[AUDIO] Anglicans pray for Lesotho

Archbishop appeals for prayers for peaceful Lesotho election

Archbishop Thabo Makgoba has appealed for prayers for a peaceful election in Lesotho on Saturday.

The Archbishop will join the Bishop of Lesotho, the Right Revd Adam Taaso, and other church representatives in Lesotho as an election observer.

The delegation will include Bishop Molopi Diseko of Matlosane, Bishop Dintoe Letloenyane of the Free State and four lay members of the church. 

The Diocese of Lesotho is part of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa.

Pastoral Letter from the Synod of Bishops

To the People of God,

When the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought Jesus up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (Luke 2:22)

As your bishops we met at the Glenmore Pastoral Centre in Durban from 2nd to 5th February 2015. As always, our time together was characterised by a rhythm of worship and prayer, word and sacrament, formal meetings and informal fellowship, wrestling with issues, and receiving ongoing training for leadership and ministry.

In our opening Eucharist we commemorated the presentation of Jesus in the temple (Luke 2:22-40), when Simeon recognized and blessed him as the promised Messiah and the prophetess Anna praised God for this child who would bring about the redemption of God’s people.

We are deeply aware of our high calling from God as well as our human frailty. We shared the joys and pains of seeking to live, with our families and in our communities, as disciples of Christ in these challenging times. Our time together was enriched by reflections on Paul’s theology of the body, led by Canon Janet Trisk. This teaching has deep implications for the way we see and relate to one another and how we understand the church. Mr John Brand introduced us to a process of conflict resolution through mediation and began to train us for this ministry.

We recognise that our society, and often the church as well, needs to learn more creative, life-giving ways to resolve conflicts – rather than the destructive, violent and litigious approaches we often experience. We call on all the people of our nations to turn away from violence, abuse and destruction, and to seek constructive ways to address our differences and challenges. We also reject the rampant evil in many parts of the world that kidnaps, massacres and persecutes defenceless people in the name of religion.

Dr Isaias Chachine presented a paper on ethical considerations around death and dying. We  reflected in particular on the excessive amount of money spent on funerals, and the exclusion of some people from funeral services in church are a great concern. We learned of, and condemned, the practices of a funeral parlour that allegedly kidnaps bodies and releases them for burial at prices which are exorbitant for poor families.

We also heard accounts of the suffering as a result of the floods in Mozambique, and each of us committed money from our Dioceses towards relief work there. We invite our people, parishes and organisations to work with Hope Africa or the ACSA Disaster Relief Fund.* We were saddened to hear of renewed conflict and shootings in Lesotho and have written a letter of support and concern to King Letsie III.

Turning to internal church matters, members of the Liturgical Committee led us in a creative and energising workshop to take forward the process of revising the Anglican Prayer Book. We were excited by the working title, Under Southern Skies: In an African Voice. We commended a planned consultation with Diocesan representatives in June this year and the ongoing process in regions. We look forward to the publication of an experimental resource for Sunday worship in the near future.

We also agreed on a way forward for the pastoral guidelines regarding Civil Unions in ACSA, which we now have in draft form. All Dioceses are asked to consider these issues of mission and ministry during 2015 and the first part of 2016. The aim is to present a resolution on them to Provincial Synod in 2016.

We welcomed the arrival of Dr Vicentia Kgabe as Rector of the College of the Transfiguration. We affirmed Theological Education Sunday on 23rd August this year, and encourage all our people to give generously to “the Great Collection” for theological education. As bishops we noted with joy the progress being made by the Anglican Board of Education and the appointment of Mr Roger Cameron as Chief Executive Officer.

We also heard about progress in the training of “Pioneer Ministers” for Mission Shaped Ministry and the development of Fresh Expressions of Church. We will continue to monitor our progress and reflect on our experiences.

We bade farewell to the Bishop of Namibia and confirmed elective assemblies to elect new bishops for the dioceses of the Highveld, Namibia, Natal and Pretoria. We sent our congratulations to Bishop Libby Lane of the Church of England on her consecration as a bishop in the church of God.

Finally, we noted and give thanks for the 25th anniversary of Madiba's release from prison.

We pledged to be God's instruments, as God equips and empowers the Church to be a source of life and healing for the people and nations of Southern Africa.

* Please contact the Treasurer’s office for details of how to donate: terry [ at ] anglicanchurchsa.org.za

Synod of Bishops
February 2015

Statement from the Synod of Bishops meeting at Benoni in the Diocese of the Highveld, 21-24 September 2014

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.  (John 3:16)

To God be the glory:

The Synod of Bishops met for its bi-annual meeting at the Lakes Hotel and Conference Centre, Benoni. Bishop David Bannerman, in his farewell speech to the Synod, aptly described the spirit of this gathering and the past fellowship of the Synod of Bishops as “a place of grace”.  We experienced this sense and God’s redemption as we gathered daily, immersed in worship and prayer and being fed through the Word and Sacraments.  The homilies at the Eucharist each morning, which sought to remind the Synod of our identity in Christ and our vocation as Shepherds in the midst of the ethical challenges of the day were delivered by Bishops Ndwandwe, Wamukoya and Marajh. Steeped in prayer, worship and reflection on Scripture, we were able in love and frankness to confront the pastoral challenges that we are currently experiencing in the Province. 

    We evaluated the minimum canonical qualifications required for ordination. Prof Barney Pityana of the College of the Transfiguration and the Revd Craig Dunsmuir of the Theological Education by Extension (TEE) College provided vital input in this regard and Bishop Peter Lee facilitated this session. 

    Advocate Ronnie Bracks, the Provincial Deputy Registrar, gave an animated presentation on the need for good governance.  John Brand, a South African mediation expert, gave a presentation on mediation and the need to use it as the first resort rather than using mission money on litigation.

