Dean of Cape Town Reverend Michael Weeder to hang up clerical robes
‘The Dean of Camissa’, as he is affectionately known will be retiring in April, after serving at the helm of St George's Cathedral in Cape Town for the last 13 years.
Reverend Michael Weeder (R) with the late Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Reverend Mpho Tutu (L) in 2013. Picture: X/TheTutuLegacy
CAPE TOWN - The Dean of Cape Town, the Reverend Michael Weeder, will be hanging up his clerical robes soon.
The popular Cape Town cleric will be retiring from the service of the church in April.
To bid him farewell, the Wardens and Council of the Cathedral have arranged for a few events in his honour.
The first was an interfaith Liturgy for Palestine on Sunday afternoon.
“The Dean of Camissa” as he is affectionately known has been at the helm of St George's Cathedral in Cape Town for the last 13 years.
Under his leadership, there had been an ongoing commitment to the transformation work, and the iconic cathedral became a space synonymous with moral guidance and activism.
On Sunday night, the focus of the service was on the suffering and tragedy in Palestine - an issue very close to Weeder's heart.
"It was an opportunity to gather in thought, in prayer, and allow music to mediate a sense of the peace we aspire to and that we really desire, for what is happening especially for the people of Gaza. Even as we speak, the bombs are falling, plans are being made to deliver more bombs, either via Biden or via Tel Aviv."
The service included members of the Muslim faith as well as representatives from the Jewish community.
This coming Sunday, Father Weeder will lead his last service, a farewell Eucharist.
‘MY HEART IS TO REDISCOVER MYSELF ON THE CAPE FLATS’
Father Weeder said he wanted to focus his energy on connecting with the people of the Cape Flats.
He said while he was leaving the service of the church, he would still be in the service of the people.
"My heart is to rediscover myself on the Cape Flats to, whatever ministries where I can, work with young people around issues of identity."
Father Weeder added that he would like to focus on working on nurturing future men and fathers in Cape Town.
"The male, the boy child, needs to find their way in a society that's very, increasingly gender-alert, and having an understandable, preferential bias towards women. When you work with a boy, with a man, in that context, and I feel out of my own sense of absence of a father in my life, I could be part of reconstituting a sense of who we are as a people.”
DR ALAN BOESAK DELIVERS MAIN FAREWELL TRIBUTE SERVICE
Anti-apartheid activist and theologian Dr Alan Boesak delivered the main sermon at the Interfaith service for Palestine at St George's Cathedral.
The service is one of two arranged as a farewell tribute to the Weeder.
During his sermon, Boesak likened Christ's rising from the tomb after being crucified to a rebellion and a revolution.
"I have risen so come and join this revolution that I have started. Come and join the rebellion against all that destroys all God's creation and God's children and God's intention with God's children and God's destiny for all children, including the children of Gaza."
He continued by encouraging all to keep walking with Jesus, the crucified one, to see and understand the truth about what was unfolding in the occupied territory.
“Take that walk to Khan Younis, take that walk to Gaza City, take that walk to the northern shore, take that walk everywhere in Palestine, so that by the time we end that walk, we're going to discover that from the river to sea, that we have walked the walk of freedom in the walk of revolt against all that is wrong, and that is where we're going to be so that this Jesus, who dared to bring freedom to God's children."