01 Aug 2023

Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Church of Southern Africa has urged churches not to become worshipping spaces only, but also change lives of communities.

Reverend Purity Malinga made this assertion during a dedication ceremony of the new state of the art church in Ramotswa Sunday.

She said the opening of the church building was an addition to sanctuaries that the Methodist Church had and willing to use as a source of trust of many communities.

“We must use such occasions to promote the unity of society and inspire all to look into the future with hope.

We always encourage the Methodist community to look into issues of education, poverty eradication, youth development and women, among others,” she said.

Reverend Malinga said they were working with other ecumenical members and governments to ensure that communities enjoyed full lives.

She said the vision of healing and transformation of African people was at the forefront of the church’s mandate.

“This building should not be a white elephant. Let the community come here and find hope mainly because of what you will be doing,” she added.

Reverend Malinga praised Ramotswa society for defying odds and pushing to finish their project.

She said post COVID-19, many churches struggled financially and many projects stalled, but the Ramotswa society made many sacrifices for their project to see the light of day.

“God is happy about those who build temples for him. Keep this church holy. Today we celebrate the strength and power that God has given us,” she uttered words of encouragement.

For her part, Kgosi Mosadi Seboko of Balete praised the good character of the church and urged the community to emulate it.

She urged religious communities to change attitude and reflect the good nature of the church of Christ.

She encouraged the church to help in the fight all social ills.

Kgosi Mosadi said gender-based violence had become an eye sore in many communities.

She therefore appealed to the church to help combat all forms of abuse and unite disjointed families.

Molopo District Bishop Motsewatile Morokane said through their social holiness vision they intended to bring change in the lives of communities.

He said the church had established a number of poverty eradication projects through which they would reach out to people and teach them about God. ENDS