The Parish of Bellville, The Church of St. John

17/06/2026

ACSA mourns the death of Abdullah Ibrahim

Post date

17th June 2026

The Anglican Church of Southern Africa wishes to extend our sincere condolences to Abdullah Ibrahim’s family, to the die-hard jazz-loving fraternity and to all in our nation who mourn his loss. You are all in our thoughts and prayers.

His family and all who loved him have lost a loved one, who has now been called to a higher service to join his late wife and mother of his children, Sathima.

We thank God for his life, we thank his family for sharing him with us, and especially for sharing the influence he has had on our lives through his gift of imparting stories using his musical talent.

May God grant him eternal peace; and may he continue to live with us through his music. You may be gone but you will never be forgotten.

The Right Revd Stephen Diseko
Dean Of the Province & Provincial Vicar-General

16/06/2026

09/06/2026

Charles Pretorius was my one of my maternal great grand fathers. For many years he toiled at sea as a fisherman, yet he couldn’t swim to save his life. Our great grandfather known to us a “Derra” was a loving, blunt, straightforward rough around the edges kind of man. Really someone from the old school, his younger sister was married to a minister of the Independent Dutch Mission Church , he never called her by name and insisted on referring to her as “Juffrou”. Derra was known for his fine gardening skills and the family house in 29th Avenue in Elsies River was always decorated with the finest flowers from the garden throughout the year. Fruit trees stood elegantly and abundantly. His garden was the envy of many. Derra was not very good at remembering dates, he lived in a time when there was no such thing such as digital reminders on cell phones and other devices, yet he remembered his wife’s birthday. At the back of his garden stood a massive red Poinsettia tree and every year at the end of May when it started to bloom and its leaves turned red he would speak to my great grandmother whom he called ‘Baba’ and would say to her “Baba dis mos weer amper jou verjaarsdag”. Her birthday was on 9 June. Nature served as his reminder and calendar. This annual gesture of Derra is indicative of someone who not only observed nature but someone who’s spirituality was complemented by creation and who had a respect for God our Creator, someone who took time out and in the stillness of creation encountered the living God. Many of us live our lives habitually at a pace where we hardly notice our surroundings, a pace where we hardly notice the joys and sufferings of our brothers and sisters. The majority of the readers of this article have not met my late great grandfather, but, I urge you to allow the example of his life to inspire you to a greater awareness not only of life, but also of God who gave it to you.

Article penned by Fr. Craig Abrahams

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Derra died on 21 February 1995 and his wife died on 8 March 2001.

08/06/2026

Incense is for sale at R25 per 20grm packet from the church office during weekdays.

07/06/2026

I have to say the congregation's singing was absolutely stunning this morning!

07/06/2026