More Tutus needed! A man of the people

Archbishop Desmond Tutu laughs as crowds gather to celebrate his birthday by unveiling an arch in his honour outside St George's Cathedral in Cape Town, South Africa, October 7, 2017. [Reuters]

Once in a while, there are people who walk among us that live no doubt God is real. We affirm from their lives that there are such people as prophets. Archbishop Desmond Tutu, embodied the presence of God, and he did so in the hostile context of apartheid. Light is made for darkness. Such is the case with true greatness – it is exposed in times of difficulty. The past year has not been the easiest. Death has occurred in many forms, but it has revealed new layers of our will to live. In the midst of chaos and desperation, we have seen many, even those in Mukuru Kwa Njenga, look evil in the eye and fight back.

Tutu’s life was one of fighting and fighting back for others. We may not all be commissioned to give up our lives in his fashion, but we all need a serving of Tutuism. If only we lived more generously! Tutuism gives us eyes to see the sticky selfishness the world throws at us. Tutuism takes us beyond recognizing to rejecting this vice.