Andrew Mofokeng

Andrew Mofokeng
Born	29 August, 1933 Fouriesburg, Free State, South Africa
Died	11 December, 1997 South Africa
NSA member	South & West Africa 1956 - 1959 1961 - 1967
ABM	Africa 1957 - 1965
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Andrew S. R. Mofokeng (29 August, 1934 - 11 December, 1997) was a South African Bahá’í who served on as a National Spiritual Assembly and Auxiliary Board member in South Africa and also pioneered to Basutoland.

Biography

Mofokeng was from Sophiatown, South Africa, but moved to Swaziland to attend High School where he was first introduced to the Bahá’í Faith while attending Matsapa High School. He attended many firesides in Mbabane, Swaziland, and began translating Bahá’í prayers. He returned to Sophiatown, South Africa, after graduating from High School and began working as a salesman in a men's clothes store and he also maintained contact with Bahá’ís, attending the first South African Pioneer Conference in Johannesburg with his brother. He declared on December 23, 1954, while visiting William Sears farm near Johannesburg.

In 1955 Mofokeng pioneered within South Africa to Alexandra and was elected to the towns Local Spiritual Assembly when it was formed in April that year. The following year he was elected as a delegate for Alexandra to the first National Convention for South and West Africa and he was elected to the National Spiritual Assembly as recording secretary at the age of twenty-two, making him the youngest National Assembly recording secretary in the world.

Mofokeng speaking at National Convention for South and West Africa, 1980.

In 1957 Mofokeng decided to pioneer to Basutoland as the only Bahá’ís who had pioneered to the country, Frederick and Elizabeth Laws, had departed the previous year and in November that year he was appointed as an Auxiliary Board member for Propagation. He departed the country in January 1958 after his brother died as he was offered his brother's position teaching at Witwatersrand University. In late 1959 he secured a job as a translator for the Basutoland High Court allowing him to return to the country and he lived there until at least 1963 spending his time translating Writings into Southern Sesotho and serving on the Basutoland Area Teaching Committee and Properties Committee, Local Spiritual Assembly of Maseru as secretary, and the National Spiritual Assembly of South and West Africa often as secretary or vice-chairman. In 1963 he was unable to attend the first International Convention in the Holy Land as the Basutoland government refused to grant him leave or a passport.

Mofokeng served on the National Assembly of South and West Africa most years until 1967 when he was arrested on accusations of political activity as he had spoken about the Bahá’í view on monarchy at a fireside. Enoch Olinga visited him while he was prison. After his release he returned to South Africa where he began working as a liaison between a Trade Union and mine owners in Orange Free State.

In 1986 he lost his voting rights as he divorced and remarried without following Bahá’í procedure but he was reinstated in 1993. After being reinstated he was an active member of the Johannesburg Bahá’í community regularly speaking at summer schools and he notably addressed a Johannesburg World Religion Day event in 1996. He passed away in December 1997 from a heart attack due to diabetes. The Universal House of Justice sent the following message after his passing:

‘We share your profound sense of loss in the passing of stalwart, deeply-loved servant of Bahá’u’lláh Andrew Mofokeng. His unstinting attention for many years to promote the Cause of God in South Africa through his teaching and administrative endeavours has left an enviable record of service that future generations may well emulate.’