Umbuliso/ The Greeting
Newsletter of the Diocese of Grahamstown
August-September 2007
Reorganisation
in Diocesan Office
Choir visits from
Link Diocese
Creation
Altarpiece: another mighty work from Hamburg
Archbishop
Candidates announced
Diocesan Synod to
meet 8 September
Bishop Thabo
writes: Amazing Grace
Bishops “Walk to Emmaus” –
in Spain
Obituary: Nomgqibelo Mkosi of St Francis’ Mdantsane
Australian visitors help Cathcart
Child and Youth Care Workers make a difference
From the Department of Spirituality
News from “Little Switzerland”
Tshwaranang news: Clergy and Church Leadership trained in issues of HIV/ AIDS
Umbuliso uyakubulisa
(short items of news and greetings)
Reorganisation in Diocesan Office
The post of Diocesan Treasurer is being
outsourced to an accounting firm, the Bishop of Grahamstown, Thabo Makgoba, has
announced. The auditor
who will do this work on behalf of the diocese is Ms Candice Mullins,
incidentally related to the famous Canon Mullins who was Diocesan Secretary of
this diocese from 1864-1913. Her contract began on 1 July.
The
posts of Treasurer and Secretary were originally combined (Diocesan Secretary),
a post Canon James Hoyle filled after Ruth Brandt’s move to the North, with 80%
of the Treasurer’s work being done by his Assistant, Zoleka
Maqwili. For health reasons Canon Hoyle will remain Administrator for legal and
signature purposes only, while Ms Mullins will take over the treasurer’s
function, and Ms Maqwili as Administrator’s Assistant
will see to the day-to-day running of the office.
The Bishop wrote: “This is the most cost-effective way
of dealing with our needs and challenges. Employing a treasurer would have cost
us much more per month … I
feel excited and
relieved about this move as it will free me and all of us at the office to
respond efficiently to the needs of the Clergy, Parishes, parishioners, and …
the South African Revenue Services.”
Choir visits from Link Diocese
Living links: One of the choirs from Toronto Cathedral, the
St James Singers, visited Grahamstown during the National Festival of the Arts
in July, to sing at the invitation of SpiritFest, the Cathedral’s
outreach in the Festival. They are seen in the Cathedral with Bishop Thabo
Makgoba, after the Sunday morning Festival Eucharist. The choir’s Director,
Michael Bloss, is in the centre of the front row, and
the Sub-Dean (and Acting Dean) of Grahamstown, Suzanne Peterson, on the extreme
right.
The choir also gave a concert in the Cathedral
during the Festival, and one in St Alban’s Church East London (above) where
there was a capacity crowd on a weekday at lunch time, as well as visiting
Creation Altarpiece: Another
mighty work from Hamburg
The women of the embroidery project in
Inspired
by the 15th century Ghent Altarpiece, the work uses photography, beading and
numerous different embroidery techniques. Part of the project in the initial
stages was for those who were to work on it to make a study of local
Rejoicing: a large crowd of Grahamstown residents and
Festival visitors joined the team from
Parts of a greater whole, different sections of the tapestry were laid out on
the ground at the Project in
The Project’s previous Altarpiece has been seen
in Toronto Cathedral, and is still on a tour of various churches in the
Archbishop candidates announced
The names of those nominated for the Election of the next Archbishop of
1. The Rt Revd Thabo Cecil Makgoba, Bishop of
Grahamstown
2. The Revd Nyameko Barney Pityana, Priest in the Diocese of
3. The Rt Revd Johannes Thomas Seoka, Bishop of
Readers are asked to pray for them, as well as for the Diocese of Cape Town as they prepare
for the Elective Assembly in September.
Diocesan Synod to meet 8 September
Bishop Thabo Makgoba
has summoned the Synod of the Diocese of Grahamstown to meet on 8 September
2007 in
Bishop Thabo writes…. Amazing Grace
Dear People of God
This year marks 200 years since
Wilberforce’s campaign for the abolition of slavery bore fruit. A book by Eric Metaxas, Amazing Grace, is an accessible read printed on glossy paper and bigger print.
