Dear People of God
I am writing this letter after a prayer vigil on the steps of St George’s Cathedral, Cape Town, where a number of clergy, laity and bishops, including Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, retired Bishop Geoff Quinlan and Bishop Garth Counsell of Table Bay, joined us for a memorable occasion.
We stood in silence for 30 minutes, the clergy among us wearing our cassocks, holding flowers and posters. This was because the Cathedral had advertised the vigil under the banner, “A Flower for Thuli, A Message for the President”, referring to the South African Public Protector, Thuli Madonsela, and her recently-released report on the upgrades to President Jacob Zuma’s private residence at Nkandla.
Our placards called on the President to respond to the Public Protector’s report, and on the public to defend our “Chapter 9” institutions, the independent institutions set up under the South African Constitution to guard democracy.
Following this quiet demonstration, we all went into the cathedral to pray. This is what I shared with those gathered in the Cathedral:
Ladies and gentleman, bishops here present, including Emeritus Arch and clergy from the dioceses of the Western Cape,
We have gathered again on the steps of St George’s Cathedral in the footsteps of our predecessors who stood here in the apartheid era. We gather to say that some things are pulling us apart as a nation and we are pained.
In my letter of invitation to come to this prayer vigil, I said let us gather as Church in its broadest sense for a vigil, to pray that the Public Protector be herself protected by all progressives in the religious and NGO sectors and by all freedom-loving citizens; and also that the President, Parliament and the executive should implement in full all the steps which Adv. Madonsela has recommended in her report.
I requested that we gather in vigil and prayer to ask – in the spirit of Lent, in deep prayer and reflective concern – for the President and Parliament to report in full to the nation on precisely how they will give effect to the Public Protector’s recommendations.
Now as we reflect in vigil and prayer, I want to aid your reflections and actions by posing just a few questions instead of a long speech,especially as it is lunch time and some of you need to go back to work:
1. Acknowledging all the political, social and moral conversations and judgments that have taken place inside and outside the country, what can we as a society in South Africa learn from the Public Protector’s courage?
2. How has the Public Protector’s report helped ring a bell to the importance of our national values?
3. Since our values should guide every decision made by our Government leaders, and our historic Constitution clearly articulates our national values, what can our Government leaders learn from the flawed decisions that apparently didn’t consider our national values?
4. And lastly, when so many in our communities around our country are asking me, “Archbishop, what should the President do?” I tell them that our President must ask himself, “From the perspective of the 50 million South Africans that I lead, what do our national values suggest for me? What have I learned from the Public Protector’s exceptionally thorough and historic work? How can I more effectively model the values-based decisions that our Constitution clearly and unmistakably tells us?”
The President must do what is in our nation’s best interests.
As a spiritual leader, putting my hand on President Zuma’s shoulder, I say, “What do you have to do to bring our country together at this critical point in our democratic history? What do you have to do to create a renaissance in trust?”
So, dear friends, we have seen the swimming pool, the amphitheatre, chicken runs and cattle culvert – now my appeal is that those that surround the President, as a collective, must take responsibility and tell us they will lead us to the truth.
Also my yearning is for a more concerted effort by the entire faith-based and non-governmental organization community not so much to defend the Public Protector as an individual as to defend the rights of the public – which rights are in fact being protected by the Public Protector – and the integrity of the office of the Public Protector.
Furthermore, South Africans cannot be hoaxed into believing that a Government which erred so seriously can investigate itself. Let us then have the moral courage required at this moment to rise up and support the call for the public’s right to know and take responsibility for making our democracy work.
In that spirit and with renewed courage, I now pray:
Lord, God of Hope,
Restore our brokenness and torn fabric
Heal our divisions and our land
But please begin with me.
Amen
Turning to other matters this month, our Province’s Media Committee has reported that the number of subscriptions to our colour magazine, Southern Anglican, is down, raising the gloomy prospect of having to close the publication if we cannot reverse this trend. I encourage all Anglicans to subscribe to the magazine, which – as a place for sharing news and views – is the only general print publication we still have which reflects our identity as a Province.
And now let me end this letter to you by thanking Bishop Dinis Sengulane of Lebombo for his ministry in our Province and Communion, over 38 years as a bishop and 40 as a priest. Bishop Dinis epitomizes the moral courage and great humility that is missing in most of our leaders. May you have a blessed retirement, Bishop Dinis, and be freed to do the things which you would love to do most in service to the world and your country, Mozambique. Thank you for your courage and belief that God in Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit is always ahead of us, whatever we face. May this message resonate in all our faithful this Easter and for evermore.
As we continue to be conduits of peace with justice, I pray that the Risen Lord, whose passion, death and resurrection we will celebrate at this time and always, will renew our strength and make us fly on wings like an eagle even as we offer ourselves in service for the common good.
I send you all season’s greetings, proclaiming that we can move from the passion of an Nkandla to the glorious resurrection of Easter by declaring: Christ is Risen!
God bless you,
+Thabo
Monday, 31 March 2014
Wednesday, 19 March 2014
Address to Graduates of the College of the Transfiguration
An address to the Graduation of the College of the Transfiguration, delivered at the Cathedral of St Michael and St George, Grahamstown, on March 19, 2014:
Lessons: Sirach 1:1-10; Psalm 19; and Matthew 28:16-20
I greet you all in the name of God, Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer. Amen.
Dean of the Province and Chair of Council, Bishop Rubin, members of Council, the Rector, the Revd Canon Pityana, staff and students, the Bishop of Grahamstown and other bishops present at this historic milestone in the life of our Province and the College, graduates, your family members, invited guests, ladies and gentleman: Greetings!
What an honor and privilege it is to be here as Visitor of Cott to speak at this graduation ceremony and at the Inauguration of the college as it begins a new life as a duly registered higher education institution and with an accredited qualification. As a teacher and pastor who is striving to be a theologian one day, this is one of the greatest moments in my archiepiscopal journey. I just want to say out loud, "Give thanks to the Lord, for he is gracious and ever faithful. He has carried us over the years and during the application phase and he will carry us into the future.” Today, we come together to celebrate and rejoice at God's wonderful mercies.
So, thank you’s are the correct place to start this address, which after all is about gratitude and a deep sense of appreciation. Let me start with you, Professor Pityana, for your robust leadership, your pragmatic spirituality and your reckless belief in God's purposes for you and the church. Without your firm hope and love for this church as well as your courage to affirm and yet to challenge, we could not have arrived at this milestone. When I approached Prof during a rugby match at Orlando Stadium shortly after your retirement from Unisa, I said the task would take a year to complete and was embarrassed that I didn’t even have a stipend to pay you. Your humility, especially against the backdrop of what others were offering you at the time, and your acceptance of this life of sacrifice and poverty, have stayed with me. I am eternally grateful for your role and hope to learn from it too. Thanks also for our friendship and those emails or SMS interventions that always come at the appropriate time.
The task has taken longer than I anticipated, and each time you have raised the succession debate, I have pleaded that I am not numerate and asked you, “Why are you raising the issue in your first year?” – even if it was your third year! In this way I have avoided the fact that one day I will have to face the prospect of appointing a successor to you. Thank you, Barney and Dimza, for serving the college, this city and the Province with such distinction. Thank you, Prof and your staff in your various capacities for enabling Cott to arrive at this stage. In my Charge to the 2013 Provincial Synod, I said that it is my dream that Cott should eventually be an Anglican university, dare I add that I pray it will happen sooner rather than later. Please join me in applauding Prof Pityana for his efforts.
