Bishop David Beetge Memorial Lecture

Bishop David Beetge Memorial Lecture

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A series of lectures by leading theological practitioners to celebrate the legacy of Bishop David an

Operating as usual

12/08/2022

As the 2022 Lambeth Conference ends, we remember those from the past who inspired us and sought to continue the solidarity between the UK and Southern Africa which today we see in the form of support for new Provinces - Angola and Mozambique; new schools - Kwasa College Springs; new partnerships www.westgreentcharity.org; renewed connections Sarah McDowell Clive Scott Sharron Dinnie Thabo Makgoba Bishop Simeon Trust St Martin-in-the-Fields with Cathedral of St Mary The Virgin, Johannesburg. Rachel Morrison-was EvansFiona MacMillanCatherine JacksonJeff ReaderPhyllis SantaMariaRichard CarterMark StringerRichard BurridgeSharon JonesMichael Curry Sue ParksAnna GregorowskiXolani Dlwati St Martin's looks forward to the upcoming visit of South African young pilgrims from St Mary's Johannesburg. Thanks to everyone who continues to hold South Africa in prayer and action!

26/12/2021

ACTSA mourns the loss of a powerful voice for freedom, equality and justice . This photograph is from the 1988 Anti-Apartheid Movement rally in Hyde Park, calling for the release of Nelson Mandela.
Here is our tribute:

Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu was a courageous man. He was a man of deep faith and of the firm belief that all people were children of God, regardless of your politics or religion, status or heritage, gender or sexuality. He spent his life speaking truth to power at great personal risk. He did not think to hide in the shadows. He was there at the forefront of the struggle.
His political and spiritual awakening began when a tall white priest doffed his hat to Desmond Tutu’s mother. That priest was Father Trevor Huddleston, and this was the beginning of a lifelong friendship between the two men, that was tempered in the struggle against apartheid. According to Tutu’s own account, that first meeting was influential when he decided on the road to priesthood.

And what a road it was. It was Desmond Tutu who preached at the funeral of Steve Biko in 1977. It was Desmond Tutu who led marches in South Africa calling for an end to apartheid and the release of Nelson Mandela when he was still in prison. It was Desmond Tutu, along with his friend Archbishop Trevor Huddleston, who galvanized the opposition against apartheid worldwide for decades. In 1984 his work was recognized by the award of the Nobel Peace Prize, but tougher years lay ahead. In 1988, it was Desmond Tutu who received the Nelson Mandela Freedom Marchers in London’s Hyde Park at the end of their march from Glasgow, now demanding the release of Nelson Mandela. It was Desmond Tutu’s Bishopscourt home to which Nelson Mandela went when he walked out of prison in 1990.

On 27th April 1994, Desmond Tutu, like millions of South Africans, went to vote for the first time in his life. When he saw the new South African flag, he said it symbolised the Rainbow Nation. He then set out to help build that nation. His chairing of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission was a task he could not refuse, stepping into uncharted territory with a philosophy of full disclosure in exchange for amnesty. Despite its inevitable compromises, in the quest for the lives and names of the murdered and disappeared to be known to the world, he wept with witnesses, parents, spouses, children and survivors. In the face of tyranny, he found a way to continue to epitomise love.

In 2014 he renewed his call for justice for Palestinians thus: 'Nelson Mandela famously said that South Africans would not feel free until Palestinians were free. He might have added that the liberation of Palestine will liberate Israel, too'. (source: https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/desmond-tutu-to-haaretz-this-is-my-plea-to-the-people-of-israel-1.10494007)

Desmond Tutu led a remarkable, extraordinary life, not without pain or price for being the ‘rabble rouser for peace’. His family had no choice but to share him and generations were lucky to have been able to walk forward to freedom with him. Hamba Kahle, Desmond Tutu. Rest now, in peace.

Issued by ACTSA December 26 2021.

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A life dedicated to social justice

Archbishop Thabo Makgoba established this lecture series to honour the work of his former Dean of the Province and first Bishop of Highveld Diocese, whose life was cut short by illness in 2008. The inaugural lecture in 2016 was given by Dr Rowan Williams who had worked personally with Bishop David when at Monmouth. Bishop David travelled widely across the Anglican Communion in service of the poorest people in South Africa, generating funds and partners especially for those affected by HIV-AIDS, providing services to all, no matter what faith or belief. He pioneered the Child Care Advocate project, funded by Comic Relief and the Bishop Simeon CR Trust, creating opportunities for some 10,000 orphans and child headed households to be supported by women in their local communities across Ekurhuleni and Mpumalanga.

The second lecture was given by Professor Barney Pityana, former VC of UNISA and academic and laywer. The third lecture given in 2018 was given by Rev Dr Sam Wells, currently Vicar of St Martin in the Fields, London, where Bishop David was a regular visitor and much loved friend.

Archbishop Thabo is delighted that the 2019 lecture will be given by the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, the Most Reverend Michael Curry on February 17th at Wits Great Hall Johannesburg. Information: Rev Sharron Dinnie 083 415 0128 Rector of Kwasa College whose learners benefit from the proceeds of the lecture event. Kwasa College was opened by Bishop David in 2006 as a fully flegded low-feeing paying school, now serving over 300 children from the informal housing and marginalised areas close to Springs.

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