SOUTH AFRICA: Be Available and present, Bishop Sipuka urges new Bishop of Kimberley

By Njoki Githinji

KIMBERLEY, APRIL 20, 2021 (CISA)-Bishop Sithembele Sipuka, president of the Southern Africa Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC) has called on Bishop Duncan Tsoke new bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Kimberley to show love to the faithful by being available and present for them.

“As you join the people of Kimberley, do your best to love them and encourage your priests to do the same and when you and the priests really love the people of Kimberley, they in turn, the people of Kimberley will love Jesus and his church. This love must show in you being fully available and present to them, visiting them in their parishes and their deaneries, spending a weekend, spending a week and getting to know their joys and their sorrows and together with them, dreaming dreams that will make them eager and passionate for the mission of Christ,” Bishop Sipuka said.

In his homily during the installation of Bishop Duncan Tsoke as the 7^th bishop of Kimberley on April 17 Bishop Sipuka further urged Bishop Tsoke to create conditions that will enable the faithful to love God and immerse themselves in the mission of the church.

“… You are invited to create conditions in which each and every priest and Christian here will fall in love with God. Perhaps in the diocesan synod you might want to discern about activities and programs that will facilitate falling in love with God. Because once your people are in love with God, then the rest of the things become easy and flow naturally because they are in love with God,” Bishop Sipuka urged.

The installation of Bishop Tsoke was held at St.Patricks CBC sports ground and presided over by Archbishop Buti Joseph Tlhagale, of the Catholic Archdiocese of Johannesburg.

Bishop Duncan Theodore Tsoke was born Apr 15, 1964 in Daveyton. On December 2, 1995, he was Ordained Priest of the Catholic Archdiocese of Johannesburg.