Dear Beloved Community,

It is with deep gratitude and a touch of nervousness that I introduce myself as I step into this role as chief of mission program. My journey begins in the Anglican Church of South Africa, where I was shaped by faith, family, and resilience.

I think of my grandfather, who served as suffragan bishop alongside Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and my grandmother, a fierce choirmaster who taught me the power of prayer through song. Their lives were a testament to faith in action. My mother, just a teenager when I was born, showed me love and strength beyond measure—resilience that carried us through challenges I can only now fully appreciate.

Growing up in Cape Town in the thick of apartheid and the state of emergency, I witnessed the Gospel lived out in the fight for truth, justice, and reconciliation. Across the ocean, the words of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. reached us, reminding us that “the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.” What I would later learn is that King’s public work was always rooted in moments of silence and prayer. Like the Desert Fathers and Mothers, King retreated into stillness to renew his strength before stepping into the world’s struggles.

In 2002, on the Los Angeles Diocese “Hands in Healing” pilgrimage, I visited Roberto Clemente Academy in Chicago’s West Town and saw a sketch of King, Malcolm X, and Nelson Mandela. That image remains etched in my heart as a holy reminder that God raises up leaders across time and place to carry the call for liberation, healing, and love. It also reminds me that before action comes reflection, and before transformation comes prayer.

This grounding in prayer shaped my ministry as chaplain to the House of Deputies, where I was invited to serve by the Rev. Gay Clark Jennings, president of the House of Deputies from 2012-2022. As I continued to serve recently at the 81st General Convention, this showed me how to hold governance and leadership with deep prayer, always keeping Jesus at the center. This same grounding guides me now as we journey together in faith and mission. I carry with me the South African salutation “Sawubona,” which means “I see you.” It is more than a greeting; it is an acknowledgment of our shared humanity and sacred worth. It calls us to be fully present to one another, to see Christ in each other, and to trust in God’s transforming power.

As we prepare to honor Martin Luther King Jr. Day, let us remember his words, but also his silence—his retreat into prayer that renewed his spirit. The work before us, whether racial justice, healing, or reconciliation, will require us to listen deeply, to walk together, and to trust in God’s strength.

Beloved friends, as the Xhosa proverb reminds us: “If I go alone, I go fast; if we go together, we go far.”

Sawubona. I see you. May we journey together, keeping Christ at the center, always.

Your servant in Christ,

Lester+

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The Rev. Lester Mackenzie joined the presiding bishop’s staff in November as chief of mission program. A graduate of Virginia Theological Seminary, he has served as rector of St. Mary’s, Laguna Beach, in the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles, as well as chaplain to Executive Council and the House of Deputies.