    We agreed to establish the Archbishop’s Award for Peace with Justice, in which we will acknowledge people who live and contribute in their communities to the virtues espoused in Micah 6:8:    

    He has told you, O mortal, what is good;
       and what does the Lord require of you
    but to do justice, and to love kindness,
       and to walk humbly with your God?

    We also celebrated the news of Bishop Nathaniel Nakwatumbah being recognised with the Namibian Award for Building Democracy, “First Class”, for building democracy in Namibia.  We bade farewell to Bishop David Bannerman, who retires at the end of 2014.  We will miss his deep, quiet spirituality.  We wish him well in his retirement. 

    We also congratulated Bishop Martin Breytenbach and the Revd Trevor Pearce, as well as the group of volunteers who organised the recent Anglicans Ablaze Conference.  The group from the Diocese of Johannesburg and staff at Bishopscourt were also thanked for their part in organising the visit of the Archbishop of Canterbury and Mrs Welby.  Mrs Lungi Makgoba was acknowledged and thanked for her hospitality when the Archbishop visited our Province.

    Earlier this year, each bishop was given Fr Michael Lapsley’s book, Redeeming the Past, to read.  We spent some time reflecting on the book and how it touched us, helping to deal with our own hurt and pain, either currently or in the past, and to expose these to the loving embrace of Jesus.  This sharing enabled the bishops not to be only cerebral, but “to do” theology through their own personal experiences.

    We prayed for the Mozambique Peace Accord and coming elections as well as the situation in Lesotho.  A number of the bishops, including the Archbishop, will visit Lesotho to offer solidarity with and prayers for Bishop Adam Taaso and the people of Lesotho.  Please hold the bishops in prayer during the visit to Lesotho, scheduled for 1st October 2014.

    The Synod of Bishops expressed its appreciation to Bishop Peter Lee for his leadership of the Anglican Board of Education and the development in this portfolio.  He was acknowledged also for his pivotal role as Chair of the Provincial Trusts Board Management Committee as he hands over the reins to Bishop Brian Marajh.

    Theological Education and the Liturgical Renewal for Transformative Worship initiative remain top priorities for the Synod of Bishops.  We received with joy the news of the appointment of the Ven Dr Vicentia Kgabe as the first woman Rector of the College of the Transfiguration (COTT). We also congratulated Bishop Raphael Hess for the 2013 Theological Education Sunday effort which raised almost R1 million.  In 2015, Theological Education Sunday will be on the 23rd of August.

    A Leadership Conference is planned from 27th-30th October at St Philomena, Durban.  We invite all who are interested in reflecting and planning for leadership development in our Province to attend or contact Fr Duncan Mbonyana at COTT.

    We want to say to all God’s people in the Province, in the midst of the challenges and issues of this mortal life, “Hold onto the Resurrection hope and may the grace of God be revealed through you, wherever you may be.”

    After formally dissolving the Episcopal Synod, the Archbishop burst into song:

    “To God be the glory, great things he has done, so loved he the world that he gave us his Son”.

King Letsie III Renews Family Ties With Bishopscourt

King Letsie III of Lesotho renewed family ties with Bishopscourt going back more than 150 years when he paid a courtesy call on Archbishop Thabo and Mrs Lungi Makgoba in Cape Town on May 2.

He had visited Bishopscourt previously, but said he learned for the first time on this visit that two of his ancestors - the younger sons of King Moshoeshoe I, Tlali and Tsekelo - had studied there. He had known they had been educated in Cape Town, he said, but not that they had been at Bishopscourt.

Tlali and Tsekelo were among the sons and daughters of southern African leaders, among them Maqoma and Sandile of amaRharhabe, who were taken to Cape Town in the late 1850s as part of a project of the British colonial authorities.

They received an education at Bishopscourt in an institution which was first established at the residence of the first Bishop of Cape Town, Robert Gray, and which later became Zonnebloem College in District Six.

According to a history of Zonnebloem College by Janet Hodgson, Gray described the aim of the Cape colonial governor, George Grey, in starting the school as being "That England might exercise, through means of an institution which conferred great benefits upon them, her due influence over the native chiefs around us, and at the same time give a high education to those who are likely to influence the destinies of the various tribes within our reach."

For his part, Robert Gray hoped that the students might become "witnesses for Christ to their fellow-countrymen, and, if we qualify them for the work, as schoolmasters, catechists, and we trust also, even as ordained ministers".

Bishop Gray also said the aim of the initiative had been to bring the students into "contact with the highest intelligence and the most striking proof of England's power, and of the advantages of civilization to be got in this country".

PHOTOS by Shaun Cozett: Top, Archbishop Thabo and King Letsie III; Middle, the Archbishop and the King with Mrs Lungi Makgoba; and the King's delegation with Archbishop and Mrs Makgoba and Bishopscourt chief of staff, the Rev Margaret Heyns.

Sermon at Ha Mojela, Lesotho

This is an edited version of the sermon preached on 10 August 2013 at Makhemeng for the unveiling of the tombstones of Matsoso Samuel and Mamolapo Alice Mojela

Hosea 6: 1-2, Ps 34, 1 Thessalonians 4:14-18, Luke 24:1-8

May I speak in the name of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Thank you, Louisa and Seedy Lette-Mojela, to you and your family, for inviting me to preside here today. Your Majesties, I acknowledge your presence here today, and I extend to you, King Letsie, my congratulations on your recent 50th birthday. I am sure you have endured the singing of ‘Happy Birthday’ many times – but let us do so here again …!

Let me also acknowledge the presence of their excellencies, the South African High Commissioner, the Honourable Minster of Energy, Meteorology and Water Affairs, the Honourable Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, and all other Government figures. I also acknowledge the clergy present – some who have come all the way from Gauteng – and including Bishop Malusi Mpumlwana of the Ethiopian Episcopal Church; as well as our own Dean, and Bishop Adam Taaso, of the Diocese of Lesotho. Bishop Adam, thank you for your kind words of welcome, and to your wife also, for your warm hospitality.

