Southern Africa Bishops Eulogize Prelate Who Offered Apartheid Exiles “spiritual care”

They add in reference to the late Archbishop, “He was a shepherd to many South Africans and we can never forget.”

The Prelates drawn from Botswana, South Africa, and Swaziland express thanksgiving to the Catholic Church of Lesotho “for being there for our people in a time of need.”

Amid the “sad loss” of Archbishop Mohlalisi, SACBC members assure the people of God in Lesotho of their “prayers for someone who was a friend, a brother and a shepherd.”

They also thank God for the gift of the life and example of the late Archbishop and join the Church in Lesotho “in finding solace and comfort in the mercy of God and in remembering a good and faithful servant who lived at the service of the Lord and His people.”

“May the Lord to whom Archbishop Mohlalisi dedicated his great human and spiritual talents be His eternal joy and reward,” the members of SACBC conclude.

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Born in March 1933 in the Southern Africa Kingdom of Lesotho, late Archbishop Mohlalisi was ordained a priest of OMI in July 1963.

He was appointed Archbishop of Maseru Archdiocese in June 1990. After 29 years at the helm of the Archdiocese of Maseru, he retired in June 2009 aged 76.

When Lesotho became the first African country to initiate HIV/AIDS Universal Voluntary Counselling and Testing (UVCT) in 2004, the late Archbishop, accompanied by the then country’s Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili, led the locals in undertaking the test, encouraging them to know their status.

“When things are hard, the parent usually takes the lead. Since the Archbishop is our spiritual father, he has offered to go ahead of me, to give me encouragement by his example,” the Prime Minister was quoted as saying in reference to the Archbishop who offered himself to be the first to be tested.