Anglican Parish of Umkomaas with Scottburgh

About
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What is Anglicanism?

People who respond to Christ’s call are first of all Christians before anything else. Many Christians choose to express their faith in an Anglican Church and in an Anglican way. Ian Douglas in his book ‘Beyond Colonial Anglicanism’ describes Anglican identity in the following way:

 

Our common identity lies not in a shared English culture but in the experience of locality in universality described as the embrace and celebration of apostolic catholicity in vernacular moments.

Diocese of Natal

One of 25 Dioceses that constitute the Anglican Church of Southern Africa [ACSA]. John Colenso was appointed the first Bishop of Natal in 1853. ACSA includes 7 countries: Angola, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, Saint Helena, Swaziland and the Republic of South Africa. There are more than 4 million Anglicans in Southern Africa, representing about 10% of the total population. There are currently 29 bishops, approximately 2000 clergy who minister in about 1000 parishes.

Archbishop Thabo Makgoba is the Metropolitan of ACSA and Bishop Dino Gabriel is the Bishop of Natal

 

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Anglican Communion

The Anglican Communion is a worldwide communion of Christian Churches found in 165 countries with over 80 million members. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the spiritual leader (first among equals) of the Communion. While the Archbishop does not have jurisdiction over the Communion, he is a symbol of unity and has a significant role in the international life and world-wide witness of the Communion. The present Archbishop of Canterbury is the Most Reverend Justin Wel

PARISH LEADERSHIP

Our compassionate and caring Rector of the Parish.


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Revd. Fidelis Dzihwema Rector

RIP - We said goodbye to our beloved deacon, Gerald Hansmeyer.  Gerald has been an inspiration to all who have been in contact with him, and we have gained greatly from his wealth of wisdom and knowledge.  He will be sorely missed. His memorial service will be held on 26 October 2024.

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Revd. Gerald Hansmeyer Deacon
CHURCH HISTORY
The Parish of Umkomaas with Scottburgh is a coastal parish which encompasses Umkomaas in the north to Ifafa in the South.

There are five worship centres, with Christ Church Umkomaas being the original church in the region and is famous for its stained-glass windows (see photo). Christ Church is currently under extensive renovations.

As the parish grew St Paul’s Scottburgh was built during the 1920’s, together with a large hall and rectory. As Scottburgh grew quickly as a commercial and residential area, most services were held in the larger church of St Paul’s.
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In 2019 the Diocese deemed that the parish boundaries be extended southwards to encompass Pennington, and Ifafa, and so the Selborne Chapel, situated in the Selborne Golf Estate, the Umdoni Village Chapel in the confines of the Umdoni Retirement Village and the Chapelry of St Simon’s and St Jude’s joined the parish.

The Selborne Chapel serves as a worship centre for many Pennington residents. This beautiful chapel was relocated stone by stone from the small inland town Umzinto, and also serves many other denominations.

The Umdoni Village Chapel serves the residents of the Umdoni Village only, making it easy for the residents of the Umdoni Retirement Village to worship without having to leave the security of the Village.

The Chapelry of St Simons and St Jude’s is built on ground donated by a farmer in the region and was lovingly crafted by members of the community, donating their time, talents and contributions to this beautiful worship centre (see photo).