In August 2011 three young adults: Damian Shorten and Jason Downes from Rathkeale & Kilnaughtin Group of Parishes and Edward Hardy of Clonfert Group of Parishes trravelled to South Africa. They were superbly hosted by the Companion Diocese of Saldanha Bay.
Edward tells us all about the trip.
The trip started with Paarl, in the parish of Church of The Assumption and included many wonderful experiences. The team visited a Youth section of the local prison and engaged with some of the prisoners. They also visited a woman’s refuge centre and toured an outreach support and training centre in one of the more disadvantaged areas of the city. This section of trip also included attending a home group prayer meeting, youth service and a number of worship services in the Church with the opportunity to share with those gathered together. The group also were fortunate enough to have a guided tour of the actual house in which Nelson Mandela was finally released.
The second phase of the trip was in the parish of Clanwilliam, a widely dispersed rural parish about 200 kms from Paarl. This was a vastly different experience where highlights were running a youth programme for an evening with a large group of young people and attendance at three very moving Sunday services in three of the parish churches with the opportunity to share with congregations.The team also joined local pastor, Fr. Jerome Prince, on many home visits.
The group also were privileged to have a meeting and lunch with Bishop Raphael Hess and some members of Companion Diocesan Committee. This meeting gave an opportunity for much discussion about life in South Africa and many of the issues which face the Church in relation to land reform, ministry, youth, and gender. There was also a general discussion on Companion Diocesan relationship.
The trip concluded with a number of leisure days which gave an opportunity for many exciting trips during to the superb tourist attractions of the Cape region. These included a trip to the infamous prison at Robben Island, the spectacular Table Mountain, the V & A waterfront area of Cape Town, the Capetown Aquarium, West Coast National Park and Aquila Game Reserve.
The entire visit was an uplifting opportunity with many ideas explored for the future years of Companion relationship including some mission project opportunities, year out exchanges and youth exchanges.