The history in it is not glossy but provides a biography of Wilberforce. In the
ten hour plane from
He was a prophet
who spoke into his situation, though not as radical as some would have wanted
him to be in today’s context. However, speak he did to the slave masters and
system that upheld the practice of slavery: “Thus says the Lord”, as in Ezekiel
37.
The
laws of our global world have legislated against the practice of slavery for
many years but slavery still happens in many other different forms. There is
explicit slavery, for example human trafficking, conscripting children, killing
those whose sexuality is different to ours as happened this month in Soweto,
kidnapping and killing children. There is also systemic slavery, for example
neglect of rural development or lack of intentionality in rural development so
that the poorest of the poor are rendered desperate, xenophobia, dependency,
consumerism, Mugabe and Sudan’s enslavement of their people, neglect of the
integrity of creation, stigmatising the HIV positive, domination of other
nations and people and substance abuse, the list can go on and on. . .
What
does the Lord require of us, what does Leviticus 19:33-34
say
about treatment of those different to us? How did Jesus deal with difference,
marginalisation and those enslaved by laws, pharasaic
attitudes and those caught in adultery? What does Paul say about the law and
those who are in Christ? God is love, we are created in love. With this
knowledge, what are we to proclaim to God’s world, enslaved by all the
abovementioned and many more?
Wilberforce never kept quiet, he declared “thus says the Lord. . .”
He obviously said this out of deep conviction that Christ has triumphed, that
out of baptism we are made new, united with Christ, out of a deep spirituality
that does not encourage interiority only but is expressed where God’s people
are in pain and unable to hear God’s comfort and release boldly
proclaimed.
I
was privileged to be among Bishops from 51 dioceses of the
I invite you, the people of God in this diocese to accompany me,
rooted in scripture, our tradition, and deep spirituality that seek to be
involved in God’s world, to walk with those who are struggling to understand
the word of God (Luke 24:13-35), those who need to hear and touch God’s
compassion, (Is 40:1-11) and share our faith with those in turbulence (Matt
14:22-33), and finally to pray for our Communion, that it may not seek cheap
grace, but know God’s amazing grace in our times.
May God bless you all as you proclaim
“thus says the Lord” in all your varied situations, especially to those that
seek to enslave God’s people. May you never tire of
working and praying without ceasing for all these issues.
+Thabo
Bishops “Walk to Emmaus” – in Spain
Bishop Thabo Makgoba was among
a group of Anglican bishops from Africa and the
Bishop Thabo commented:
There were none of the resolutions nor communiqués which characterise our Communion gatherings nowadays, but we
felt that the best communiqués and resolutions were our struggle and wrestling
together in the context of
The worship in the cathedral of the Redeemer in
Obituary: Nomgqibelo Mkosi of St Francis’ Mdantsane
By Siqendu Kokela
The AWF of
Grahamstown Diocese is mourning the untimely and tragic death of one of
their dedicated members, Nomgqibelo Mkosi of St Francis’ Anglican Church in Mdantsane, who
passed away on 15 June 2007 and was buried on 30 June. The late Ms Nomgqibelo Mkosi was very
concerned about the effects of the apartheid policies, which have left many of
our people living in abject poverty and conditions of neglect. She was a
dedicated member and was amongst the first group who presented the
school uniform to
In May 2007, members of AWF also paid their
tribute to the late Ms Maureen Jacobs of St Barnabas’ Anglican Church, Port
Alfred. May their souls rest in peace.
Calling
all AWF Members!
Diocesan AWF
Conference
Pallotti Farm, Queenstown
14—16 September 2007
Australian visitors help Cathcart
By Monica Hobongwana
Four of a party of Australians
who have been visiting Anglican centres in
People power: Australians and local Anglican youth get to
work on the church grounds.
