Date: 13/03/2004
Source: North West Provincial Government
Title: P Molefe: ZCC thanksgiving prayer service
SPEECH BY NORTH WEST PREMIER, DR POPO SIMON MOLEFE, ON THE OCCASION OF THE THANKSGIVING PRAYER SERVICE, MMABATHO, 13 March 2004
Your Grace, Bishop Barnabas Lekganyane, the Head of the great Zionist Christian Church (ZCC) Reverend Gentlemen, Members of the Ministers' Council and Elders of the ZCC
MECs, Mayors and Councillors from various municipalities
Leaders of other religious formations
Fellow worshipers
Brothers and sisters
Khotsong Masione! Peace unto you! Uxolo Mazayoni!
I am truly honoured for the kind invitation to be part of this important occasion where we are celebrating ten years of freedom in our country through prayer and worship.
On this historic day, I bring to you warm and fraternal greetings from the provincial government and indeed the people of the North West Province. Khotso ebe lelena; May peace be with you. Uxolo lube nani!
We join you today in an act of worship, praise and celebration. We are gathered together to bow our heads in prayer to the Almighty God that, as a nation, we have come a long way since our liberation in 1994.
We are here to say: Kude kwa lapha u Thixo enathi. We are here to celebrate ten years of triumph by forces of progress over the ugly sin called apartheid.
Our gathering here today is in celebration of progress we have made, collectively, to change the lives of our people for the better and build a better country.
We are here to celebrate the progress made in building bridges of unity and reconciliation where there were gulfs of hatred and discrimination separating our people.
Today we are celebrating ten years of restoring dignity to our people, ten years of building a strong and growing economy, and bringing stability, peace and prosperity to many of our people.
Furthermore we are here to thank the Almighty for his guidance and wisdom that has allowed us as government and various sectors of society to deliver His people from bondage.
Through the guidance of the Almighty, there are more people today who enjoy a better life. There are more people, who have access to clean water, electricity, decent shelter, quality health care and education.
Our prayers today also go to families of those who lost their lives during our struggle for liberation. May God be with them wherever they are.
We also remember, through prayer, all those who sacrificed in various ways for us to be a free nation that we are today. We are here to thank the Almighty for giving to us leaders of superior vision and intellect like Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, who continue to teach us to forgive those who caused us so much suffering over many decades.
Our prayers must go to leaders such us Bishop Engenas Lekganyane who founded the ZCC in 1910. The formation of ZCC, two years before the birth of the oldest liberation movement in Africa, the African National Congress, was a pioneering act by the oppressed to resist the theology of submission.
Furthermore, we salute Bishop Edward Lekganyane whose tireless efforts have made ZCC the largest church in Southern Africa. We also salute you, Your Grace, for continuing to strengthen the church and maintaining its commitment to the poor.
Guided by the simple yet profound principle of brotherhood and sisterhood of all human beings and the common fatherhood of God Almighty, the ZCC lent its effort to bring justice to our country.
Through its teachings this great institution, the ZCC, inspired many to join the struggle for liberation. It provided solace to those who were denied right in the land of their birth. It provided spiritual guidance to those who were victims of discrimination and marginalisation.
It is therefore befitting that today this mighty institution has found it proper to be part of celebrations of the first decade of freedom - freedom in whose attainment it played a crucial part.
As we prepare to usher in the second decade of freedom, our nation will look upon the ZCC, as part of the broader religious movement, to joint the national effort build a better country and deepen the gains of our democracy.
Correctly so, our people look upon the ZCC to continue being bias towards the poor and marginalized in our society. It must continue to provide spiritual comfort to those who are still trapped in conditions of poverty, unemployment and underdevelopment.
Simultaneously, the church has a responsibility to draw attention to the plight of the poor and marginalized.
This mighty institution has an important role to play in efforts aimed at reviving the moral fibre of our society. Indeed the Moral Regeneration movement in our country will be poorer without the involvement of the ZCC.
In summary the ZCC has an important role to play as part of a peoples contract to build a better country, a country of our dreams and a country that is the envy of the international community.
At the end, Your Grace and fellow worshipers like Timothy in Timothy Chapter 4 verse 7 and 8, we must be able to say:
I have fought the good fight,
I have finished the race,
I have kept the faith
Finally, there is a laid up for me the crown of righteousness, Which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that day, And not to me only but also to all who has loved His appearing.
May the Almighty grant Your Grace, the wisdom to continue in your great work of spiritual guidance. You shall remain in our prayers, as we shall be in yours.
A Kgotso e yate.
May peace be with you.
