'n Dag maak jou nie 'n Christen nie

Die tweede helfte van die jaar het onlangs begin en almal gaan nou begin voorberei vir Kersfees, maar nou loop gerugte dat diè se dae ook getel is. Dit is egter nie die eerste keer dat daar gerugte is van pogings om Kersfees en Paasfees te skrap nie. Hierdie is al sedert die vroeë 2000’s ’n besprekingspunt en die onlangse blik wurms is oopgemaak sonder die nodige navorsing – en indien dit wel gedoen is, is dit nie gedeel nie.
Die belangrikste om te weet is dat daar tans geen poging deur die regering is om Christelike vakansiedae of van dit te skrap nie.
Die gerugte kom na aanleiding van ’n besprekingsdokument deur die Suid-Afrikaanse regshervormingskommissie aan die departement van binnelandse sake. Dit is egter belangrik om eers te verstaan dat die kommissie se taak is om die Suid-Afrikaanse grondwet te hersien deur wetgewing of dele van wetgewing te identifiseer en aan te beveel wat geskrap of gewysig moet word, wat strydig is met die gelykheidsbepaling in die Grondwet, wat verouderd of oortollig is.
Dis belangrik om te weet dat die kommissie geen magte het om wetgewing te verander nie, daarvoor het ons die wetgewers met hul eie prosesse.
Die wet op openbare vakansiedae word op bladsy 56 van die besprekingsdokument vir algemene inligting en insette bespreek en die kommissie beveel aan “dat aangesien daar ’n element van ongelyke behandeling is, moet die afdeling hersien word. Daar word ook voorgestel dat òf hierdie dae word hersien, òf gelyke gewig word gegee aan geestelike vakansies van ander gelowe.”
Iets wat ons dalk gou vergeet is dat die Christelike geloof in die twaalf bestaande openbare vakansiedae ingesluit is en sluit nie geestelike dae van onder andere die Moslem, Joodse, Bahá’í en ander gelowe van mede Suid-Afrikaners in nie.
Na my beskeie mening is ons openbare vakansiedae vir ’n demokrasie dus baie ongelyk en diskrimineer ons indirek teenoor ons bure, vriende en familie wat ’n ander geloof as ek dien.
Ek is ’n Christen, wat volgens streng konserwatiewe geestelike waardes groot gemaak is, tog as Christen, wat die woord van liefde versprei en glo in gelykheid, ondersteun ek die hersiening ten volle.
Dit was nie nodig om te gaan sit en dink wat as die Christelike vakansiedae tans op die kalender ’n ander geloof was, hoe sou ek as Christen voel en sou ek dit wou verander?
Ek wonder wel hoeveel van diegene wat ontsteld is, die afgelope ses maande elke week in ’n kerk was of hoeveel is net in ’n kerkdiens op Goeie Vrydag en Kersfees?
So, skrap ons Kersfees en Paasfees, of voeg ons Eid Al-Fitr, Eid Al-Adha, Yom Kippur, Makar Sankranti en ’n paar ander by die twaalf dae wat ons het?
Ek sal ten gunste stem van ’n vakansiedag vir Rastafariërs, Jode, Muslim en talle ander gelowe, maar wanneer ons besluit oor die vakansiedae is dit belangrik om onsself te herinner hoe meer vakansiedae, hoe minder produksiedae om by te dra tot die ekonomie van die land – wat kan en gaan lei tot erger nagevolge. Moet ekonomiese groei nie liefs ons doel wees, om ons land te verbeter, geleenthede te skep vir ons nageslag, pleks van meer vakansiedae te maak?
Hetsy Paasfees, Kersfees, Eid Al-Fitr, Yom Kippur of enige ander geestelike dag nou in die Wet op Openbare Vakansiedae verskyn al dan nie, beteken ook tog nie jy het nie die reg om dit te vier nie.
Om te preek vind tog sekerlik nie net tussen die vier mure van ’n gebou op ’n Sondag, Goeie Vrydag en Kersfees plaas nie, maar elke dag en nie net in woord nie, maar ook in daad?
Die wat ernstig is oor geloof sal getrou wees aan hul waardes en dit saam met hul geloof uitleef – ongeag ’n openbare vakansiedag.
En ja, 79% van Suid-Afrikaners is Christene, maar om die dag as openbare vakansiedag of nie te hê, maak jou nie minder of meer van ’n Christen nie.

• Oorspronklike het in Paarl Post van Donderdag 30 Julie 2015 verskyn as 'n Dag maak jou nie 'n Christen nie.

