MUSEVENI EXPECTED TO DELIVER KEYNOTE ADDRESS AT SACLA
BY DAVID LARSEN

First Lady of Uganda, and patron of numerous human rights causes on the African continent, Mrs Janet Museveni, will deliver a keynote speech at SACLA.
Wife of President Yoweri Museveni, Mrs Museveni is expected to jet in to South Africa on the eve of the broadest gathering of the Church in South Africa and what is being hailed as one of the most representative meetings of the Church in any nation in recent history.
“SACLA organisers are both grateful and privileged to welcome Mrs Museveni to the conference,” says Dr Michael Cassidy, co-chairperson of SACLA II. “Mrs Museveni is one of the most outstanding Christian leaders on the continent. Her clear convictions, emerging from a life-changing encounter with Jesus Christ, both inform and undergird the way she expresses and executes her leadership.”
“Many believe her influence has contributed in single measure to the principles and democratic way in which Uganda is being led at this time.”
In May 2002 Mrs Museveni was the recipient of the Global Aids Leadership Award bestowed by an international coalition of AIDS organisations. “She exerted a powerful influence on the way Uganda tackled the HIV/AIDS pandemic. A change in moral behaviour was at the centre of the policies that have worked so dramatically in reducing the HIV/AIDS incidence from 35% to under 10%. This is one of the most astonishing success stories in the world at this time,” Cassidy says. “Leaders at the SACLA assembly and the whole country will benefit greatly from hearing her message.”
Mrs Museveni, who has spoken at numerous conventions around the world, is scheduled to speak in the plenary session on the evening of Tuesday, July 8 at the Tshwabac Pretoria Show Grounds.
The First Lady has been invited and due protocol is being followed. “SACLA organisers are confident she will be with us and bring a creative and pertinent contribution to the assembly,” Dr Cassidy says.

Uganda's First Lady, Mrs Museveni, one of the most outstanding Christian Leaders on the continent will deliver a keynote speech at SACLA II

Photograph: Jamie Morrison

MASSIVE LOGISTICAL EXERCISE IN FULL SWING
BY DAVID LARSEN

A massive effort is under way in preparation for several thousand leaders expected to converge on Pretoria in two weeks time for SACLA II.
"It has been a challenge to find accommodation for thousands of people," says Mark Manley, a member of the SACLA Organising Committee. "We are using hostels and Christian homes, and in a few cases B&B’s and hotels."

"Transport needs to be provided twice a day for several thousand people around the greater Tswane area, and we have been planning for 153 000 meals."

"We also have to provide the venues for all of those people to interact with each other in the 13 tracks. Thirteen venues means 13 PA systems as well as the decor and tables and chairs at each venue."

"Then there is the security involved in keeping everyone safe and making sure people who would want to disrupt or exploit the situation don’t have access."

"There is also the registration process that all those people have to go through and a myriad of other items to be attended to such as first aid, telephones, an information centre, a fully equipped media centre and so on."

"We will also be providing hospitality for foreign guests such as the 40 people who are coming with Ed Silvoso from Argentina and numbers from the rest of Africa."

"In preparation for the conference we will have trained hundreds of people as facilitators. And there has also been the task of raising the finances for the event. Many people cannot afford the fees."

Although over R1 million has been raised to date there is still a need to raise another R3 million if adequate sponsorships are to be provided for many who cannot afford the fees. Durban businessman Terry Rosenberg has organised fund-raising events around the country.

"SACLA organisers ask people to keep praying into this area," says Michael Cassidy, co-chair of SACLA. "It has been a slow and demanding task. However, there have been some real encouragements."

"A number of overseas Christian partners, mainly accessed through African Enterprise, have given generously. A number of denominations have made financial commitments as well as business people and corporates." SACLA organisers are committed to finding funds for registration fees so that no one should be prevented from coming on the grounds of a lack of finance.

"A number of people who can’t be at SACLA have taken it upon themselves to sponsor others. We encourage people to do this especially for young people and pastors."

"Ultimately we recognise it is the Lord who is the ultimate provider and we stand on the glorious promise of Philippians 4:19 "my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus."

