This is the second piece in a series of 10 articles about Grahamstown's religious history, written by Rhodes University students for the Post Graduate Diploma in Journalism course. Pamela Kyando writes about the conflict and progression of what is arguably Grahamstown's most impressive house of worship.
This is the second piece in a series of 10 articles about Grahamstown's religious history, written by Rhodes University students for the Post Graduate Diploma in Journalism course. Pamela Kyando writes about the conflict and progression of what is arguably Grahamstown's most impressive house of worship.
It's a Sunday morning at the Cathedral of St Michael and St George and the congregation is bathed in the coloured light filtering through stained glass windows. Sunlight glints off the brass crucifix that heads the procession of a red-and-white robed choir and ornately vested clergy.
The congregation, which half fills the church, is standing and singing, accompanied by an impressive organ. The smell of incense permeates the air.
The service follows centuries-old Church of England tradition, but tailors it to the rainbow nation by peppering it with hymns and prayers in isiXhosa and Afrikaans. The traditional “Great Amen”, for instance, is in isiXhosa, to the accompaniment of a marimba band of young boys. “Masithi: Amen siyakudumisa”, sings the congregation of all races and ages.
Tradition is broken again, when the previously subdued congregation comes alive, walking around, smiling, hugging, shaking hands and repeating “Peace be with you”. Moments earlier, they were holding hands, praying for peace.
The history of the cathedral, however, is far from peaceful. It tells the story of lawsuits and conflict, from legal battles over its autonomy from the Church of England and conflict over elaborate rituals.
Relations between the amaXhosa and English settlers who lived in the area also tell a story of division.
The one-room church first opened its doors for worship in 1830 and was known as St George’s. It was constructed in early English Gothic, the thirteenth century architectural style revived during Queen Victoria's reign.
Building had begun in 1824 and was only completed 128 years later with the addition of the Lady Chapel. The belfry houses the heaviest and first full ring of eight bells on the African continent.
Interestingly, the earliest developments of the church came from a connection to the British Secretary of State for War and then-Governor of the Cape, Lord Charles Somerset. The cathedral became the primary location for memorials of fallen soldiers in the conflicts between the amaXhosa and the settlers.
However, some memorial plaques displayed terminology that is no longer acceptable, so today these plaques are covered up.
A church divided
St George's became a cathedral in 1853 when John Armstrong, the Church of England minister who founded St Andrew's College, become the first bishop there.
But a protracted conflict began when Armstrong died in 1871, leaving a gap that opened the way for a South African man, Nathaniel Merriman, to be consecrated bishop.
Cathedral Dean Frederick Williams opposed the appointment, which effectively gave independence to the Church of South Africa, breaking its domination by the Church of England. Williams refused to recognise Merriman's authority and attempted to forbid him to preach in the cathedral.
He accused the upstart South African church of creating a rift with England. The matter went to the Supreme Court and to the Privy Council, a body of advisers to the monarch that included judges and churchmen.
Williams won the case, retaining the English domination, but the conflict divided the congregation.
When Merriman died, Allan Webb succeeded him but because of the unresolved struggle he could not reign over the cathedral. So he bought an old iron building (formerly a skating rink) in 1883 and used it as a temporary church. He named it St Michael’s, after the archangel.
It was only after the death of Williams that the two factions reconciled, on Christmas day in 1885. The rift was finally healed in 1890 when Webb consecrated the building the Cathedral of St Michael and St George.
Meanwhile, another controversy had arisen, but this one was about rituals borrowed from Catholicism.
Christ Church compromises
In 1876 a woman named Rosa Wright left a hefty legacy to establish a “low” church for working class Anglicans that would forego the “high” church rituals of the cathedral. At the newly-established and “low” Christ Church there would be no incense nor elaborate processions.
The bequest required that the services must remain “low” church, otherwise the building would go to the Methodists, whose services it most closely resembled.
“She wanted a place of worship for all Christians and not only Anglicans, a place where all Christians would feel welcomed to the service,” said Rev Terry Mitchell of Christ Church.
“If you look at the back of our church, even architecturally, the church is built in such a way that prevents the procession of the priests that takes place during the services in other churches, like the cathedral. We don’t have that here.”
Retired Anthropology professor Michael Whisson explained: “The difference is mainly in the religious practices… Some believed the Anglican Church should be like the Catholic Church and others, like the Christ Church, saw themselves as more protestant and more evangelical.”
And so the Christ Church’s services remained simple; there is no choir, only an organ.
In addition to the differences in rituals, Christ Church is known as a “peculiar” church, meaning it is independent of the Anglican diocese. Although its trustees appoint its own clergy, they have to be approved by the Bishop of Grahamstown.
“Nowadays we have one service instead of two,” said retired Rev James Hoyle of Christ Church. “And we alternate between the italBook of Common Prayer/ital of 1662, which originated from England, and the italAnglican Prayer Book/ital” of South Africa written in 1964, Hoyle said.
Many religious denominations modernised their prayer books during that period, to the consternation of many congregation members. The change is still an issue with long-time church-goers.
Cathedral opens to all
Today the Cathedral of St Michael and St George is a shining example of how religion can, and has, made a welcome place for all segments of our community.
Although it still maintains traditions of the “high” church, which many older church members find comfort in, it has a thriving Sunday school, youth group, non-denominational Taizé meditational prayer services, student services and guest preachers from all corners of the globe.
