Cape Town

My decision to go to Cape Town was made when I learned that my Seminary roommate was going to be there leading a retreat. We’ve been close friends almost 28 years and being this close in Africa made the trip a “must”.
Br. Clark joined the Franciscans a few years after we graduated and is now the Minister General which is the highest office in that order. It’s his role to visit each house and brother in the world once a year. No small task. Most people don’t know that the Episcopal church has monastic orders and they are relatively small communities, but they are strong and engaged in witness and ministry around the world. The diversity of members in any of the traditions (i.e. Benedictine, Franciscan, etc) makes uniformity a challenge. Having brothers in the US, England, Korea, Columbia, Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands makes his work challenging to foster a wider sense of community among the brothers and address the issues that are unique to each cultural setting. Like a microcosm of the worldwide Anglican communion, the brothers in different regions hold different views on sexuality and social witness. Tension can be creative or destructive depending on the commitment of the parties involved. For the Franciscans, their commitment to unity is a model for the rest of the church to work through our differences.
I tagged along with Clark’s official visits to Diocesan dignitaries and attended Eucharist at the Cathedral of Cape Town and later a Taize service. The Cathedral of St. George is a beautiful structure in a classic stone design whose newer windows draw in contemporary images of the church. Seeing the pulpit and chair from which former Archbishop Desmond Tutu preached against Apartheid had a deep effect on me. History was made here and for an important period of time this was the front lines of Christian witness. I’ve hard Bishop Tutu preach before and I imagined the quiet thunder of his voice reverberating from these stone walls to the furthest reaches of the world. Many in South Africa saw him as a terrorist and trouble maker. The world outside gave him a Nobel Peace Prize.