Africa Matters

Sixteen years ago today (May 10, 1994) Nelson Mandela was sworn in as the first black president of South Africa. Listen to his inauguration speech:

As I think about this event, I think about Mandela’s freedom struggles, and his extraordinary leadership that made this event possible. The inspiration and lessons from his journey and leadership are best captured for me in two quotations. First, First, the closing words of his biography, The Long Walk to Freedom:

I have walked that long road to freedom. I have tried not to falter; I have made missteps along the way. But I have discovered the secret that after climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb. I have taken a moment here to rest, to steal a view of the glorious vista that surrounds me, to look back on the distance I have come. But I can rest only for a moment, for with freedom comes responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk is not yet ended.

Secondly, the famous words that Mandela actually never said, but are often attributed to his inaugural address. The words are from Marianne Williamson’s  A Return to Love. They are fitting words to honor and dedicate to this great son of the land – father of the rainbow nation:

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.’ We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we’re liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

Happy Birthday South Africa. Happy Anniversary Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (and a happy 92^nd birthday coming up: July 18).

What irony that I would read Jonathan Wilson Hartgrove’s new book The Wisdom of Stability: Rooting Faith in a Mobile Culture on a plane and between flights in an airport. Returning from Portland, Maine, from a one day speaking event on immigration relations in the city.

I can immediately appreciate the spiritual, social and theological challenges of being constantly on the move that Jonathan discusses in The Wisdom of Stability.

As always Jonathan’s writing is fresh, and is able to get to the heart of our cultural malaise as a people always on the go, and how that leads us to live superficial lives devoid of care, attention and lasting commitments.

“Staying put and paying attention are, rather, dynamic disciplines aimed at helping us to grow and progress toward wholeness.” (51)

The Wisdom of Stability is not only a great spiritual reading book, but also offers insights and examples of habits and patterns of living that help us to put down roots in a ‘place’ and in ‘community’ as a way to grow into holiness and wholeness.

It is also a helpful book for understanding the significance of location (and ‘relocation’) as central to the work of reconciliation. Reconciliation is not only about the event of bringing warring communities to the table (like my being invited to facilitate town hall discussion on immigration issues in Portland, Maine) – the far more challenging task is the crafting (or ‘knitting’) of local neighborhoods that live in peace. Such a task, Jonathan’s book reminds us, is not spectacular; it has an ordinariness and everydayness to it – and remains always broken and incomplete; and yet there it is: the most concrete expression of new creation in a place.

The Wisdom of Stability is also a very helpful book in understanding mission (I definitely plan to assign it for my World Christianity classes) – as it speaks directly especially to those who feel called to make a difference in the world.

“To imagine stability as mission is not to assume that we will change our neighbors and the broken places where we are if only we can muster the resolve to stick it out. Rather, it is to acknowledge that there is good news in this place- stability at we might not have seen at first, but without which we could not even begin. If God is faithful in exile and present inhuman flesh, then everything – every place – is now holy. We learn to enjoy the fruit of stability as we embrace God’s mission where we are” (139).

Check out The Wisdom of Stability – and I hope you find it as fresh and helpful as I did.