Mandela Remembered from Westminster Abbey

Nelson Mandela was a true hero of our time, a man who by his refusal

to compromise with the racist government of South Africa, turned

27 years of imprisonment into a key to unlock apartheid and free his

country, established the democracy that he had always longed for. When

he died in December, at 95, world leaders flocked to South Africa to

commemorate him. Today, members of his family and politicians from

South Africa, members of the anti-apartheid movement, have come

here to London to join politicians, a member of the Royal Family here,

to commemorate this man who loved London, London he called "the second

headquarters of our movement". It was here that the strongest

opposition to apartheid of any country in the world took place. It

was here where the great concerts at Wembley happened. It was here that

the spirit and the name of Mandela was kept alive. And today, here in

the Abbey, there will be music, the Soweto Gospel Choir will be singing

and there will be tributes to him, among them from Archbishop Desmond

Tutu. We are here to commemorate and to remember a very great man.

Inside the Abbey, the Soweto Gospel Choir are already singing here. They

came from South Africa yesterday and were rehearsing here, and they will

be singing throughout this service alongside the choir of the Abbey

itself. This is, as you can see, a celebration rather than a memorial

service, a moment to remember with affection and pride Nelson Mandela.

And from his family, two members in particular, his oldest daughter on

the right there, and Zinzi on the left. It was she who went to the

stadium in Soweto in 1985 to reject the offer that the South African

government had made to Nelson Mandela for conditional freedom. She

read out those famous words - I cannot and will not give any

undertaking at a time when I and you, the people, are not free. One

of the seminal moments, the turning point in the struggle against

apartheid. And there are many people who have come here for this service.

The familiar figure there of Idris Elba who played Mandela and Douglas

Hurd, there on the far-right. There are people who have been involved,

invited here by the Dean for all kinds of reasons. People who have

done charitable work in South Africa and people who have taken an

interest in the country. Ed Miliband, the leader of the Labour

Party. And the service itself takes a fairly simple form. There is

music, prayers and then there are these tributes, the key tribute

being from Desmond Tutu, the archbishop, the former archbishop of

Cape Town. And the MP Peter Hain will also be speaking. And the

Deputy President of South Africa, His Excellency Kgalema Motlanthe. He

was himself in the ANC, he was in Robben Island for ten years and

knows Mandela well. Interestingly, it was back in 1962 -

there's Nick Clegg arriving. It was back in 1962 that Nelson Mandela

first came to the Abbey and he used it for secret conversations with his

great friend, Oliver Tambo, who later became President of the ANC.

It must have been in his mind when he came back here, after he had been

made President, that he said that this was one place where the South

African security forces couldn't overhear him. So they could come

into the Abbey to talk about plans. He always held Britain in very high

regard. He was - it was the constitution and the democracy, the

long-established democracy in Britain that he liked, as well as

what he called "the perfect gentleman - an Englishman". Gordon

Brown there coming up the aisle. This affection dated back to the

very earliest days of the struggle against apartheid. Mandela's ties

with Britain, the country he called the second headquarters of his

movement went back to 1962. He was already a wanted man for inciting

dissent amongst black people. He spent ten days in London in April

staying with his South African friend, Mary Benson. He met

journalists and politicians sympathetic to the cause to rally

support and he found time to visit some of the iconic sights of the

city he admired. On his return to South Africa, Mandela was arrested

and imprisoned, a sentence meant to see him die, forgotten in jail. But

not so. After 27 years in prison, Mandela chose Britain for his return

to the world stage. Only two months after his release, he addressed a

jubilant crowd in Wembley Stadium. Thank you that you chose to care.

Even through the thickness of the prison walls at Robben Island, we

heard your voices demanding our freedom. In the spirit of

reconciliation that marked his politics, he met Margaret Thatcher

at Downing Street, the person who had a few years earlier called the

ANC "a terrorist organisation". He said she was motherly. Four years

later, in 1994, Mandela was sworn in as South Africa's first black

President and his first state visit to London made his days on the run

seem a very distant past. All the ceremonial stops were pulled out,

but today's state visitor was different from the usual run of

monarchs and presidents. Nelson Mandela is an icon. You have

yourself provided the leadership and by your willingness to embrace your

former captors have set the course towards national reconciliation and

freedom for all the people of South Africa. With Prince Charles, he

visited Brixton, the heart of London's black community. He gave a

speech from the balcony of South Africa House, a place that had seen

continual anti-apartheid protests. I would like to put and every one of

you in my pocket and to return with you to South Africa. London returned

Mandela's affection. In 2007, a statue of him was unveiled in

Parliament Square. Mandela recognised as a statesman, something

he couldn't have dreamt of in the '60s. When Oliver Tambo and I sat

inside Westminster Abbey in 1972, we half joked that we hoped that one

day a statue of a black person would be erected here. On his last visit

to London to mark his 90th birthday, Mandela used the celebrations to

remind his audience that the struggle for freedom and equality

wasn't over. After nearly 90 years of life, it is time for new heads to

lift the burdens. It is in your hands now.