Faith needs no Public Holiday

The second half of the year has just began and it is downhill towards the festive season, but now rumours started to emerge that Christmas and Easter days might be numbered. It is not the first time such rumours have been circulating, and honestly it will not be the last. This has been a discussion point or attempted discussion point since the early 2000’s (in the past there were also protest against this) and the recent opening of a can of worms is all thanks to The Herald in May 2015 – subsequently leading to a few other media outlets jumping on the bandwagon – without doing the necessary research and if they did, it was not included in the article.

So let’s state the fact that there is currently no attempt by the current government to scrap Christian holidays or even some of it.

The latest rumour comes following a discussion document by the South African Law Reform Commission to the department of Homes Affairs.

It is however important to know that the SALRC is tasked with revising the South African statute book by identifying and recommending for repeal or amendment of legislation or provisions in legislation that are inconsistent with the equality clause in the Constitution, are redundant or obsolete. Also note that the commission has no power to change any legislation, for that we have the legislator.

The SALRC did release a discussion paper that is administered by the department of Home Affairs, for general information and comment and part of the document – on page 56 – the Public Holiday’s Act is discussed and the commission recommends to the department “that since there is an element of unequal treatment, the section should be reviewed. It is also suggested that either these holidays be reviewed or that equal weight be given to religious holiday of other faiths”.

With the above said I find it mind boggling anyone would come to the conclusion that there is a recommendation that religious holidays be cancelled.

Something we so easily forget is that only the Christian religion is included in the twelve existing public holidays, excluding important religious days for the Islam-, Jewish-, Bahá’í- and other religions.

Apart from the twelve days, the Public Holidays Act (Act No 36 of 1994) determines that whenever any public holiday falls on a Sunday, the following Monday will be a public holiday. From time to time the President of the Republic is generous and we get once-off Public Holidays like with a General election and on:

• 31 December 1999 and 2 and 3 January 2000,

• 2 May 2008

• 27 December 2008

Taking all the above into consideration, then yes our Public Holidays are unequal for a democracy and we discriminating against our neighbours, friends and family who serve a different religion.

I am a Christian, having and still continue to play an active role within my church and grew up with strict conservative religious values. Thus as a Christian who spread the word of love and believe that we are all equal I fully support the call for the review of our public holidays as per the Public Holiday’s Act of 1994.

Before I’m stoned for being a Christian turning on my Christian values – take a second and think what if those current Christian holiday’s on the calendar were any other religion, how would you as Christian have felt and how badly would you have wanted it to change?

How many of those who appear upset over this, attended church every single Sunday the past six months, or are they amongst those who only attend church on Good Friday and Christmas?

Yes 79% of South Africans are Christians but a day being declared a public holiday or not does not make you more or less a Christian.

Whether Easter and/or Christmas appear on the Public Holidays Act does not mean you will not have the right to celebrate it.

I am a Christian who believes preaching should not just happen between the four walls of a building on a Sunday, Good Friday and Christmas morning, but preaching is everyday with not only our words but our actions.

A true Christian is one who remains committed to his/her values and live their faith – irrespective of public holidays.

A critics delay?

I recently took a great interest in a newspaper announcing they would be monitoring Metrorail trains in the Western Cape – interest was not only because I have build and still attempt to build a good relationship with Metrorail, but also because I’ve been criticizing them for about four years.

Commuters were advised to use #metroraildiaries on Twitter, so I scanned this hashtag and there were not even five tweets from commuters and less than 10 from three of the journalist who took a train - (excluding mine). What I find disturbing is that there was the assumption if “we take a train, we would understand and can share the frustration of commuters”. Being a commuter myself I can say it takes more than a 30 minute journey to understand the frustration of commuters.

If my media colleagues regularly took a train during peak time, they would understand the real frustration of commuters. Had they engaged with Metrorail Western Cape they would also have learned why trains are delayed and what the different delays mean.

From the article, I have to raise the following:

• They mention security preventing to take photos: so why not ask where the station manager or supervisor is and as journalists why not inform Metrorail’s Communications manager about this?
• They mention announcements were made, but fail to mention what the announcements stated on why trains were delayed.
• One of the journalist mentions about being surprised a train is on time: how do you know the train is on time and why not happy that it is on time?
• Another journalist took a train after 8am, now even though Metrorail’s morning peak ends at 9, any regular commuter knows majority of people take train between 05:30 and 07:45 and it is very rare that you will have an overcrowded train after 8.

What I find sad about the article is that there was despite a “my experience”, no research but a one-sided story. 

They mention no attempt to make contact with Metrorail, nor did they test @CapeTownTrains on Twitter, notice updates is posted on Facebook and they fail to mention thousands of commuters are registered for Metrorail’s SMS system.

Metrorail’s service is far from perfect, but is it not better to become a stakeholder that criticize as oppose to a critic that adds to the delay?