mission & outreach
MISSION & OUTREACH
our sister church
Knysna Presbyterian Church
We enjoy a warm relationship with our sister Presbyterian Church in Knysna, South Africa and take a keen interest in their outreach work.
We are blessed by their weekly online service produced by their minister, Rev Tim Hawkridge.
THE VIEW FROM KNYSNA
A community where everyone is welcomed and valued
Knysna Presbyterian Church is a constituent congregation of the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa, and situated in the coastal town of Knysna, which was established around an estuary in the Southern Cape region of South Africa.
The Congregation has a growing membership of about 200 people, with an average weekly attendance of around 120 (early 2024), spread across two morning services.
One of the services is entirely English language and the other partially in Malawian languages to give members who originate from Malawi (about half the membership), an opportunity to worship in their mother tongue.
Knysna Presbyterian Church sees itself as a community of Christ-followers where everyone is welcomed and valued, and their mission is to keep God at the centre of life, growing into His ways and sharing His grace in the way members live, serve and love. Fulfilling this objective entails an emphasis on practical outreach to a community where unemployment rates exceed 20% and there is enormous need for both relief of distress and development of capacity for self-reliance.
The Congregation is served and anchored at present by Tim Hawkridge, who has nearly 40 years experience in the role he fills. The wonderful support of both local members and friends in different parts of South Africa and the wider world (including Groomsport Presbyterian Church) has enabled this Knysna Congregation to make a significant impact for good – as its leaders are often heard to say, “The only thing that’s small about this church is its size.” To God be the glory.