Today we meet to celebrate the holy mysteries together – the sacraments of Baptism and of the Mass or Eucharist. Baptizing these two lovely girls reminds us that we are united with Christ in both his death and resurrection; while the Eucharist gives us a foretaste of the heavenly banquet in which we shall one day share, in all its fullness.

Our context is that we meet in Lesotho, in the village of Ha Mojela and the homestead of Makhemeng. We meet, conscious of wider context of Southern Africa, and the African continent, with all the challenges of poverty and inequality, yet with all its staggering physical beauty, and with all its untapped potential for abundance.

We also meet in the context of our Scripture readings, with the Old Testament lesson in which God, through his prophet reminds us that God’s desire is to intrude into our lives, and bring healing – to us as individuals, to our nations, to our region and continent. His is a message of redemption and hope, no matter what circumstances we find ourselves facing – a message that we too are called to share with others.

As well as baptising these young lives, we are also unveiling the tombstone and the family tree monument. This locates the Mojelas as descendants of the great King Moshoeshoe of the Basotho. Today we also weave the hat that Louisa will wear, as the Anglican Consultative Council’s representative on the Anglican Communion’s Standing Committee. It is the Communion’s highest advisory body, in which I am delighted Southern Africa has a presence – we are grateful to you, Louisa, for taking on this responsibility.

All of this reminds us that our context is part of a far greater context. We are part of those who have worshipped here in years before, and are now at rest, like Louisa’s parents; and we are part of the global family of Anglicans. Baptism has reminded us of our unity with one another, through our shared unity with Christ. In him we are all one, and we are all called to Christ-like living, in our acting, speaking and thinking. And so we recall those who in the past followed Christ’s call, and give thanks for all the good they did here – good that is written not just in epitaphs, but on our hearts.

As we do so, I am reminded of the mysterious men of our gospel reading, often seen as angels, who said to the grieving women ‘Why do you seek the living among the dead?’ They challenge us to ask ourselves, what are we really doing here today? Why do we stand at the grave of those we have loved, and do these things - especially when, though we know that mortal bodies lie here, we are those who ‘look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come’, to quote the words of the creed.

Death is hard for us to grasp. It is hard in two particular ways: first, when someone dies, it is so difficult to comprehend what has happened, how someone so alive can then be not so. Second, it is hard to live without those we love, who have died.

This is why we need our rituals, of funerals, and of the longer process of mourning. Through honouring our dead, and through acknowledging our own sorrows, we become those who do our grieving properly. We become those of whom Jesus says ‘Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.’ We open ourselves to receive God’s comfort, as we bare before him the sadness we have, missing those who have been so much a part of our lives.

Louisa, I never knew your father – though I knew your mother well, from those far off days when I was a mere curate at the Cathedral. I remember her faithfulness, week by week. I remember her straightforward faith – in many ways simple, and yet profound in its depth and strength, through the challenges of life. I remember her through the years since – at your wedding, at your brother’s wedding, at baptisms, at funerals. Indeed, there have been times when I almost wondered whether I had a second job alongside my licensed positions within the church – namely that of the Mojela family’s domestic chaplain!

Yet it is one of the joys of priestly ministry – especially in parish life – to walk with families, through the years. I remember the tiny flat you had in Hillborough, all those years ago. Look how far we have come since! Indeed, when I visited your mother, when she was so frail at the end of her life, she was determined that she should get out of bed for ‘The Archbishop’. But I insisted that for Thabo she should just stay where she was and relax!

It was a joy to minister to her at that time, and to see the strength of her faith. She had walked so closely with Jesus all her life, she knew that she would know him by her side on her final journey. She knew with certainty that, in the end, he would indeed ‘raise her up, to live in his sight’, to take the words of our first reading.

Jesus has conquered death for us. He has overcome everything that tries to separate us from God’s unending love, or from God’s eternal life. He has opened for us the gates of glory.

Therefore, as St Paul wrote to the Thessalonians, in the verse that come just before those we heard read, ‘We do not grieve as others do, who have no hope.’ For we are indeed those who believe that Jesus died and rose again, and that we too, though we die, shall in a similar way be raised – and so we shall one day again be united with those we have loved.

This is our hope today – our sure and certain hope. Yet even so, the mysteries of life and death are hard to grasp. Our heads here the words, but our hearts still tremble at the death of others, at the knowledge of our own mortality – for one day, we too will lie in the ground, and others will gather round.

But God knows our frailties – and he invites us to seek his help, as the Psalmist tells us. He frees us from our fears, by giving us faith in our hearts, and the knowledge of his comforting, strengthening, presence alongside us, no matter what we face in life.

This is why, in the funeral service, we can pray with confidence: ‘Heavenly Father, in your Son Jesus Christ, you have given us a true faith and a sure hope: help us to live as those who believe in the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, and the resurrection to eternal life – and strengthen this faith and hope in us all the days of our life, through Jesus Christ our Saviour. Amen’

This is our prayer today – we believe, but we also ask God to meet us in our unbelief, our doubts, our fears. We cannot see across to the other side of the bridge between life and death – but Jesus has walked it for us, and assures us that it cannot be shaken.

So may he indeed strengthen this faith and hope within us, all our days. Let us grieve those we mourn – but let us do so with grateful thanks for all the love that we shared; and with joyful, certain, hope – that one day we shall indeed be caught up with them to meet the Lord, and so we shall be with him for ever.

And until that day, let us follow Christ faithfully, so that when we in our turn are recalled by our maker, his resurrection values will be remembered in our lives, by family, by friends – and more than that, by the poor, the needy, in whom we serve our Lord; and so be remembered by our Lord himself.

As our funeral service says, ‘I heard a voice from heaven saying “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord henceforth.” “Blessed indeed” says the Spirit “That they may rest from their labours, for their deeds follow them!”’ May it be so for us. Amen

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

Dear People of God

This year is my fifth as Archbishop of Cape Town, and also sees the tenth anniversary of my consecration. All who are able are invited to share in celebrating this decade at a special service in St George’s Cathedral, Cape Town, at noon on 26 May!

