FROM THE ECUMENICAL OFFICER - OCTOBER 2020
I have been reading a spiritual biography of Archbishop Desmond Tutu, a leader of the Christian churches of South Africa in the last three decades of the twentieth century. He was one of the principal leaders that helped South Africa make a transition from apartheid, when government was controlled by the 20 percent of the population that was white, to a democratic government in which all races had the vote. Most historians thought that that change could come only through a bloody civil war. But it came peacefully, and Nelson Mandela, after twenty-seven years in prison, became the first black president of South Africa in 1994.
Tutu headed the Truth and Reconciliation Commission that tried to deal openly with the country’s past. He was criticized from left and right, by some whites for allowing “terrorists” to run the government, by some blacks for not seeking revenge on whites.
The United States is not as divided into separate worlds as apartheid South Africa was, but we are a very polarized nation, politically and even religiously. Perhaps we can learn something from Tutu’s ecumenicity. As its first black bishop, he worked within his Anglican (in the US we say Episcopal) Church with both black and white members. On several occasions, with his own body he stopped a mob from killing a white official or a black man working with the white government. He secured support from other Christians outside of South Africa, in Europe and the United States. He was willing to work with his adversaries, such as F. W. de Clerk, the last white president of South Africa. He saw the purpose of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission not as revenge but as reconciliation. H appealed to the shared Christian faith of his white opponents. (South Africa does not have the US tradition of separation of church and state, and the white leadership officially saw themselves as a chosen people like the Jews.)
None of us is an archbishop or national leader, but most of us have opportunities to seek peaceful relations and conversations with those we disagree with. We occasionally have opportunities to put in a good word for those different from us who are being mistreated. We may see a classmate being bullied. We may hear someone putting down their spouse. We may hear someone speak ill of all immigrants. We may see expressions of hatred for a political adversary.
Tutu’s work was rooted in the convictions that all humans—whatever their race, gender, or economic status—are valued by God, and that who we are is shaped by those to whom we relate. This is real ecumenicity, seeing beyond ourselves to those round us.
Jesus, our Lord, help us to enjoy the richness of your creation, especially other people, and to learn from all we meet. Help us to discover and uproot the personal habits and cultural assumptions that keep us from enjoying and learning from others. Amen.
Hermann Weinlick, Ecumenical Officer
Moravian Church, Northern Province
Tutu headed the Truth and Reconciliation Commission that tried to deal openly with the country’s past. He was criticized from left and right, by some whites for allowing “terrorists” to run the government, by some blacks for not seeking revenge on whites.
The United States is not as divided into separate worlds as apartheid South Africa was, but we are a very polarized nation, politically and even religiously. Perhaps we can learn something from Tutu’s ecumenicity. As its first black bishop, he worked within his Anglican (in the US we say Episcopal) Church with both black and white members. On several occasions, with his own body he stopped a mob from killing a white official or a black man working with the white government. He secured support from other Christians outside of South Africa, in Europe and the United States. He was willing to work with his adversaries, such as F. W. de Clerk, the last white president of South Africa. He saw the purpose of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission not as revenge but as reconciliation. H appealed to the shared Christian faith of his white opponents. (South Africa does not have the US tradition of separation of church and state, and the white leadership officially saw themselves as a chosen people like the Jews.)
None of us is an archbishop or national leader, but most of us have opportunities to seek peaceful relations and conversations with those we disagree with. We occasionally have opportunities to put in a good word for those different from us who are being mistreated. We may see a classmate being bullied. We may hear someone putting down their spouse. We may hear someone speak ill of all immigrants. We may see expressions of hatred for a political adversary.
Tutu’s work was rooted in the convictions that all humans—whatever their race, gender, or economic status—are valued by God, and that who we are is shaped by those to whom we relate. This is real ecumenicity, seeing beyond ourselves to those round us.
Jesus, our Lord, help us to enjoy the richness of your creation, especially other people, and to learn from all we meet. Help us to discover and uproot the personal habits and cultural assumptions that keep us from enjoying and learning from others. Amen.
Hermann Weinlick, Ecumenical Officer
Moravian Church, Northern Province
SEPTEMBER 2020 - DISTRICT NEWSLETTER
| september_2020_news_and_notes.pdf |
AUGUST 2020 - MT. MORRIS NEWSLETTER
| august_e_news.pdf |
AUGUST 2020 - DISTRICT NEWSLETTER
| august_2020_district_newsletter__3_.pdf |
FROM THE ECUMENICAL OFFICER - JUNE 2020
| ecumenical_officer_june_2020__3_.docx |
| ecumenical_officer_june_2020__3_.pdf |