To the Council, the Executive and the Chair of Council and all our benefactors, partners and students who make this institution succeed, thank you and please continue to be ambassadors of Cott, especially as it enters this new and untrodden path for the ACSA. We are writing church history and I hope someone will research and publish an account of this new phase of our witness and service to both church and society. May this place be a well from which we can draw true wisdom and where many will be formed to be sent to all nations to make disciples of them.
In our self-understanding of our identity as ACSA, we share publicly our vision that we seek to be:
Anchored in the love of Christ,
Committed to God's Mission, and
Transformed by the Holy Spirit.
We further commit in our mission statement that we will heed the Matthean command to grow communities of faith that form, inform, and transform those who follow Christ. In our list of stated priorities, we unpack how we propose to do this at Provincial level by identifying seven priority areas. There, theological education is second only to liturgical renewal for transformative worship. In fact, if you look at all the priorities, they boil down to the theological formation of all members of ACSA.
I can thus paraphrase today’s lessons by saying that at a Provincial level, ACSA holds that true wisdom comes from obeying the command to make disciples for Jesus Christ and to fashion our lives in his likeness; that this starts with theological literacy and the formation of all ACSA followers; that true wisdom is nurtured by transformative worship, wrestling with God as we seek to interact with our context through his ways; and that this will be expressed through acting for the marginalised, taking care of the environment and being good stewards. These are the key priorities of our Province, which we hope will enable each one of us to be a disciple who is anchored, committed and transformed.
As we respond to the times we live in, what tools do we need to address the issues we face? What wisdom do we need, and how can we apply it as we make disciples of all nations in our secularising world? Are we to “baptise all cultures” and end up with a flawed syncretism? When can we say boldly as those formed for mission, “This is wrong,” and “This is correct”? Does our wisdom teach us to be extra-sensitive to mission contexts, either so that we are afraid of pronouncements or that we are so dogmatic that we are afraid of engaging with difference? I guess the question is: do we have what it takes to fulfill our sent-ness as anticipated in the Matthew story?
Today, as I address these questions as they relate to what kind of priest we are training at Cott, and what our understanding is of the contexts in which they will be ministering, I want to share with you three broad issues that have occupied me over the last few months -- and some for longer than that. Addressing them, I believe, requires a relevant, disciplined and contextual spirituality, prayerfulness, wisdom and the courage to be humble.
I have taken from what’s on my desk, as I said, three areas: theological education and education more broadly; the coming political elections; and Uganda’s new anti-homosexuality law.
Let me begin with theological education and formation. Now that Cott has passed a new milestone, a new set of questions is emerging, or perhaps old ones with a new impetus. Globally, the cost of theological education and formation is unaffordable. There is a call to review our model of dioceses funding theological education. The current "full stipendiary" model is proving unsustainable and may need to be reviewed. The drop-out rate, especially of women clergy who are identified for stipendiary ministry within dioceses, is increasing.
Prof Pityana is exploring ways in which we could establish an endowment to fund theological education and formation and assist dioceses. Cape Town, for example, has established the Archbishop’s Theological Education Endowment Fund because theological training and formation comprises the second-highest item of expenditure in our budget. We also need to explore how we can encourage families of ordinands to help in the training and forming of our clergy, and to explore options for funding training, including partnerships and ecumenical formation. For South African students, and with Cott’s registration almost done, might student loans and the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) be another option?
In terms of pedagogy or the modes of delivery, should we be exploring using practitioners in the field without requiring them to be present at Cott? The stipend that we pay lecturers inhibits us from attracting the young and recently-qualified. I am conscious that this is a life of sacrifice but the reality is that young people’s sense of vocation is tied to material reward. Is this perhaps not another area in which we should be modelling and teaching selflessness and sacrificial giving among our clergy?
We need to explore the best that information technology can offer us, of course noting that nothing can or should replace human contact in the art of formation, for we are more than the acquisition of facts -- we model wisdom, which has at its core love, respect and using knowledge for the extension of the Kingdom. But we must make the theological education of all accessible beyond our site of delivery. Recently I launched at Bishopscourt the E-reader project in collaboration with Cott. This was a particularly exciting development, because it builds on a long tradition of educational pioneering at Bishopscourt: not only was it the place where Bishops School began, it was also the first home of Zonnebloem College, where the sons and daughters of leaders such as Maqoma and Sandile of amaRharhabe and Moshoeshoe of the Basotho studied. Later, Bishopscourt established one of the country's first electronic bulletin boards, used by Archbishop Tutu during the anti-apartheid struggle and it was there too that Archbishop Ndungane conceptualised and started the Historic Schools Restoration Project.
It is my firm belief that theological education equips us to embody and proclaim the message of God's redemptive hope and healing for people and creation as well as to honour God in worship that feeds and empowers us for faithful witness and service. The modalities may vary due to our differing contexts but in spite of these contexts, we are all formed and sent to proclaim these eternal, changeless truths to all and to feed on and be fed by them. As you gather by now, for me theological education is not to create a band of the elite who are invisible in the week and audible on Sunday, nor is it a sanctuary for those who do not have the courage to face life's challenges. Quite the opposite. It equips us with wisdom, God's wisdom to be loving pastors and shepherds of all, fervent in prayer and seeking God, and dedicated in pursuing peace with justice without fear or favour. Equally, it equips us to know when not to act but to be present in a context of need and to hold God's people together as they seek God' s wisdom themselves.
The next area that I want to reflect on is the coming elections. We have elections this year in three countries of our Province – South Africa, Mozambique and Namibia. This graduation is occurring in Lent, I can’t recall the rationale, perhaps we should review this tradition and move graduations to November or December. But seeing that this is currently the case, what can we learn from the discipline of Lent as we approach these elections? Well, first, just as we spend time on Bible studies, we could go deeply into party manifestos and make choices on the basis of what will help people to flourish. We could also drink from our spiritual wells, engage with our consciences and be guided by these rather than by fear and blind loyalty when we make our mark on the ballot paper. And vote we must: too many people have suffered and died for you to stay away from the polls out of apathy.
In South Africa, we are seeing sporadic violence and the looting of property as political parties introduce a new and unacceptable mode of campaigning: that of physically confronting their opponents. We are also seeing disturbing signs of those who have tasted power using race, culture and ethnicity to manipulate voters, treating God's people as pawns to maintain their power and wealth. And we are seeing a lot of mudslinging as parties and their supporters accuse one another of failing to deliver services or create jobs. Last week, the Human Rights Commission released a report in which they confirmed that poor provision of water and proper sanitation, especially for the poorest of the poor, is a legitimate "service delivery" concern. Without discounting the legitimate concerns of communities and while yearning for redemptive solutions that are hope-filled, I pose the challenge: Wouldn’t it be wonderful in this wonderful country of ours if, instead of pointing at what others can do for us, we could focus on what we can do to make South Africa succeed? If instead of looking for what we can take, we could explore what we can give to make our country work?
