Irreplaceable and dearly loved

Our words often fail us, don’t they? When we should speak we are all too often silent, and when we should be silent we all too often speak. In Nelson Mandela we were given a model of how and when to speak; what to say, and what not to say. A person who can control their tongue is a complete man. We have been given an example to follow. Do we dare to follow? Can we imagine the world we would create if we did? As the world mourns the passing of a great leader, we need to take this opportunity to examine our hearts and minds in the light of what was an amazing life, lived with all the passion and commitment of a truly just man, with motives that were pure. Out of the hate of intolerance his cause shone like the noonday sun, and we need to capture the image and hold it tightly in a world which daily tends towards chaos.

The battle against apartheid was won, essentially, by one man choosing to stand by his principles, much like Jesus stood by his conviction and became our salvation. That’s what it takes though. Do we realise this? We hear a lot about how people want to change the world. We ourselves are prone to talk a great game but present a shit-show when push comes to ultimate shove. Indeed some of my blog posts have been dramatically principled at times and certainly my behaviour has, from time to time, been less than angelic. But do we really even want to do what we have to do to affect the change we really need to see in the world? Nelson Mandela was a man who loved peace but not so much that he refused the discomfort of imprisonment in order to obtain it. Do we love the peace that we have and are we content to accept the injustices in our own worlds, however small they appear to be, in order to protect it? Or are we willing to stand by our (Christian) convictions and suffer the loss of our serenity and temporary calm in order to bring about a greater peace: justice?

Love is not necessarily divisive but it does cut straight to the heart of the matter; it is full of truth. If we examine our own hearts and minds (as human beings) we find the problem there, we see that clearly in the apartheid. But Jesus came to bring a sword, and the sword he brought is the word of God. The answers contained are difficult but effective if we choose to accept them. The problem perhaps is that we are afraid since we are not completely certain of God’s love for us. What is it that we fear to lose so much that we can’t give (forgiveness)? We surely fear to lose our lives, don’t we? But we see clearly from the life of Nelson Mandela that he gained far more by giving up his freedom than he would have done in attempting to keep it, and even more besides for forgiving his captors and opponents. Do we not long to do the same to the extent that we become willing to do God’s will? Can we not live under a greater herald than the one we have developed by our experiences, hurts, and prejudices and just let it all go?

The truth is that we all have our reasons for disbelieving God and fearing the result of abandonment to his will, but if we continually seek to blame each other for the problems in the world, instead of accepting the word of God that has been put into our hearts, aren’t we certain to fail again and again every time?

I thank you Lord for the life of Nelson Mandela. Thank you for giving us an example of the power of forgiveness over hatred and the witness of a heaven-born conviction that we are all created equal, that we are all equally loved, and that we are proven to be of God by our actions (faith acting in love). Thank you that there wasn’t any pretence with this man, and no concession or weakness in the face of injustice. I pray that his work will be remembered in our hearts and minds, and that as we go about our business we recognise the strong and certain pall in our spirits, that it is in us that the solutions to these problems are resolved; not in the prejudices we have inherited and developed, but in the eternal spirit that you give us through your Son. He who tells us plainly that we are responsible and culpable in the world, he who assures us that through him the battle is won, he who is standing in the door, waiting with his reward or his recompense. He who is with us to the end.

The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it but we are not called to think our problems away. We are asked to act in accordance with God’s will for the benefit of our fellow man and ourselves, and only by doing this can we uphold the first commandment: to love God with all our heart, all our souls and all of our strength and the second, which is essentially exactly the same. We will do well to remember this. Nelson Mandela was a priceless gift, and we must go on and maintain his cause of justice for all. Only if we see God in the doorway between heaven and earth can we do this.

R.I.P Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela