Day 7 – Friday Oct. 7^th

What a day!!!   Someone in our group commented in the evening reflection that 6 of the top 10 hours of his life have been today!

We started the day at St. Georges Anglican Cathedral in downtown Cape Town for a Mass presided over by Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu.   Besides being a very special day to celebrate mass with him, it was also his 85^th Birthday.    He has been very sick and in the hospital recently, so it was a great surprise to learn that he was able to preside at the Mass.    One of the things Archbishop Tutu is known for is his infectious laugh.  Before the mass began, his mic was on as he prepared in the Sacristy.  The congregation could hear him laughing and talking with the other people with him.  We could hear as they prayed a beautiful prayer in preparation for the service.    Archbishop Tutu was so grateful for all the people who joined him for mass and his birthday that he must have said “thank you” about 50 times.    At one point he was so overcome with emotion that he wept at the altar, but then quickly recovered and within a few moments was laughing again. 

After mass we learned that he was recently diagnosed with Prostate Cancer that has spread, so he may not be healthy enough to celebrate mass much longer.  I believe we have been part of history.

Desmond Tutu and Nelson Mandela were probably THE two most important people in the anti-apartheid movement.  

After mass we drove to Simon Town to meet with Pastor Peter Story, a Methodist Pastor who was an outspoken critic of the Apartheid regime in the 60’s and 70’s.   His church had been located in “District 6” in Cape Town, which was forcibly segregated into an all white area in 1966.   His stories and passion were moving.   His son Alan Story also a Methodist Pastor in Cape Town.  

Later we went to a land-based Penguin colony in Simon Town.    There were dozens of Penguins only yards from the walking paths. 

After that we visited the South-Western most point of Africa at the Point of Good Hope.   This is the point where the Indian and Atlantic oceans come together, so the water is often very turbulent.    The waters off the point are littered with shipwrecks dating back hundreds of years.    The original European inhabitants of South Africa were traders from northern Europe who used South Africa as a stopping point on their way to India.

Quite a day!!!