As proclaimers of redemptive hope, we are called to understand our context at a deeper level. We have the responsibility of giving real life to God’s world and to God's people. Are we in our different countries sufficiently equipped to engage with policies and programmes of the political parties, the strategies of wealth makers and the cries of those denied access to most resources? In the coming elections, as those graduating today are sent out to make disciples, how might this disciple-making pan out? How do we make the task of encouraging all registered voters to go to the ballot box part of making disciples? In Cape Town, I am part of the Electoral Code of Conduct Observer Commission – known as ECCOC -- whose task it is to act as referees to ensure that parties adhere to the code and that politicians are held accountable. Are you willing as Cott or in your ministers’ fraternals to start something like ECCOC to help our followers to understand how to hold their elected officials accountable and thereby to enable us to make South Africa the best it can be?
In South Africa, we have prided ourselves on our free and fair elections. But now a cloud has been cast over our Independent Election Commission by an alleged conflict of interest involving the chair of the commission and a business partner from a political party. I hope that we will demand that this be dealt with urgently, to avoid the credibility of the IEC being eroded. And while I am talking about institutions created by our Constitution which play a vital role in our democracy, let me tell you what I said in the media yesterday in defence of South Africa’s public protector, Thuli Madonsela.
We deeply regret that certain clergy have in the past week ganged up against the Public Protector in the name of the church, attacking her for her investigations into the IEC and the SABC. They have done so without adequate knowledge of her reports and their intervention only serves to undermine the fight against corruption. It is also shameful to see the dirty tactics being employed by politicians against the Public Protector. There is clearly a coordinated campaign by those implicated in her reports to denigrate her office and its work. This threatens to undermine the legitimacy of an institution established and protected by our Constitution. We welcome the Public Protector's reports on corruption and mismanagement. We thank her for making the country accountable and transparent. Her office's work helps to develop our democracy, and I call on civil society to join the churches in defending it against the current assault.
Much has been achieved in a democratic South Africa over the past 20 years against the backdrop of apartheid, but much still needs to be achieved by all of us. Our political and business leaders and civic organisations also have a duty go into the mission field, as it were, and to serve others. There are huge disparities between the wealthy and the poor, and there ought to be less of the social distance which that creates. There should also be less lining of pockets by those who are connected with wealth and power, and less lecturing to the poor that they should be patient, work hard and not expect government to do things for them. Yes, I agree that people need to do things for themselves, but there is nothing stopping us as voters from letting them have our taxes as resources to do something with!
As we dig into our scriptures and walk more closely with God this Lent, let us pledge to serve our neighbour, to be courageous in speaking out where our elected leaders are corrupt, and to alleviate poverty by sharing more of our resources. As we develop theological insights and deepen our spirituality, let our love for God be evident in our intolerance of discrimination.
Let me now deal with the third and last area, one that has been with us for a long time and will continue to be until we have reached a godly consensus on the matter. I am referring to the debate around human sexuality. In this debate we as Anglicans in Southern face the same tensions within our own ranks as the Communion does internationally. We have two polarities: those who believe that homosexual relationships are not permitted by the Bible and others who believe that we should treat same-sex unions in the same way as we do heterosexual relationships. In addition, in South Africa – although not in other southern African countries – our Constitution permits same-sex marriage and protects the rights of gay and lesbian people in just the same way as the rights of others are protected.
Our challenge therefore has been to respond to positions within the Church which are diametrically opposed and, in South Africa, to provide pastoral care to members whose rights to express their sexuality are protected by the Constitution. We have responded to this challenge by adopting the same approach as we did during the apartheid era in South Africa, when our Church was deeply divided on a range of issues, ranging from the ways in which we fought apartheid to questions such as whether to ordain women as priests. We have taken the position that our differences over human sexuality are not such basic issues of faith and doctrine that they should be allowed to divide us. We have maintained a strong commitment to talking through the issues over which we differ. People who experience their sexuality as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgendered are God’s people, created in God's image, just as heterosexual people are, and in our Church we are committed to dialogue with one another over how we respond to the challenge of ministering to all of God’s people.
The approach, however, of many of our sister churches on the continent is different. Now, I have to say that as Africans we have over the past two centuries been subjected to Western attitudes of cultural superiority, and I have no desire either to perpetuate such attitudes or to promote new attitudes which assume that we in Southern Africa have a monopoly on the truth. We should as a Province, therefore, be hesitant to preach to our brothers and sisters elsewhere in the continent. We should instead be offering them – and the Anglican Communion – our own model of dealing with difference: patient dialogue in which we wrestle with difficult issues for as long as takes to reach consensus on them. This must simply be an offer to act as a bridge -- we cannot, neither should we wish to, impose our model on anyone.
In 2010, the Synod of Bishops recorded its concern at Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Bill and said it saw the Bill as a gross violation of human rights. We said that as bishops we believe that it is, and I quote, “immoral to permit or support oppression of, or discrimination against, people on the grounds of their sexual orientation, and contrary to the teaching of the gospel; particularly Jesus’ command that we should love one another as he has loved us, without distinction.” In that context, we cited John 13:34-35. Although the Bill was amended – in particular by removing the death penalty as a punishment– the law which President Museveni recently signed in Uganda continues to brand homosexuality as an offence. In its definition of the offence, it includes not only homosexual sex but says a person “commits the offence of homosexuality if... he or she touches another person with the intention of committing the act of homosexuality.” And touching is defined as including touching “(a) with any part of the body; (b) with anything else; (c) through anything...” Under this section of the law, offenders are liable to imprisonment for life. Moreover, a person who attempts to, and I quote “commit the offence of homosexuality” or anyone who aids, abets, counsels or procures another to engage in acts of homosexuality is liable to imprisonment for seven years.
As Anglicans in Southern Africa, we are calling for an intensification of the dialogue over our response as Christians to the debate over human sexuality, both within Africa and in the wider Anglican Communion. And as we wrestle with the theological, moral and legal issues of the debate, our behavior towards one another must be modelled on the imperative to love our neighbour. The persecution of anybody, including minorities, is wrong. All human beings are created in the holy image of God and therefore must be treated with respect and accorded human dignity.
Finally, it only remains for me to congratulate those who are graduating tonight, as well as your families who have given you such love and support. Congratulations too to Cott on reaching such a great milestone in our time.
May God the Holy Spirit transform us, and lead us as well as equip us for the journey ahead into the mission fields into which he sends us. May we be gentle like doves and wise like serpents. May God’s concerns be our concerns, and may God’s pain be our pain until we find one another and the fulfillment of our humanity in Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.
+Thabo Cape Town
Lessons: Sirach 1:1-10; Psalm 19; and Matthew 28:16-20
I greet you all in the name of God, Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer. Amen.
Dean of the Province and Chair of Council, Bishop Rubin, members of Council, the Rector, the Revd Canon Pityana, staff and students, the Bishop of Grahamstown and other bishops present at this historic milestone in the life of our Province and the College, graduates, your family members, invited guests, ladies and gentleman: Greetings!
What an honor and privilege it is to be here as Visitor of Cott to speak at this graduation ceremony and at the Inauguration of the college as it begins a new life as a duly registered higher education institution and with an accredited qualification. As a teacher and pastor who is striving to be a theologian one day, this is one of the greatest moments in my archiepiscopal journey. I just want to say out loud, "Give thanks to the Lord, for he is gracious and ever faithful. He has carried us over the years and during the application phase and he will carry us into the future.” Today, we come together to celebrate and rejoice at God's wonderful mercies.
