A Charred Cross of Redemption - To the Laos - To the People of God

Dear People of God

Charred Cross.

Whew! What a rushed few weeks, travelling to meet commitments in Johannesburg, Lesotho, London, then back to South Africa to talk to protesting students, then to Washington, back to Swaziland and finally, unexpectedly, to the Diocese of Umzimvubu.

Let me start with the news that fire has devastated Umzimvubu's diocesan centre at Glenthorne farm, outside Kokstad, on the very day the Diocesan Council was meeting to plan the way ahead under the interim leadership of Bishop Sitembele Mzamane of Mthatha, who is Vicar-General while the future of Bishop Mlibo Ngewu is decided.

On Bishop Bernard Mkhabela / Drought in Swaziland

A sermon preached in the Diocese of Swaziland:

'Cathedrals as Institutions of Education'

An address delivered to the Conference of Deans and Senior Priests, held in the Diocese of Swaziland:

It is done! Welcome, Bishop Ellinah!

And now our task has been completed!

We formed into three processions, and, like good Anglicans, we sung our beautiful hymns to a beautifully and prayerfully crafted liturgy. From the back of the procession, I could see nine mitres ahead of me, piercing the sky, as each procession went into the Mavuso Trade Centre, where between three and four thousand faithful gathered to witness Ellinah being 'done'. The Dean of the Diocese of Christ the King, the Very Revd David Dinkebogile, received applause for his sermon, and so too did his interpreter. He stressed the fact though Ellinah is a woman, we were gathered to consecrate and ordain a Bishop in the Church of God: not a black woman, not an African, not a Swazi woman, but a Priest of the Church. She was to be pastor to all, to men and women, to black and white, to Swazis and all others in her Diocese.

It felt like a bit of a scrum as the ten bishops surrounded Ellinah (with the Bishop-elect of the Diocese of the Free State also in attendance), and prayed together and laid their hands on her. She emerged from this tight circle wearing her episcopal insignia to applause and excitement. Among our guests we had representatives of the Africa desk of The Episcopal Church and of the USPG – now US – from the UK and Ireland; we had the Ugandan consul, and groups from Kenya, Mozambique, and Nigeria, as well as South Africa, Lesotho and Mozambique. It was a colourful display of beauty, smiles, laughter and tears. ‘Mr Bishop’ shed tears for his wife as she lay prostrated. Bishop Mabuza handed over his pastoral staff to the Dean of the Province, he handed it on to me, and I presented it to Ellinah. It was a symbolic display of both continuity and change, newness, within our ecclesial environment.

Then in a confident, well projected voice, Bishop Ellinah said, ‘I, your Bishop, thank you for your welcome and prayers, and I assure you that I will lead my diocese in a godly manner.’

Yes, it has happened! The thunder is rumbling as I write: we have witnessed a great occasion, and now it does indeed seem that the heavens are about to fall upon us – the falling of rain, which this country and its people so desperately need. The ‘cosmic powers’ are not upset, but rather, as we say in Sepedi, ‘pula, nala’ – ‘peace, rain, prosperity’. It is the thunderstorm and rain of blessing and the promise of good health that follows good crops.

So now, we have taken this step, and we wish the Church of England ‘God speed’ as they deliberate this week. We feel all the more enriched by today, because by virtue of our baptism we are called to join in anything and everything that God is doing in his world – and we have felt his leading and responded to his call. So I end by repeating my congratulations to the Anglican Church of Southern Africa for taking this step, and to Bishop Ellinah herself. May we all continue to follow Christ in calling all those who are at the margins of our church and society so they may find themselves at the centre of God’s love and his welcoming embrace.

Preparations for the Consecration of Bishop Ellinah!

This morning (17 November 2012) we shall consecrate Bishop Ellinah in Swaziland - here is the news as we prepare for the service!

On Friday, Lungi and I left home for Cape Town airport to travel to Swaziland for a momentous occasion in the history of the Anglican Church in Southern Africa and the wider Anglican church. We were travelling to consecrate the first woman to the episcopate in our Province – twenty years after having passed a resolution enabling women to be ordained priests and three years late confirming that women might also be bishops. We travelled, aware that the Church of England General Synod will discuss the latter issue from this coming Tuesday, and so let us all we send our prayers to this Synod and pray they may know God' s guidance in their deliberations.

On the plane we found ourselves sitting not far from first woman to be Defence Force Minister in democratic South Africa, Lindiwe Sisulu; the first woman may of Cape Town in democratic South Africa, Nomaindia Mfeketo, and our first, and youngest woman honorary lay canon, Delene Mark. Perhaps it was coincidence, but I could not help but notice! It felt as if it was almost choreographed – foreshadowing the new ‘first’ for women, for which we were heading.

