on the matter over the past 40 years.

On the morning of Friday January 17th, Advocate Gauntlett proposed that in the circumstances created by the letter he step down from the panel, conveying a concern that the work of the Smyth inquiry not be in any way delayed or obstructed by the issue. I accepted his offer, subject to consultation with other members of the panel. As someone whose handling of the Smyth matter is being investigated by the panel, I have kept a distance from its work but felt that in the circumstances I needed to take this step.

I held those consultations at Bishopscourt in Cape Town today, and have accepted Advocate Gauntlett's offer on the well-recognised principle in the law that even the appearance of a conflict of interest can be enough to trigger a recusal from a matter. Justice Farlam and Dr Ramphele have accepted Advocate Gauntlett's decision with regret, and have agreed that they will continue the Panel’s inquiry to completion. It is expected that this will be accomplished shortly.

I await the panel's judgment on the effectiveness of our efforts to eliminate abuse within the church, and my heart goes out to victims and survivors of Smyth. My heart breaks when I recall the account in the Church of England's Makin report of the violence and pain that they went or are still going through.

[VIDEOS: News clips; FULL TEXT] Archbishop's sermon - Christmas Eve 2024 - St George's Cathedral

Excerpt from the Archbishop's sermon:

Midnight Mass – Christmas Eve

24^th December 2024

Cathedral Church of St George the Martyr

The Most Revd Dr Thabo Makgoba

Archbishop of Cape Town

Isaiah 9:2-7; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14 (15-20)

May I speak in the name of God who is Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer. Amen.

On this holy night, on behalf of the Cathedral, the Diocese and the Province, I wish each one of you a blessed and peaceful Christmas. And I warmly welcome all of you, whether you are worshipping here or online.

Thank you to everyone who has helped to plan this service tonight, a service which has come to play such an important part in the life of the city and the Diocese, a service that celebrates the love that God has for each one of us, a love so deep, so profound, that the incarnate God becomes one of and with us. Thank you to our magnificent choir, Director of Music and Organist for giving us a glimpse of heaven. Thank you to the Lay Ministers, to the Verger, Greg, to all the staff of the Cathedral, and to the Chancellor, the Church Wardens and the Cathedral Council, for the time, energy and care you bring to your tasks.

Archbishop announces panel to review handling of abuse reports

 Bishopscourt has released the following statement from Archbishop Thabo Makgoba:

“I am pleased to report that following a meeting with the church's legal advisers and our Safe and Inclusive Church Commission at Bishopscourt in Cape Town today, three prominent South Africans experienced in human rights issues have agreed to review my and the church's past actions in relation to the John Smyth abuse scandal.

“The review panel comprises the civil society leader, Dr Mamphela Ramphele, Advocate Jeremy Gauntlett SC KC, Chancellor of the Anglican Diocese of Cape Town, and Judge Ian Farlam, Provincial Chancellor of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, who chaired the Commission of Inquiry into the killing of miners at Marikana in 2012.

“They will carry out a retrospective analysis of our handling of reports received by the church, including a letter from the Diocese of Ely in 2013, reporting a historical case of abuse in Britain in 1981-82, a suspected case in Zimbabwe in the 1990s, and alerting us that Smyth was living in Cape Town. They will make recommendations to me as to further action.

“In the past week, it has become clear that Smyth was a member of three Anglican congregations in South Africa, two in Durban in the early 2000s and one in Cape Town, first for a period until December 2013, and later for some months before his death in 2018. To date, we have not found any cases of abuse reported to the Anglican Church in South Africa. However, our Safe and Inclusive Church Commission has re-circulated its contact details, and should any complaints be received in future, they will be handled by the Commission.

“For someone in the church, which is meant to be a safe and nurturing space, to prey on God's children when they are at their most vulnerable is evil beyond description. We must eradicate it, root and branch. My hope is that this panel will make recommendations which help us to achieve that. I am profoundly grateful to the members of the panel for agreeing to serve.”