The Soweto Gospel Choir, world famous, winning awards, they have

come here especially to sing for this celebration of Nelson Mandela's

life. Being listened to by John Major and Gordon Brown, two former

Prime Ministers. John Major, who, when he went to South Africa, said

that the Conservative Party had been on the wrong - or Margaret Thatcher

and the Conservative Party had been on the wrong side of history over

Nelson Mandela by opposing sanctions against South Africa. They lived

through the whole period of the '7 s, '80s, like Neil Kinnock and Paddy

Ashdown did, sitting in the front row, and Betty Boothroyd, they lived

through the whole trauma of the ending of apartheid until 1990 when

Nelson Mandela was finally freed from prison and the process of

negotiation began. Sitting in the front, on the left of the picture,

some of the faith leaders, the new Chief Rabbi, in his first event at

the Abbey, and sitting next to him, the Buddhist community are

represented. So, the religious procession arrives. The faith

leaders from all parts of the United Kingdom and ending with, at the

back, the new Roman Catholic Cardinal Nichols. And the Verger.

And the Archbishop of Canterbury and the archbishop of York at the back.

Maybe this is a good moment to remind ourselves of the character of

Nelson Mandela as the congregation is almost in place for the service

to begin. A decade ago, I was lucky enough to spend several hours with

Nelson Mandela, making a biography of his life for television. Him

mainly talking about himself. Here he is describing life behind bars.