Child and Youth Care Workers make a difference
By Heidi Schmidt and Monica Vega
The lives of many children, youth and families are
being touched and transformed by the care and commitment of local men and women
who have trained as Child and Youth Care Workers (CYCW’s)
under the Isibindi Model.
Ilinge is serving over 300 children and Ezibeleni
as of 1 May over 150. These numbers increase by an average of 15-20 children
per site each month. And we get closer to 2010 when an estimated 3,000,000
orphan children will be living in
The CYCW’s move into the life-space of children, and through
their intervention children learn skills to survive and function despite the
loss of a mother and the turmoil which that brings to their lives. Just a few
weeks ago Pheliwe, on her first week as a CYCW,
walked into a very poor home where a young, dying woman was worried about her
two young children aged three and six years.
A few days later, Cikizwa died and Pheliwe, without hesitation, stepped in. She visited the children on a daily basis,
and while makulu and aunties were busy with funeral arrangements, death
certificates, etc., Pheliwe cooked with the children,
helped them with daily life activities such as bathing, grooming, washing and
playing. Pheliwe
provided a woman’s touch as she
accompanied these two young children through their grieving process. She was
there all the way to the grave, and she’s still there preparing them for the
next steps to come. A very common story
indeed. So common that it almost appears
to be the norm. The presence of Pheliwe reminds us of another visitation, when an old
They
remind us in a prophetic way that we are called to move from gatherings,
conferences, workshops and fellowships to the margins of our communities, where
God is waiting for us!
Winter warmth: Some of the children at Ilinge
delighted with their new blankets.
ASF Conference in Mafikeng
By Masande Mango Gonya
“AmazinGRace” was the theme
of the Anglican Students’ Federation Conference (ASF) in
The main focus of the
Conference was on reviving and developing Students’ spirituality, and also
taking a stand against that weapon of mass destruction of Christian Families,
the African Continent at large and the Anglican Communion, which is the HIV/ AIDS pandemic. The Provincial Executive
Committee (PEC), led by Mpho Tsoenyane
and the ASF’s Gender and Education and Transformation
(GET), made sure that Voluntary and Counselling Testing (VCT) was available for
students who were ready to take a stand. The programme was facilitated by
Students, Chaplains, Bishops, speakers,
visitors and friends came from all parts of Anglican Church of Southern Africa
(ACSA). The ASF regions present include
From
the Department of Spirituality
By Charles Lagan
Stand still. The forest knows
Where you are. You must let it find
you
“Lost”. David
Wagoner
I read this quote recently from a
friend’s email and thought immediately of Centering
Prayer and the “panic” we experience when we are not ‘in control’ and are asked
to trust the process and “be found”. Like all expressions of prayer Centering Prayer requires faith, and a good deal of
surrender. It is this more than anything else that discourages people from
giving it time and a fair chance. This “not having to DO anything” must be
disconcerting to the ego. We want the consolations but not the God of the
consolations
Thomas Keating (and indeed the modern promoters
of Centering Prayer) have
always seen the pastoral power to this contemplative outreach. From its very
inception CP has always been associated with small groups at parish level.
Thomas Keating, thinking globally,
writes about the efficacy of such prayer: “Right now there are about two
billion Christians on the planet. If a significant portion of them were to
embrace the contemplative dimension of the Gospel, the emerging global society
would experience a powerful surge toward enduring peace. If this contemplative
dimension of the Christian religion is not presented, the Gospel is not being
adequately preached”.
Manifesting God, Thomas Keating, p.x, Lantern Books, New York
2005
News from “Little Switzerland
By Gordon Johnson
The little town of
The scene outside St Stephen’s
Rectory, Barkly East, after the first snowfall of 2007.
