Chaplain’s Reflection

I remember sitting in a Church history lecture about a significant event in South Africa. It was about Nongqawuse (1841–98), a Xhosa prophet whose prophecies led to the Xhosa cattle killing movement and subsequently the famine of 1856–57, in what is now the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. A lot of criticism was levelled at the role of the missionaries at the time.

Our professor agreed with the criticism and then asked the question: "What you do in your ministry, you will do because you believe it to be correct. In 200 years from now, what will people be saying about what you did or should have done?".  Professor Cook had the knack of always asking challenging questions. 

The Black Lives Matter protest has erupted spontaneously in every state in the United States and in cities around the world. Sparked by one killing, it seems to have tapped into the conviction that if you are a minority, a person of colour, a poor person in many places across the world, you will be a target of a system that is designed to keep you down.

Geelong vice-captain Patrick Dangerfield has urged Australians to learn more about the land on which they stand and what it means to Indigenous people as players across the AFL showed their support for the Black Lives Matter movement when games began this past weekend. Mr Dangerfield has emphasised the importance of what is happening around the world to his Cats teammates.

John 3:16 says: "For God so loved the world". And in it, every person.