My Nelson Mandela Memories

                                Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela

                                               Madiba

                                July 18, 1918 - December 5, 2013

I think each of us South Africans has our unique "Mandela Memory".....

Cedric and Chris Poole at Nelson Mandela Square, Johannesburg

...my first real "Mandela Memory" was on arriving for my first year of dental studies at Wits University (Johannesburg) in 1978 (18 months after the June 16 Soweto Uprising) and being confronted with the Free Mandela Campaign. I am ashamed to say now that at that time, as an 18 year old South African boy, I knew little or nothing about Nelson Mandela. Whether I can blame the government of the day for

(sourced from sahistory.com)

 this or not is a moot point.  Yes, it was illegal to quote him as he was a banned person....yes, my history lessons throughout my schooling had never mentioned him, and yes, what little I did know of him, from government propaganda, was that he was a terrorist and, to make it worse, he was a communist! These were the two biggest threats to civilized life as we (white) teenagers understood it. So, arriving at Wits University as a "well educated" young adult and being confronted on day one of orientation week with the Free Mandela Campaign (which of course was a totally illegal campaign and was closely watched by BOSS, the Bureau of State Security, which, it later came to light, followed up on those who showed an interest in the campaign and identified them as potential dangers to the State)  was really the beginning of my political awakening. I am further ashamed to confess that my allegiances were more with the Free Beer Campaign than the Free Mandela Campaign, but, I realise now..........something did begin to change in the Free State boytjie who arrived at Wits that year. 

So that counts as my first "Mandela Memory" of significance.

My second "Mandela Memory" of significance is without a doubt the announcement of his impending

release: I believe most Americans can remember exactly where they were when they heard of the assassination of JFK, and more recently, where they were when they heard about 9/11. Well, in a similar way, I remember just where I was when I heard of Nelson Mandela's planned release.....I was just up the road from my dental practice in Pietermaritzburg, driving past the OK Bazaars in Boshoff Street and I remember thinking....even though you want to, this isn't the  safest place to celebrate by jumping out the car and shouting Hooray! Pietermaritzburg, which was the capital of the province Natal, which in turn was the stronghold of the Inkatha movement which was the strongest "black" opposition to the (banned) ANC, did not respond very well to the news of Mandela's release. I remember wondering on that Friday afternoon at the beginning of February 1990 what this would lead to in my beloved South Africa.

(sourced from oisbengaluru.blogspot.com)

My third "Mandela Memory" would have to be watching his release about 10 days later on a Sunday afternoon on national television....the images remain vividly imprinted on (I think) all our minds as South Africans.......as do some of the quite inane things said by the TV commentators such as "the people are drinking water here like it's going out of fashion"!


My fourth Mandela Memory would have to be queuing to vote in our first democratic elections just 4 weeks after going into my first appointment as a Methodist minister and thinking...a new life for our country and a new life for me. 

Fifth would be Nelson Mandela's inauguration as our State President and once again a vivid recollection of seeing one of our SA Defence Force generals (I think Georg Meiring, but I stand to be corrected) opening the door of his limousine,saluting him and saying "Good morning, Sir" and Nelson Mandela responding with a booming "How are you?"

(sourced from sahistory.com)

The closest I have yet been to Madiba (other than driving past his home in Houghton) was when he was the guest speaker at the Methodist Conference at which I was ordained in 1998 (read his full address here) in Durban. While he said much, these two things remain embedded in my mind, and, I hope, in my ministry:

What South Africa needs now is not only good government and good laws. We

need people who are committed to making this the country of our dreams. And we

need religious people who live their faith....

and

We count on the religious fraternity to help us restore the moral values and

the respect for each other that were destroyed by the inhumanity of apartheid.

Our Presiding Bishop, Mvume Dandala, also presided over the marriage of Madiba to Graca Machel on the Saturday before our ordination service on the Sunday.