Since becoming Metropolitan, I have continually been struck by the wonderful sense of common life shared across the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, and the great distances between us – not just in geography, but in some of the human realities that we experience. I pray we can sustain this sense of togetherness by sharing news from around our church and praying for one another. St Paul wrote in his first letter to the Thessalonians, ‘We always give thanks to God for all of you, and mention you in our prayers …’ (1 Thess 1:2). Let us bear each other up in the same way!

A particularly urgent and important prayer request come from Bishop Adam Taaso, who asks for our intercessions for Lesotho’s elections on 26 May. In recent weeks, there has been a lot of tension within and between different parties, with outbreaks of violence, even murder. The churches are working with others to promote peaceful, free elections, and Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu – himself Bishop of Lesotho from 1976 to 1978 – visited at the end of April. He appealed for an end to violence, and invited all the political parties to sign a pledge to pursue peaceful elections and to respect the results in due course. Please pray that these promises may be kept.

Another topic for prayer is the diocesan synods of Namibia and Port Elizabeth, on 24-26 May. May they be times of fellowship, planning and renewing diocesan vision and mission, and also of commitment to mutual accountability in the things of God.

Our most distant Diocese is the mid-Atlantic Island of St Helena. Last month Bishop Richard Fenwick and his wife Jane spent a morning at Bishopscourt. They were on their way to the UK, for well-earned holiday, as well as a busy programme of visits to congregations and others who support the Diocese. Jane – whose birthday it was – showed us a wonderful slide show of Island life, and Bishop Richard spoke about the church’s priorities. Work is due to begin soon on St Helena’s first airport, and this will mean major changes to nearly every aspect of Island life. Building work will bring a large influx of workers, and further challenges will follow when it opens, making travel and tourism to and from St Helena far easier. Please keep ‘the Saints’ in your prayers.

One of the joys of travelling around the Province and meeting Anglicans is that again and again I feel my heart lifting, as we recognise one another not only as brothers and sisters in Christ, but as sharing something very special within the family of ACSA. It is a precious, holy, gift, to know that we belong together, held in the embrace of God’s steadfast love. It is as if well-springs of joyful encouragement overflow when we meet – an encouragement that strengthens and inspires us, whatever challenges we face.

Yet meeting together over such big distances is difficult and expensive. This is why Provincial Synod is held every three years, with Provincial Standing Committee in intervening years; and though all Dioceses are represented, only relatively few people participate. So we must ensure ACSA ‘meets’ in other, more comprehensive, ways, and nurture our fellowship in Christ, and partnership in the gospel. These letters are one way of contributing to this goal. Social media can also help, like my Facebook page (‘Archbishop Thabo Makgoba’) and blog (http://archbishop.anglicanchurchsa.org) and there are other FB pages for Provincial organisations, as well as Dioceses, Parishes and other groups. Please use what you can, and, whatever else, do pray!

But while all these are great for sharing news, they are not so good for in-depth reflection or debate. So let me first commend Southern Anglican: through its pages ACSA members can offer views on important questions that face the church, or face us as Christians engaging with the world around. Please do take the initiative to contact to the editor, Revd Loraine Tulleken, offering pieces for publication. This is our magazine, open to all, so let’s make it work by addressing what matters to us most, in its pages.

Second, I invite you all to join me at the Anglicans Ablaze Conference, ‘A Generation Rising Up’, from 3 to 6 October, in Johannesburg. With the backing of the Synod of Bishops, and supported by Growing the Church, this conference will help us celebrate together and explore more deeply our Provincial Vision – that we are ‘Anglicans who ACT: Anchored in the love of Christ, Committed to God’s mission, Transformed by the Holy Spirit’. For more information, contact GtC on office@growingthechurch.org.za or 021 712 0408, or see www.anglicansablaze.org. I look forward to meeting many of you there. If you cannot come in person, please ‘be present’ by praying. And whether you can come or not, I encourage your parish to follow the 6-week sermon series, with material for Bible studies, on the Vision and Mission Statement. Download this at www.growingthechurch.org.za/events.aspx.

Last month Lungi and I and our daughter Pabi were in London, where I preached at St Martin in the Fields at a service celebrating the silver wedding of Pabi’s godmother, Tricia Sibbons and her husband Douglas Board. We got to know Tricia when she was a warden at St Martins, which has historic links with St Marys’ in the City Cathedral, Johannesburg, where I was curate. Tricia was the first Director of the Trevor Huddleston Memorial Centre, and now chairs its Board. She and Douglas arranged for me to address a group of London lawyers and business people, challenging them not just to help such initiatives by donations, but to use their influence to change the politico-economic systems that continue to place politics and profits before people and planet.

I was able to pursue the same argument a fortnight later at the World Economic Forum Africa Summit in Addis Ababa, where I was a panel speaker in sessions on ‘Fostering Political Stability’ and ‘The Future Role of Civil Society’. Please keep praying that such opportunities continue to arise for me to make the voice of the church heard, promoting gospel values, moral living, and priorities that reflect God’s justice, among those who shape how our world is run. They need to hear the clear message that the current world order creates poverty, damages the planet, and puts all our futures in jeopardy. I have asked Prof Gerald West to compile Bible studies for 2013 to help us reflect theologically on economics. I am also working to promote initiatives that particularly help tackle youth unemployment – I shall say more about these next month.

Scripture says, ‘Let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another … ’ (Heb 10:24-5). Let us work hard at doing this, in person, and in prayer.

Yours in the Service of Christ,

+Thabo Cape Town

The Kay Barron Address - Anglican Women's Fellowship

This address was delivered on 21 October at the biennial Anglican Women's Fellowship Provincial Council Meeting, which was held from 18 to 24 October 2010 in Lesotho.

