The model of the Most Holy Trinity “that exemplifies unity in diversity” should inspire people of all races to “emulate this unity in diversity” to promote coexistence in South Africa, the President of the Southern African Catholic Bishops Conference has said.

Addressing the parishioners of St Lucia Catholic Church in KwaZulu Natal on the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, Bishop Sithembele Sipuka bemoaned racism in South Africa and called on those gathered to emulate the example of the “Holy Trinity” and embrace social cohesion.

“We are still a very divided country, and I feel inspired by the feast that we are celebrating today because this feast appreciates the identities of each person. The Father is not the Son, and the Son is not the Father, and the Spirit is not the Son and is not the Father. And yet they are united all the time in love, and in mutually giving of each other to others,” said Bishop Sipuka on Sunday, June 4.

Located in St Lucia Estuary in the iSimangaliso Wetland Park, KwaZulu Natal, the Catholic Church has been present in St Lucia since 1965. It offers Sunday mass to both locals and visitors.

In his June 4 address towards the end of Mass, Bishop Sipuka went on to say, “My prayer as I celebrate mass with you today on this feast of the Trinity is that we may, thanks to the example of the Trinity, that exemplifies this unity in diversity, that we too, in this country, black and white, coloured and Indian – that we too, may become one.”

He called on those gathered to contemplate on the sign of the Cross “that you always do in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.”

In his concluding remarks, Bishop Sipuka said he prays for peace and unity within families and within the Church in South Africa.

“I pray for peace in our country. I pray for unity, also in our families and in our church. We are also a very, very diverse church and made up of many nations. And yet we are one under the Pope. And this does not come easy. It’s something that we need to continually work on.”