A final "Mandela Memory", and one which I wish the MCSA and other religious bodies he appealed to would live up to, is the address President Nelson Mandela gave to our Conference in 1994, (read it here) just a few months after his inauguration as State President: 

South Africa now has a democratic government representative of, and accountable to, all the people. By your fearless commitment to truth and justice, the Methodist Church and other religious bodies helped realise  this. But all governments, no matter how democratic, need constructive criticism and advice. I ask you to continue to play your prophetic role, always seeking to hold the nation and all its leaders to the highest standards of integrity and service.

History since this appeal made by Nelson Mandela to the MCSA, records that we, and the other religious bodies he appealed to, let him down. Where was our indignant and prophetic voice, for example, while the lambs of our nation were denied life saving anti-retro-viral treatment, leading to hundreds of thousands of preventable deaths (all of this after he left office, please note)?

Where was my voice, I ask myself, and what ought I to learn from the example that Nelson Mandela set us?

We may have let Nelson Mandela down, but, praise God, he never let us down.

Prayer for International Nelson Mandela Day

A Prayer for International Nelson Mandela Day

O Lord, who in a time of turmoil and confusion raised up your servant Nelson Mandela, and endowed him with wisdom, patience, and a reconciling temper, that he might lead South Africa into ways of stability and peace: Hear our prayer, and give us wise and faithful leaders, that through their ministry your people may be blessed and your will be done; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.


The above prayer is my adaptation of the collect for the day (see below) from the Book of Common Prayer, which today remembers William White, the man who built the American Church to be independent, autonomous and democratic.


{Collect of the Day: William White, Bishop of Pennsylvania, 1836

O Lord, who in a time of turmoil and confusion raised up your servant William White, and endowed him with wisdom, patience, and a reconciling temper, that he might lead your Church into ways of stability and peace: Hear our prayer, and give us wise and faithful leaders, that through their ministry your people may be blessed and your will be done; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.


Sourced here }

Some ideas for Mandela Day

  67 ways to change the world (sourced here)

Think of others

1. Make a new friend. Get to know someone from a different cultural background. Only through mutual understanding can we rid our communities of intolerance and xenophobia.
2. Read to someone who can’t. Visit a local home for the blind and open up a new world for someone else.
3. Fix the potholes in your street or neighbourhood.
4. Help out at the local animal shelter. Dogs without homes still need a walk and a bit of love.
5. Find out from your local library if it has a story hour and offer to read during it.
6. Offer to take an elderly neighbour who can’t drive to do their shopping/chores.
7. Organise a litter cleanup day in your area.
8. Get a group of people to each knit a square and make a blanket for someone in need.
9. Volunteer at your police station or local faith-based organisation.
10. Donate your skills!
11. If you’re a builder, help build or improve someone’s home.
12. Help someone to get his/her business off the ground.
13. Build a website for someone who needs one, or for a cause you think needs the support.
14. Help someone get a job. Put together and print a CV for them, or help them with their interview skills.
15. If you’re a lawyer, do some pro bono work for a worthwhile cause or person.
16. Write to your area councillor about a problem in the area that requires attention, which you, in your personal capacity, are unable to attend to.
17. Sponsor a group of learners to go to the theatre/zoo.

Help out for good health

18. Get in touch with your local HIV organisations and find out how you can help.
19. Help out at your local hospice, as staff members often need as much support as the patients.
20. Many terminally ill people have no one to speak to. Take a little time to have a chat and bring some sunshine into their lives.
21. Talk to your friends and family about HIV.
22. Get tested for HIV and encourage your partner to do so too.
23. Take a bag full of toys to a local hospital that has a children’s ward.
24. Take younger members of your family for a walk in the park.
25. Donate some medical supplies to a local community clinic.
26. Take someone you know, who can’t afford it, to get their eyes tested or their teeth checked.
27. Bake something for a support group of your choice.
28. Start a community garden to encourage healthy eating in your community.
29. Donate a wheelchair or guide dog, to someone in need.
30. Create a food parcel and give it to someone in need.