So, thank you’s are the correct place to start this address, which after all is about gratitude and a deep sense of appreciation. Let me start with you, Professor Pityana, for your robust leadership, your pragmatic spirituality and your reckless belief in God's purposes for you and the church. Without your firm hope and love for this church as well as your courage to affirm and yet to challenge, we could not have arrived at this milestone. When I approached Prof during a rugby match at Orlando Stadium shortly after your retirement from Unisa, I said the task would take a year to complete and was embarrassed that I didn’t even have a stipend to pay you. Your humility, especially against the backdrop of what others were offering you at the time, and your acceptance of this life of sacrifice and poverty, have stayed with me. I am eternally grateful for your role and hope to learn from it too. Thanks also for our friendship and those emails or SMS interventions that always come at the appropriate time.
The task has taken longer than I anticipated, and each time you have raised the succession debate, I have pleaded that I am not numerate and asked you, “Why are you raising the issue in your first year?” – even if it was your third year! In this way I have avoided the fact that one day I will have to face the prospect of appointing a successor to you. Thank you, Barney and Dimza, for serving the college, this city and the Province with such distinction. Thank you, Prof and your staff in your various capacities for enabling Cott to arrive at this stage. In my Charge to the 2013 Provincial Synod, I said that it is my dream that Cott should eventually be an Anglican university, dare I add that I pray it will happen sooner rather than later. Please join me in applauding Prof Pityana for his efforts.
To the Council, the Executive and the Chair of Council and all our benefactors, partners and students who make this institution succeed, thank you and please continue to be ambassadors of Cott, especially as it enters this new and untrodden path for the ACSA. We are writing church history and I hope someone will research and publish an account of this new phase of our witness and service to both church and society. May this place be a well from which we can draw true wisdom and where many will be formed to be sent to all nations to make disciples of them.
In our self-understanding of our identity as ACSA, we share publicly our vision that we seek to be:
Anchored in the love of Christ,
Committed to God's Mission, and
Transformed by the Holy Spirit.
We further commit in our mission statement that we will heed the Matthean command to grow communities of faith that form, inform, and transform those who follow Christ. In our list of stated priorities, we unpack how we propose to do this at Provincial level by identifying seven priority areas. There, theological education is second only to liturgical renewal for transformative worship. In fact, if you look at all the priorities, they boil down to the theological formation of all members of ACSA.
I can thus paraphrase today’s lessons by saying that at a Provincial level, ACSA holds that true wisdom comes from obeying the command to make disciples for Jesus Christ and to fashion our lives in his likeness; that this starts with theological literacy and the formation of all ACSA followers; that true wisdom is nurtured by transformative worship, wrestling with God as we seek to interact with our context through his ways; and that this will be expressed through acting for the marginalised, taking care of the environment and being good stewards. These are the key priorities of our Province, which we hope will enable each one of us to be a disciple who is anchored, committed and transformed.
As we respond to the times we live in, what tools do we need to address the issues we face? What wisdom do we need, and how can we apply it as we make disciples of all nations in our secularising world? Are we to “baptise all cultures” and end up with a flawed syncretism? When can we say boldly as those formed for mission, “This is wrong,” and “This is correct”? Does our wisdom teach us to be extra-sensitive to mission contexts, either so that we are afraid of pronouncements or that we are so dogmatic that we are afraid of engaging with difference? I guess the question is: do we have what it takes to fulfill our sent-ness as anticipated in the Matthew story?
Today, as I address these questions as they relate to what kind of priest we are training at Cott, and what our understanding is of the contexts in which they will be ministering, I want to share with you three broad issues that have occupied me over the last few months -- and some for longer than that. Addressing them, I believe, requires a relevant, disciplined and contextual spirituality, prayerfulness, wisdom and the courage to be humble.
I have taken from what’s on my desk, as I said, three areas: theological education and education more broadly; the coming political elections; and Uganda’s new anti-homosexuality law.
Let me begin with theological education and formation. Now that Cott has passed a new milestone, a new set of questions is emerging, or perhaps old ones with a new impetus. Globally, the cost of theological education and formation is unaffordable. There is a call to review our model of dioceses funding theological education. The current "full stipendiary" model is proving unsustainable and may need to be reviewed. The drop-out rate, especially of women clergy who are identified for stipendiary ministry within dioceses, is increasing.
Prof Pityana is exploring ways in which we could establish an endowment to fund theological education and formation and assist dioceses. Cape Town, for example, has established the Archbishop’s Theological Education Endowment Fund because theological training and formation comprises the second-highest item of expenditure in our budget. We also need to explore how we can encourage families of ordinands to help in the training and forming of our clergy, and to explore options for funding training, including partnerships and ecumenical formation. For South African students, and with Cott’s registration almost done, might student loans and the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) be another option?
In terms of pedagogy or the modes of delivery, should we be exploring using practitioners in the field without requiring them to be present at Cott? The stipend that we pay lecturers inhibits us from attracting the young and recently-qualified. I am conscious that this is a life of sacrifice but the reality is that young people’s sense of vocation is tied to material reward. Is this perhaps not another area in which we should be modelling and teaching selflessness and sacrificial giving among our clergy?
We need to explore the best that information technology can offer us, of course noting that nothing can or should replace human contact in the art of formation, for we are more than the acquisition of facts -- we model wisdom, which has at its core love, respect and using knowledge for the extension of the Kingdom. But we must make the theological education of all accessible beyond our site of delivery. Recently I launched at Bishopscourt the E-reader project in collaboration with Cott. This was a particularly exciting development, because it builds on a long tradition of educational pioneering at Bishopscourt: not only was it the place where Bishops School began, it was also the first home of Zonnebloem College, where the sons and daughters of leaders such as Maqoma and Sandile of amaRharhabe and Moshoeshoe of the Basotho studied. Later, Bishopscourt established one of the country's first electronic bulletin boards, used by Archbishop Tutu during the anti-apartheid struggle and it was there too that Archbishop Ndungane conceptualised and started the Historic Schools Restoration Project.
It is my firm belief that theological education equips us to embody and proclaim the message of God's redemptive hope and healing for people and creation as well as to honour God in worship that feeds and empowers us for faithful witness and service. The modalities may vary due to our differing contexts but in spite of these contexts, we are all formed and sent to proclaim these eternal, changeless truths to all and to feed on and be fed by them. As you gather by now, for me theological education is not to create a band of the elite who are invisible in the week and audible on Sunday, nor is it a sanctuary for those who do not have the courage to face life's challenges. Quite the opposite. It equips us with wisdom, God's wisdom to be loving pastors and shepherds of all, fervent in prayer and seeking God, and dedicated in pursuing peace with justice without fear or favour. Equally, it equips us to know when not to act but to be present in a context of need and to hold God's people together as they seek God' s wisdom themselves.
The next area that I want to reflect on is the coming elections. We have elections this year in three countries of our Province – South Africa, Mozambique and Namibia. This graduation is occurring in Lent, I can’t recall the rationale, perhaps we should review this tradition and move graduations to November or December. But seeing that this is currently the case, what can we learn from the discipline of Lent as we approach these elections? Well, first, just as we spend time on Bible studies, we could go deeply into party manifestos and make choices on the basis of what will help people to flourish. We could also drink from our spiritual wells, engage with our consciences and be guided by these rather than by fear and blind loyalty when we make our mark on the ballot paper. And vote we must: too many people have suffered and died for you to stay away from the polls out of apathy.