Woollies for the needy
Parishioners from St Stephen’s, Barkly East and
the MU of St Simon of Cyrene Chapelry, Barkly East
have formed a Knit and Knatter group, which meets two
Thursdays of each month to knit woollies to distribute among needy families in
Barkly East. The community of Barkly East has responded positively to requests
for wool but as this is an ongoing project the group prays that the wool will
keep on coming. (Maybe from further afield
as a result of this contribution to Umbuliso?)
Knitting and knattering:
Some members of the group with some
of the woollies they have already completed. From left: Angelina Lebeko, Lydia Motse, Louise
Johnson and Violet Mdedelwa.
New Youth Group
The youth of St Simon of Cyrene Chapelry, Barkly East have formed
a Youth Group which meets every Friday afternoon. They call themselves “The
Church Stars Youth Group” and their first project is to stage a concert/talent
show to raise funds for the Chapelry. Future
activities will include community projects, taking part in Church services,
games, praise and worship and just chilling with a Christian “attitude”.
Star quality: The Executive of the Church Stars Youth Group
of St Simon of Cyrene Barkly East.
L-R seated: Nenekazi Mapany (1st Leader), Thandokazi
Swayina (2nd Leader). Standing: Lineo Lebeko (Treasurer), Noxolo Mdedelwa (Secretary)
Renovations at Jubisa: Dimbaza congregation
benefits from Dartmouth
Christopher Helyer, a
retired British headmaster, has in the last few years twice filled in temporarily
at Eastern Cape Schools. Concern for the needs he saw in the Province led to
the formation in his home parish, Dartmouth, of the Mayenziwe
Project, which supports a school near Port Elizabeth, as well as the church
and school at Jubisa, one of the 14 congregations of
Dimbaza parish.
Helyer wrote to the Rector of Dimbaza,
Peter Mtuze, in May:
“The money for the church roof paint was raised
here in our parish. of
As well as renovating these roofs, the project
provided the means for the school classrooms to be repainted. The work was done
by teams of learners from
Tshwaranang News
By Noelene Arends
Setting an example:
Clergy and Church Leadership trained in issues of HIV/AIDS
Because there are many stories
around HIV/AIDS within the church community, Church Leaders and administrators
have to be trained and kept abreast of the developments in HIV/AIDS. Consequently, Religious leaders and
administrators were given training on HIV/AIDS.
The short course dealt with the following:
Education
on basic HIV/AIDS.
Stigma
around HIV/AIDS.
Challenges faced by
HIV & Religious Leaders.
Guiding
Communities through a process of living and change.
AIDS
and Worshipping Community.
Strategies
to mitigate the impact of HIV pandemic.
Church
and its role in sexual education.
We are hopeful that the workshop will change
the attitude of the church leadership towards HIV/AIDS and teach them to act
appropriately in dealing with infected congregates and colleagues. We are
thankful to the South
African Network of Religious Leaders Living with or Personally Affected by HIV
or AIDS (SANERELA) for
helping us run this workshop.
Food Security
This Division is
committed to the acceleration of poverty reduction and mitigation of the
devastating effects of HIV/AIDS. In pursuit of this goal, the groups at Sada,
The adverse climatic conditions
have delayed, the readiness of the crop, particularly
peas. However the project at St Barnabas Sada has been able to supply indigent
and infected persons and vulnerable children with spinach, cabbages and beetroot.
Twenty-five families and the safety home, which accommodates six children,
benefited from the harvest. We experienced excessive frost in areas like Machibini and Mlungisi and as a
result thereof a large number of plants were damaged.
A
roof over their heads
On 25 October 2006 we reported
the plight of nine children housed in a single room in the local paper, Daily
Representative. The challenge faced by this child-headed family also caught the
eye of the Mathoma Anglican Parishioners, attached to
St Michael’s, Queenstown.
They raised funds
together with their Bishop to put up an additional room so that these kids
could be properly accommodated and enjoy some privacy. They raised the amount of R13 000. The Revd Themba Mdedelwa and Zoleka Stemela monitored the construction up to completion. The additional room has now been completed
and was to be handed over on the afternoon of 15 July.