Having read about your time in jail and things that happened to you,

were you ever scared? Scared? Yes. Well, this is sometimes a question

of philosophy. I was scared many times. The day we arrived in prison,

two officers came and they were coming in order to give us what is

called "a carry on" to beat us. I was frightened. I was trembling. But

I pretended as if I was brave. And I said, "You touch me, I will take you

to the highest court in the land. By the time I finish with you, you will

be as poor as a church mouse." He stopped. But I was frightened as he

was rushing towards me. But we have a duty which sometimes makes you

more brave than you are and this is the bluff I made. That frightened

him. If you fight, right from the first day, and send out the message

that I am my own master, I am captain of my soul, that is the

impression you are going to give. Your enemies are going to be

influenced by that attitude. What was the impact on you, in jail, of

the Free Mandela campaign? Did you notice it? I did. The duty of

prisoners, the first day you come to jail, you consider, how do I remain

in contact with my organisation outside? All political prisoners do

that. And that's what we did. And we kept in touch. So, we were aware of

this. But there had been a period when Mandela and the ANC had almost

faded from sight. Did the Free Mandela campaign resurrect interest

in the struggle? Did you feel it, as a turning point? It did, but there

were many moments, in spite of the Free Mandela campaign, when we

thought that the government had almost succeeded in destroying the

organisation. Really? Yes, yes. But they knew, notwithstanding those

programmes, we would win. Why did you think you would win? Because our

cause was now supported by the entire world. Apartheid South Africa

was a polecat of the world. It was completely isolated. The fact we

were given honours while we were in jail, the government wanted us to be

forgotten by the outside. They failed in that. We were always

encouraged by the support we got from the country and from outside

the country. I am with the Labour MP Peter Hain, who is going to be

paying one of the tributes to Nelson Mandela in this service. How were

you chosen to do this? My parents were active in the anti-apartheid

struggle in Pretoria, the worst time, the 50s and 60s. And then I

led anti-apartheid campaigns, stopping Springbok rugby and cricket

tours and forcing white South Africa into isolation. My mother knew

Nelson Mandela, she was the only white person at his first trial in

Pretoria. She would come into the dock, he would turn to the whites

only gallery, salute her with a clenched fist and he would return

that. His wife, Winnie, came to the court on one occasion and bent down

to kiss my tiny sisters. The police were so outraged that they expressed

their Rob seen discussed at the idea of a black woman kissing two little

white girls. You were born in South Africa, you left when you are 16? I

left when I was 16, they stopped my father working, my mother and father

were banned. Band people were not allowed to communicate with each

other so they had to be given special permission to do so, being

married. They were put in jail, eventually they stopped my father

working. When did you first meet Mandela himself? When he came to

Parliament, after being released. I met him for the first time and took

my mother along. They were reacquainted, this was in 1991. We

kept in close touch afterwards, when I was African Minister, in 1999 -

2001, we worked very closely with him. He became a good friend. I

would not say an intimate friend, but a good friend, enough to know

the man. His impish sense of humour, as well as to know what a decent

person he was. What will you be trying to get across? Obviously it

is a long and complicated story, Mandela's life. You will have five

minutes to talk? Three minutes! Trying to convey something of the

person behind the iconic image. His mischievous sense of humour. Also,

the fact that he forgave his former opponents, including many in the

British Parliament. But he didn't forget. He always thanked the

anti-apartheid movement. That struggle of the anti-apartheid

movement was really, really hard. And that was rooted in London, of

course? That is why he was always back to London. London, for him,

was, what did he call it, the second headquarters of the movement? Yes,

effectively the world centre of the resistance, internationally, to

apartheid. I hope it goes well. Thanks for talking to us.

The Prime Minister, David Cameron, arriving. David Cameron, who will be

reading one of the lessons, for the memorial event in December, actually

first met Nelson Mandela when he was Leader of the Opposition in 2006.

Another of the conservatives who have talked about the mistakes his

party made. They are not applauding him, of course, they are applauding

the Soweto Gospel choir, who have just ended one of their great songs.

Some of these songs protest songs, some songs of celebration.

So, it is ten minutes to midday, when the service will begin. We are

now awaiting Prince Harry, Prince Henry of Wales, who will be here

representing the Queen this morning. He has been to South Africa. He

first went when he was 12 years old, with his father, Prince Charles. He

met Nelson Mandela then. They seemed to enjoy this visit. Years later,

when he was 23 years old, in 2008, he went back and he went to

Lesotho, and found that a charity. -- founded. And she has a connection

with Prince Harry and Lesotho, she has founded five schools there and

continually supported the cause is there. The actor Richard a grant,

dead centre at the back. -- Richard E Grant. And Joan Armatrading is

here. Politicians, studying the order of

service, looking through the service that is to come.

Now, the Lord Mayor of Westminster, Sarah Richardson. With the Dean,

John Hall, and Desmond Tutu. He has come from South Africa, especially

to speak for his friend, Nelson Mandela. Stories of the

anti-apartheid fight. Desmond Tutu, who is just sitting

there now, over 80 years old. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize back

in 1984. Jonty Driver, here, the man in

spectacles. Interestingly, he was born in Cape Town. We will be

hearing from him later in the service. As a young man, he was

President of the National Union Of South African Students, organising

non-violent protests against segregation. He was put in solitary

confinement for a bit, fled South Africa and came to England to go to

university in Oxford. He has an interesting role, he is going to

read from the Robben Island Bible which is, in fact, a copy of

Shakespeare in which all the prisoners in Robben Island selected

a passage they liked and wrote the neighbouring -- their name against

it. He is going to read the passage from Julius Caesar which Nelson

Mandela chose. Sir Antony Sher, brought up in South Africa and very

active in the campaign against apartheid.

There was news today that, here in Westminster Abbey, there is to be a

special memorial placed to Nelson Mandela. It's interesting, because

when he came here to London, in 1996, he came on a tour of this

abbey which he had been to before to meet Oliver Tambo and have secret

talks. He came in and saw two memorials that are already here to

South African leaders of a rather different ilk. Cecil Rose, who

invaded and created road easier. Above him, Lord Milner, the High

Commissioner and the Governor of the Cape Colony during the Boer War. He

was asked, do you think these things should still be here? He said, the

past cannot be undone, it can only be transformed. The Mandela plaque,

when it does go up, I am sure it will be in a more prominent part of

the abbey. But it is interesting that he saw these ones here. We are

waiting now for the arrival of Kgalema Motlanthe, the deputy

President of South Africa, who will be giving the address. In the choir,

some more familiar figures. Ken Clarke, Francis Maude on the right.