Dear sisters in Christ of the Anglican Women’s Fellowship; dear Bishop Taaso, our host; dear Bishop Bethlehem, the outgoing Chaplain; dear President of the Mothers Union; dear Mrs Vidal, our Australian link; dear clergy and dear freinds – it is a privilege to deliver this Kay Barron Address. Let me express my thanks for the invitation, and for the joy of participating in this Provincial Council Meeting – as well as my wider appreciation for all that the AWF is and does.

Ray [Overmeyer] – particular thanks to you, as you end your term as Provincial President. During your time in office, the AWF has grown and strengthened across the Province, and expanded its activities in a great variety of ways. Thank you for your leadership, and thank you also for your openness to learn and grow, in knowledge and love of God, through your experiences and the challenges you have faced. We wish you every blessing in whatever you turn your energies to next – and we also pray for God to bless and strengthen and guide your successor as she takes up the reins of office. Our prayers are with you, Pumla [Titus-Madiba] as you take on this new role. And let me also offer my thanks to the whole AWF Executive, in all you have done for our Province. Thank you also to Lucille [Henneker], Provincial Secretary, who does so much for the AWF. To Pumla I also offer my particular gratitude for organising the complicated travel arrangements not only to bring me to Maseru but also to get me from here to our brand new Diocese of Mbashe for their very first elective assembly, which begins tomorrow morning. Please do keep them in your prayers as they choose their first bishop.

Whenever I prepare to speak at an event like this, one of the first things I do is go to the lectionary, and see what readings are given for the day. It is remarkable how often the set passages of Scriptures offer some key insight into whatever the occasion might be, and so set me thinking about what God might be calling me to say within that setting. God certainly richly blessed and guided the work of the lectionary compilers. Yet when it came to preparing for this address I was at first a little bit taken aback. For today’s gospel reading, from Luke 12:49-53, speaks of Jesus having come to bring division, ‘mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’. It is hardly the sort of ethic which the AWF seeks to promote!

So then I turned to the other passage set for the Eucharist, from the letter to the Ephesians, Chapter 3, verses 14 to 21. It includes a wonderful prayer of St Paul to his readers. I’m sure you will recognise it. Let me read it to you:

For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name. I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love. I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. (14-19)

It is as if St Paul is just overcome, right in the middle of his letter, with an overflowing love for his readers, and cannot help bursting into this beautiful prayer for them. As I read it, it seemed to me also to be a beautiful prayer for the AWF, with its strong resonances with your own aims: of prayer and worship; fellowship and study; mission and witness; and service and stewardship.

Our Context – God’s Call

What I want to do this morning, is to look at the wider context in which you live out these aims – painting a fuller picture of the life of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, and especially as it now stands following our Provincial Synod at the beginning of the month. As you know, the question of a vision has occupied our hearts and minds for some time – and I am also aware that you have already done some work in reflecting on synergies between the AWF’s priorities and those of the wider Province. But let me reflect on where we are now, and how we might go forward from here, now that, at Provincial Synod last month, we affirmed the Vision we believe the Lord is putting before us.

The Vision

The Vision is threefold, as Bishop Bethlehem said last night, and as was stated in the President’s Report. First, we are to be Anchored in Christ – as revealed to us in Holy Scripture. Jesus Christ alone is Saviour and Lord, the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. It is not naïve to say that, to a very great degree, Jesus truly is the answer to all our central questions of life: whether we live in rural Mozambique or inner city Johannesburg. In Christ, our diverse Province finds its unity and identity. For if you are ‘in Christ’ and I am ‘in Christ’, then it is inevitable that we are members together of his body, the Church.

Second, we are Committed to God’s mission. Whatever God calls us to do and be, our answer should be ‘Here am I, send me; here we are, send us.’ Third, we are to be Transformed by the Spirit. Through our openness, our willingness, to be transformed, God will equip and empower us to embody and proclaim the message of his redemptive hope and healing for all people and for creation.

Anchored in Christ; Committed to God’s Mission; Transformed by the Spirit. A, C, T – in other words, ‘Anglicans ACT’. When I look at the AWF, and your track record, I know that this is certainly true. Throughout the time that I have had knowledge of the AWF, I have always been struck by your practicality and your professionalism – always ready to take concrete action to tackle specific problems and provide tangible solutions. Thank you, AWF, that you are such an example to us all of what it means to be Anglicans who ACT!

The Mission Statement

Alongside our Vision, we also have a Mission Statement – and this too is threefold. Well, it is well-known that Anglicans love the Trinity! The Mission Statement says this:

Across the diverse countries and cultures of our region, we seek:

• First, to honour God in worship that feeds and empowers us for faithful witness and service

• Second, to embody and proclaim the message of God’s redemptive hope and healing for people and creation

• And third, to grow communities of faith that form, inform, and transform those who follow Christ

Like the AWF, we start with prayer and worship – for all of life must be lived in grateful response to God who first created and then redeemed us. And it is this which feeds and strengthens us so we can live the life to which we are called: a life of faithful mission and witness, service and stewardship – as the AWF would put it.

We are seeking to live out this through eight key themes, committing ourselves at Provincial level to the following priorities: Liturgical renewal for transformative worship; theological education and formation; leadership development; health, including HIV and AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis; the environment; women and gender; protection and nurture of children and young people; and public advocacy. Two further themes – transformation, and holistic mission rooted in a full commitment to evangelism – run through and undergird all these, rather than being matters to address separately. We must also keep in mind the imperatives of justice and reconciliation, gender equality, poverty, and youth.

It is important to stress that all this is for us to do at Provincial level. The Vision, Mission Statement, and priorities are to be placed alongside those of dioceses and parishes. They are not intended to displace them, nor to impose any framework ‘from above’ on the grass-roots life of our Church. Rather, they identify issues that are best addressed at Provincial level, to encourage, strengthen, and support what is being done in these areas at parish and diocesan level. For we know that each Diocese has its own particular context, its own challenges, and therefore its own priorities for tackling these, according to the grace and calling of God. It is not the role of the Province to tell Dioceses what to do. But it is our job to support them, across this whole diversity – sharing in common what can be done at that level, even if the particular expression of each theme finds different form according to specific context.