We arrived in Swaziland and were met with song and dance and great rejoicing. Bishop Rubin and Bishop Dino joined me, with, of course, Bishop-Elect Elinnah, for a media conference at the lounge in the airport (see http://www.observer.org.sz/index.php?news=45432). We were joined by Revd Canon Edgar Ruddock, from the UK, representing the USPG – now known as US. Later, at the rehearsal for today’s consecration service and at dinner we were joined by groups from the US, UK, Scotland (Swaziland has longstanding links with Brechin Diocese) and many women clergy from around Southern Africa. It was a great reunion.

On our way home after the rehearsal at a massive venue, the heavens opened, as if in approval of, and showering blessing on, all we were doing, with lighting, thunder and heavy rain. We battled our way back to the hotel in the Dean’s car, through this heavy downpour.

Now it is Saturday morning and we are preparing to go down the hill to the consecration. We are staying in a beautiful hotel on the hill, overlooking the hills and valleys of this mountain kingdom. It is such a beautiful country in spite of its social challenges. The sun is bright. We were woken up by the sound of birds but also by a neighbour in a room adjacent to us, who started praying out loud at 3 am. We endured till 4 am but as she was not ending and getting louder and louder we got up – but then found someone else had requested quiet. How ironic that the hotel security had to be called to say she must pray softly, or move to the seminar room!

So now we are all awake, and ready. I counted at least 7 bishops here so far, including one from the Scottish Episcopal Church. Words can hardly express the calm and yet deep excitement of today. I feel the prayers of so many people here, around our Province, and across the world. Ellinah herself is calm and reflects the sense that we are surrounded by a ‘great cloud of witnesses’ who indeed have trod this journey of faith before, though not in the same way as we are about to walk this new stretch of God’s path for us today, through our own time and context.

Keep us all in your prayers – especially Bishop-Elect Ellinah, as we now proceed to the Consecration!

News from New Zealand - 8

Sunday 4 November - Yesterday I observed a Sabbath from writing. Sunday was a day for ACC members to have ‘Mission Encounters’: through worship, conversation and hospitality at the invitation of churches in Auckland and the wider Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia. So on Saturday evening I travelled from Auckland to Wellington on the southern tip of North Island, and stayed overnight with Tony and Susan Browne, delightful and hospitable hosts. They gave a great dinner, over which I enjoyed meeting some of their colleagues and friends.

On Sunday morning Canon Jenny Wilkens, the priest in charge, also gave me a warm welcome at St Paul’s Cathedral and showed me the ropes . The Cathedral is situated opposite the Houses of Parliament, rather like our St George’s Cathedral in Cape Town. I enjoyed preaching at both the 8am and 10am services today and appreciated the parish lunch afterwards. I shared a thirty minutes PowerPoint presentation about the life and mission of ACSA – I hope it will soon be available on our ACSA website, for you to see and comment on. It was fulfilling to hear the views of senior laity, committed to our church and wanting it to be relevant in its vocation and teachings about Christ, and its prophetic ministry in situations where there is no fairness and justice. It was a great time, and I enjoyed discussions about church and state, including with diplomats and former diplomats. I was particularly glad to meet South Africa's High Commissioner and Deputy High Commissioner to New Zealand at the 8am service.

The people were very warm. We may be different in locality, race, and other particulars, but the way we are able to share in worship underscores that the Anglican Communion family is one, among the baptized people of God. We share far more profound similarities than superficial differences. In both worship and fellowship this was evident.

Wellington is a beautiful city, though windy like Port Elizabeth in South Africa. The air strip is surrounded by water on both sides – it reminded me of landing at Port-au-Prince airport, when I visited Haiti after their terrible earthquake. We were all asked to bring back a picture from our Mission Encounter, and write 100 words about our experience for sharing with the ACC plenary on Monday. I took a photograph of the picturesque scene where North and South Islands almost meet, from the hill that overlooks Cook Strait – it is rather like Signal Hill overlooking Table Bay in Cape Town! It was a beautiful sight, and I am grateful to my hosts who took me for a tour after the service and lunch.

This afternoon I travelled back to Auckland and I will now have an early night to bed in readiness for our final week of work. As a preparation for coming down from this ‘mountain top experience’, I am starting to reflect on the weeks ahead, back in Southern Africa. Soon after I return, Lungi and I will go to Swaziland to consecrate our first woman bishop in the Province, Revd Ellinah Wamukoya. Pray for us, and for Ellinah as she takes this enormous responsibility of serving Christ in this new role.

Bishop-Elect of Swaziland

Here is Revd Ellinah Wamukoya, our new Bishop-Elect of Swaziland!

To the Laos - To the People of God, July 2012

Dear People of God

Many of us have enjoyed time with our children during the school holidays, despite the cold and wintry weather! Talking with my own children, and listening to their hopes and aspirations, has again underlined for me the importance of education – both in schools, colleges and university, and nurturing within the family of the church. We are called to be trained in living the Christian life, in following Jesus’ call and example in faithful obedience, in ‘growing in knowledge and love of God and of his Son’, and in reflecting all that God is in Christ for us by his Spirit, in the totality of our lives. In Jesus, the Teacher, we see how we too should teach and mentor those who are young in years or young in the faith: listening to their concerns, carefully explaining, and also giving them ‘parables’ to prompt them to learn for themselves how to apply the principles of faith to the many and varied circumstances of life that come our way.