SACLA - A New Level of Unity and Blessing for South Africa

BY RALPH JARVIS

SACLA is a definitive moment in the body of Christ in South Africa. This is according to an Northern Irish Christian who recently brought a powerful word of encouragement for the South African Christian Leadership Assembly (SACLA).

Andrew Montgomery, an optometrist by profession, was visiting the African Enterprise (AE) Centre in Pietermaritzburg. Montgomery first came across the ministry of AE in 1997 when he heard Dr Michael Cassidy speak about the miracle of the South African 1994 elections. The story changed Montgomery’s outlook on his own nation.

"Before I came here I knew very little about SACLA. When I first heard about SACLA, my spirit leapt. Now if this happened to a person from a foreign land who knew nothing about your situation or SACLA, how much more should your spirits leap as you embrace this adventure," he said.
"SACLA will go where no one has gone before. It will produce a new level of unity and blessing. Be prepared. The Lord says to you that you have everything you need to complete your mission; everything is in place. You may not realise it, but the Lord has it all prepared – just do it!"

"Anybody who is anybody should be at SACLA," he said. "In years to come you will realise its significance. You have an opportunity of making history now and all you have to do is attend."

Whatever it takes, get to SACLA

Photograph: David Larsen/ The Media Bank

PERSPECTIVES

SOUNDING THE CALL - The SACLA Road Show

The SACLA promotional road show has been in full swing for some months. Teams have been making presentations to ministers fraternals, youth groups and churches throughout the nation. Press conferences have been organised, videos have been produced, radio spots have gone out on 12 different stations, numerous articles have been in the press, over 100,000 copies of SACLA News have been distributed and people have begun to talk.

Press Conferences Have Been a Great Success

On the 29th May in Cape Town and 4th June in Johannesburg, press conferences were held where key South African Leaders signed pledges to work together to face the giants looming over South Africa today. MILES GILJIM reports on the outcome of the Cape Town event.

Senior church leaders from across the denominational spectrum in Cape Town, met to sign a commitment to work together, in unity, to tackle the major giants facing South Africa, including HIV/AIDS, poverty and unemployment, crime, violence, sexism, racism and the crisis in the family.

Speakers at the signing ceremonies included Anglican Archbishop Njongonkulu Ndungane, African Enterprise (AE) International Team Leader Michael Cassidy, Catholic Archbishop of Cape Town, Lawrence Henry, Mrs Esmé Bowers, from the Evangelical Alliance of South Africa and Graham Power of Transformations Africa.

Other leaders in attendance represented the South African Council of Churches, the Dutch Reformed Church, His People, the Church of England in South Africa, the Students Christian Organisation, the Baptist Church, the Salvation Army, the Methodist Church, Scripture Union and many others.

Newcastle’s Late Night Promo

When SACLA Organising Committee members Mark Manley and Moss Ntlha were invited to do a presentation on SACLA to an African initiated church in the KwaZulu Natal town of Newcastle recently, they were up later than expected.

Scheduled to speak at the conference in the evening Manley and his wife debated whether to book into a B&B for the night or drive back to Pietermaritzburg. They eventually booked in and were glad they did. Manley and Ntlha were scheduled to make the presentation between 9:30 and 10:00pm but only got to the microphone at 4:15am. "Not only was it a challenge to keep the listeners awake as I spoke," Manley said with a laugh, "but also myself."

Enthusiastic Positive Response from Eastern Cape Clergy

by Lucky Mbiko

Clergy in the Eastern Cape have responded enthusiastically to the South African Christian Leadership Assembly in Pretoria from 7 to 12 July.

About 300 ministers in the area were told about SACLA at various regional meetings and wanted to know about the themes and tracks.

Initial concerns that it would be difficult to get local clergy enthusiastic in the light of their own busy ministry schedules proved groundless as ministers, pastors and lay leaders responded enthusiastically to the teams telling them about the assembly.

For several, the response was immediate and positive – they had attended the first SACLA in 1979, also in Pretoria, and knew from experience the impact that assembly had on their own lives as well as on the Church, and believed that the 2003 SACLA would take transformation in South Africa even further.

