The newly ordained Auxiliary Bishop of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Durban has said that one of his priorities will be to ensure that all “Church structures” are fully established and functioning.

In a brief interview with the Southern African Catholic Bishops Conference (SACBC) communications office, Bishop Elias Kwenzakufani Zondi said that the Covid-19 lockdown destabilised some of the established Church structures, “We from the period of Covid-19 where everything has been upside down.”

“First and foremost, I would think we need to put everything together. We have put together the College of Consultors we need to put together now the DPC. We need to put together the vocations team and so many other things. I would wish that this year we put all the structures in place and then we can plan the mission,” said Bishop Zondi on Saturday, May 27.

In his homily during the Episcopal ordination of Bishop Zondi, Archbishop Siegfried Mandla Jwara urged the new Bishop to help him make the diocese “a peaceful diocese where human rights are being valued and respected.” Referring to the United Nations World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia, and Related Intolerance held in Durban in 2001, in Durban, South Africa, Archbishop Jwara told the SACBC communications office that the Archdiocese “should take the lead in fighting against racism.”

“My hope is that now, together with Bishop Zondi, we can have a plan at least that we fight xenophobia, racism, and tribalism because a few years ago there were xenophobic attacks on our brothers and sisters from other countries,” said Archbishop Jwara.

In the May 27 interview, the Titular Bishop of Rutabo reiterated Archbishop Jwara’s call for the promotion of unity saying, “I may not have a clear outlined plan, but it is a mission on hand. I am aware of it.”

“I would be very happy myself to be in the diocese where we all work together, where we are at peace, where there isn’t any distinction… So, I do not have a plan on hand as it is now, but that is something that really, we need to look at,” he added.

The Episcopal ordination of Bishop Zondi saw the participation of 18 Bishops including the two Co-Consecrators Most Reverend Graham Rose, Bishop of Dundee and Most Reverend Sylvester David, Auxiliary Bishop of Cape Town, as well as priests, religious sisters, and thousands of faithful.