Dear People of God
Well, the World Cup is finally upon us! As I have said to journalists, though I know I ought to pray for the best team to win, nonetheless my heart is with Bafana Bafana! Nonetheless, I hope you will join with me in the following simple prayer, throughout the time of the Tournament.
God bless
the 2010 World Cup:
Meanwhile, the church’s year rolls on. We have just observed Pentecost, which
completes the cycle of Lent, Passion and Easter, with our celebration of the
coming of the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, the Advocate, the Helper, the Sustainer, the Sanctifier, the One who leads us into all Truth. In
Hebrew, the word for Spirit and breath are the same, and I sometimes think of
the Spirit as being the oxygen of the life of faith – the breath of life, which
we must keep on breathing if we are to stay alive! Our baptism signifies the
coming of the Spirit to live within us, as those whose lives are dedicated to
God, and we pray for the confirmation and strengthening of the Spirit within us
at confirmation. The Spirit is for all of us, not just those we think of as
leaders within the church. In the confirmation prayers, we speak of the Spirit of wisdom and
understanding, of discernment and inner strength, of knowledge and true
godliness. This should give us confidence that, whatever we face, the Spirit
will help us know what to do, and give us the courage to pursue it. I thought of this last month when I was in the Diocese of Zululand,
celebrating with Bishop Dino and his clergy and people the 140th anniversary of
their founding. The Diocese has seen many turbulent times during those years –
from the Anglo-Zulu wars in its earliest period through to the troubled times of
the struggle, especially as the promise of democracy began to dawn. As I look
back, I am sure it was the oxygen of the Spirit, whose inner strength gave
courage to the people of God to hold fast in faithfulness, recognising the
faithfulness of God to them through thick and thin. As I visited Nongoma, Nquthu and Ulundi, meeting His Majesty King
Goodwill Zwelithini, and iNkosi Mangosuthu Buthelezi, as well as clergy and
people of the Diocese, I realised how much we still need the discernment of the
Holy Spirit, especially in understanding what is the authentic expression of the
gospel within the various cultures of Southern Africa. We know that we do not
have to become Victorian ladies and gentlemen – as some of the early
missionaries and clergy thought! Yet we need great wisdom in understanding what
parts of the traditional cultures of the countries of our Provinces are
compatible with the eternal truths of the gospel. It is the Holy Spirit, that
not only spoke all the languages of those present at the first Pentecost, but
who also can translate the gospel fluently into all the cultures of today’s
world, to whom we must continue to look, in our quest for discernment. Such
discernment will also be our greatest help in knowing how to engage confidently
with the many challenges and questions of contemporary politics. Sadly, one lady collapsed and later died, at the Eucharist at St
Augustine’s Mission at Nquthu. And yet her family said to me that there was
nowhere where she would have wanted to be more, for such a thing to happen. It
was a wonderful testimony that our faith in our Lord’s resurrection is for us
far more than just words. The week after my visit to Zululand, I was in London for more
celebrations – the 50th anniversary of the Southern African Church Development
Trust, founded by Harold Wilson and Arthur Spencer-Payne. As many of you
will know from their work in your own parishes, the SACDT supports the building
of community centres and churches, classrooms and hostels, educational
programmes and student bursaries. It also funds special projects such as
primary health care in mission hospitals and more recently Aids clinics, crèches
and educare centres across Southern Africa. We had a wonderful
Eucharist at the Church of St Martin-in-the-Fields in London. The Church
community has long been a faithful friend of Southern Africa, almost next door
to South Africa House on the side of Trafalgar Square, which, after so many
years of demonstrations outside, now houses our High Commission – which was
represented at the Service. Members of both the Wilson and Spencer-Payne
families were also there, along with Revd Dr Jack Mulder, the Trust’s Director
of Projects. Later this year, a plaque will be dedicated in the church of All
Saints, Somerset West to mark the vision of the two founders. I then had an
opportunity to speak at an inter-religious gathering at Blackburn Cathedral. Back home, preparations
continue for Provincial Synod. I promised to say more about the eight priority
themes for our 2020 Vision. Let me address two here. First, liturgy – where we
aim to strengthen the Liturgical Commission to do more in developing and
disseminating resources that will support local congregations in worship that is
vibrant, inclusive, contextual and life-changing, while remaining in touch with
our liturgical heritage. We also want to look more closely at
inter-generational issues and the perspectives of young people. Second,
theological education, where the Province’s role is providing overall shape and
direction, in both teaching and spiritual formation for lay and ordained
Anglicans, in ways that serve the whole family of God in our Province, in the
living out of our vision. Finally, while I
was in London, by chance was able to go to a service
in the chapel at Lambeth Palace. It was a few days after Pentecost and
Archbishop Rowan Williams spoke about the Holy Spirit as the ‘Divine Intruder’,
whom we cannot keep out of our lives. Returning to Cape Town as winter is
really upon us, and it is impossible to keep the wind from coming through the
old window frames at Bishopscourt, I am reminded what a wonderful metaphor this
is for the breath of God, which, as we read in John’s gospel, ‘blows where it
will’ (Jn 3:8). Yours in
the Service of Christ +Thabo
Cape Town Return to the front page of the
Diocese of Grahamstown
bless those who compete, and those who watch,
bless those who host, and those who visit,
and help all who love 'the beautiful game'
grow in the love you have given us to share
through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.