The Miracle at Eden Park

by Duncan Todd

Monday, March 10, 1997 - Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa

Eden Park is an area that, in old South African Terms, would have been called "a coloured township" situated south of Johannesburg, next to Thokoza, near Alberton. Today it is peopled be a community still seeking identity, seeking God.

In Eden Park there is a Catholic parish -- St Paul's -- ministered to, for the last twelve years, by parish priest Fr. Kevin Bugler. The St. Paul community is an extraordinarily close-knit group of committed Catholics who warmly embraced the Renew programme when it was introduced there some years ago. They had been eagerly seeking additional spiritual food and responded overwhelmingly in favour of a weekend Life in the Spirit seminar after a couple of Charismatic services arranged by Fr. Bugler and the secretary of the parish.

On the weekend of 7-9 March, a small group of Eden Park residents joined hands -- spiritually and literally -- with a smaller group of Catholic Charismatic servants from the Family of God community in the north -- the white -- area of Johannesburg in a Life in the Spirit seminar that ran from Friday evening to late Sunday Afternoon.

A miracle happened at Eden Park that weekend.

The miracle was not that, despite wet conditions, a tent with no ground-sheet, and a church that was full to capacity, everyone was housed, fed, watered and made warmly welcome. The miracle was not that the speakers invited to talk to the parish -- on God's love, salvation, new life, receiving His gifts, growth, and transformation -- individually rose above any previous effort they themselves had made, and ministered with a power and conviction that shone with Spirit-filled inspiration. The miracle was not that over two hundred people received an emotional baptism on Saturday night and partied until late that night in praise of Jesus. The miracle was not that people were healed, moved to rest in the Spirit, exorcised of evil spirits, spiritually fulfilled, moved to tears of joy and reconciliation, forgiven, elated, overcome with love of God and each other, physically exhausted with exuberant dance in the praise and worship of Jesus, and were blessed with the gifts of the Spirit. The miracle that happened at Eden Park was not even that the old apartheid barriers crumbled as communities, separated for years by foreboding fences and walls and even more foreboding laws and policing, reached out in love and embraced each other in seeking an intimate touch from the Holy Spirit. No, these were not the miracles. These blessings and gifts are usually received in a Life in the Spirit seminar. All of these are routinely given by Our Lord when asked for in faith. They were expected -- many people had prayed and fasted for the success of this weekend, for a powerful anointing of the delegates through a tangible in-filling from the Holy Spirit.

The miracle came through the children.

There were over fifty of them. All colours, all ages. God moved one small child -- Andy -- who wasn't supposed to be at the seminar, to ask of his father early Sunday morning when the father was on his way to play pool and drink with his friends "Daddy, shouldn't we be going to Church?" Andy's father broke down and took his six year old son to what he thought was to be the regular Sunday morning mass -- only to find virtually the whole parish singing and dancing in praise to Jesus. He stayed for the talks on growth and transformation. This man, whose habits were known, who had never done such a thing before, was so moved that he gave his life to the Lord Jesus Christ there and then. When the time for testimony arrived, Andy's father stood up and proclaimed his conviction -- to a community who knew him well, a community who spontaneously burst into tears at the sight of this man speaking for Jesus, for the gift of his new life, for the love of his child that had brought him to this place at this time. This act opened the door for further testimony from the children. A twelve year old girl stood up on Sunday with her arms around two new-found friends -- one coloured, one white -- and said, "I never knew that we could be normal like this together." She faltered, crying into the arms of her friends -- then went on, "I've learned this weekend that God is so big -- he doesn't see us from the outside -- it's the inside that counts."

Yes, the miracle came through the children.

Would that we could be as child-like as He asks us to be.

Luke 18:16-17. But Jesus called the children to Him and said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it."

Thank you Eden Park.

The Family of God community is a prayer group serving the Catholic Charismatic Renewal under the spiritual guidance of Fr. Barney McAlleer, vicar of the department of evangelisation in the Johannesburg diocese of the Catholic Church.

The Catholic Charismatic Renewal is urgently seeking to raise funds to enable them to extend and multiply this type of outreach, and to produce further spiritual food for prayer-groups and communities warmed by the Holy Spirit and seeking growth. If you would like further details on the Catholic Charismatic Renewal please contact the organisation's Gauteng region public relations officer;

Mr. Renato Acquisto at +27-(0)11- 482-4475 or
Mr. Chris Shaw on Email at cjsxxx@iafrica.com