Bringing God Back Into Politics: Interview With Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng

Mogoeng Thomas Reetsang Mogoeng is the current Chief Justice of South Africa. He holds an important role in the landscape of South African politics, and is bringing Godly values back into our political sphere. He is a man who is fiercely committed to our country’s constitution, upholding the law, and is sold out for Jesus! He has been in office for 7 years, and has garnered a significant admiration and respect from South Africans. The following is an interview by Errol Naidoo:

When you were nominated as the Chief Justice of South Africa in 2011, you stated that, “I believe God wants me to be the Chief Justice”, to which you received much criticism. When we consider what has happened over the past 7 years in our country, and the critical role the judiciary played in protecting and upholding our constitution, are your more convinced today that you being the Chief Justice of South Africa is God-ordained?
I’ve always been certain that this is something that comes from God – it was said many times over by a man of God who was sent my way. It’s important to put men and women of integrity in positions of high responsibility. If you do as a nation, you will get the exact results you deserve – those who are competent, who are truthful, and will not take bribes. And the converse is true. 

A lot of criticism levelled against the church is that the Church is merely a spectator when negative things are happening and the Church should be speaking up more. What is your message to the Church?
During the era of apartheid, we had a very vibrant Church that had connected with its responsibilities as the conscience of the nation. Divided though, the Body of Christ was under the auspices of the South African Council of Churches, and even beyond, you had pastors who knew that where an injustice was perpetrated, it ill-behoved the Church of God to fold its arms and be indifferent to the harm that was being done, to the injustice that was being done to fellow human beings. It’s time for the Church to be relevant and play its God-ordained role of demonstrating, in very practical terms, the love for their neighbour that we have been commanded to demonstrate.

You’ve been criticised for trying to ‘shove religion down people’s throats’. Do you encourage Christians to get involved in politics?
Our God is a politician. The Word of God tells us that God is the King – He’s the judge, the lawmaker, and the law giver. And a King and a law giver are political offices, and you would recall that Moses was all three in one. David – the man after God’s own heart – had a calling in the area of politics. The same applies to Joseph and Daniel. Why should it be any different now? I think we’re shirking our responsibilities as bearers of moral authority by not getting involved in politics. There’s this thinking that politics is dirty, that’s not true – it is dirty people who are involved in the political space who import their dirtiness into politics. If we all are clean, politics will be as clean as we are. 

You make a point of attending prayer meetings, such as the “It’s Time” prayer gathering. Why is it important for you?
Well, in the first place, I’m a Christian and that has helped me to appreciate that there is very little we can do without divine intervention. I’ve seen the Hand of God move me from a timid man without much confidence, into a person with a boldness, which sometimes shocks me. I know that when the Body of Christ prays together, there is much more that can happen and it can happen quicker than our minds can anticipate. It’s crucial that we intervene in any event. It’s the responsibility of every Christian not only to pray for the nation, but for their leaders as well.

The elections are coming up in 2019. Having experienced the past few years in South Africa, people are concerned, they’re worried about where South Africa’s going politically, our economy, and state owned enterprises. What would be your advice?
Well, my advice would be that it certainly cannot be business as usual. Every voting South African owes it to this nation and to Africa to reflect quite seriously over what has happened over the years and allow that to inform the way in which they must vote, including whether or not to make themselves available as candidates who can represent God in any of the constitutional structures that exist in this country. 

What you’re saying is that the political party is not that important, and if you’re standing as a Christian, you represent God first and foremost in parliament, provincial legislatures, or wherever you serve?
Wherever you are – you can’t become a person who does not live in line with Christian principles just because of office. I say that aware of the reality that some of the constitutional provisions are not in line with the Word of God. Where you are constrained by your constitutional responsibilities to do that which does not accord with the Word of God, that’s something else – but integrity is consistent and reconcilable with everything in our constitution. You can be a person of integrity, you can be a knowledgeable and competent person, you can be a person who abhors corruption, you can be a hard people who even identifies talent and grooms it, you can preach a message or encourage others to desist from criminality, to desist from corruption, to desist from lying and dishonesty. That’s a role that a Christian leader can play where-so-ever they might find themselves.

Interview by: Errol Naidoo, the President of Family Policy Institute. His organisation acts as a Christian voice in government and the media. For more information: www.familypolicyinstitute.com