Regions Beyond

We've had a stirring, exciting, challenging time at church this past week, hearing from Steve Oliver about his work at Gateway Church in Dubai, and how it is opening links into nations around the world (hence "Regions Beyond", the group of churches he disciples). On Sunday our church will be changing its name, in line with the new directions we believe God is taking us. Watch this space!

Turning to changes in the country at large, South Africa has a new "political party platform", "Agang", headed by Dr Mamphela Ramphele. I've just looked her up on HistoryMatters.co.za, and she seems like a dedicated, extremely hard-working lady, who has certainly done her part in empowering people on many fronts, from growing food, to medical health, to political liberation. I intend to read more about her and her ideas. Here, for the moment, and for those interested, is Steven Friedman's comment:

Whether, as this columnist believes, the game will finally be changed by another split in the ANC or, as others argue, by an erosion of the ANC vote, the shift is likely to ripen in time, not burst forth with the arrival of a new messiah.
In party politics, as in anything else to do with society, the hope for quick fixes often hides the more important processes growing slowly but more surely beneath the surface.

• Friedman is director of the Centre for the Study of Democracy.
Source: Business Day Live, via HistoryMatters.co.za