Reflection from the Council of Anglican Provinces of Africa (CAPA)
Who are you?
I am Kofi deGraft-Johnson, a Ghanaian from Cape Coast but have been working in Nairobi, Kenya as the General Secretary of the Council of Anglican Provinces of Africa (CAPA) since January 2020. I have come to this office with precious backgrounds in development work, theological education and church management and administration.
Where are you finding hope during the time of COVID-19?
The COVID-19 pandemic surfaced just as I was settling in to my new role and assignment as the General Secretary of CAPA. The pandemic has swept through 53 of the 55 countries on the continent and every Province of the Anglican Church in Africa has been affected. While the degree of resilience of Provinces and countries to contain the pandemic differs, there is a general weak resilience capacity on the continent as a result of previous contexts. Some countries are just coming out of years of conflict, there are raging pandemics such as Ebola in some parts of the continent, politically-based conflicts and insurgence of armed conflicts which has weakened critical investments in human welfare capacities in most countries. The net effect of previous contexts has aggravated the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic especially for the vulnerable and marginalized communities, people in the informal sectors of the economy, masses in informal settlements who cannot practice any of the precautionary measures put in place to contain the spread of the virus – social distancing, hand washing, wearing of face masks.
What is your community’s greatest strength?
CAPA community’s major strength is in the faith we have in God as the Creator and Sustainer of the universe. This faith is shared within the community, with fellow Christians in the wider Anglican Community and with people in the faith community. The strength of this shared faith plays out in the lives of the people who live for the sake of Christ and neighbour. In the wake of the pandemic, members of the community have and continue to pray and share with others resources of time, knowledge and skills.
Why is being a part of the world-wide Anglican Communion important to you?
Being part of the wider Anglican Community is very important because it provides us with the space to share our faith in unity with diverse people. The opportunity to walk together with people of same faith and belief but from different parts of the Communion enriches our shared faith and builds us up into the stature of Christ, who is the Head and the Foundation of the Church. The Anglican Communion (with its diversity) is a community of practicing Christians who daily live out their faith inspiring hope in and showing love in Christ to neighbours.
How can we be praying for you and your community?
CAPA is not well resourced to be able to carry through her mission but believe that God’s resources (of silver and gold) are to be shared. We pray that our friends (worldwide) will support us as we work towards the achievement of our vision of building a unified and self-sustaining Anglican Communion in Africa, providing holistic ministry to all and fulfilling God’s promise for abundant life.
Find out more about The Council of Anglican Provinces of Africa (CAPA) visit their website at https://capa-hq.org/