Distinguished by his size, the figure of Eric Pickles. Now, his

Excellency, the deputy President arrives. He is the son of a miner, a

soldier in the military wing of the ANC, charged under the Terrorism Act

and served a sentence in Robben Island with Mandela. He rose in the

ANC after that. He fought against President Zuma for the leadership

and lost, and then took up this job, which is going to end when he

retires as Vice President. He is leaving for private life. Gritting

Desmond Tutu there. -- greeting. I think originally it was planned

that President Zuma would be here today. The Vice President is here in

his stead which, in a way, is no bad thing. The Vice President was in

Robben Island, and has a long tradition of involvement in the ANC.

The new High Commissioner for South Africa will also be speaking. He is

here. Prince Harry comes to the west door, again to be greeted by the

representatives of the Queen. He will be sitting in a prominent

position in the choir. It is raining outside and we were

told many times during the ten days of mourning for Nelson Mandela that

rain in South Africa is a sign of good fortune. Maybe here we have had

rather too much of it to count it as good fortune.

So the Prince being welcomed and thanked for coming here. And he will

be processed up to the choir as the first hymn, Guide Me, O Thou Great

Redeemer, starts. It is just after midday here at

Westminster, so this service is about to begin.

HYMN: "Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer"

By William Williams. # Guide me, O thou great Redeemer.

# Pilgrim through this barren land. # I am weak, but thou art mighty.

# Hold me with thy powerful hand. # Bread of heaven.

# Feed me till I want no more. # Open now the crystal fountain.

# Whence the healing stream doth flow.

# Let the fiery cloudy pillar. # Lead me all my journey through.

# Strong Deliverer. # Be thou still my strength and

shield. # When I tread the verge of Jordan.

# Bid my anxious fears subside. # Death of death, and hell's

Destruction. # Land me safe on Canaan's side.

# Songs of praises. # I will ever give to thee #.

A service of thanksgiving for South Africa was held here in Westminster

Abbey 20 years ago to celebrate the first democratic elections which

brought black majority rule to South Africa, and the return of the

country to membership of the Commonwealth. At that time, all who

were here, and people throughout the world, thanked God for the triumph

of a spirit of reconciliation, and for peaceful transition. It is hard

to imagine that any of this would have been possible without the grace

and generosity shown by Nelson Mandela. Today we join together,

representing the people of South Africa, of the United Kingdom, and

of the Commonwealth, to give thanks to almighty God for a truly great

man. As we recall the life and work of Nelson Mandela, we shall give

heartfelt thanks, and we shall pray for the people of South Africa, and

for peace and justice in God's world.

Now, a recording will be played of an extract from Nelson Mandela's

speech at his inauguration at the Union Buildings in Pretoria on 10th

May, 1994. ?FORCEDWHITE

RECORDING: The time for the healing of wounds has come. The moment to

bridge the chasms that divide us has come. The time to build is upon us.

We have, at last, achieved our political emancipation. We pledge

ourselves to liberate all our people from the continuing bondage of

poverty, deprivation, suffering, gender and other discrimination. We

succeeded to take our last steps to freedom in conditions of relative

peace. We commit ourselves to the construction of a complete, just and

lasting peace. We have triumphed in the effort to implant hope in the

breasts of the millions of our people. We enter into a covenant

that we shall build the society in which all SouthAfricans, both black

and white, will be able to walk tall, without any fear in their

hearts, assured of their inalienable right to human dignity - a rainbow

nation at peace with itself and the world.

The Soweto Gospel Choir will now stand and sing a protest song.

MUSIC: "Asimbonanga" Sung by the Soweto Gospel Choir.

# Asimbonanga. # Asimbonang'uMandela thina.

# Laphe'khona. # Laphe'ehledi khona.

# Hey wena! # Hey wena nawe.

# Siyofika nini la'siyakhona? # Asimbonanga

# Asimbonang'uMandela thina. # Oh, oh, oh

# Oh-o-o-h. # A tribute from the Deputy President.

His Excellency Kgalema Motlanthe, Deputy President of the Republic of

South Africa. Not only in South Africa, but in the world at large.