"The response was amazing, and people wanted more of the promo videos we gave them so they could spread the word further," one of the SACLA promoters said. "Leaders wanted to know more about accommodation, food, the venue and themes that SACLA will be debating. It was encouraging for us to be asked the questions. It showed that people are aware of the giants we face in South Africa, concerned that the Church needs to be committed, and keen to attend the conference."

Bishop Don Dabula, Bishop of the Methodist Church in the Eastern Cape, urged all Methodists in his district to attend.

Christian leaders were also urged to nominate youth leaders to attend. "We stressed that this is not a conference for adults or restricted to certain groups only, but also for young people emerging as leaders. The youth of today are the leaders, the movers and shakers, of tomorrow, and they need to know the direction they need to take under God."

God’s Army On The March...

by Cathy Bollaert

In Tolkien’s "The Lord of the Rings", the trilogy that caught the imagination of two generations in book form and a third via the movies, the great wizard, Gandalf the Grey, rides out calling all the armies of the land together to fight the evil facing their world. The battle is raging and all seems hopeless. Then Gandalf arrives with an overwhelming response of warriors who, together, overcome the enemy.

As Gandalf did, so we, too, have been riding out, rallying the Christian leaders of our land to come together for the South African Christian Leadership Assembly in Pretoria from 7 to 12 July. We have travelled from Umtata to Queenstown, Fort Hare University, East London, King William’s Town, Port Elizabeth, Kimberley, Bloemfontein and Welkom, our particular focus on the youth and young adult leadership.

The response has been vital and exciting! The SACLA army is growing as warriors, throughout the land, Calebs and Joshuas of this generation, are arising saying: "Yes! We will come with our people, with our armies."

Take for example, Kimberley, a city where many had heard about SACLA but only one had registered to attend. Then the youth, students and church leadership came together to form a SACLA working team. As a result, many have registered and more are on their way. Young people too young at this stage to attend are forming prayer teams to cover those at SACLA.

At the University of Fort Hare, alma mater of many of our present political leadership, the students have set out with great zeal, the Christian warriors rallying together. Major preparations are being made to get the student Christian armies to SACLA so that, together, the assembly can ride out and storm the gates.

God’s Army is on the march to the transformation of South Africa!

EDITORIAL

SIGN UP FOR SACLA NOW! AND NOT ONLY THAT, PAY YOUR MONEY NOW!

Putting on a conference of this size is both a massive logistical exercise and an enormous financial risk. Your signing up and paying now will not only help you to avoid long queues on registration day, but will also help lower the blood pressure of the finance team. It is all about cash flow and such events require one to go out an a slender limb, to pay for all that makes such conferences happen, prior to the money coming in. The more that comes in prior to the event the shorter and stoughter the limb.
Of course not everyone can afford to the R1,500 registration fee. For SACLA to be all that it has the potential to be we need Christian leaders there form the full spectrum of the church. If only those who can afford it come to the conference, its outcomes will not be adequate to the challenges of the future. We desperately need those close to God’s heart, the poor, both urban and rural.

There are many leaders in this nation, and particularly leaders of the future, who need assistance to get to Pretoria on July 7. This is a pressing need. Even if you can’t be there personally, if the Lord has blessed you with resources no matter how small, you can still be an integral part of this history-making event. You can invest in the future! SACLA organisers have heard of many who can’t go to the conference themselves paying for others to go. If you are passionate about this beautiful land God has placed you in, invest in its future - sponsor someone from your area, particularly someone from "the other side of the tracks."

Perhaps only once every generation or so an opportunity comes along to affect the course of a nation for many generations to come. SACLA II is just such an opportunity. As a corporate, church group, small business or any other organisation there is no better investment opportunity than being part of something that may steer this nation, and indeed this region, toward a glorious future. If you are serious about creating wealth in the long term, if you are committed to sustained development over many generations, if you believe we can do more together, to lay hold of that glorious future, than we can apart, then give with reckless abandon. The returns won’t just be out of this world. David Larsen

Editor - SACLA News

People from across the spectrum of churches gathered at close to 130 stadia around southern Africa for a day of prayer on May 1. In South Africa SACLA II will seek to gather these prayers into action.

Photograph: David Larsen/ The Media Bank

THIS IS YOUR OPPORTUNITY

SACLA ANOTHER TURNING POINT IN SA HISTORY