Mark your calendars everyone, and be sure to invited your friends and family on Sunday, September 18th when South African Anglican Priest and Social/Political Activist, Father Michael Lapsley, will our guest preacher at a special worship celebration that you won’t want to miss! The Ven. Dr. Jay Koyle will serve as our presiding celebrant on this most special occasion in the life of our church and diocese.
Here is a brief summary of the work and ministry of Father Lapsley that also be found on the website for the Diocese of Algoma.
Along with his very significant contribution to the Anti-Apartheid Movement, Father Michael Lapsley also serves as Director of the Institute for Healing of Memories. He played an important role in assisting South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
In 1973 he arrived in Durban, South Africa as an undergraduate student. During the height of apartheid repression, he became chaplain to students at both black and white universities in Durban. In 1976, he began to speak out on behalf of schoolchildren who were being shot, detained and tortured.
In 1982, following a police raid in Maseru during which 42 people were killed, he was exiled to Zimbabwe. There in 1990, three months after Nelson Mandela was released from prison, Fr. Michael was sent a letter bomb by the apartheid regime. He lost both hands and the sight in one eye in the blast, and experienced severe burns. This happened shortly after he had visited an elementary school in North Bay, and he remembers the comfort and hope he felt when cards and pictures created by children at the school arrived in his hospital room.
During his visit to Algoma, there will be two public events for people to gather for worship and hear Fr. Michael speak:
Thursday, September 15, 7:00PM – an ecumenical prayer service at St. John the Divine Church, North Bay.
Sunday, September 18, 10:30AM – a Celebration of the Holy Eucharist, followed by a Q&A session, at Church of the Epiphany in Sudbury. This event will also be livestreamed, and a link will be posted during the week before the event.
In addition, Fr. Michael will be meeting with clergy in the east deaneries of the Diocese, visiting schools in North Bay and the teen lunch program hosted by St. Brice’s Church, and sharing in a gathering with people preparing for ordination, pastoral visitors, and chaplains.
For more on Fr. Michael’s story: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tef2AwcIZsw&t=634s
His book Redeeming the Past: My Journey from Freedom Fighter to Healer is available here: https://en.novalis.ca/products/redeeming-the-past