Become an educator

31. Offer to help out at your local school.
32. Mentor a school leaver or student in your field of expertise.
33. Coach one of the extramural activities the school offers. You can also volunteer to coach an extramural activity the school doesn’t offer.
34. Offer to provide tutoring in a school subject you are good at.
35. Donate your old computer.
36. Help maintain the sports fields.
37. Fix up a classroom by replacing broken windows, doors and light bulbs.
38. Donate a bag of art supplies.
39. Teach an adult literacy class.
40. Paint classrooms and school buildings.
41. Donate your old textbooks, or any other good books, to a school library.

Help those living in poverty

42. Buy a few blankets, or grab the ones you no longer need from home and give them to someone in need.
43. Clean out your cupboard and donate the clothes you no longer wear to someone who needs them.
44. Put together food parcels for a needy family.
45. Organise a bake sale, car wash or garage sale for charity and donate the proceeds.
46. To the poorest of the poor, shoes can be a luxury. Don’t hoard them if you don’t wear them. Pass them on!
47. Volunteer at your local soup kitchen.

Care for the youth

48. Help at a local children’s home or orphanage.
49. Help the kids with their studies.
50. Organise a friendly game of soccer, or sponsor the kids to watch a game at the local stadium.
51. Coach a sports team and make new friends.
52. Donate sporting equipment to a children’s shelter.
53. Donate educational toys and books to a children’s home.
54. Paint, or repair, infrastructure at an orphanage or youth centre.
55. Mentor someone. Make time to listen to what the kids have to say and give them good advice.

Treasure the elderly

56. If you play an instrument, visit your local old-age home and spend an hour playing for the residents and staff.
57. Learn the story of someone older than you. Too often people forget that the elderly have a wealth of experience and wisdom and, more often than not, an interesting story to tell.
58. Take an elderly person grocery shopping; they will appreciate your company and assistance.
59. Take someone’s dog for a walk if they are too frail to do so themselves.
60. Mow someone’s lawn and help them to fix things around their house.

Look after your environment

61. If there are no recycling centres in your area, petition your area councillor to provide one.
62. Donate indigenous trees to beautify neighbourhoods in poorer areas.
63. Collect old newspapers from a school/community centre/hospital and take them to a recycling centre.
64. Identify open manhole covers or drains in your area and report them to the local authorities.
65. Organise the company/school/organisation that you work with to switch off all unnecessary lights and power supplies at night and on weekends.
66. Engage with people who litter and see if you can convince them of the value of clean surroundings.
67. Organise to clean up your local park, river, beach, street, town square or sports grounds with a few friends. Our children deserve to grow up in a clean and healthy environment.

Happy Birthday Nelson Mandela

"Do all the good you can, By all the means you can, In all the ways you can, In all the places you can, At all the times you can, To all the people you can, As long as ever you can." This was said by John Wesley, but sums up the goal of International Mandela Day.

MandelaDay.com (here) states the following: Change was the gift given to all South Africans by Nelson Mandela. Now it's YOUR turn. In the spirit of Madiba and his vision to spread justice and freedom for all, this is your chance to step up to the plate and become a part of a continuous global movement for good. By becoming a Mandela Day Changemaker you can show that actions speak louder than words by giving a little of your time to make a change that's close to your heart. (or by giving a little of your time to make a difference to the life of someone less fortunate.)

I think each of us (or is that each of we....where is my English teacher when I need her?) South Africans has our unique "Mandela story".....my first real "Mandela experience" was on arriving for my first year of dental studies at Wits University (Johannesburg) in 1978 (18 months after the June 16 Uprising) and being confronted with the Free Mandela Campaign. I am ashamed to say my allegiances were more with the Free Beer Campaign, but, I realise now..........something did begin to change in the Free State boytjie who arrived at Wits that year.

I remember just where I was when I heard of Nelson Mandela's planned release (I was just up the road from my dental practice in Pietermaritzburg, and I remember thinking....even though you want to, this isn't the  safest place to celebrate by jumping out the car and shouting Hooray! Pmburg did not respond that well to the news of Mandela's release).

