St. John's Church Lafayette Square : South Africa

South Africa

The Ven. Sharron Dinnie visited St. John's April 16 to April 23, 2010. Two teachers, Gillian Elgar and Sheila Radebe, and a student, Sibulele Matshoba, from the Kwasa Centre accompanied her. The group presented the Forum at St. John's Sunday, April 18, and Sharron preached at the 11:00 a.m. service.

St. John's Church School sponsored a soccer equipment drive for the Kwasa Centre.

Catherine Outten, St. John's Missionary to the Kwasa Centre: On September 20, 2009, Catherine was commissioned as our missionary to the Kwasa Centre, where she will serve for the next year. To follow her year, visit her blog at catherineoutten.blogspot.com

Pilgrimage to South Africa: View the blog of our third pilgrimage to South Africa, where we worked and played at the Kwasa Centre and visited other projects in the Diocese of the Highveld. For details, please contact Kaye Edwards in the Parish Office at 202-347-8766, ext. 317. Click here to see the highlights of the mission trip on our blog.
http://saintjohnsinsouthafrica.wordpress.com/

St. John’s Church formed a partnership in 2004 with the Diocese of the Highveld, South Africa. The partnership focuses on the Kwasa Centre and pre-primary school, which serves children and families from the informal settlement of Vukuzenzele. The decision was reached after several months of reflection, prayer and communication with the Rev. Sharron Dinnie, founder of the Kwasa Centre, and the late Rt. Rev. David Beetge, Bishop of the Diocese of the Highveld at that time. (Bishop Beetge died September 27, 2008.)

The school was started in 2002 and is now attended by about 150 pre-primary age children, most living in shack dwellings as squatters in the nearby informal settlement of Vukuzenzele. Many of the children are HIV affected, and some whose parents have died from HIV/AIDS live in children-headed households. south africa "I look forward to us growing and strengthening this link," the Rev. Dinnie said, "and rejoice at the prospect of very real differences being made in the lives of the children from the informal settlement who attend the school."

The partnership is one of the first links established following the creation of a partnership between the Diocese of Washington and the Anglican Church of Southern Africa. The relationship aims to strengthen both partners in responding to the challenges of theological education, HIV/AIDS, women’s issues and social justice.

The Rt. Rev. David Beetge, then the bishop of the Diocese of the Highveld and Dean of the Church of the Province of Southern Africa welcomed the link with St. John’s. "The partnership between the Diocese of the Highveld and St. John's which has now been established will focus initially on a school that has been set up amongst very poor people," Bishop Beetge said. "The Church will make a difference to the lives of those young people and will enable them to receive an education to equip them for the future. For that we thank God."

During the past five years St. John’s parish has developed a strong relationship with the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, meeting several times with the then Archbishop Njongonkulu Ndungane, the Primate of Southern Africa; making two pilgrimages to South Africa; and hosting two delegations from the Kwasa Centre at St. John’s.

To quote from the Southern Africa Partnership Theological Statement, "We acknowledge that we do not know where this call will lead. We do know, however, that for us to be one, we must enter into a partnership that is mutual and authentic, and that is characterized as self-giving, trusting and compassionate. We see our relatedness with the Church of the Province of Southern Africa as one where we both give that our companions may receive, and receive that which our companions may offer."

Contact: Kaye Edwards in the Parish Office at 203-347-8766, ext. 317.



Contact Links Site Map Home	South Africa The Ven. Sharron Dinnie visited St. John's April 16 to April 23, 2010. Two teachers, Gillian Elgar and Sheila Radebe, and a student, Sibulele Matshoba, from the Kwasa Centre accompanied her. The group presented the Forum at St. John's Sunday, April 18, and Sharron preached at the 11:00 a.m. service. St. John's Church School sponsored a soccer equipment drive for the Kwasa Centre. Catherine Outten, St. John's Missionary to the Kwasa Centre: On September 20, 2009, Catherine was commissioned as our missionary to the Kwasa Centre, where she will serve for the next year. To follow her year, visit her blog at catherineoutten.blogspot.com Pilgrimage to South Africa: View the blog of our third pilgrimage to South Africa, where we worked and played at the Kwasa Centre and visited other projects in the Diocese of the Highveld. For details, please contact Kaye Edwards in the Parish Office at 202-347-8766, ext. 317. Click here to see the highlights of the mission trip on our blog. http://saintjohnsinsouthafrica.wordpress.com/ St. John’s Church formed a partnership in 2004 with the Diocese of the Highveld, South Africa. The partnership focuses on the Kwasa Centre and pre-primary school, which serves children and families from the informal settlement of Vukuzenzele. The decision was reached after several months of reflection, prayer and communication with the Rev. Sharron Dinnie, founder of the Kwasa Centre, and the late Rt. Rev. David Beetge, Bishop of the Diocese of the Highveld at that time. (Bishop Beetge died September 27, 2008.) The school was started in 2002 and is now attended by about 150 pre-primary age children, most living in shack dwellings as squatters in the nearby informal settlement of Vukuzenzele. Many of the children are HIV affected, and some whose parents have died from HIV/AIDS live in children-headed households. "I look forward to us growing and strengthening this link," the Rev. Dinnie said, "and rejoice at the prospect of very real differences being made in the lives of the children from the informal settlement who attend the school." The partnership is one of the first links established following the creation of a partnership between the Diocese of Washington and the Anglican Church of Southern Africa. The relationship aims to strengthen both partners in responding to the challenges of theological education, HIV/AIDS, women’s issues and social justice. The Rt. Rev. David Beetge, then the bishop of the Diocese of the Highveld and Dean of the Church of the Province of Southern Africa welcomed the link with St. John’s. "The partnership between the Diocese of the Highveld and St. John's which has now been established will focus initially on a school that has been set up amongst very poor people," Bishop Beetge said. "The Church will make a difference to the lives of those young people and will enable them to receive an education to equip them for the future. For that we thank God." During the past five years St. John’s parish has developed a strong relationship with the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, meeting several times with the then Archbishop Njongonkulu Ndungane, the Primate of Southern Africa; making two pilgrimages to South Africa; and hosting two delegations from the Kwasa Centre at St. John’s. To quote from the Southern Africa Partnership Theological Statement, "We acknowledge that we do not know where this call will lead. We do know, however, that for us to be one, we must enter into a partnership that is mutual and authentic, and that is characterized as self-giving, trusting and compassionate. We see our relatedness with the Church of the Province of Southern Africa as one where we both give that our companions may receive, and receive that which our companions may offer." Contact: Kaye Edwards in the Parish Office at 203-347-8766, ext. 317.