DIOCESE OF ST MARK THE EVANGELIST, Anglican Church of Southern Africa[1]
Diocese established in 1987, a division of the Diocese of Pretoria.
No cathedral designated.
Bishop’s residence: Bishop’s Mark, Pietersburg.
Afrikaans
Arms registered with the Bureau of Heraldry under Certificate No 3035, dated 26 June 1998. The blazon reads:
Argent, in chief a Lion of St Mark with a scroll issuant from the mouth and flexed between the legs, and in base a baobab tree sans leaves, Purpure.
The entry in Brownell’s book[2] reads:
“The symbol of St Mark the Evangelist is a winged lion. As one of the Living Creatures in the Book of Revelation the winged lion became widely associated with St Mark, and in the same book the lion is used as a figure of Christ. ‘Behold, the Lion that is of the Tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath overcome, to open the book and the seven seals thereof.’ (Revelation 5:5)
“The baobab (Adansonia digitata) is particularly well represented in this Diocese. It is one of the most strangely shaped trees in the world and one can understand why this colossus plays an important part in the myths and legends of Africa. Trunk circumferences of 26 metres and more are not unusual and it has been estimated that a specimen with a diameter of 10 metres could date from the advent of Christianity.”
These arms are unusual in that both charges are coloured purple, a colour traditionally associated with the episcopacy.
The diocese, which is coextensive with Limpopo Province, was formed out of the Diocese of Pretoria. The diocesan seat is Pietersburg[3] (now called Polokwane), the capital of the province.
The baobab tree also appears in the arms of Limpopo Province.
Bishops: The founding bishop of the diocese was Philip le Feuvre (consecrated in 1987). He was succeeded in 2000 by Martin Breytenbach.
Languages: Since Limpopo is the most linguistically diverse of all South Africa’s provinces, the diocese makes use of (aside from English) Sesotho sa Leboa (or North Sotho), Tshivenda and Xitsonga. Many people in the province also speak Afrikaans, and there is also a Northern Ndebele[4] community. The main languages used in common worship are English, Sesotho sa Leboa and Tshivenda.
Afrikaanse blasoen:
Die Bisdom van Sint Markus die Evangelis val in ’n streek waar Afrikaans oor groot dele gepraat word, maar die Afrikaanssprekendes is hoofsaaklik van Calvinistiese kerkverband. Afrikaans word nie deur die bisdom as voertaal gebruik nie.
Die wapen mag soos volg geblasoeneer word:
In silwer, in die skildhoof ’n Leeu van Sint Markus met ’n perkament wat van die bek uitkomend is en wat tussen die bene gestrek word, en in die skildvoet ’n blaarlose kremetartboom, albei van pers.
