Rector’s eNews – 24 March 2021
/ Rector's eNewsTop of my mind at present is the fact that Sibongakonke Buthelezi has been transferred to the Milpark
Hospital in Johannesburg where he remains in a very serious condition. We prayed in Chapel on
Sunday evening for God to watch over him and to heal him at a very moving Easter Service led by our
Chaplain, Reverend Chris Meyer. Chris Meyer also spoke convincingly of the death of Jesus, how the
cross was ‘empty’ on Good Friday and, subsequently, the tomb was empty two days later. It was a
tomb guarded by Roman soldiers with a substantial rock in front of it. The tomb was empty on the
Sunday morning. Chris posed a question as to whether conversations around the empty tomb were
created by an enormous “conspiracy theory”; but he then refuted this by saying that it is most unlikely
that the disciples had not been truthful because all of them, bar one, were cruelly put to death for their
beliefs and how unlikely it would have been that they would have endured this degree of suffering had
they not believed in the resurrection. The empty tomb and the notion of a person who was human and
then spiritual still perplexes and mystifies many of us.
As we come to the end of this term, we reflect on the many wonderful opportunities which the boys
have had and the spirit which they have shown in their activities. There have certainly been
disappointments in that we have not been able to participate in most matches and activities against
other schools to the extent that we would have liked, but conversely our boys have had much more
freedom to engage in sporting activities than their counterparts in many other countries. Over the past
couple of days our winter sports sessions have begun (even though we are still hoping for some
summer sport matches) coinciding with the temperature dropping and there has been great excitement
and hopefulness of a return to some sort of normality on Meadows, the astroturf and elsewhere.
Moving on to next term, our medical advice is to ask you please to ensure that your son has, at a
minimum, a rapid Antigen Test prior to his return to school, again for the obvious purpose of
diminishing the risk of Covid to others. (A PCR test would, naturally, be the gold standard, but a rapid
Antigen test is now available widely within the country and our request is, once again, that you play
your role in helping us in this way). This is particularly important as we want to prevent Michaelhouse
from being part of any putative “Third Wave”.
Another request is please to ensure that your son’s Number 1s- the uniform in which he would have
travelled home – are all in order for his return to school. Some boys may have buttons missing,
charcoal trousers out of which they have grown and are, thus, too short, shoes which are not
polishable school shoes and shirts which are too small around the neck. Again, I would ask you
kindly, as parents, to attend to these matters and also to ensure that your son has a school-compliant
haircut prior to his return as there will be a school-wide inspection in the first week of next term which
I am sure you would like him to pass.
When House Prefects were appointed in November, we indicated that other boys could be made up to
prefectship by the end of the first quarter should they continue to demonstrate the qualities pertaining
to this office. I must emphasise that these are House appointments; the following boys have been
congratulated in their Houses on their promotion: Simon Williams (Founders); Cameron McLean-
Banks (Pascoe), Oyama Ntshona (Mackenzie); Joshua Banfield (Baines). Well done to them.