His life gave life to values. He never claimed glory. He was shaped

by the struggle which shunned confrontation but had values of

compassion and solidarity that went beyond simple opposition to

apartheid. The struggs sought to advance social comfort and embrace

the value of the environment. He had the unenviable challenge to make the

dream for which Mandela lived come to pass. We can no longer be

indifferent in the world where children's stomachs are bloated with

hunger when there is more than enough to feed the world. We can no

longer pretend that racial discrimination is a figment of the

imagination in a world where heightened racial consciousness

defines millions to the margins of global society. Humanity must

consciously strive for democracy and the right to differ without the

prospect of imprisonment, torture and assassination. The most enduring

monument we can build to Mandela's memory is to strive for human

solidarity, to conquer racism and sexism, to eradicate social

inequalities, educate the masses, make health accessible to all and

uphold a human rights culture. If we fail, it will not make sense to

future generations that while Mandela evolved into a rugged moral

force that edged humanity higher on the plain of civilisation, those who

followed him either failed to live up to his philosophy or simply

destroyed his dream. Trance figuring the Mandela consciousness means

addressing racial inequalities. While this cannot be the task of one

nation, Britain is among the nations better suited to lead this charge.

As Nelson Mandela taught us, no-one is born hating a person because of

the colour of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People

must learn to hate. If they can learn to hate, they can be taught to

love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its

opposite. Nelson Mandela would have been

humbled by this occasion. Perhaps wistfully recalling with his

wonderful smile that British Christian missionaries at his

primary school decreed his first name. Who knows, maybe they were

privy to the translation of his birth name - "Looking for trouble".

The prisoner turned President never forgot his British connection.

Indeed, he revered it, even during those long decades in that cold cell

on Robben Island when the anti-apartheid struggle was so

bitter, facing ruthless oppression at home and when there was a

majority in the House of Commons against him and his African National

Congress. Tens of thousands of British citizens supported his fight

for freedom. Those courageous bishops who led both from the pulpit

and the street. Grannies who boycotted South African oranges,

students who forced Barclays Bank to withdraw from South Africa, trade

unionists who gave solidarity, protesters who disrupted sports

tours by anti-apartheid - by apartheid-selected teams. Nelson

Mandela never missed an opportunity to thank them all. Although his

generosity for former opponents was legendary, he never forgot who was

on his side and who wasn't. Sadly, great causes from slavery

abolitionists to suffragettes, to anti-apartheid campaigners, are

invariably unpopular at the time they most need support, only to be

glorified once they have triumphed. Not only his renowned wisdom,

tolerance and leadership, but his endearing personality made him

perhaps the international icon of our era. With, at least to those who

have the privilege of knowing him, an impish wit. Apologising for not

being able to attend our wedding in 2003, he asked, perhaps I can come

next time? At Cardiff Castle in 1998, on a burning hot day, he kept

a long line of VIPs waiting as he spotted a group of primary school

children. He stopped. The VIPs sweltered. The children, but amused.

Then he proceeded to conduct the by now delighted youngsters to a

impromptu twinkle, twinkle, little star, doubtless put to him by those

Christian missionaries. The thing that we missed most of Robben

Island, he told me, was the magical, innocent sound of children

at play, including, of course, his own. There will never be another

like Nelson Mandela. Truly, an inspiration to us all and for

evermore. Now the Soweto Gospel Choir sing

again. A song written by one of the first African ministers to be

ordained in Britain in 1986, Tiyo Soga.

The words of the song, fulfil your promise, all races, all nations must

be saved. The Lord spake unto Joshua saying, take you 12 men out of the

people, out of every tribe a man, and command ye them, saying, take

you hence out of the midst of Jordan, out of the place where the

priests' feet stood firm, 12 stones, and ye shall carry them over with

you, and leave them in the lodging place, where ye shall lodge this

night. Then Joshua called the 12 men, whom he had prepared of the

children of Israel, out of every tribe a man. And Joshua said unto

them, pass over before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of

Jordan, and take you up every man of you a stone upon his shoulder,

according unto the number of the tribes of the children of Israel.

That this may be a sign among you, that when your children ask their

fathers in time to come, saying, "What mean ye by these stones?" Then

ye shall answer them, that the waters of Jordan were cut off before

the ark of the covenant of the Lord, when it passed over Jordan, the

waters of Jordan were cut off. And these stones shall be for a memorial

unto the children of Israel for ever. And the people came up out of

Jordan on the 10th day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal, in

the east border of Jericho. And those 12 stones, which they took out

of Jordan, did Joshua pitch in Gilgal. And he spake unto the

children of Israel, saying, "When your children shall ask their

fathers in time to come, saying, what mean these stones? Then ye

shall let your children know, saying, Israel came over this Jordan

on dry land." For the Lord your God dried up the waters of Jordan from

before you, until ye were passed over, as the Lord your God did to

the Red sea, which he dried up from before us, until we were gone over.