And I am sure that this is a very similar approach to that which you follow – sharing principles across the Province, but acting locally in accordance with particular tasks on the ground. This is very clear, from reading the Report that was submitted to Provincial Synod, with its references to prison ministry; to skills development; to caring for the aged; to addressing the needs of those infected or affected by HIV and AIDS, or of child-headed households, or of voluntary testing and counselling – and much more besides.

Looking Ahead

What we shall be doing now is preparing for a formal launch of the whole Vision process. The ideas for this are still very much at an initial stage, but we are also looking at making 30 November – the feast of St Andrew, the patron saint of mission – a day for the whole church to focus on the Vision, and how it can be used to strengthen our common life, and our faithfulness to God’s call. We shall also be appointing task teams, where they do not already exist, to take forward the work in each of the eight areas, in line with strategies affirmed at Synod. So let me turn now to these eight priority themes, and offer some initial reflections on how I see them connecting with the AWF.

Liturgical renewal for transformative worship

As with the Vision and the Mission statement, and as with the aims of the AWF, liturgy and worship is always our starting point. Now is the appropriate time to say a tremendous thank you to you, Bishop Bethlehem, for your time as Chaplain to the AWF. Your deep desire that we should all live in faithful obedience, with holiness of life, is always both a challenge and an encouragement to us all, and we are deeply grateful for all you have done. So now I hand the AWF into the care of Bishop Ossie.

We must not underestimate the importance of liturgy and worship, for, unless we faithfully uphold daily Morning and Evening prayer, unless we root ourselves in Scripture, unless we feed regularly on the body and blood of Christ, unless we rely only and always upon God’s leading and God’s strengthening, we are no better than any secular organisation. For even in tasks of compassionate practical service, our calling is to be channels of the transcendent power of God: his healing, his hope, his redemption, to his world. Only those who are truly Anchored in his love, and Committed to his mission, can be agents of his Transforming promises.

Theological Education and Formation; Leadership Development

Our second theme is theological education and formation – closely echoing the AWF’s second aim of fellowship and study – and our third, leadership development. In both ordained and lay life, we must nurture not only people with academic understandings of theology, but who can model the Christian life – growing and maturing in faith, applied in ethical living throughout society, at home and work, in every area. We need people who can be mentors of the next generation, both within the church, and within wider society.

Organisations such as the AWF, with so many of your members across all walks of life, truly have remarkable opportunities to be God’s salt and light in the world – in government and the public sector, in business, in the media, in schools, colleges and academia, in civil society – as well as throughout the very varied communities from which you each come. And where we do not provide you with the theological and spiritual resources to be that salt, that light, in the contexts within which you find yourselves, you must challenge us to do better! Input like this will help our task teams focus their efforts where they are most needed.

I am reminded of a challenge I once offered to the AWF in Grahamstown Diocese. One Ash Wednesday, without much thinking about it beforehand, I proposed that each member save up one rand a day for the whole of Lent. Well, I rather forgot about it – until a considerable sum of money was handed over, and the Bishop Thabo Makgoba Bursary Fund was set up. I thank the AWF for your own bursary fund and the support it gives to women ordinands. We have now supported 3 or perhaps 4 women through training at COTT. This is a very practical way of supporting theological education and formation, as well as leadership development within the church. Perhaps other Diocesan groups would like to consider similar initiatives.

Health, including HIV and AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis

Our fourth theme is health – and, as Provincial Synod pointed out, this is not just a matter of HIV and AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis. There are other issues which also are of great concern, including, for example, diabetes and obesity.

A fortnight ago, I was privileged to co-host with Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, the South African Minister for Health, a Conference on Religion and Public Health. Our concern was to look at ways that the faith communities can support government – both here and elsewhere in Southern Africa – in tackling the huge health burden, especially in relation to primary health care. It is not our job to do governments’ work for governments – but, as Dr Motsoaledi readily admitted, the task is too great for governments alone.

When it comes to primary health care, education is key. Too often communities are sadly ignorant about basics, including the essentials of hygiene and nutrition. Faith communities have a reach across communities that I am sure governments envy – and our ability to communicate with people can be harnessed to ensure that such information is readily shared, though we must ensure that we too, clergy and people, are well-informed. We have worked hard at this in relation to HIV and AIDS – ensuring people, including young people, have access to the facts, and know how to share them persuasively. Through the Siyakha and Siyafundisa programmes, we have trained large numbers of adults and young people – perhaps, with the completion of these programmes, that training can be put to us, and redirected to broader primary health concerns. Whether from pulpit or pews, we need to ‘gossip the gospel, the good news, of good health practices’!

The Environment

The environment is our fifth theme. We cannot effectively care for God’s people if we do not care for God’s planet, our environment. We need to do this ‘top down’ and ‘bottom up’. By top down, I mean taking every opportunity to encourage governments and decision-makers to act boldly, decisively, committedly. Next year South Africa will host ‘COP-17’, that is, the 17th Conference of the Parties of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. It is the world’s opportunity to rise to the challenges before us – we truly cannot afford to do otherwise. And as hosts, South Africa must give a strong lead. South Africans must persuade our leaders to have the courage to do so. Dear sisters in Christ, please take whatever opportunities come your way, to speak persuasively about this.

I also look to you to give a lead in the ‘bottom up’ activity. I am afraid I must admit that around my house, around my office, and when I see what is happening in churches, it is the women who are making the difference. You spot things that I just fail to see – and I am sure that far too many other men do the same! Saving paper, changing light-bulbs [globes], recycling more than just the obvious items: you have an eye, and imagination, for these things. Make us men do them – in churches, in work-places, as well as in homes.

