MANDELA
E X T R A O R D I N A R I LY N O R M A L F O R G I V E N E S S
Mandela… a ‘Man for all Seasons’ who died at 8.50 pm,
on December 5th 2013 in his home in Johannesburg.
He walked from his prison in 1990 and
began immediately to forgive his enemies.
From reviled Terrorist to Prisoner to beloved ‘To be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains but to
President who taught the world about reconciliation live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom
between old enemies in the face of truth. of others…. That included his rivals and sworn
enemies and the humble powerless marginalised
Imprisoned in notorious Robben Island for 27 yrs from little people so often ignored by the politicians.’
1962 -1990, sleeping on cold concrete, breaking rocks in
the blaring sunlight with too little food to sustain him. ‘And I learned that courage is not the absence of fear
but the triumph over it… The brave man is not he
Born in a humble village, he was related to the royal who does not feel afraid but he who conquers it.’
Thembu family of his Xhosa people. He grew up
herding cattle in his village … he grew up with a He became Madiba and for 25 yrs taught South Africans
profound respect for all people for the rest of his life. how to believe in themselves and each other. He worked
for the end of apartheid and the unity of his nation
But the first half of his life was about struggle against which had been torn apart by racial discrimination.
the injustice of apartheid
black nation, orchestrated
which believed in white
ordained” separation of
and oppression of the
by a white government One of his first acts of reconciliation was to have tea
supremacy and “God- with the widow of Henrik Verwoed, the architect
blacks from whites. of apartheid, and to put on the South African
rugby jersey of the beloved all white South African
On trial for his life in 1964 he said he was working for a rugby team to present the 1995 World Cup trophy!
democratic and free society with equal opportunity for
all. This was an ideal for which he was prepared to die. Archbishop Desmond Tutu said it was not
blasphemy to say that Madiba was ChristPresident Obama gave him this tribute: like! Obama added that as long as he lived he
would do what he could to learn from him!
He transformed South Africa and moved all of us. He
achieved more than could be expected of any man. So how does this man reflect the Glory of God, the likeness
Today he’s gone home and we’ve lost one of the most of Christ? What is his most startling gift to the world?
influential, courageous and profoundly good human
beings that any of us will share time with on this earth. I suggest it was his ability to forgive his enemies
who had made him suffer most cruelly for 27 yrs in
Others called him a man of towering authority, of Robben Island, many of them in solitary confinement.
courage, principle and unquestionable integrity.
He had not been embittered by his suffering.
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