That all the people of the earth might know the hand of the Lord,

that it is mighty: that ye might fear the Lord your God for ever.

The Abbey choir now sings Deep River.

# Deep river, my home is over Jordan # Deep river, Lord, I want to cross

over into camp-ground # Oh chillun! Oh don't you want to

go to that gospel feast? # That promised land where all is

peace? # Walk into heaven, and take my seat

# And cast my crown at Jesus' feet # Deep river, my home is over Jordan

# Deep river, Lord, I want to cross over into camp-ground. #

# Deep river, Lord, I want to cross over into camp-ground. #

The Prime Minister now reads from the Gospel according to Saint John.

Jesus said, the thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and

to destroy. I am come that they might have life, and that they might

have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd

giveth his life for the sheep. But he that is a hireling, and not the

shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and

leaveth the sheep, and fleeth. And the wolf catcheth them, and

scattereth the sheep. The hireling fleeth, because he is a hireling,

and careth not for the sheep. I am the good shepherd, and know my

sheep, and am known of mine. As the Father knoweth me, even so know I

the Father and I lay down my life for the sheep. And other sheep I

have, which are not of this fold, them also I must bring, and they

shall hear my voice. And there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.

# I heard the voice of Jesus say # Come unto me and rest

# Lay down, thou weary one, lay down # Thy head upon my breast

# I came to Jesus as I was # Weary, and worn, and sad

# I found in him a resting-place # And he has made me glad.

# I heard the voice of Jesus say # Behold, I freely give

# The living water, thirsty one # Stoop down, and drink, and live.

# I came to Jesus, and I drank # Of that life-giving stream

# My thirst was quenched, my soul revived

# And now I live in him. # I heard the voice of Jesus say

# I am this dark world's light # Look unto me, thy morn shall rise

# And all thy day be bright # I looked to Jesus, and I found

# In him my star, my sun # And in that light of life I'll

walk # Till travelling days are done. #

May I first thank the Dean and chapter of Westminster Abbey, and

Her Majesty's Government for organising this memorial service. I

come from a country which, only a few years ago, a little over 20

years, sported signs reading, drive carefully, natives cross here. We

were the natives. People such as Ahmed Kathrada, who spent over two

decades on Robben Island, relate how they delighted in changing the signs

so they read somewhat hair-raisingly, "Drive carefully,

natives very cross here!" LAUGHTER

Nelson Mandela and others were appalled by a system spawning such

signs which treated black people as if they were scum. So, they

organised the black community and its allies to resist such a

demeaning, dehumanising system, which regarded us as but cheap

viewers of wood and drawers of water, who treated their dogs far

better than they treated us. After all, they were not ashamed to put up

public notices that read, "Natives and dogs not allowed." Madiba was

appalled by this and he and many of his colleagues resisted this vicious

system and it was for this noble resistance that he and many others

were incarcerated for life. What would have happened had Mandela died

in prison, as was the intention and hope of the upholders of apartheid?

I suppose most would have regarded him as no better than a terrorist.

After all, persons in high positions in Britain and the United States did

dismiss him as such. Mercifully, for us, and for God's word, Mandela did

not die in prison. And this is thanks very, very largely to the

amazing international anti-apartheid movement led by that remarkable

Englishman, Archbishop Trevor Huddlestone. I use this great pulpit

to say, on behalf of our people, thank you, thank you, thank you. How

I wish you could open our hearts and see the depth of our gratitude.

Thank you, you who regularly picketed South Africa House. Thank

you, you elegant ladies who boycotted South African goods. Thank

you, you who followed a long-haired Peter Hain to stop South African

sports. Thank you, all those incredible young people in other

parts of the world. Thank you. Thank you! You, over there, changed the

moral climate in your country so that the US Congress was able to

pass the anti-apartheid legislation with a presidential veto against the

wishes of a highly popular President Reagan. I visited 10 Downing Street

and the Oval Office in Washington. My pleas were sanctions fell on deaf

ears. Without the anti-apartheid movement, all of you extraordinary

human beings, Mandela could so easily have died in prison.

