It’s a Friday afternoon and I just had lunch. I am in the staff kitchen busy doing some dishes and suddenly, a colleague walks in to warm his food in the microwave.
“Greetings pastor Geoffrey, how are you?” I ask with a smile
“I am blessed thank you” he replies as he normally does. He is a man of faith who uses every opportunity to spread the word of God and remind us of His mercy.
I go back to pronouncing his name because I realize I sometimes mispronounce it.” Geo…Go…Geoffrey” I try to get my tongue to move right and do justice.
“Geoffrey” he says, “do you know what it means”? He adds.
“Honestly, I have no idea” I respond.
“God’s peace,” he says. “Geoffrey, Godfrey, Jeffrey…they all mean the same thing”
“Oh, really? That’s interesting. My brother’s name is Jeffrey. My late brother, I meant”
The pastor goes on and asks me if I ever pray for my brother. I go on and correct him…
“Late brother. Yes. I pray for his soul”.
The man of God passionately explains to me that there shouldn’t be any separation or a wall between the living and the dead.
Of course, he gets my utmost attention because through this diary, I have questioned the existence and living in harmony with the dead, or rather acknowledging their presence.
“What do you mean?” I ask, with the intention to interrogate him further. He is a man of God….I wouldn’t have guessed that he acknowledges the presence of the dead.
He goes on and says “well, the problem comes when we forget the departed and refer to them as dead. In actual fact, they might be gone from the physical realm but they are now elevated to the spiritual realm. The absence of their physical bodies is not necessarily the end of their existence.”
He further explains… Luke 24:5 says; “why are you looking for the living amongst the dead? In the book of Revelations 8, our departed families are called the saints who pray; and their prayers rise to God like incense. In heaven, they are perfected and cannot sin. In Mathews 17 at the transfiguration, we see Moses, Elijah, and Jesus. Yet we know that they died in the Old Testament, but are seen in the company of Jesus, looking glorious. ”
At this point, I am boiling with excitement. I already know what my next question will be. “How do you say you believe in the Bible but also believe in ancestors?” It is important for me to ask this because the reason I started writing this journal is that I am questioning my own beliefs as a Christian woman and an African. I then rephrase my question so that it doesn’t sound like an attack.
“Would you say you refer to the departed as ancestors, Pastor? I mean, what do you call them?”
“They are the elevated or promoted souls. Ancestry is a lineage of the bloodline. If you were to be adopted by someone and you take their surname… you then form part of their bloodline. So when you accept Christ in your life, you take his bloodline. Mary becomes your mother and God, your father. There is then no need for you to have ancestors, no need to acknowledge your departed family members as your ancestors. You are now one with them in Christ. We refer to them as heavenly saints and we on earth are referred to as the earthly saints”
Quite an interesting take, right? Pastor Geoffrey quoted a lot of references that made sense but also left me questioning my own interpretations and beliefs. I mean…it’s crazy how we all read the same Bible but have different interpretations of it. Some pastors automatically go into defense mode when you bring about the topic of ancestors, and someone like Pastor Geoffrey is always excited to pass on their teachings and understandings.
I am out here asking myself….
“Am I a reflection of what was instilled in me by the Christians in my life, or am I my own person with my own thoughts and beliefs?”
I mean…what would have happened if my first teachings about ancestors were not from church but from someone who actually believes in ancestors. What would my questions be at this very moment? Would I even be questioning the world? *sigh*
Jane Mpholo is a multi-award winning theatre Practitioner and an Audience Development Specialist at the Performing Arts Centre of the Free State (PACOFS) . She has been active on both the national and international platforms with collaborations with practitioners from the Netherlands, USA and Australia, to name a few. Jane is a senior judge for the World Monologue Games and World Monologue Film Festival. Her highlights as a writer include being chosen as one of the 5 top playwrights for the NATi Yong Sterre program for her script "The Dawn", making it to the top 20 playwrights list for the African Women Playwrights Festival of Plays for her script "The Naked Truth" (which she later turned into a short film) and having her script "Fragmented" on the program for Teksmark 2022. Her autobiographical show "Psalm 69" has proved to be timeless and has showcased on both the national and international platforms such as the Global leadership summit 2018. Jane is a panel member for the National Arts Council and is a former FS Provincial Liaison for the BASA Debut Program. She is a recent graduate for the BASA Cultural Producers Program, an initiative between British Council; BASA, Common Purpose and the Manchester International Festival. Her short film "Cleanse" which looks at the life of a woman under oppression as a domestic worker has won multiple international awards and aired on DSTV pop up channel 150 (Woordfees TV 2022). Jane is also one of the contributors for the Stemme/Voices monologues 2022, an initiative by the Suidoosterfees.
Jane practices as a professional actor (has over 40 theatrical shows under her belt), playwright, producer, dramaturge, facilitator, arts coach , speaker and mentor. She is passionate about inclusive education and creating a safe space for audiences to engage in discussions pertaining to the social ills of the world. She is a true advocate for human rights.
Amongst the many awards and recognitions....she is a three times Kyknet Fiesta Nominated artist and made it to the lists "Mail and Guardian Women Changing South Africa" and the "Sunday World Unsung Heroes 2022".
