September 25, 2008 No. 09/08

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ

I am writing this Ad Clerum when I am just five days in the office as your bishop in our lovely diocese. It will be like repetition when I say “I, Ebenezer, Noncedo and the entire family (ooMbhathane, amaXesibe, amaKhuma, uKhanda Ngonyawana geqe emafiyeni, uNonzaba, uNondize kunye namaQiya, oHlanga, oNobetha, Abathembu, kunye nooRhadebe, AmaHlubi kunye noTshezi inkonjane emnyama ibhabha emafini bebonke bayabulela) are overwhelmed by the acts of love, prayers and support which our Diocesan family, Diocesan staff, College of Transfiguration, Religious Communities (Order of Holy Cross – Benedictine and the Community of the Resurrection) have shown, before and after the elections, before and after the Lambeth Conference, during our bishop’s training in Cape Town up to the consecration and installation. We give glory to God and ask that He may continually bless all of you abundantly for your generosity.

We apologies for the delay of the Ad Clerum. We will be on time for the next one.

I want to personally thank our dear Vicar General the Very Reverend Andrew Hunter for his outstanding leadership during the interregnum period. I have no doubt that God has bestowed in him a great future. I want to thank his wife Claire for her support to her husband and children and to our family and the diocese as well. I also wish to thank the leadership of the diocese and all the families in the diocese for their continuous wonderful work that they are doing in the Diocese.

A word from the Very Reverend Andrew Hunter:

“The Bishop has invited me to add a bit to the September Ad Clerum. I write as follows: A personal thank you to all in the Diocese, and particularly the members of Chapter, for your support and love over the past nine months during my time as Vicar General, and particularly as we worked together to plan the consecration and installation of Bishop Ebenezer. It has been a huge privilege to be given this responsibility, and a great gift to me, in my early days in the diocese, to be able to meet so many people and visit a number of the parishes. Thank you – Ndiyabulela – baie dankie.”

On the 19th September 2008 we received a Statement from the Synod of Bishops giving us the good news about our creation of the new Diocese of Ukhahlamba. I quote from the Statement of the Synod of Bishops “Endorsed the formation of a new diocese, to be known as the Diocese of Ukhahlamba in the northern part of the current Diocese of Grahamstown.”

All this was a response to our Synodical requests that wanted a missionary diocese and it was discovered by the Synod of Bishops that all dioceses are missionary and encouraged us that let it be a diocese. Through the wisdom of our Diocesan Council, and after careful considerations, we motivated and requested the Synod of Bishops that let the new diocese be created. For its creation we are thankful to God, to our Archbishop and all the Bishops for their wonderful response. All of this is about God’s Mission, it is about Church Growth and Church Planting, it is about effective ministry and pastoral care for the people of God.

On 24 September, Heritage Day, Bishop Ebenezer with Dean Andrew, members of Chapter and Diocesan structures (MU, St Bernard Mizeki, AWF, Youth, Ladies and Gents, Religious Communities, Choirs and the Diocesan Family) successfully launched the programme “Growing the Church”, a province–wide initiative, in the Diocese at the Indoor Sports Centre, Queenstown.

The launch took place in the context of a Eucharist, at which Bishop Ebenezer celebrated and preached. The Bishop preached on the text Matthew 28: 18 – 20 “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” +Ebenezer emphasized in his sermon that there is no “Growing the Church” without accepting the authority and the great commission of Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of God. He further emphasized that the success of this wonderful programme depends largely on our obedience to Jesus Christ. The congregation was charged to commit itself and promise openly, with God’s help, to labour for the extension of God’s Kingdom with love and compassion.

A team of Australian visitors from SOMA (Sharing of Ministries Abroad) was present to take part in the historic occasion. (More about SOMA and Growing the Church in the next issue of Umbuliso.) Many thanks to Archdeacon Mark Spyker and his diocesan team in their hard work and for standing for us at Provincial level.

To get a feel of the Diocese, together with the Vicar General, we called a meeting of the full time stipendiary clergy on the 19 August in King William’s Town. We looked at the format of the Diocesan budget, the needs of the clergy, remuneration of the clergy, medical aid, criteria used for assessing Parishes and a bird’s eye view of the ten year Business Plan (that would show our action plan of the entire life of our diocese). Eight clergy were elected so as to participate in the diocesan budget for 2009 and in the future. Many thanks to all the clergy that attended and I pray that together, through God’s love and our skills, this Diocese will grow in our transparency from one degree of glory to another level of glory.

On 23 August, I, together with the Vicar General, called the non-stipendiary clergy into a meeting to look at the clergy needs, how the Diocese constructs its budget, clergy and staff remuneration, the criteria used for assessing parishes and the Harper Commission Report.

