I recently read an article written by Tony Davenport published in Vision Christian Media which featured Siya Kolisi, captain of the South African Rugby team that won the 2023 Rugby World Cup. The 32-year-old has repeatedly spoken of the Springboks being motivated by the everyday struggles endured by millions of their compatriots. Kolisi was quoted as saying, "As a team, we want to be a reference point for our people, to show them how we can do it, and hopefully they’ll get hope from this team. We may not be able to change their circumstances, but we can give them hope. We can inspire people."
As it featured Kolisi's life in South Africa, a country I visited with my church missions group in 2008, I thought a short impression of an experience I had in the country would set the scene for Kolisi's story. [This essay has strong Christian references].
The Rainbow Nation, as it was coined by Archbishop Desmond Tutu is in my opinion, a nation of contrast. It was fascinating to see wealth in some areas juxtaposed with tin-roofed shanty townships in the same stretch of highway. All of the affluent residences had either barbwire or electric fences surrounding their houses. It almost seemed that the rich were imprisoned in their own wealth. On the other hand, there were beautiful safari parks, green mountain landscapes, like the Valley of a Thousand Hills, and beaches which contrasted with its concrete cities, dotted with ghetto areas, run down buildings and street-sleepers in many street-corners. Everywhere we went we were told to watch out for our belongings. We even had to walk through metal detectors when entering a local shopping centre. Despite all these outward attributes of the country, my recollection of the people, both rich and poor, black, white or coloured, was their graciousness, kindness and hospitality towards us. Another feature of the people which impressed me was their exuberant and harmonious singing.
As we were on a missions' trip of evangelism and singing, we attended a number of churches, which included a visit to KwaMashu, a township 12km from the city of Durban. At the KwaMashu Christian Centre I found the nature of praise and worship overwhelming, especially the congregational rhythmic movements and joyous singing.
Source: KwaMashu Christian Centre website.
This month, as almost 2.6 billion Christians celebrate Christmas, as they remember of incarnate birth of God in Jesus Christ, I can just imagine what the sounds of angelic beings singing in the night sky would have been like on that first Christmas night when recalling the singing at KwaMashu. The apostle Luke describes the event where angels proclaimed to the shepherds the birth of Jesus with these words, "And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God." (Luke 2:13)
It is important to recognise that while the singing of praise and worship on that Sunday morning at KwaMashu felt heavenly, it is important to ask ourselves this question. If we were in such a congregation, as many would be doing similarly in their local churches, how would we live out our lives after being spiritually uplifted in the singing of praise and worship to God? If we profess to be disciples of Jesus Christ and supposedly living out our Christian lives, it should not only be evident on a Sunday but every day of the week.
Jesus in fact told us how we should live. In the Gospel of Matthew 22:37-40, Jesus was asked a question from a religious teacher, about which is the great commandment in the law. Jesus answered, ""You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbour as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”" If we were faced with this answer, how would we go about living out our faith.
Follow the story below (in italics) of Siya Kolisi, extracted from Tony Davenport's article. We can learn how one man did so, i.e. loved God and also loved his neighbour. From this, we could either continue to write our story as we live out our faith, or indeed consider beginning a new chapter of a life in faith.
Siyamthanda Kolisi was born in a poor township near Port Elizabeth in 1991. His mother Phakama was just 16. His father Fezakele was in his final year of school. After his abusive father left home, Siya was raised by his Christian grandmother Nolulamile. His family could rarely afford food or clothes for school, and he would wear his aunt’s shoes to school. His grandmother and mother both passed away in his school years, but by then his sporting career was already taking off.
Source: Internet website kaalvoetseun.blogsite.co.uk. (For illustration only)
Talent scouts spotted his rugby potential, and he gained access and scholarships to top schools. In 2018, he became the Springboks’ first black captain in their 126-year history.
But while Kolisi was acclaimed for his rugby skills and leadership, he struggled with drinking and other temptations which led to scandalous headlines. That’s when he knew he had to recommit to Christ. Soon after he wrote in Sport Go Mag: “While I grew up going to church with my grandmother, and went off and on the past few years, it wasn’t until a few months ago that I truly gave my life to Christ.”
“While struggling with a lot of things personally – temptations, sins and lifestyle choices – I realised I wasn’t living according to what I was calling myself: a follower of Christ. I was getting by, but I hadn’t decided to fully commit myself to Jesus Christ and start living according to His way. That is, until something I was struggling with in my personal life was exposed to the public,” Siya Kolisi explained. He told BBC Sport in a 2021 interview: “I want people to know that I’m a sinner”.
“Walking alongside a spiritual mentor, I’ve been able to discover the truth and saving power of Christ in a whole new way. This new life has given me a peace in my heart I’d never experienced before. Now that I have given everything to God, nothing else affects me. I now live and play with the freedom of knowing His plan will always happen, and at the end of the day, that’s all I care about!’ he asserted.
Prominent South African sports chaplain Bruce Nadin says the Springboks’ skipper has regularly taken opportunities on the field, during interviews, and on social media to praise and thank the Lord and dedicate everything to Him. He described Kolisi as an “incredibly humble guy and a real symbol of hope,” telling Premier Christian News that he had witnessed his “full surrender to Christ. His growth as a disciple of Jesus has been amazing. It’s so easy to go out on the field, you know, and say, I give all the glory and honour to God, et cetera, et cetera when you’re winning. But what I’d say about Siya is that he’s authentically trying to live out his faith.”
Kolisi almost didn’t make it to the World Cup after being given only months to recover from a crippling knee injury. While he had access to the best medical experts in the sports industry, he put his faith in God and so did his wife Rachel, a white South African and also, a devout Christian who has stood beside her husband during all his struggles and scandals as well as his triumphs. Doctors were stunned by his miraculous recovery to be fully fit in time for the event.
After his recovery, he explained: “My foundation was in God. If I didn’t know something, I prayed about it. I also read the Bible verses that people sent me. That was my comfort zone. It is where I found peace. It is huge for me. Not just through the injury, it is every day. It is me not taking all the glory for myself, knowing where it comes from.”
Source: kolisifoundation.org
In 2020 Siya and Rachel launched The Kolisi Foundation which aims to change the narratives of inequality in South Africa and especially address the systemic issues in domestic violence, food insecurity, education and sport. During the pandemic he joined friend and former South African cricket captain Faf du Plessis in donating food to a community street feeding scheme.
The words spoken by Jesus about loving the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind and loving your neighbour as yourself, are demonstrated in the life of Siya Kolisi. God is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:34-35) because of ethnicity, financial status, celebrity status or privilege status. In apostle Paul's Letter to Romans 3:23-24, Paul writes, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." We will all arrive one day at the decision-point that Siya Kolisi ended up making. The Bible, considered as God's Word offers us insight for living. It’s my handbook for life!
During this Christmas Season, if you are a person of Christian faith, consider the lifestyle you ought to live out daily. If you're unfamiliar with the Christian faith, allow the once babe in the Christmas manger scene reveal Himself to you, as He did to Siya Kolisi. His name is Jesus! Emmanuel, God with us!
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