I remember queuing to vote in our first democratic elections just 4 weeks after going into my first appointment as minister and thinking...a new life for our country and a new life for me.

The closest I have yet been to Madiba (other than driving past his home in Houghton) was when he was the guest opening speaker at the Methodist Conference at which I was ordained in 1998 in Durban. Our Presiding Bishop, Mvume Dandala, also presided over the marriage of Madiba to Graca Machel on the Saturday before our ordination service on the Sunday.

Happy Birthday Nelson Mandela and thank you for what you have allowed our LORD to do through you.

President Nelson Mandela at my Ordination Conference

Cedric and Chris at Mandela Square, Johannesburg.

I was ordained on Sunday, 19 July, 1998. Two days before that our Conference was addressed by President Nelson Mandela. It was the eve of his 80th birthday, but unbeknownst to us all, except our Presiding Bishop Mvume Dandala, this day was also the eve of Madiba's marriage to Graca Machel. Our Presiding Bishop would excuse himself from the chair of Conference to officiate at the marriage on Saturday, and return for our ordination service on Sunday.

Address by President Nelson Mandela at the first Triennial Conference of the Methodist church of South Africa   Durban, 17 July 1998

Presiding Bishop Mvume Dandala;
Delegates;
Distinguished Guests;

When I met with you at your annual conference in Umtata in 1994, we were all
still celebrating the fresh victory of democracy. At that meeting we took stock
of the challenges ahead that we would face together. Our main priorities then
revolved around writing a constitution to protect the social, economic and
political rights of all South Africa's people.
As a nation we had survived an unfortunate period in the life of our country,
where the most terrible oppression was justified by some people on the basis of
their Christian faith. Other living faiths were denied an opportunity to
contribute on an equal footing to the life of our people.
Our new constitution has laid the foundations for a healthy inter-religious
relationship by guaranteeing the right to freedom of religion, in a society
where the oppression of one by another must forever be a thing of the past.
What South Africa needs now is not only good government and good laws. We
need people who are committed to making this the country of our dreams. And we
need religious people who live their faith.
Today I am 79 years and 364 days old. My live has been a long journey. I am
grateful for the learning during my early years which laid the foundations for
my life. I thank my mother and uncles who sent me to Sunday School and to the
Mission Schools where I was nurtured. Although youth is supposed to rebel
against a strict church, I look back fondly on the instruction I received at
Clarkebury and Healdtown. The values I was taught at these institutions have
served me well throughout my life.
These values were strengthened during our years of incarceration when this
church, along with other religious communities, cared for us. Not only did you
send chaplains to encourage us, but you also assisted us materially within your
means. You helped our families at a time when we could not help them ourselves.
Religious organisations also played a key role in exposing apartheid for what
it was - a fraud and a heresy. It was encouraging to hear of the God who did not
tolerate oppression, but who stood with the oppressed.
We will always salute the resolve of those who stood firm for justice and
righteousness. Many a religious community suffered because they stood for truth.
We must never let this happen to our nation again. Our task must be to
constantly remind ourselves of our history and of our vision for the future: to
build a democratic culture in which all have the freedom and opportunities to
improve our lives.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission has played a crucial role in exposing
the evil that bedevilled our land for so long. Many our people are still bitter
and find it difficult to forgive. Just laws are not enough to lead our people to
new life. True reconciliation will come about when those who were divided
confront their past, join hands and overcome the legacy of poverty. In the same
way our freedom will only gain real meaning if it brings real improvements in
the lives of people.
As the government of a young democracy we have made considerable progress in
bringing basic facilities within reach of all people and we are proud of that
achievement. But we know it will take a long time to reverse the destructive
legacy of over three hundred years.
It will also require the combined efforts of all our people, some who must
share their knowledge and skills; some who must contribute by building schools
and hospitals and others who must be creative and participate in their own
upliftment. We need a culture of hard work, of learning, and of innovation.
People must become job creators rather than only job seekers. Our children must
be helped to make the best of their opportunities, even where facilities are not
ideal.
Religious communities have a vital role to play in this regard. Just as you
took leading roles in the struggle against apartheid, so too you should be at
the forefront of helping to deliver a better life to all our people. Amongst
other things you are well placed to assist in building capacity within
communities for effective delivery of a better life.
This better life is not only about delivering jobs, houses, education and
health services. It is also about eliminating anything which threatens our
hard-won gains.
It is about making South Africa a safe place to live in. Crime is a menace
that disturbs any country. It hampers our efforts to build a society in which
everyone's rights are respected. While even one person feels insecure in our
land, we will not rest. Government is doing its best but we face huge obstacles
even from within our ranks. When we speak of crime we are also referring to the
corruption which is undermining our efforts to build a better life. What is most
distressing is that of those who plunder public resources for their own benefit
include former fighters for freedom as well as those from the former apartheid
machinery.
Overcoming crime and corruption and our other problems in the field of
education, unemployment and poverty, requires every person to become part of the
solution instead of simply being a spectator. In our schools and our places of
worship, people should be encouraged to share in creating the atmosphere our
land needs. As religious leaders you are responsible for creating a climate of
honesty, responsibility and discipline. As a society we should all reject those
who steal bread from the mouths of little children or from the elderly or the
poor.
We count on the religious fraternity to help us restore the moral values and
the respect for each other that were destroyed by the inhumanity of apartheid.
Finally, please allow me to congratulate you on the mission stalls you are
displaying here. It is heart-warming to see the efforts my church is making to
touch the lives of our people, particularly the poor. This already is for us a
sign of what must be: all our people rolling up their sleeves so that all may
reap the fruits of their freedom.
I thank you!