Wonderfully, exhilaratingly, the entire world glued to its TV sets,

watched as this man emerged from 27 years of incarceration and erupted

with a collective exhilaration to be matched only by the joy and the

victory in 1994 when Nelson Mandela became the first democratically

elected President of South Africa. And then, and then, and then the

world held its breath fearing that the victory of the ANC would see

South Africa overwhelmed by the racial bloodbath so many had

predicted. It didn't happen. It didn't happen. Instead, the world

was mesmerised by the proceedings of the Truth and Reconciliation

Commission. Instead of retribution and revenge, which everybody had

expected, the world saw black-and-white South Africans

walking the path of forgiveness and reconciliation. -- black and white

South Africans walking the path of forgiveness and reconciliation. It

was because he had spent 27 years in jail, he came out and transformed,

transformed from the angry militant young men, to the magnanimous leader

who believed we each, every single one of us, have the capacity to be

great. Each one of us has the capacity to be magnanimous, to be

forgiving, to be generous. We cannot give up on anyone. Nelson Mandela

might not have put it quite like that, but, basically, he was saying,

"No-one of us, not a single one of us is a hopeless case with a

first-class ticket to hell." We, all of us, ALL of us, have the capacity

to be saints. The veneration that we saw worldwide at his death is

because he made us believe. He made us believe that all, each one of us,

we are made for goodness, we are made for caring, we are made for

loving, we are made for compassion, we are made for laughter, for peace.

For peace such as the day you are going to be listening to proclaims.

Thank you. Thank you, God. Thank you, God, for this, your child.

Thank you, God, for Nelson Mandela, who has shown us, each single one of

us, what we can be, each one of us - loving, compassionate, caring, made

for goodness. MUSIC: "The Anthem"

By Ralph Vaughan Williams. # Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata

mundi, miserere nobis. # Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata

mundi, dona nobis pacem #. # Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata

mundi, miserere nobis. # Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata

mundi, dona nobis pacem #. The Most Reverend and Right

Honourable Justin Welby, Lord Archbishop of Canterbury, Primate of

All England and Metropolitan, and The Most Reverend and Right

Honourable Dr John Sentamu, Lord Archbishop of York, Primate of

England and Metropolitan, lead The Prayers.

Rejoicing in the gift of Christ's peace, let us pray to the Lord. We

give thanks for Nelson Mandela's exceptional commitment to freedom

and forgiveness, and for his determination to turn hatred into

love and anger into reconciliation. Heavenly Father, your Son Jesus

Christ taught us that it is only through forgiving others that we can

ourselves be forgiven. We praise you for Madiba's clear vision of freedom

for all, and for his unshakeable commitment to lasting peace.

Inspired by his example, help us to work for peace in our homes, for

peace in our communities, and for peace in the world, through Jesus

Christ our Lord. Amen. Let us give thanks to God for Nelson

Mandela's humanity and energy, for his qualities of inspiration, for

his humour, and his passionate leadership.

We give thanks for Nelson Mandela's vision of the equality of all people

before God, which nourished his soul, sustained his faith, and

inspired his vision for South Africa. Generous God, the diversity

of your people and the rich variety of creation declare the wonder of

your love. We praise you for Madiba's commitment to a reconciled

humanity, and to the eradication of the poverty which demeans and

enslaves. Enlarge the capacity of our hearts for one another, and

grant us the courage to work for the unity of all people; through Jesus

Christ our Lord. Amen. Let us pray for the Republic of

South Africa, for God's blessing upon her leaders, and for the unity

and flourishing of all her people. Almighty God, from whom every family

in heaven and on earth is named, bless the government and peoples of

South Africa. Grant wisdom, discernment, and integrity to her

leaders, and peace, prosperity, and faith to her citizens, that they may

be united in a common life and purpose and strengthen the nations

of our Commonwealth in one bond and community, to the honour of your

holy name, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Let us pray for those who long for freedom from oppression, fear, and

hatred, and for all whose humanity is trampled by the greed or

self-interest of others. Compassionate God, hear the cry of

our hearts for all whose lives are diminished by injustice, prejudice,

or violence. Renew their hope, restore their confidence, and hasten

the day when your kingdom shall come on earth as it is in heaven, through

Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Let us pray for the healing of past

memories, and for those who find it hard to forgive, that they might

know the liberation which Christ the Good Shepherd came to bring.

