Dr. Ramsey
to visit S. Africa
FROM A SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
RHODESIA'S Churches have joined forces to denounce the Smith regime's Land Tenure Bill, which divides the country into "African" and "European" land.
Eight leading Churches, Roman Catholic included, issued a statement on these lines last week in the course of a protest meeting in Salisbury.
The statement pointed out that, under the Bill, many basic rights would become a matter of privilege subject to ministerial permission.
The Bill rules that Africans cannot own or occupy land in a "European" area and vice versa, without a special permit. The Churches' statement commented: "We totally disagree with the continuance of the underlying principle dividing Rhodesia into two distinct racial areas."
NO MIXED SCHOOLS
Fr. Richard Randolph, representing the Rhodesian Catholic Bishops' Conference, said that a deputation of Church leaders had met Government ministers last month to discuss the Churches' position under the Bill.
They were left with the impression that private schools would not be allowed to be multi-racial and that current permits to run mixed schools would be withdrawn.
Much of the 400,000 acres of land owned by the Churches and used for missions, schools, hospitals and orphanages would be in "African" areas. So white Church workers and priests would have to apply for permits to carry on their work in all these fields.
The Government's proposals, said Fr. Randolph, to entrench separation and discrimination were in direct contradiction of New Testament teachings. HE Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Michael Ramsey, is to visit the South African Province of the Anglican Church in November next year, it was announced officially by Lambeth Palace last week.
He has been invited by the Archbishop of Cape Town, Dr. Robert Taylor, to attend celebrations of the centenary of the Constitutional! Government of the Church of the Province. He will visit a number of dioceses.
It will be Dr. Ramsey's first visit to the Province. The Archbishop of York, Dr. Donald. Coggan, is spending three months in South Africa at the beginning of next year.
Dr. Coggan is visiting Paris this weekend, where he will meet Cardinal Marty, Archbishop of Paris. He has been invited by Dean Sturgis Riddle, of the American Episcopal Pro-cathedral of the Holy Trinity, where he will preach on Sunday.
£41,000 for W.C.C. race programme
ripliE first major contribution 'a ICI the World Council of Churches" £200,000 Programme to Combat Racism is a gift of £41,666 from the United Methodist Board of Missions in the United States.