In South Africa, we are seeing sporadic violence and the looting of property as political parties introduce a new and unacceptable mode of campaigning: that of physically confronting their opponents. We are also seeing disturbing signs of those who have tasted power using race, culture and ethnicity to manipulate voters, treating God's people as pawns to maintain their power and wealth. And we are seeing a lot of mudslinging as parties and their supporters accuse one another of failing to deliver services or create jobs. Last week, the Human Rights Commission released a report in which they confirmed that poor provision of water and proper sanitation, especially for the poorest of the poor, is a legitimate "service delivery" concern. Without discounting the legitimate concerns of communities and while yearning for redemptive solutions that are hope-filled, I pose the challenge: Wouldn’t it be wonderful in this wonderful country of ours if, instead of pointing at what others can do for us, we could focus on what we can do to make South Africa succeed? If instead of looking for what we can take, we could explore what we can give to make our country work?
As proclaimers of redemptive hope, we are called to understand our context at a deeper level. We have the responsibility of giving real life to God’s world and to God's people. Are we in our different countries sufficiently equipped to engage with policies and programmes of the political parties, the strategies of wealth makers and the cries of those denied access to most resources? In the coming elections, as those graduating today are sent out to make disciples, how might this disciple-making pan out? How do we make the task of encouraging all registered voters to go to the ballot box part of making disciples? In Cape Town, I am part of the Electoral Code of Conduct Observer Commission – known as ECCOC -- whose task it is to act as referees to ensure that parties adhere to the code and that politicians are held accountable. Are you willing as Cott or in your ministers’ fraternals to start something like ECCOC to help our followers to understand how to hold their elected officials accountable and thereby to enable us to make South Africa the best it can be?
In South Africa, we have prided ourselves on our free and fair elections. But now a cloud has been cast over our Independent Election Commission by an alleged conflict of interest involving the chair of the commission and a business partner from a political party. I hope that we will demand that this be dealt with urgently, to avoid the credibility of the IEC being eroded. And while I am talking about institutions created by our Constitution which play a vital role in our democracy, let me tell you what I said in the media yesterday in defence of South Africa’s public protector, Thuli Madonsela.
We deeply regret that certain clergy have in the past week ganged up against the Public Protector in the name of the church, attacking her for her investigations into the IEC and the SABC. They have done so without adequate knowledge of her reports and their intervention only serves to undermine the fight against corruption. It is also shameful to see the dirty tactics being employed by politicians against the Public Protector. There is clearly a coordinated campaign by those implicated in her reports to denigrate her office and its work. This threatens to undermine the legitimacy of an institution established and protected by our Constitution. We welcome the Public Protector's reports on corruption and mismanagement. We thank her for making the country accountable and transparent. Her office's work helps to develop our democracy, and I call on civil society to join the churches in defending it against the current assault.
Much has been achieved in a democratic South Africa over the past 20 years against the backdrop of apartheid, but much still needs to be achieved by all of us. Our political and business leaders and civic organisations also have a duty go into the mission field, as it were, and to serve others. There are huge disparities between the wealthy and the poor, and there ought to be less of the social distance which that creates. There should also be less lining of pockets by those who are connected with wealth and power, and less lecturing to the poor that they should be patient, work hard and not expect government to do things for them. Yes, I agree that people need to do things for themselves, but there is nothing stopping us as voters from letting them have our taxes as resources to do something with!
As we dig into our scriptures and walk more closely with God this Lent, let us pledge to serve our neighbour, to be courageous in speaking out where our elected leaders are corrupt, and to alleviate poverty by sharing more of our resources. As we develop theological insights and deepen our spirituality, let our love for God be evident in our intolerance of discrimination.
Let me now deal with the third and last area, one that has been with us for a long time and will continue to be until we have reached a godly consensus on the matter. I am referring to the debate around human sexuality. In this debate we as Anglicans in Southern face the same tensions within our own ranks as the Communion does internationally. We have two polarities: those who believe that homosexual relationships are not permitted by the Bible and others who believe that we should treat same-sex unions in the same way as we do heterosexual relationships. In addition, in South Africa – although not in other southern African countries – our Constitution permits same-sex marriage and protects the rights of gay and lesbian people in just the same way as the rights of others are protected.
Our challenge therefore has been to respond to positions within the Church which are diametrically opposed and, in South Africa, to provide pastoral care to members whose rights to express their sexuality are protected by the Constitution. We have responded to this challenge by adopting the same approach as we did during the apartheid era in South Africa, when our Church was deeply divided on a range of issues, ranging from the ways in which we fought apartheid to questions such as whether to ordain women as priests. We have taken the position that our differences over human sexuality are not such basic issues of faith and doctrine that they should be allowed to divide us. We have maintained a strong commitment to talking through the issues over which we differ. People who experience their sexuality as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgendered are God’s people, created in God's image, just as heterosexual people are, and in our Church we are committed to dialogue with one another over how we respond to the challenge of ministering to all of God’s people.
The approach, however, of many of our sister churches on the continent is different. Now, I have to say that as Africans we have over the past two centuries been subjected to Western attitudes of cultural superiority, and I have no desire either to perpetuate such attitudes or to promote new attitudes which assume that we in Southern Africa have a monopoly on the truth. We should as a Province, therefore, be hesitant to preach to our brothers and sisters elsewhere in the continent. We should instead be offering them – and the Anglican Communion – our own model of dealing with difference: patient dialogue in which we wrestle with difficult issues for as long as takes to reach consensus on them. This must simply be an offer to act as a bridge -- we cannot, neither should we wish to, impose our model on anyone.
In 2010, the Synod of Bishops recorded its concern at Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Bill and said it saw the Bill as a gross violation of human rights. We said that as bishops we believe that it is, and I quote, “immoral to permit or support oppression of, or discrimination against, people on the grounds of their sexual orientation, and contrary to the teaching of the gospel; particularly Jesus’ command that we should love one another as he has loved us, without distinction.” In that context, we cited John 13:34-35. Although the Bill was amended – in particular by removing the death penalty as a punishment– the law which President Museveni recently signed in Uganda continues to brand homosexuality as an offence. In its definition of the offence, it includes not only homosexual sex but says a person “commits the offence of homosexuality if... he or she touches another person with the intention of committing the act of homosexuality.” And touching is defined as including touching “(a) with any part of the body; (b) with anything else; (c) through anything...” Under this section of the law, offenders are liable to imprisonment for life. Moreover, a person who attempts to, and I quote “commit the offence of homosexuality” or anyone who aids, abets, counsels or procures another to engage in acts of homosexuality is liable to imprisonment for seven years.
As Anglicans in Southern Africa, we are calling for an intensification of the dialogue over our response as Christians to the debate over human sexuality, both within Africa and in the wider Anglican Communion. And as we wrestle with the theological, moral and legal issues of the debate, our behavior towards one another must be modelled on the imperative to love our neighbour. The persecution of anybody, including minorities, is wrong. All human beings are created in the holy image of God and therefore must be treated with respect and accorded human dignity.
Finally, it only remains for me to congratulate those who are graduating tonight, as well as your families who have given you such love and support. Congratulations too to Cott on reaching such a great milestone in our time.
May God the Holy Spirit transform us, and lead us as well as equip us for the journey ahead into the mission fields into which he sends us. May we be gentle like doves and wise like serpents. May God’s concerns be our concerns, and may God’s pain be our pain until we find one another and the fulfillment of our humanity in Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.
