St Nicholas, Shepperton linked with St Simon of Cyrene, Milange

In 2002 Sandy Swift and Simon Sheldon went to Mozambique, following the recent establishment of the Angola London Mozambique Association, looking to forge a link with the new areas opening up in Niassa for the Anglican Church’s mission. They were taken to the district around the town of Milange, just over the Malawian border. People were returning to Mozambique following the civil war, having fled to Malawi during the war where they had been met and helped by Anglican Christians. They were just beginning to set up new Anglican communities in Mozambique.

A plot of land on the - then - edge of town had been chosen for a church building and it was agreed with the then parish priest, Fr. Bonifacio Benedito, that St Nicholas, Shepperton, would help fund the building. In 2003 we had the first visit to Shepperton from Niassa, with Fr. Bonifacio and catechist Austin Laja, who stayed for ten days and took part in the parish residential weekend.

In autumn 2004 Chris and Sandy Swift visited Milange for the consecration of the newly built church, staying for six weeks to undertake three, each a week-long, teaching sessions for catechists on basic theology and ministry. Up until then no organised training had taken place for many of these ministers. These sessions were based in Milange, Nampula and at the Lake. (See full visit report.)

In 2007 two members of the Mothers Union from Niassa, Rosa and Sylvia, came to stay in Shepperton for a week, to meet the Mothers Union and to see the work in the church school.

In October 2008 a group of five people went out from St Nicholas to visit Milange and to attend the opening of the new school building next to the church, the funding for which St Nicholas had helped to raise, and to visit some of the 80 or so churches in the Milange hub. Sandy Swift led a number of workshops for the Mothers Union at Messumba, focussing on issues of family life, and she and Chris stayed on to lead the Diocesan clergy retreat on the theology and dynamics of marriage, at the training centre at Kuchijinji, Lichinga. (See full visit report. (451Kb))

In September 2014 Chris and Sandy Swift visited Milange and the new parish priest, Archdeacon Diniz Mbenuca, to see the growth in the life of the communities associated with Milange - now some 100 church communities - and to reaffirm our relationship with the Anglican Church there. (See full visit report.)

There is more information on the St Nicholas Shepperton parish website.