I hope you know about Mary Honeybun. She discovered that the tiny plastic tag that seals a bag of bread can be recycled, so she started collecting them and getting friends to collect them. It takes 270kg of tags – about 800,000 – to raise enough money to buy a wheelchair. But the network she initiated has bought over 30 wheelchairs – and others are now doing the same elsewhere in the country. Everyone who buys bread can join in! Of course, we must also think much more laterally to avoid creating waste for recycling, to avoid using energy and resources, in the first place. My belief is that society must pay more attention to women in this, since, in so many walks of life, in the home and beyond, it is you who are the ‘hands on’ people, with a practical eye for what can and ought to be done.

Women and gender

Sixth on our list – though we stress that they are in no order of priority – comes women and gender. As I said at Provincial Synod, women constitute the majority in our pews, but the reverse is true at every level of leadership, lay and ordained. We wholeheartedly passed a motion calling for the church to ‘do better’! You may have seen that I let slip when I gave my charge, ad libbing from my written text, that one of my dreams is to consecrate a woman bishop for our Province – and I got a round of applause! But I am also concerned about gender equality throughout our church and our countries, at every level. We are particularly blessed that so many women make a disproportionate contribution, as individuals, lay and ordained, and through bodies like your own, and also of course, the Mothers’ Union. I hope that stronger, complimentary synergies can be developed between the MU and AWF.

I am very glad that we have now established the Gender Desk, and we welcome Revd Cheryl Bird. Please note that it is a Gender desk, not a Women’s desk. The roles of men and women alike, of every culture, were distorted by apartheid. We need to develop appropriate spiritualities for us all, for contemporary living – that are also channels of healing for the legacies of our brutalising history. At Synod I challenged the St Bernard Mizeki Guild and the Church Men’s Society to fresh reflection on what it means to be a Christian man in today’s world – especially in being actively part of the solution, to the unacceptably high levels of violence, against women and children. But I also challenge you to consider your part also, in developing contemporary spiritualities for all of us as ‘people of God’: where each individual man and woman can freely be themselves, with gender just one part of their make up and one with which we are all at ease; and a wholesomeness in our relations with ourselves and one another.

Protection and nurture of children and young people

Healthy adult spiritualities and emotional lives requires healthy raising of young people – and protection and nurture of children and young people is our seventh theme. In developing the Vision process we became conscious that we must deliberately focus not only on what we do within church, but also the care of children throughout our communities.

Preparing for Synod, I discovered that, globally, about a quarter, 27%, of the world’s population is aged 15 or under. Within ACSA, though that figure is only 19% in St Helena, elsewhere it ranges from 32%, about a third, in South Africa, rising to 46%, close to a half, in Angola. This underlines how vital their care is. Children are not merely the church of tomorrow, they are the church of today. We have challenged the Task Teams to take account of their work, in relation to young people, across the board.

Public advocacy

Finally, public advocacy – the face of the church in the world, especially in how we speak truth to power, and work so that society, government, can be as godly, as wholesome as is possible. Our calling is to help create the right conditions so that every individual, every child of God, should have the opportunity to experience the ‘life in abundance’ which Jesus came to bring. We promote good governance, honesty, transparency, justice, and the highest ethical standards, in every area of society – not only in the public sector, but across all areas of business and economics, and through civil society.

This is both the formal task of the Church – not least in the conversations, speeches and other opportunities that I and other bishops are afforded – and the task of Christian individuals in every walk of life. William Temple, Archbishop of Canterbury as the Second World War began, some 70 years ago, wrote powerfully about how ‘nine-tenths’ of this shaping of society would be done not by clergy but by Christian men and women through their daily lives. Many of you do this – perhaps unconsciously – through your own lives and work. The AWF as a whole does it also at many levels – including through Pumla’s participation in the International Anglican Women’s Network, which itself is an influential player at a global level, for example through some of the UN women’s bodies. Even last week, I understand, the Network was circulating a petition to put pressure on the UN Security Council to ensure that Resolution 1325, passed ten years ago should be implemented – a resolution that called for women’s full and equal participation in all elements of peace-keeping, and for greater efforts to prevent sexual violence in conflicts. Given the history of our region, we know how important this is. With South Africa now elected again to the UN Security Council, we have new opportunities to press for them to play a leading, constructive, role in this and other areas, and can harness the leverage of our international contacts to do so.

A Closing Challenge

Let me end with a challenge that relates to public advocacy in a rather more practical way, as well as to other themes which I have discussed. What legacy will this Provincial Council Meeting leave in Lesotho? It is a country of dire needs, as the Prime Minister acknowledged yesterday – in relation to poverty, in relation to health, especially HIV and AIDS. What can you do to make a lasting difference? Perhaps – and here is a ‘healing of gender relations’ idea! – you might partner with the Brothers of the SSM House, in some project. Perhaps you might sponsor a farm in a parish – channelling assistance through Hope Africa, to buy seeds, fertilizers, and so forth; and to hire a tractor once or twice a year as necessary. Perhaps in this way you can help the church in helping people to meet their own nutritional needs. Such a visible sign of commitment can also be an effective form of public advocacy – challenging others to ‘go and do likewise’ instead of ‘passing by on the other side’, to use the words of Jesus’ parable of the good Samaritan, and what it means to love our neighbours as ourselves.

So, dear sisters in Christ – I have spoken for long enough! May God bless you all in the years ahead, as you encourage women of God everywhere to ‘rejoice, revive, relate’ – through lives of prayer and worship; fellowship and study; mission and witness; and service and stewardship. Let me finish with the last two verses from St Paul’s glorious prayer in his letter to the Ephesians (3:20-21): ‘Now, to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, for ever and ever. Amen.

