Visitation

According to the Orders of the Cape Lutheran Church, each congregation is to be visited by the Bishop once every four years. This is a valuable practice, as it allows the congregation to reflect critically on its life and ministry. The aim of such a visitation is twofold:

• to recognise the many blessings the congregation has received, and

• to identify areas where development or renewal may be needed.

Bishop Gilbert Filter, accompanied by a small team, visited our congregation from 27 to 29 June 2025.

To prepare for the meeting, we requested group leaders or members of the various groups and ministries (visiting circle, bible study group, musicians, etc.) to write brief reports about the aim and functioning of their groups. Our secretary and treasurer helped to compile a collection of documents like annual reports, statistics, lists of improvements to and maintenance of the church and manse, and many more, which were sent to the Bishop and his team more than a week before the visitation.

The Church Committee reflected on questions sent by Bishop Filter, including what brings us joy in the congregation and what areas of concern we have. We were also asked to each write a piece or draw a picture of our congregation. The five individual pictures were then combined and refined by the Church Committee into a combined view of our congregation. We shall soon share our picture with you.

The team assisting Bishop Filter consisted of Sandra Botha (member of Church Council and CCW), Helen Ntowampe (member of Strand Street congregation and former chair of their church committee) and Detlev Ahlert from the Bellville congregation. The programme for the weekend included several meetings between the Bishop and his team and the Church Committee. We received encouragement and advice from the very supportive visitation team. A large part of the Saturday comprised meetings with leaders and members of various groups of the congregation. It was wonderful to see so many of our congregants speaking up and sharing their experiences and views. And of course, as always there were ladies in the kitchen, preparing meals, tea and coffee for us during the three days. At the end of the morning service on Sunday 29 June, Bishop Filter and his team gave some feedback about the visitation.

We as a committee learned a lot during the preparation phase and the visitation weekend. We all gained more insight in the many activities of the congregation. All the preparations will bear fruit, as the work before and the discussions during the weekend indeed helped us to see how many blessings our congregation had received. We are waiting for the formal report, which we as Church Committee shall carefully study to see which new initiatives can flow from the visitation. The Church Committee once again thanks all who helped to make the visitation a rewarding and positive experience.

The Church Committee