Reflections by Fr Mathibela Sebothoma

  Accountability Without Overreach: Why the CRL Commission Risks Undermining Religious Freedom By Fr Mathibela Sebothoma  The failure of parts of the Church to govern itself responsibly is no longer in dispute. Financial misconduct, abuse of authority, and weak internal accountability have rightly provoked public anger. These failures demand consequences. But they do not justify a solution that threatens a core constitutional freedom. In its growing intervention into religious life, the Cultural, Religious and Linguistic (CRL) Rights Commission risks crossing an important line: from protecting citizens against abuse to policing belief itself. A constitutional democracy must be able to hold religious institutions accountable without deciding what counts as a “legitimate” religion or how faith should be practised. When the state assumes that role, freedom of religion becomes conditional—granted only to those who pass official approval. To be clear, churches are not above the...

  Four Men Ordained Permanent Deacons for the Archdiocese of Pretoria on Reconciliation Day Zwavelpoort – 16 June 2025 Four Christian men were ordained to the permanent diaconate for the Archdiocese of Pretoria on Monday, 16 June 2025, at a solemn Eucharistic celebration held at the Church of the Beatitudes in Zwavelpoort. The ordination coincided with South Africa’s Reconciliation Day, adding a profound symbolic dimension to a celebration rooted in service, unity and peace. Those ordained were Mr Pieter Kroukamp O.F.S. (Presentation Parish, Montana), Dr Patrick Makawa-Mbewe (St Thomas More Parish, Monavoni), Mr Piet Nkgoogo Mashilo (Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, Dennilton), and Mr Michael Machalo Tloubatla (St Thomas More Parish, Monavoni). At the beginning of the ordination rite, each candidate was called by name and, in a moving gesture reflecting the vocation of married deacons, they were accompanied to the sanctuary by their wives. Also present were their children, paren...