Recently  South Africa has been on my mind. primarily because  our latest member of staff  arrived from Johannnesburg this week with his wife and family.  Coenraad will be with us for te next year. Then in 2015 he will be available  to receive a call from a congregation to be their minister. Coenraaad is already an experienced minister but his time with us here in Bo'ness is to allow him to familiarise himself with the ways of the Church of Scotland.

On the day of Mandela’s Memorial Service, while Coenraad and his family were leaving South Africa, I found myself reflecting on my last visit to South Africa.  Much of course is rightly made of Mandela,life and legacy, however  it is important not to turn him into a  godlike messianic figure. We need to rightly honour and esteem an amazing life lived with dignity and determined resolution. At the same time  we  must give a great amount of credit to the ordinary men and women in South Africa who chose to follow Mandela’s way of reconciliation rather than revenge because it echoed the teaching of Jesus.

While visiting earlier this year I was impressed by the African people's amazing inner strength and courage in the face of so much hardship. One of the lasting memories is that of  spending Easter Sunday with the Uniting Presbyterian Church Congregation in Newcastle. We were welcomed like long lost friends by the minister Rev..Vuyani Zepe.  What struck me at the time was the way he led his team. He was making space for the whole church to use their gifts in the service of Christ.

The worship was full of expectation.The dancing and celebrations went on all night into the early hours of Easter morning. Many of the congregation, didn’t go to bed, instead they had a quick  turn around to commence a march in the local area encouraging others to come and worship. Such is the passion of many Africans for their faith.

Many of the congregation in the UPCSA were Zulus. They danced and sang and praised God for the hope that the Resurrection had brought into their lives. We were overwhelmed by the compassion and generosity of this congregation reaching out to the many young people in their community who are orphaned as a result of parents dying of AIDS.

It was in this community that I encountered the young man in his late teens who had been bed ridden all his life. He lives in a small shack with his mother and younger brother. here is a direct quote from an email i received from Zepe

“The congregation identified Siyabonga Jiyane who is from a disadvantaged background with no means of living.  Siyabonga is an 18 yrs old boy who was born disabled.  He cannot walk and has been lying in a home made bed for the rest of his life.  He stays with his mother and siblings in a one roomed shack,in a place called  Kwa Zulu Natal. He has no  privacy at all.  The living conditions are very unhealth.”

The Bogle Band have started to raise some funds to see if we can find a way to house this family in better accommodation.  Last month we performed in St Columba’s Largs and thanks to the generosity of that congregation we raised over £1500. So if you think  you’d like to help or your church would enjoy a Bogle Band Concert get in touch.

Continuing on the African theme. Last Saturday I met up with some of the volunteers from the Vine Trust  for lunch at the Crammond Inn just outside Edinburgh.  Some of the group had been on a walk before hand. We were all looking forward to our pre-ordered meals so that we could make our way quickly across to Glasgow in time for Jubilee Hope to be waved off as it starts the first leg of a long journey to Lake Victoria.  Unfortunately, the fire alarm continually went off. After the third time the management decided to close the restuarant. So many of us didn't get a chance to finish our food. 

I guess getting the opportunity to go onboard Jubillee Hope and see the amazing progress that has been made was reward enough in the end. As Chairman of the Vine Trust I must express my sincere thanks to the many different people who have all contributed to making tthe project happen. A huge thank you to the couple who had the faith to give the initial funds to buy the ship.   To those who have worked tirelessly to see it renovated thank you. . And a thank you to those who showed great patience when moored in Gibralter. On a number of ocassions crews arrived thinking the boat was ready to sail but last minute hicups meant that a few crews returned home without sailing the ship. We are very grateful to Gibrock for all they have contributed top the refit.

I'm delighted to say that BEA systems have also worked on a number of areas bringing the ship up to an excellent standard. Here is a video I took about 20 months ago when the ship was iin Gibrater.