+Thabo Cape Town
Tuesday, 18 March 2014
In Defence of South Africa's Public Protector
A statement responding to criticism of South Africa's Public Protector, Thuli Madonsela. It was issued the day before she was scheduled to issue a report on public spending at the country residence of President Jacob Zuma:
We in the churches deeply regret that certain clergy have ganged up against the Public Protector in the name of the Church. They have done so without adequate knowledge of her reports and their intervention only serves to undermine the fight against corruption.
It is shameful to see the dirty tactics being employed by politicians against the Public Protector. There is clearly a coordinated campaign by those implicated in her reports to denigrate her office and its work. This threatens to undermine the legitimacy of an institution established and protected by our Constitution.
We welcome the Public Protector's reports on corruption and mismanagement. We thank her for making the country accountable and transparent. Her office's work helps to develop our democracy, and I call on civil society to join the churches in defending it against the current assault.
+Thabo Cape Town
We in the churches deeply regret that certain clergy have ganged up against the Public Protector in the name of the Church. They have done so without adequate knowledge of her reports and their intervention only serves to undermine the fight against corruption.
It is shameful to see the dirty tactics being employed by politicians against the Public Protector. There is clearly a coordinated campaign by those implicated in her reports to denigrate her office and its work. This threatens to undermine the legitimacy of an institution established and protected by our Constitution.
We welcome the Public Protector's reports on corruption and mismanagement. We thank her for making the country accountable and transparent. Her office's work helps to develop our democracy, and I call on civil society to join the churches in defending it against the current assault.
+Thabo Cape Town
Wednesday, 19 February 2014
Lenten Bible Study Poster - 2014
A poster to be used to advertise the Province's Lenten Bible studies - download poster here>>
If you have any difficulty downloading this PDF document from Google Docs, it will also be posted on the Province's website.
If you have any difficulty downloading this PDF document from Google Docs, it will also be posted on the Province's website.
Tuesday, 18 February 2014
Church of the Province of Africa - ‘Ad Laos’ – To the People of God – February 2014
As has become my practice over the last six years, this February letter is the first for the year, so let me start by wishing you all a blessed New Year.
Some of you may have read the latest Synod of Bishops' statement in which the Bishops share briefly the salient points of their February meeting. These meetings form the cornerstone of governance in faith and doctrine matters in our Province, over and above meetings of the Provincial Synod, the Provincial Standing Committee, the Provincial Trusts' Board and of course Diocesan structures. Of particular note was that the Synod expressed its joy at the approval by the South African Qualifications Authority of the Diploma of Theology offered by the College of the Transfiguration in Grahamstown, as well as at the provisional accreditation of the College as a private higher education institution.
Following the meeting of the Synod of Bishops, Lungi and I travelled to Lagos, Nigeria for a meeting of Anglican Primates and their spouses organised by the Council of Anglican Provinces in Africa (CAPA). This was my first CAPA meeting as Archbishop, as Bishop Jo Seoka of Pretoria is our episcopal representative to CAPA and has previously attended meetings on my behalf.
In our time together in Lagos, we as Archbishops from the different Anglican Provinces around the continent shared both our common and our differing contextual challenges. We shall continue to have different understandings on matters of human sexuality, whether legally, theologically or because of our different experiences, so we cannot paint everyone with the same brush. This applies even within provinces, as we see within our own Province, where only South Africa has legalised same-sex unions. For me, love and respect for all who are created in the image of God remain key. The Synod of Bishops affirmed this, as well as the importance of seeking justice and reconciliation on this issue – the differences over which we do not regard as being so serious as to be church-dividing.
Human sexuality was not, however, the central matter in our deliberations in Lagos. We were deeply concerned at tensions and conflict in places as varied as South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Lesotho and Mozambique, as well as the conflict between Muslims and Christians and the terror created by the followers of Boko Haram in Nigeria. Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State and his deputy welcomed us, and stressed the need for a critical solidarity by the Church with those called to serve through a vocation to politics.
Immediately after Lagos, Lungi and I were joined by our daughter, Paballo, to travel to Xai-Xai in Mozambique where I was blessing a new church, Salvador do Mundo (Saviour of the World). This was a wonderful occasion, with the Diocese’s largest parish packed to capacity. The worship was so joyful and moving as Bishop Dinis Sengulane and I moved around the church, sprinkling water amid clouds of incense, accompanied by the choir all singing in unison in Mozambique's unique alto voices. The choirmaster had a small school bell and rang it harder and harder the more we sprinkled holy water around the building! Coming from an urban diocese, dedicating new churches is not what one does frequently, especially in Shangaan and Portuguese and wearing full vestments when the temperature is 30 degrees. We are grateful for Bishop Dinis, who will retire soon after four Lambeth conferences and 38 years as a bishop in the Church of God. We are grateful for his ministry not only in the Church but in highlighting the scourge of malaria and the need for peace in the world, particularly in Mozambique. We can only say, while +Dinis is still alive, “Well done, good and faithful servant!”
After Mozambique I chaired an ecumenical meeting at the Wits Business School. Ecumenical witness has seen many challenges and changes in post-apartheid South Africa, where we are experiencing the declining influence and identity of previously-strong ecumenical bodies and the rise of new ones which readily support state theology and loathe prophetic and liberation theology. It is as if we are regressing into what the apartheid government achieved through its grip on the Dutch Reformed Church, only this time it is South Africa’s current ruling party which is coercing interfaith and ecumenical bodies to align with it and thereby benefit materially or from their proximity to power and influence. However, in South Africa today the Church is called upon to support the State in this democratic dispensation when it does what is godly and serves the needs of all God’s people, but to be critical if it does not. And we cannot just sit back and point at what is wrong, we need too to work to bring about justice, equity and a sharing of God’s abundant resources. The meeting in Johannesburg highlighted these issues and reminded me of how easy it is to forget our primary vocation because we want government resources even to the point of compromising the prophetic word.
Finally, I attended a church leaders’ consultation with the South African Christian Leaders’ Initiative (SACLI), where we looked at how to strengthen the unity of the ecumenical voice in being courageous and prophetic. We looked at organisational as well as moral issues in our country, we planned for the forthcoming SACC triennial meeting and we considered how we could encourage SACC member churches to adopt education as a priority missional issue. We also noted that, welcome as the birth of SACLI is, it has created confusion and tensions at a time during which the SACC is ailing. Bishop Zipho Siwa, Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Church, has been asked to chair a subcommittee to look at aligning the ecumenical bodies in our country so that we can all act together in tackling the challenges faced by our country, especially in the upcoming elections. As chair of the church leaders’ consultation, I find these meetings edifying – stretching but fulfilling too as we face the challenge: How do we maintain our prophetic voice in a constitutional democracy when legitimate leaders are robbing the land and ignoring the cause of justice?
I have headed this letter the Church of the Province of Africa, to highlight the need for us to strive, whether in our Anglican Communion in Africa or ecumenically, to bring God’s real shalom, peace, justice and equity to the continent. There will be differences in theology, in matters of sexuality and in politics – let us face these and deal with them, and not pretend we don’t encounter them. Let us adopt a Pauline understanding of our vocation and build the body of Christ, recognising that it has different parts and abilities, but that they can all work together towards a common purpose. In this way we will have a deeper appreciation of the presence of the incarnate Christ at work within the body, pointing us to the realised Eschaton which at the same time is yet to be realised. This tension should not divide us, instead it should help us appreciate that we are of the same coin, bringing quality and equality to all.