One of the NGOs with which I am proud to be associated is ‘Equal Education’, which works for quality education to be made available to every South African child. They are one of many bodies working across our Province in this important area. Earlier in July I was privileged to speak at EE’s first ‘Congress’, which marked a new phase as those who launched the NGO bring those whom it is designed to help into consultations about how to focus its work, and into its leadership structures. A wide range of people, including educators and learners, were at this energy-filled gathering.

We should always go forward with hope, despite the many problems within our education systems. It is tragic that there are still schools without adequate buildings or other facilities, and scandals like the delivery of Limpopo’s textbooks. It is also shocking to hear of teachers who turn up late or drunk, or fail their learners in other ways – and then even boast of being protected by their unions against any form of discipline for their inadequacies. But instead of getting downhearted, we should roll up our sleeves and do what we can to make a change for the better. Most of all, we should not lose the vision of educational excellence for every child of our Province. This must be our goal, and we should encourage our societies to insist that we will not settle for anything less.

In all life, if we keep our vision at the heart of our thinking, talking, planning, it will be the magnet that draws us in the direction in which we want and need to go. Behavioural scientists today tell us that to focus on our goals is far more effective than letting what is holding us back dominate our lives and drag us down. This should come as no surprise: St Paul said much the same, in his letter to the Philippians, writing: ‘Whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, let your mind dwell on these things’ (Phil 4:8).

This principle underlies our Provincial vision – our desire that to be a Christian community ‘Anchored in the love of Christ, Committed to God’s Mission, and Transformed by the Holy Spirit.’ Holding the vision before us will help PSC guide our common life, as we meet in September. Do pray for PSC, and consider coming to the Anglicans Ablaze conference in October. For both those who are coming, and those who cannot make it – for ALL of you! – I commend the ACSA Vision and Mission Study Guide produced by Growing the Church, which can be used for a sermon series and in small groups, to help us all explore the rich fruits the Vision promises within our own contexts. The materials can be downloaded at http://www.anglicansablaze.org.

Theological education, for training ordinands, and supporting those already ordained, and lay people too who are the bedrock of so much of the life of the church, is also one of the key priorities in planning for the future. We need to consider our targets, strategies and tactics – learning from the effective approach of Equal Education. I have been heartened by the positive initial response to appeals to support the work of COTT, as well as to local initiatives such as the Archbishop’s Educational Endowment Fund in the Diocese of Cape Town. But strengthening theological education is a long term project, and will need support for many years to come: so, thank you to those who have made donations; and may I encourage many more of you to include this in your giving.

The coming months see 4 elective assemblies: I’ve just returned from Swaziland where Revd Ellinah Wamukoya was elected – the first woman in our Province, indeed in Africa, to be chosen as Bishop! We congratulate her! Please prayer for her as she prepares for this great responsibility. It is particularly apt that Swaziland should take this step, as it was in Swaziland in 1992 that Provincial Synod opened the door to the priesthood and episcopate equally to men and women. There are then elections in the Free State in August, Johannesburg in September, and False Bay in October. These underline the need for ably trained men and women to lead our Province at every level. Please pray for the elective assemblies, and the life of our Dioceses.

As I travel around, I never cease to thank God for the ways in which the priorities we discerned for Provincial action are so often reflected and being implemented in Diocesan life, strengthening the synergies between the various levels of the life of the Province. I’ve just had the delight of sharing with the Diocese of George in their centenary celebrations. Though they have faced serious challenges in recent years, the diocese is alive and building on strong foundations as it moves forward. I congratulate Bishop Brian and his team. I am looking forward to visiting Angola in August.

Please continue to pray for those Dioceses facing difficulties, especially Umzimvubu and Pretoria, as we seek to support them through the careful pastoral frameworks set out in our Canons. I’m happy to say that next year our newly revived Canon Law Society will hold a summit to look at how we can best use the Canons to serve the life of the Church, and consider producing a manual to guide us all. Canons should be our ‘good servants’, supporting prayerful, pastoral discernment, indaba and dialogue, when problems arise. They are not there to promote taking legalistic stances – as St Paul warns the Corinthians (1 Cor 6)! In wider society too, legal battles too often provide answers that divide, rather than building up, communities and nations. I’m therefore glad to be part of the ‘Finding ways to walk together’ initiative that promotes dialogue for handling difficult questions, including race, class, sexuality and so on. We need to maintain the biblical vision of nations united in seeking the good of all, which speak out against corruption and all that demeans us.

Yours in the Service of Christ,

+Thabo Cape Town