wfn.org | Vast distances covered for enthronement of Namibian Bishop

[Theo and Ruth Coggin <coggin@sn.apc.org>]

Windhoek, Namibia, Thursday 21 May 1998

People came for hundreds of miles, some as far as from the Angolan
border, to Windhoek, the capital of Namibia, to witness the consecration
and enthronement of the Right Revd Shihala Hamupembe as the ninth
Anglican Bishop of the Diocese of Namibia.

The ceremony took place today (Thursday 21 May) in a packed hall on the
campus of the University of Namibia. It was conducted by the
Metropolitan of the Church of the Province of Southern Africa, and
Archbishop of Cape Town, the Most Revd Njongonkulu Ndungane.

It was the first consecration in Namibia to have an interfaith element
with the presence of a representative of Islam. The Anglican Bishop of
Mancester also attended the service.

Bishop Hamupembe has come a long way from the days when he tended goats
and cattle in northern Namibia. The 59-year old Bishop began his early
working life in the fishing industry in Port Alexandra. After that he
worked on a farm and then on a mine, before becoming a teacher.

He is known as an innovator in music to the languages of Namibia, and
served as administrative assistant to his predecessor, Bishop James
Kauluma, from 1987 to 1989.

He has studied in Zambia, where he was trained in youth leadership and
community development, and Scotland, where he received a Diploma in
Theology at the University of Glasgow. He has a BTh from the University
of South Africa.

Delivering the sermon at today’s ceremony, the Right Revd Eric Pike,
Bishop of Port Elizabeth, said that his new fellow Bishop would not find
being the leader of a Christian Church easy in a time when the faith’s
values were being questioned and eroded.

He was nevertheless called to uphold the Christian teachings handed down
to him, and to do so with an attitude which showed an eagerness to
serve. To be a Bishop in this age, as in others, did not imply any
greediness – not for money or anything else, Bishop Pike added.

“We are all God’s people, seeking not money, status or position, but to
serve people in need in our world,” he said.

The new Bishop would be called to share in the pain, joy and struggles
of his people.