This year, God willing, we will see the election of two new bishops suffragan, of Niassa and Mthatha. We are thankful to God that in spite of the challenges we have in a few dioceses, our Province is healthy and continues to witness to what God is up to in this part of God's vineyard. As we prepare to observe Lent, let me once again encourage you all to use the Bible study material that Professor Gerald West and his team have prepared for our Province.
I end on a note of thanksgiving – even if it is tinged with sadness. The “Masite Sisters” – the members of the Society of the Precious Blood in Lesotho – who provided a home away from home for South African political refugees as well as spiritual refugees over many years, will close their house in Maseru at the end of this month. The sisters have planted the seeds of faith for many but the remaining sisters are ageing, so although their Chapter says they may resurrect their ministry differently one day, for now we wish them well and give God deep thanks for their ministry in building the body of Christ in our Province.
As we enter this Lent, let us continue to build the body of Christ, in our relationships with one another, in our places of worship and in our different nations in this Province.
God bless you all in your Lenten observances,
+Thabo Cape Town
Some of you may have read the latest Synod of Bishops' statement in which the Bishops share briefly the salient points of their February meeting. These meetings form the cornerstone of governance in faith and doctrine matters in our Province, over and above meetings of the Provincial Synod, the Provincial Standing Committee, the Provincial Trusts' Board and of course Diocesan structures. Of particular note was that the Synod expressed its joy at the approval by the South African Qualifications Authority of the Diploma of Theology offered by the College of the Transfiguration in Grahamstown, as well as at the provisional accreditation of the College as a private higher education institution.
Following the meeting of the Synod of Bishops, Lungi and I travelled to Lagos, Nigeria for a meeting of Anglican Primates and their spouses organised by the Council of Anglican Provinces in Africa (CAPA). This was my first CAPA meeting as Archbishop, as Bishop Jo Seoka of Pretoria is our episcopal representative to CAPA and has previously attended meetings on my behalf.
In our time together in Lagos, we as Archbishops from the different Anglican Provinces around the continent shared both our common and our differing contextual challenges. We shall continue to have different understandings on matters of human sexuality, whether legally, theologically or because of our different experiences, so we cannot paint everyone with the same brush. This applies even within provinces, as we see within our own Province, where only South Africa has legalised same-sex unions. For me, love and respect for all who are created in the image of God remain key. The Synod of Bishops affirmed this, as well as the importance of seeking justice and reconciliation on this issue – the differences over which we do not regard as being so serious as to be church-dividing.
Human sexuality was not, however, the central matter in our deliberations in Lagos. We were deeply concerned at tensions and conflict in places as varied as South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Lesotho and Mozambique, as well as the conflict between Muslims and Christians and the terror created by the followers of Boko Haram in Nigeria. Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State and his deputy welcomed us, and stressed the need for a critical solidarity by the Church with those called to serve through a vocation to politics.
Immediately after Lagos, Lungi and I were joined by our daughter, Paballo, to travel to Xai-Xai in Mozambique where I was blessing a new church, Salvador do Mundo (Saviour of the World). This was a wonderful occasion, with the Diocese’s largest parish packed to capacity. The worship was so joyful and moving as Bishop Dinis Sengulane and I moved around the church, sprinkling water amid clouds of incense, accompanied by the choir all singing in unison in Mozambique's unique alto voices. The choirmaster had a small school bell and rang it harder and harder the more we sprinkled holy water around the building! Coming from an urban diocese, dedicating new churches is not what one does frequently, especially in Shangaan and Portuguese and wearing full vestments when the temperature is 30 degrees. We are grateful for Bishop Dinis, who will retire soon after four Lambeth conferences and 38 years as a bishop in the Church of God. We are grateful for his ministry not only in the Church but in highlighting the scourge of malaria and the need for peace in the world, particularly in Mozambique. We can only say, while +Dinis is still alive, “Well done, good and faithful servant!”
After Mozambique I chaired an ecumenical meeting at the Wits Business School. Ecumenical witness has seen many challenges and changes in post-apartheid South Africa, where we are experiencing the declining influence and identity of previously-strong ecumenical bodies and the rise of new ones which readily support state theology and loathe prophetic and liberation theology. It is as if we are regressing into what the apartheid government achieved through its grip on the Dutch Reformed Church, only this time it is South Africa’s current ruling party which is coercing interfaith and ecumenical bodies to align with it and thereby benefit materially or from their proximity to power and influence. However, in South Africa today the Church is called upon to support the State in this democratic dispensation when it does what is godly and serves the needs of all God’s people, but to be critical if it does not. And we cannot just sit back and point at what is wrong, we need too to work to bring about justice, equity and a sharing of God’s abundant resources. The meeting in Johannesburg highlighted these issues and reminded me of how easy it is to forget our primary vocation because we want government resources even to the point of compromising the prophetic word.
Finally, I attended a church leaders’ consultation with the South African Christian Leaders’ Initiative (SACLI), where we looked at how to strengthen the unity of the ecumenical voice in being courageous and prophetic. We looked at organisational as well as moral issues in our country, we planned for the forthcoming SACC triennial meeting and we considered how we could encourage SACC member churches to adopt education as a priority missional issue. We also noted that, welcome as the birth of SACLI is, it has created confusion and tensions at a time during which the SACC is ailing. Bishop Zipho Siwa, Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Church, has been asked to chair a subcommittee to look at aligning the ecumenical bodies in our country so that we can all act together in tackling the challenges faced by our country, especially in the upcoming elections. As chair of the church leaders’ consultation, I find these meetings edifying – stretching but fulfilling too as we face the challenge: How do we maintain our prophetic voice in a constitutional democracy when legitimate leaders are robbing the land and ignoring the cause of justice?
I have headed this letter the Church of the Province of Africa, to highlight the need for us to strive, whether in our Anglican Communion in Africa or ecumenically, to bring God’s real shalom, peace, justice and equity to the continent. There will be differences in theology, in matters of sexuality and in politics – let us face these and deal with them, and not pretend we don’t encounter them. Let us adopt a Pauline understanding of our vocation and build the body of Christ, recognising that it has different parts and abilities, but that they can all work together towards a common purpose. In this way we will have a deeper appreciation of the presence of the incarnate Christ at work within the body, pointing us to the realised Eschaton which at the same time is yet to be realised. This tension should not divide us, instead it should help us appreciate that we are of the same coin, bringing quality and equality to all.
This year, God willing, we will see the election of two new bishops suffragan, of Niassa and Mthatha. We are thankful to God that in spite of the challenges we have in a few dioceses, our Province is healthy and continues to witness to what God is up to in this part of God's vineyard. As we prepare to observe Lent, let me once again encourage you all to use the Bible study material that Professor Gerald West and his team have prepared for our Province.
I end on a note of thanksgiving – even if it is tinged with sadness. The “Masite Sisters” – the members of the Society of the Precious Blood in Lesotho – who provided a home away from home for South African political refugees as well as spiritual refugees over many years, will close their house in Maseru at the end of this month. The sisters have planted the seeds of faith for many but the remaining sisters are ageing, so although their Chapter says they may resurrect their ministry differently one day, for now we wish them well and give God deep thanks for their ministry in building the body of Christ in our Province.
As we enter this Lent, let us continue to build the body of Christ, in our relationships with one another, in our places of worship and in our different nations in this Province.
