Dr. Martin spent most of the 1990s in South Africa, where he witnessed the inauguration of Nelson Mandela and worked on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. In June 2009 he revisited the country with a group of Christian scholars and recorded these images of the church.
Without question, Mvume Dandala has been one of the most widely respected church leaders in South Africa's recent past. A presiding bishop of the Methodist Church from 1996 to 2003, and most recently general secretary of the All Africa Conference of Churches, Mr. Dandala is best known outside the church for mediating an end to the violence that broke out in Johannesburg hostels between African National Congress (ANC) supporters and Inkatha supporters over a decade ago. He is known to be a man of integrity and of deep holiness.
But this was in a previous phase of his life. As the political culture of South Africa degenerated into cronyism and corruption, a section of ANC members saw an opportunity to break away from the ruling party to form the Congress of the People (COPE). And they approached Mr. Dandala to lead the party into the most recent election.
For many, this would have been an immediate career-defining move and a high promotion. But not for Mr. Dandala. The request resulted in a time of soul-searching, prayer, and discernment. He had always agreed with Archbishop Desmond Tutu that the place of a pastor was outside partisan politics—at least in a "normal" situation. And Mr. Dandala has always had “a pastor’s heart.” But South Africa was descending into abnormality—at least in terms of its professed democratic vision. So Mr. Dandala asked to be released from his position as pastor, effectively laying aside his clerical collar, in order to bear witness as a politician.
As he spoke to our group, I could hear the struggle in his voice. The questions he faced were stark. How could he, a well-respected bishop, expose himself to abuse as a politician? Would the give-and-take of parliamentary debate and the often-unsavoury nature of partisanship corrupt him? But the alternative, in his view, was to perpetuate the idea that party politics was "unholy"—a significant issue given his Methodist theology. Even this calling must be sanctified. So he agreed—and agreed to suspend his credentials with the church. But he remains a Christian fulfilling what he and his spiritual advisors consider a redeployment by God.
But Mr. Dandala also had a message for the church from his new location. He argued that pastors need to engage in “political education,” shaping members as citizens aware of their responsibilities. They should remain non-partisan, but at the same time be passionately informed about the political process.
Mr. Dandala’s talk raised a number of important issues for our discussion group (and others who joined us), and had us arguing rather loudly—to the point of being asked to “quiet down” as we were disturbing the sleep of our fellows! Here were some of the issues raised:
1. What is the nature of citizenship for Christians? Are Christians citizens of one city (the New Jerusalem)? Or two?
2. If a Christian becomes involved with party politics, what norms should govern their behaviour? Is creation, cross, or resurrection most determinative?
3. How should Christian political office-holders be held accountable to the church? What does it mean when a president who professes to follow Jesus disobeys his bishop (George W. Bush’s invasion of Iraq comes to mind)? What would the electorate think of a bishop excommunicating a president?
It’s possible to read Mr. Dandala’s decision as a form of kenosis—renouncing divine attributes as Jesus did—and perhaps even of embracing a form of suffering. And I do think his soul is in danger, given the recent cutthroat practices of South African parliamentarians. But Christians are sometimes called to dangerous and risky service. St. Augustine said that a Christian should not seek office, but neither should he (or she) refuse to serve when called upon. I remain unwilling to make a conclusion—which is probably just as well. But I do commit to keeping the former Bishop Mvume Dandala in my prayers.