Work in progress: The Revd Themba Mdedelwa inspects the extension.
Training on substance abuse
In line with our main objective this subsection
has continued with educating learners and the general public on substance
abuse. The month-long strike by
educators had an impact on the on the number of learners during this
period. Consequently only 174 learners
and out-of-school youth received training during this period.
Clergy and Spouse Weekend Retreat
7-9 Sept 2007 starting 16h30
Conductor: Canon John Davis.
Bookings: The Guestmaster, Mariya uMama weThemba
Monastery,
guesthouse@umaria.co.za.
The Bishop has advised that clergy attending
this retreat are excused from attending Synod on 8 Sept.
Generous gift from Canada
Our Link Diocese of Toronto in Canada sent in June a generous gift of $25,000 CDN, to be used for HIV/ AIDS related programmes in the Diocese of Grahamstown, at this diocese’s discretion. This amounts to about R151,400! We give thanks to God for the generosity of the Toronto Diocese’s FaithWorks
Umbuliso uyakubulisa
For Prayer
Umbuliso greets Archdeacon Reg Morgan with relief and thankful prayers
that he was spared injury when his car hit a cow on the road back from
Grahamstown, destroying both car and cow.
Some
of our clergy are experiencing serious health problems, and prayers are asked
for them: Moses Moletsane, Howard Skomolo, Mteteli Mhlaula and Elliot Masoka.
Sabbaticals
We wish every blessing on the Sub-Dean Suzanne
Peterson, as she leaves for two months’ sabbatical in her country of origin,
the
Ordination, 1 September
Prayers are asked for those preparing to be
ordained by Bishop Thabo in the Cathedral on 1 September. Three deacons are to
be ordained priest: Gordon Johnson of Barkly East, Richard Wyngaard of St
Alban’s
From the Bishop’s Diary
August
7 Tue Chapter
11 Sat Church dedication, Mooiplaas
17 Thur Meeting of Anglican heads of independent
schools at St Matthew’s with the Archbishop
18-19 Sat 125th Anniversary,
St Andrew’s
21 Tue Anglican House of Studies
21-24 Tue-Fri Clergy retreat
28 Tues COTT Council Meeting
29 Wed Advisory Board on Theological Education
30 Thur
RU Finance meeting 11:00
Audit
Committee at RU 14:15
31 Fri RU Senate, Ordination Rehearsal 17:00
September
1 Sat Ordination
St Peter’s
2 Sun St Peter’s 150th,
service
6 Thur
RU Council Meeting
7-9 Fri-Sun Clergy retreat
8 Sat Synod
10 Mon TFM
11 Tue Diocesan Council
13 Thur Profession of Sr
Makhosazana CR
14 Fri Mthatha with
Archbishop of
15 Sat Wedding of Simphiwe Magxwalisa
16 Sun Music by schools of Grahamstown,
Cathedral
18 Wed Multifaith
service at Cathedral Biko day organised by
21-22 Fri-Sat Synod of Bishops,
23 Sun PSC
24-26 Mo-We Elective Assembly for Archbishop of
29 Sat MU Biennial Conference
October
- December
Sabbatical in the
Confirmations
by Bishop Godfrey Ashby
October
7 Sun Alice Cluster at St Matthew’s
13 Sat
14 Sun
Evening:
Mon DSG, St Andrew’s
Please note there will be further confirmations by Bishops Ashby and Matolengwe later in Oct-Nov.
Umbuliso is your diocesan newspaper!
Contributions welcome
Deadline for next issue: 20 July 2007
Please send news to:
P O Box 181, Grahamstown 6140
Tel: 046 622 7803
Fax: 086
685 3968
Please note change of fax number.
E-mail: umbuliso@diocesegrahamstown.co.za
Umbuliso is published by the Diocese of Grahamstown, edited by Maggy Clarke