To the Laos - To The People of God, October 2010

Dear People of God

At the end of September over two hundred Anglicans gathered in the spring sunshine in Benoni for our triennial Provincial Synod. The shortened mid-term school break meant finding a new venue for our gathering, and we were certainly not disappointed by the generous hospitality (though well within budget, which pleased our Treasurer!) offered by the Kopanong Conference Centre. Its name means ‘place of meeting’ in seSotho, and it lived up to its billing as a wonderful spot to ‘come away together’ to seek the Lord’s will for our Church.

The tone was set for our meeting with our first reading at the opening Eucharist. This was taken from Habakkuk, 2:1-4, and included these words:

I will keep watch to see what the Lord will say to me … Then the LORD answered and said: Write the vision; make it plain on tablets ... for there is still a vision for the appointed time.

Thanks be to God, who indeed gave us a strong sense that the time had come to take forward the Vision towards which we have been working, during the last two years. After discussions in Conference working groups and debate in Synod plenary, the Vision and Mission Statement were endorsed, together with outline strategies for the eight priority themes (liturgical renewal; theological education; leadership formation; health, including HIV and AIDS, TB and malaria; the environment; women and gender; protection and nurture of children and young people; public advocacy). As we take these forward, one key tasks is to ‘make it plain’, communicating clearly how initiatives by the Province can support and encourage the priorities of Dioceses and Parishes. Synod invited us to give particular focus to the Vision on 30 November, the Feast of St Andrew, Patron Saint of Mission. Watch this space!

Of course, many other issues were discussed and motions passed. Reports of these have been posted on the ACSA website, where you will also find the statement from the Synod of Bishops meeting that preceded Provincial Synod, the full text of my Charge, and also the sermons that the Revd Sarah Rowland Jones preached at our morning Eucharists, which helped set the tone for each day’s agenda (see www.anglicanchurchsa.org). The full motions will also shortly be posted there.

These ranged from long-standing concerns for greater equality for women in the Church (there was enthusiastic support when the hope was expressed that we might see our first women bishops by the time we next meet in three years time – and disappointment that this has not yet happened, though we passed enabling legislation in 1992), through to urgent issues, including political reform in Swaziland; the long border delays for people from Lesotho entering South Africa; and the housing situation and apparent excessive violence at Hangberg in Cape Town – where we called for a judicial commission of enquiry. We also called for members of the South African parliament to vote with their consciences, should the Protection of Information Bill be brought before them, noting that free access to information is a vital foundation of democracy.

One important decision was the initial adoption of the Anglican Covenant, though this will require ratification at our next Provincial Synod for the process to be completed. As I said in my Charge, this is not a perfect document, but it certainly offers a way of affirming our desire to live together as Provinces, within our global family; a means of getting the balance right through an autonomy that is neither imposed uniformity, nor unbounded independence. My prayer is that we will now be able to share our unique experiences of letting Christ hold us together in difference, within the life of the Covenant, and help it to work as well as possible.

Reflecting the ‘bonds of affection’ that bind Anglicans together, we offered our support and prayers to Anglicans in Zimbabwe, and sent congratulations to the Anglican Church in Nigeria on their country’s 50th anniversary of independence as well as expressing shock at the bomb blasts there.

It was a great joy to have Bishop Jean-Zaché Duracin of Haiti join us both for the meeting of the Synod of Bishops and Provincial Synod. I hope that we can build on our links with his Diocese in the long, long journey of reconstruction that lies ahead of them. I am glad to report that we are establishing partnership links between schools, and have agreed to train a Haitian cleric for 3 years at COTT and a further year at the Anglican House of Studies.

It was also my privilege to invest Dr Mamphela Ramphele as a Member of the Order of Simon of Cyrene. Addressing Synod, she spoke of the radical brokenness which still characterises much of South African society – words that resonated with my own Charge reference to the brutalising effect of apartheid, including on those who were conscripted. This led to a very moving debate and Synod motion on tackling the effects, and bringing healing, to all who were involved or impacted in any way by conscription. We shall be looking carefully at how we address the emotional scars of having to bear arms, which so many people of every background across our churches, across our Province, still carry.

While we were not afraid to tackle some of the taboos of today’s society, we also took time to relax and get to know one another better across the rich diversity of our Province. We did more than just ‘break bread’ together in the Moshate Restaurant – its name means ‘royal house’ in sePedi, and we dined like minor kings and queens at the excellent buffets. And after long days of work, almost equally long discussions into the night were held, by some at least, in the Imbizo Bar! It was a time of great joy and laughter, sharing in our common life.

Our heartfelt thanks go to Bishop David Bannerman and to the Diocese of the Highveld for their warm and generous hospitality; to all of the Administrative Team and everyone else who worked unstintingly behind the scenes; and especially to our Kopanong hosts.

Most of all, we thank God for his blessing upon us, and his promises to prosper our work, as we seek to follow his will in his world. To him be the praise and the glory!

Yours in the Service of Christ

+Thabo Cape Town

Anglican Church Protests at Long Delays at Lesotho/South Africa Borders

The Anglican Church of Southern Africa has called for an end to the long delays which travellers at South African border posts with Lesotho have been experiencing since the World Cup earlier this year.

The Church’s triennial Provincial Synod said in a resolution passed at a meeting in Benoni that that “the people of Lesotho have since the World Cup 2010 suffered greatly at… borders due to exceptionally long queues averaging five hours.” The synod asked Archbishop Thabo Makgoba to facilitate a meeting between South African and Basotho leaders to resolve the issue.

The full text of the resolution read:

THAT THIS SYNOD,

NOTING

1. That the people of Lesotho have since the World Cup 2010 suffered greatly at the Lesotho / South African borders due to exceptionally long queues averaging 5 hours;

2. That this practice is having adverse effects on the lives of people on both sides of the border;

RESPECTFULLY REQUESTS the Metropolitan kindly to facilitate a meeting between the President of South Africa and the Prime Minister of Lesotho and their respective Ministers of Home and Foreign Affairs to discuss the matter and reach an amicable solution.