Issued by: Office of The President      

Sourced from  SA  Government Information

President Nelson Mandela addresses Methodist Conference 1994

Address by President Nelson Mandela to the Annual Conference of the Methodist Church

18 September 1994 

Presiding Bishop Stanley Mogoba, District Bishops, Distinguished Delegates, Dear Guests,
Allow me to express my profound gratitude for the invitation to be with you tonight. It is indeed a great honour for me to bring my personal greetings to one of the most significant Christian communities in our land.
My joy at being in this conference is multiplied many-fold by the fact that this is for me also a personal home-coming, both in the physical and spiritual sense. The environs of Umtata are not only my humble origins. It is here that my spiritual association with this great Church started. And I cannot over-emphasise the role that the Methodist Church has played in my own life.
Your Church has a proud record of commitment to the development of Africa`s sons and daughters in more areas than one. The great institutions of learning which spread from the Reverend William Shaw`s "Chain of Mission Stations" in this region shaped the minds and characters of generations of our people as well as many of our present leaders.
Although the dark night of apartheid sought to obliterate many of these institutions, the impact of their academic and moral teachings could not be trampled on. We who passed through them will not forget the excellent standards of teaching and the spiritual values which were imparted to us.
It is therefore heartening to learn that Methodism is returning to this great tradition with the rehabilitation of Healdtown, your new John Wesley School in Pinetown, the use of Indaleni for community development, the return to Kilnerton and the hundreds of pre-schools you have established. All these and other endeavours vividly demonstrate the fact that the religious community in our country is not only a spiritual and moral force. It is also an important social institution, contributing to the development and well-being of the people as a whole.
The sense of social responsibility that the religious community has always upheld found expression in your immense contribution to the efforts to rid our country of the scourge of racism and apartheid. When pronouncements and actions against the powers-that-be meant persecution and even death, you dared to stand up to the tyrants.
In the founding and evolution of the African National Congress, the religious community played a central role. We refer here to such leaders such as Calata, Mahabane and Maphikela as well as Abdullah Abduraman and Mahatma Gandhi.
Especially while political leaders were in prison and in exile, bodies like the South African Council of Churches and its member churches resisted racial bigotry and held out a vision of a different, transformed South Africa. Methodist leaders were prominent among the prophets who refused to bow to the false god of apartheid. Your ministers also visited us in prison and cared for our families. Some of you were banned. Your Presiding Bishop himself shared imprisonment with us for some years on Robben Island. This you did, not as outsiders to the cause of democracy, but as part of society and eminent prophets of the teachings of your faith.
It is fitting that this Conference is taking place in this particular Chamber, after the advent of democracy in our country. The Methodist Church was the only Church to be declared an illegal organisation under apartheid, and for ten long years you were forbidden to operate naat e Transkei bantustan. It is in this very Chamber that this banning order was promulgated.
One cannot over-emphasise the contribution that the religious community made particularly in ensuring that our transition achieves the desired result. The spirit of reconciliation and the goodwill within the nation can, to a great measure, be attributed to the moral and spiritual interventions of the religious community.
Now that a major part of the journey towards democracy has been traversed, new and more difficult tasks lie ahead of us. For, political democracy will be empty and meaningless, if the misery of the majority of the people is not addressed.
