The news of the death of Mary Mxadane, a prominent member of the Imilonji kaNtu and a former senior employee of the South African Council of Churches, has left the ecumenical movement speechless.

The acting General Secretary of the SACC, Mr Eddie Makue, said: “We at the SACC have been left speechless by her death, for Mary was one of us.

"Mary gave a good part of her life to the service of the Ecumenical Movement, working as Director of Development at the height of our struggle against apartheid until that satanic system was defeated by the forces of justice in 1994.

"After serving the SACC, and after the demise of apartheid in 1994, Mary left the organisation to become personal assistant of former President Nelson Mandela.

"Indeed, it would be amiss not to talk about her time as leader of the SACC Trio, a musical outfit that in many ways inspired the then General Secretary of SACC, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, to greater heights while giving direction to the Peoples’ Struggle.

"We are indebted to Mary, and indeed the life she gave to Imilonji kaNtu. It was a life she walked with pride and courage with her husband, and choirmaster, George. We can only say to George and their two teenage children: 'The death of Mary represents the Cross we all bear in this life -- the Cross of suffering, pain, and death. Yet beyond the Cross, we are assured of the Resurrection, a new life that reminds us of new beginnings.'"

Issued on behalf of SACC by
Fr Joe Mdhlela
Head: Communications
Contact: 082 456 5548