Mdhlela ’ s friends have obviously denied him the truth

JO-MANGALISO Mdhlela’s open letter to the Bishop of Pretoria, Jo Seoka, “Stop this battle in the church of God”, yesterday, is clearly written to represent some of his friends, who have obviously denied him the truth.

He alleges that the cathedral has been closed for Eucharistic services “over the past year or so”. Here he is misrepresenting the facts.

As a former journalist, he should know how to check his facts before going public. Every Sunday, a register is signed in church.

No Sunday passes without a sig- nature at the cathedral. That should tell him that there have been services at the cathedral every Sunday.

He must come to the cathedral and challenge me on this issue.

The cathedral is a diocese under the leadership of an able bishop elected by the people of Pretoria. We will not allow people from outside our diocese to dictate to us what is good for the diocese.

The people Mdhlela is representing come from his diocese.

They told congregants not to receive Holy Communion, yet weekly they go to their churches outside Pretoria to receive Holy Communion.

Mdhlela is not saying who disrupted services at this cathedral.

What did Cannon 23 Commission say about these people? Mdhlela must tell the truth about them.

Mdhlela baptises our bishop a dictator. What does he call the people who disrupted services?

The cathedral in Pretoria is not the diocese of Pretoria. It is just a drop in a large ocean. Parishes in Mogwase, Bronkhortspruit, Marapyane, Khwadubeng and Waterk- loof form this diocese.

They cannot be dictated to by a single parish made of up people who are ready to go back to their homes for sacraments.

The cathedral is open as I write to you. There is a dean who preached there on Sunday. I attend services there. I was there yesterday.

We are planning a synod. The very people you are representing are asking why we are calling a synod. They obviously want to tell us when to call it.