Issued by: Office of the Premier, North West Provincial Government
13 March 2004
Source: North West Provincial Government
Title: P Molefe: ZCC thanksgiving prayer service
SPEECH BY NORTH WEST PREMIER, DR POPO SIMON MOLEFE, ON THE OCCASION OF THE THANKSGIVING PRAYER SERVICE, MMABATHO, 13 March 2004
Your Grace, Bishop Barnabas Lekganyane, the Head of the great Zionist Christian Church (ZCC) Reverend Gentlemen, Members of the Ministers' Council and Elders of the ZCC
MECs, Mayors and Councillors from various municipalities
Leaders of other religious formations
Fellow worshipers
Brothers and sisters
Khotsong Masione! Peace unto you! Uxolo Mazayoni!
I am truly honoured for the kind invitation to be part of this important occasion where we are celebrating ten years of freedom in our country through prayer and worship.
On this historic day, I bring to you warm and fraternal greetings from the provincial government and indeed the people of the North West Province. Khotso ebe lelena; May peace be with you. Uxolo lube nani!
We join you today in an act of worship, praise and celebration. We are gathered together to bow our heads in prayer to the Almighty God that, as a nation, we have come a long way since our liberation in 1994.
We are here to say: Kude kwa lapha u Thixo enathi. We are here to celebrate ten years of triumph by forces of progress over the ugly sin called apartheid.
Our gathering here today is in celebration of progress we have made, collectively, to change the lives of our people for the better and build a better country.
We are here to celebrate the progress made in building bridges of unity and reconciliation where there were gulfs of hatred and discrimination separating our people.
Today we are celebrating ten years of restoring dignity to our people, ten years of building a strong and growing economy, and bringing stability, peace and prosperity to many of our people.
Furthermore we are here to thank the Almighty for his guidance and wisdom that has allowed us as government and various sectors of society to deliver His people from bondage.
Through the guidance of the Almighty, there are more people today who enjoy a better life. There are more people, who have access to clean water, electricity, decent shelter, quality health care and education.
Our prayers today also go to families of those who lost their lives during our struggle for liberation. May God be with them wherever they are.
We also remember, through prayer, all those who sacrificed in various ways for us to be a free nation that we are today. We are here to thank the Almighty for giving to us leaders of superior vision and intellect like Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, who continue to teach us to forgive those who caused us so much suffering over many decades.
Our prayers must go to leaders such us Bishop Engenas Lekganyane who founded the ZCC in 1910. The formation of ZCC, two years before the birth of the oldest liberation movement in Africa, the African National Congress, was a pioneering act by the oppressed to resist the theology of submission.
Furthermore, we salute Bishop Edward Lekganyane whose tireless efforts have made ZCC the largest church in Southern Africa. We also salute you, Your Grace, for continuing to strengthen the church and maintaining its commitment to the poor.
Guided by the simple yet profound principle of brotherhood and sisterhood of all human beings and the common fatherhood of God Almighty, the ZCC lent its effort to bring justice to our country.
Through its teachings this great institution, the ZCC, inspired many to join the struggle for liberation. It provided solace to those who were denied right in the land of their birth. It provided spiritual guidance to those who were victims of discrimination and marginalisation.
It is therefore befitting that today this mighty institution has found it proper to be part of celebrations of the first decade of freedom - freedom in whose attainment it played a crucial part.
As we prepare to usher in the second decade of freedom, our nation will look upon the ZCC, as part of the broader religious movement, to joint the national effort build a better country and deepen the gains of our democracy.
Correctly so, our people look upon the ZCC to continue being bias towards the poor and marginalized in our society. It must continue to provide spiritual comfort to those who are still trapped in conditions of poverty, unemployment and underdevelopment.
Simultaneously, the church has a responsibility to draw attention to the plight of the poor and marginalized.
This mighty institution has an important role to play in efforts aimed at reviving the moral fibre of our society. Indeed the Moral Regeneration movement in our country will be poorer without the involvement of the ZCC.
In summary the ZCC has an important role to play as part of a peoples contract to build a better country, a country of our dreams and a country that is the envy of the international community.
At the end, Your Grace and fellow worshipers like Timothy in Timothy Chapter 4 verse 7 and 8, we must be able to say:
I have fought the good fight,
I have finished the race,
I have kept the faith
Finally, there is a laid up for me the crown of righteousness, Which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that day, And not to me only but also to all who has loved His appearing.
May the Almighty grant Your Grace, the wisdom to continue in your great work of spiritual guidance. You shall remain in our prayers, as we shall be in yours.
A Kgotso e yate.
May peace be with you.
Issued by: Office of the Premier, North West Provincial Government
13 March 2004
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