The Church, like all other institutions of civil society, must help all South Africans to rise to the challenge of freedom. As South Africa moves from resistance to reconstruction and from confrontation to reconciliation, the energy that was once dedicated to breaking apartheid must be harnessed to the task of building the nation.
Our Programme of Reconstruction and Development is designed to unite sound economics with true compassion and justice so that all the people of this land may share in its resources. But this programme cannot succeed unless people who have been repressed by years of subjugation are motivated to participate in building their future.
We are encouraged, that in the South African religious community, the Government of National Unity has an experienced, morally-upright and reliable partner. With its long history of involvement in development projects and widespread infrastructure, the Church is strategically placed to empower our people to take hold of their freedom and work together to transform their conditions. This should include paying particulr attention to millions of children and youth who need to be specially nurtured, so as to restore their dignity and afford them opportunities to make a constructive contribution to society.
The Church, with its message of forgiveness, has a special role to play in national reconciliation. After so much suffering and injustice, the instinct for revenge is a natural one. But the transition we are going through shows that those who suffered under apartheid are prepared to bury the past. At the same time, those who enjoyed the fruits of unjust privilege must be helped to find a new spirit of sharing. Your message and example can enable that to happen.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission is an important instrument, not only in dealing with past wrongs, but in freeing all of us to move with a clean conscience into the future.
The objective of this Commission is neither vengeance nor retribution. We have to forgive the past; but at the same time, ensure that the dignity of the victims is restored, and their plight properly addressed. We are confident that the conclusions that this Commission will come to, will contribute not only to reconciliation, but also to reconstruction and development.
In the end, reconciliation is a spiritual process, which requires more than just a legal framework. It has to happen in the hearts and minds of people. Indeed, no institution is better placed to assist this process than the thousands of religious congregations which gather every week all over the land and among all communities.
This will also form an important part of the process to cast the demon of crime and violence out of our social life. The Government is determined to use all the means in our power to cradicate this problem. However, this requires co-operation between communities and the security agencies. Again, the religious community has a central role to play in ensuring that this happens.
Mr Presiding Bishop,
South Africa now has a democratic government representative of, and accountable to, all the people. By your fearless commitment to truth and justice, the Methodist Church and other religious bodies helped realise this. But all governments, no matter how democratic, need constructive criticism and advice. I ask you to continue to play your prophetic role, always seeking to hold the nation and all its leaders to the highest standards of integrity and service.
One of the critical issues in this regard is the disparity, within society as a whole, between the lowest and the highest social echelons. To address this problem requires comprehensive measures to develop our human resources. It also demands bold action on the part of the leadership in the public sector, the private sector and organs of civil society, including religious institutions.
I am confident that, with the support of the Methodist Church and the religious fraternity as a whole, our nation will reach the mountain-tops of its collective desires.
I am mindful that the great hymn which is now part of our National Anthem was first sung long ago at the Ordination of a Methodist minister. I join you in that humble prayer: Nkosi Sikelela i`Afrika!

Sourced from ANC