God bless you all in your Lenten observances,
+Thabo Cape Town
Thursday, 13 February 2014
Statement from the Synod of Bishops, February 2014
Statement from the Synod of Bishops, 3-7 February 2014, Linga Longa Retreat Centre for Healing, Limpopo, South Africa:
“For you shall go out with JOY and be led forth with PEACE; the mountains and the hills shall break forth in singing.” (Isaiah 55:12-13)
The Synod of Bishops met at Linga Longa, in the Diocese of St Mark the Evangelist, from Monday 3rd to Friday 7th February 2014.
Integral components that have become part of rhythm and practice of our bi-annual meetings included spending time together in prayer and worship as well as receiving the word of God through the sharing of our colleagues at morning Eucharist.
It was a blessing to be ministered to through music and singing by the Diocesan choir at our opening evening prayers.
The meeting included a pastoral visit and walk of witness to the local Parish in the Phahameng community of Modimolle, where we prayed and engaged in dialogue with parishioners and community leaders.
We use the February meeting of the Synod of Bishops to enhance and enrich our leadership by reflecting on current and emerging issues through contributions by invited guest speakers who assist us to move beyond reflection to praxis in our varied contexts.
General Bantu Holomisa challenged the Bishops through his address on the importance of adequate prior planning if we are to be visionary and effective leaders.
Mzolisi ka Toni from the Department of Women, Children and People with Disabilities addressed the bishops on the need for churches to be accessible and accommodating to persons with disabilities, while also urging the Synod of Bishops to be sensitised to issues of language and attitudes that discriminate against people with disabilities.
The Revd J P Heath spoke of his HIV positive status as well as the fact that he was in a civil union with another cleric, and now working in the church in Switzerland. His sharing helped us to reflect realistically and openly on guidelines we are drawing up for those living in civil unions. The Synod of Bishops resolved to discuss these guidelines at this year's meeting of the Provincial Standing Committee, since Provincial Synod 2013 urged the Synod to finalise the guidelines.
We reflected on Anglican Communion matters, especially the recent debates on sexuality. We reaffirmed our position of seeking to be bridge-builders within the continent and the worldwide Communion.
The Synod of Bishops also dealt with the issue of “transitional leadership” – that is the need to prepare bishops for the transition from active diocesan roles towards retirement. The Archbishop will assist in this process and ensure that it becomes an ongoing agenda item at the Synod.
Of note was an agreement to give the Diocese of Mthatha permission to have a Suffragan Bishop following its enormous growth over the last years.
The Synod of Bishops also agreed to introduce a second award for both laity and clergy who have distinguished themselves within our Province.
Synod of Bishops warmly and heartily endorsed the forthcoming Anglicans Ablaze conference, under the theme “Hope is Rising”, from July 2nd to July 5th, 2014. All bishops together with their spouses have registered to attend the conference.
We welcomed with joy the news that the diploma at the College of the Transfiguration (Cott) in Grahamstown has been accredited by the South African Qualifications Authority and that the college has now also been conditionally registered. This is an exciting milestone, for which we thank Prof Barney Pityana, his team and God. We have more students than we can allocate places for at Cott this year. We thank the bishops and their dioceses for this support, and the Province for funds raised on Theological Education Sunday.
We also received with excitement and anticipation the news about the upcoming visit of Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Reverend and Right Honourable Justin Welby to our Province in July this year.
We ended the Synod of Bishops giving thanks to God for the ministry of Bishop Dinis Sengulane who retires from our Province and his diocese after 38 years as a bishop. The bishops gathered around Bishop Dinis and prayed for him in a very moving service.
We ended by encouraging our faithful to continue to be Anchored in the love of Christ, Committed to God’s mission and Transformed by the Holy Spirit.
As the Synod of Bishops ended, we joined in singing and praying with Deutero-Isaiah as we wish joy and peace to all parishioners and communities within our Province.
“For you shall go out with JOY and be led forth with PEACE; the mountains and the hills shall break forth in singing.” (Isaiah 55:12-13)
The Synod of Bishops met at Linga Longa, in the Diocese of St Mark the Evangelist, from Monday 3rd to Friday 7th February 2014.
Integral components that have become part of rhythm and practice of our bi-annual meetings included spending time together in prayer and worship as well as receiving the word of God through the sharing of our colleagues at morning Eucharist.
It was a blessing to be ministered to through music and singing by the Diocesan choir at our opening evening prayers.
The meeting included a pastoral visit and walk of witness to the local Parish in the Phahameng community of Modimolle, where we prayed and engaged in dialogue with parishioners and community leaders.
We use the February meeting of the Synod of Bishops to enhance and enrich our leadership by reflecting on current and emerging issues through contributions by invited guest speakers who assist us to move beyond reflection to praxis in our varied contexts.
General Bantu Holomisa challenged the Bishops through his address on the importance of adequate prior planning if we are to be visionary and effective leaders.
Mzolisi ka Toni from the Department of Women, Children and People with Disabilities addressed the bishops on the need for churches to be accessible and accommodating to persons with disabilities, while also urging the Synod of Bishops to be sensitised to issues of language and attitudes that discriminate against people with disabilities.
The Revd J P Heath spoke of his HIV positive status as well as the fact that he was in a civil union with another cleric, and now working in the church in Switzerland. His sharing helped us to reflect realistically and openly on guidelines we are drawing up for those living in civil unions. The Synod of Bishops resolved to discuss these guidelines at this year's meeting of the Provincial Standing Committee, since Provincial Synod 2013 urged the Synod to finalise the guidelines.
We reflected on Anglican Communion matters, especially the recent debates on sexuality. We reaffirmed our position of seeking to be bridge-builders within the continent and the worldwide Communion.
The Synod of Bishops also dealt with the issue of “transitional leadership” – that is the need to prepare bishops for the transition from active diocesan roles towards retirement. The Archbishop will assist in this process and ensure that it becomes an ongoing agenda item at the Synod.
Of note was an agreement to give the Diocese of Mthatha permission to have a Suffragan Bishop following its enormous growth over the last years.
The Synod of Bishops also agreed to introduce a second award for both laity and clergy who have distinguished themselves within our Province.
Synod of Bishops warmly and heartily endorsed the forthcoming Anglicans Ablaze conference, under the theme “Hope is Rising”, from July 2nd to July 5th, 2014. All bishops together with their spouses have registered to attend the conference.
We welcomed with joy the news that the diploma at the College of the Transfiguration (Cott) in Grahamstown has been accredited by the South African Qualifications Authority and that the college has now also been conditionally registered. This is an exciting milestone, for which we thank Prof Barney Pityana, his team and God. We have more students than we can allocate places for at Cott this year. We thank the bishops and their dioceses for this support, and the Province for funds raised on Theological Education Sunday.
We also received with excitement and anticipation the news about the upcoming visit of Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Reverend and Right Honourable Justin Welby to our Province in July this year.
We ended the Synod of Bishops giving thanks to God for the ministry of Bishop Dinis Sengulane who retires from our Province and his diocese after 38 years as a bishop. The bishops gathered around Bishop Dinis and prayed for him in a very moving service.
We ended by encouraging our faithful to continue to be Anchored in the love of Christ, Committed to God’s mission and Transformed by the Holy Spirit.
As the Synod of Bishops ended, we joined in singing and praying with Deutero-Isaiah as we wish joy and peace to all parishioners and communities within our Province.
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