Heavenly Father, your Son restored to fullness of life those who were

cast out, and after his resurrection bestowed his gift of peace on those

who were afraid. Send your healing and wholeness to all who bear the

scars of the past in their minds and bodies, and by the power of your

Holy Spirit wipe away all tears from their eyes, and transform their

suffering into joy, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

God bless Africa. Guard her children, guide her leaders and give

her peace, for Jesus Christ's sake. Amen. Jesus taught us to call God

our Father, and so, each in our own language, we have the confidence to

pray. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom

come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day

our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who

trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from

evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, for ever and

ever. Amen. Now, Jonty Driver, who we saw

earlier, as a young man he was President of the National Union Of

South African Students. He now speaks from the Robben Island Bible.

This passage is taken from the Collected Shakespeare, smuggled into

Robben Island in the guise of a Bible. Prisoners marked their

favourite passages. 34 signed their choices, some with a gate. -- date.

These lines were signed, MR Mandela. The data, the 16th of December,

renamed under apartheid as the day of the covenant. Now called the Day

Of Reconciliation. In 1964, I had been detained as a student

activist, a week that time in Sea point police cells. From which, by

pulling myself up on the bars the cell window, I could just see the

island. The island where Mandela and his compatriots were teaching South

Africa, and indeed all of humanity, about fortitude, forbearance and, in

due time, forgiveness. These are the lines that Mandela chose from Julius

Caesar. Cowards die many times before their deaths. The valiant

never taste of death but once. Of all the wonders that I yet have

heard, it seems to me most strange that men should fear, seeing that

death, a necessary end, will come when it will come.

# Crown him with many crowns # The Lamb upon his throne

# Hark! How the heavenly anthem drowns

# All music but its own # Awake, my soul, and sing

# Of him who died for thee # And hail him as thy matchless King

# Through all eternity. # Crown him the Lord of peace

# Whose power a sceptre sways # From pole to pole, that wars may

cease # Absorbed in prayer and praise

# His rain shall know no end # And round his pierced feet

# Fair flowers of paradise extend # Their fragrance ever sweet.

# Crown him the Lord of years # The Potentate of time

# Creator of the rolling spheres # Ineffably sublime.

# Glassed in a sea of light # where everlasting waves

# Reflect his throne, the Infinite! # Who lives and loves and saves. #

Go forth into the world in peace. Be of good courage; hold fast that

which is good. Render to no-one evil for evil. Strengthen the

faint-hearted, support the weak. Help the afflicted. Honour all

people, love and serve the Lord, rejoicing in the power of the Holy

Spirit and the blessing of God almighty, the Father, the Son and

the Holy Spirit be among you and remain with you always. Amen.

# Nkosi sikelel' iAfrika Lord. # Maluphakanyisw' uphondo lwayo.

# Yizwa imithandazo yethu. # Nkosi sikelela, thina lusapho

lwayo. # Morena boloka setjhaba sa heso.

# O fedise dintwa le matshwenyeho. # O se boloke, O se boloke setjhaba

sa heso. # Setjhaba sa South Afrika - South

Afrika. # Uit die blou van onse hemel.

# Uit die diepte van ons see. # Oor ons ewige gebergtes.

# Waar die kranse antwoord gee #. # God save our gracious Queen.

# Long live our noble Queen. # God save The Queen.

# Send her victorious. # Happy, and glorious.

# Long to reign over us. # God save The Queen #.

MUSIC: "Piece d'Orgue BWV 572" By Johann Sebastian Bach.

So this magnificent service comes to an end. The Dean of Westminster will

lead the clergy out. And we have heard some powerful and moving

tributes to Nelson Mandela. The Deputy President of South Africa

warning of the failure to live up to Mandela's example. He was a rugged,

moral force, he said, that edged humanity higher on the plain of

civilisation and those who followed him must not fail to live up to his

philosophy or destroy his dream. Then, Desmond Tutu, very touchingly,

thanking and thanking and thanking the young. Thanking the young people

of Britain and the world for their support for anti-apartheid. He was

listened to here by members of the Mandela family, his two

listened to here by members of the Mandela family, his daughters.

Prince Harry, who was representing the Queen here this morning. Prince

Charles, his father, went to South Africa to the funeral service back

in December. And the people you see here, they are all connected in some

way with the story of Nelson Mandela. That story that has been

told and retold and will continue for many years to inspire people,

the story of a man who spent 27 years in jail and because of his

refusal to come out, was in effect the rock on which apartheid was

broken. Perhaps it is worth remembering the words of Mandela, in

his book - we have not taken the final step of our journey, but the

first step on a longer and even more difficult road. For to be free is

not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way which enhances

the freedom of others. The true test of our devotion to freedom is just

beginning.