As the Church in Southern Africa marks the 75th Anniversary of the establishment of the Southern African Hierarchy, the Archbishop Emeritus of Bloemfontein Archdiocese offered a deeply personal and prophetic reflection centred on the ongoing formation of the people of God, drawing from decades of episcopal ministry and pastoral experience.

Recalling his own journey, Archbishop Jabulani Adatus Nxumalo OMI reflected on his appointment as bishop and later his long years of service in challenging diocesan contexts. He spoke candidly about the difficulties he encountered, particularly during his 15 years of ministry in a diocese marked by tension and complexity, as well as the added responsibility of overseeing two dioceses simultaneously toward the end of his episcopal service. These experiences, he noted, shaped his understanding of leadership, sacrifice, and perseverance in service of the Gospel.

At the heart of his reflection was a pressing concern for formation—especially the formation of priests, families, and Christian communities. While affirming the work of seminaries and recalling his own involvement as chairperson of the bishops’ department for seminaries, Archbishop Nxumalo raised a troubling question: why do priests formed in the same seminaries sometimes emerge with vastly different levels of maturity, commitment, and pastoral effectiveness once ordained? For him, these points are not only to discernment at the point of selection, but also to deeper wounds carried by candidates long before they enter formation.

He highlighted the reality of deeply wounded individuals, particularly among those shaped by broken family structures, absent fathers, and poor Christian formation at home. Such wounds, he warned, often remain unhealed even after years of theological education, spiritual direction, and pastoral training. This, he said, has serious consequences for priestly ministry, relationships, and the credibility of the Church’s witness.

Extending his reflection beyond the clergy, Archbishop Nxumalo identified the family as the fundamental cell of the Church and society, yet one that is increasingly fragile. Many parents, he observed, are themselves inadequately formed in the faith and therefore struggle to pass it on to their children. The result is a Church made up of communities that are active and vibrant on the surface but inwardly wounded and spiritually shallow.

He also questioned contemporary expressions of religiosity, asking whether some church associations and highly emotive liturgies truly foster worship of God, or whether they function as spaces for emotional release rather than genuine conversion. True spirituality, he insisted, must unite souls, deepen relationships within families and communities, and be firmly rooted in the Gospel of Christ under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

Reflecting on broader social challenges such as gender-based violence, corruption, and escalating crime in South Africa, Archbishop Nxumalo linked these crises to failures in moral, spiritual, and human formation. Activism alone, he cautioned, cannot bring lasting change without a profound return to listening to the Word of God—a listening that leads to conversion, faith, and concrete action.

Marking 75 years of the Southern African Hierarchy, Archbishop Nxumalo described the Church in the region as still very much a missionary Church. This milestone, he said, is not only a moment to celebrate achievements, but also a call to honest evaluation—acknowledging both strengths and weaknesses—and to renew the Church’s pastoral vision for the future.

“The Gospel,” he concluded, “is very demanding.” Yet it is precisely this demanding Gospel that must remain at the centre of the Church’s mission, guiding the ongoing journey toward the Kingdom of God in Southern Africa.