We are grateful to Mrs Bongiwe Nkohla, a parishioner in St Martins - by- the- Sea Gonubie and member of the Mothers’ Union, who assisted us with her legal background to facilitate the Harper Commission Report. We appreciated the six recommendations and the outcome. There were also other recommendations made that the bishop will take forward.

On 30 August, I, together with the Vicar General called an Imbizo of all the Rectors, Priests–in-Charge, Churchwardens and Archdeacons in the proposed diocese of Ukhahlamba. Our agenda was to revisit the resolutions of their previous Imbizo’s as far as improvements in the upgrade of their assessments to meet the budget of their new proposed Diocese is concerned. We revisited the budget together and we resolved amicably to improve on it. There was an improvement of R96 000 – 00 that was agreed on for assessments for 2009.

On the 24th of September, the Family Day was celebrated together with the Growing of the church and we received the following love gifts: From the Southern Region R109 746-00 and Northern Region R70 111-00.

In all these three meetings mentioned here above I observed great co–operation and enthusiasm and I believe that in God and through God’s grace we will be able to make a difference in the lives of people whom God has entrusted in us through his Son Jesus Christ.

Whilst we were away in Lambeth we learnt that we have lost some clergy who have contributed a lot in the life of our diocese in the names of Revd Kholiwe Summers, Revd Howard Skomolo and now recently Revd Ndyebo Samela and Revd Peter Olivier.

We have also had a sad loss of The Rt Revd Beetge, our wonderful Dean of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa. Noncedo and I attended the funeral on your behalf which was held on the 3rd of October 2008 at St Dunstan School in the Diocese of the Highveld. We shall continue to pray for his wife, Carol and the Beetge family. May the soul of our beloved +David Rest in peace. I am very grateful to have been presented by him in my Consecration and Installation.

Benze baphumle ngonaphakade Nkosi, + Ubakhanyisele Ngokhanyiso Olungacimiyo. Amen. We know that the souls of the faithful departed are in the hands of God (Wisdom). I want to assure their families of our deepest condolences, love and continuous prayers.

To all Rectors/Priest-in-Charge/Assistant Priest and Clergy in General

We want to draw your attention to Canon 15 of Archdeacons No. 3 which is Obedience to Archdeacons “by virtue of his office the Archdeacon is entitled to the same obedience as the Bishop with regard to such matters as have been entrusted to him.”

Further we want to draw your attention to the Acts of our Diocese, page 45 of the Office of the Archdeacon: “the office of the Archdeacon with the Provincial Canon 15 of Archdeacons and with the rubrics of the Ordinal.”

We want to state clearly that the Archdeacons are sharing the Episcopal Ministry with the Bishop and we humbly ask you to co-operate and work hand in hand with the Archdeacons as they represent Jesus Christ and me in their jurisdiction as mandated by us.

To Archdeacons and Acting Archdeacons

My dear Archdeacons, we want to draw your attention to page 31, Section B of Archdeacons of the Acts of the Diocese so as to understand your relationships with us and of the Diocese and your role as defined by Canon 15 in the Constitution and Canons of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa and we pray and hope that this will be helpful as you assist us in the Episcopal Ministry of God’s Church and that you would respect those who assist us under you.

Further we draw you attention to Section D of Archdeaconry Councils 46, 47, 48 and 49. We hope that this will assist you to what is expected of you in your role as Archdeacon in the defined area of which you are in charge of under the Diocesan Bishop (Constitution and Canons of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, pages 50-51, Sections 1-9).

The Office of the Dean

We also want to draw your attention to the Acts of the Diocese of Grahamstown revised by the Synod of the Diocese 2005 of the Office of the Dean. Kindly read this which would assist you in your relationships with the Dean and the Bishop. We pray that the Dean would assist us in looking after the care of the clergy of the Diocese and give guidance where necessary in consultation with the Bishop and Archdeacons and the Canons of the Cathedral Church.

Lent Offering, Confirmation fees, Assessment, Family day love gifts

We humbly ask you to forward these contributions to the Diocese and they assist all of us to the budgetary constrains of our Diocese.

If you have any arrears, we pray that you, your wardens and members of Parish Council you may honour this for God’s mission and the betterment of our Diocese.

Any queries that you may have, write to us and also to the Acting Diocesan Administrator.

To the members of Chapter, Diocesan Leadership, all the clergy and all the families, friends and visitors that are members of this Diocese that is under Jesus Christ, our Lord and create an environment of love, Justice and peace to each other and serve God and one another praying the words of St Teresa de Avila:

“Christ has no body on earth but ours, no hands but ours, no feet but ours.

Ours are eyes through which we look out Christ Compassion on the world.

Ours are the feet with which we are to go about doing good,

Ours are the hands with which God blesses now.”

Soul searching

Please find herewith correspondence received from Br Andrew which is self explanatory.

May God bless you abundantly!

+Ebenezer Grahamstown