I am offering prayers for the repose of the soul of the Most Reverend Desmond Mpilo Tutu OMSG CH GCStJ, formerly the Archbishop of Cape Town. I think he was the epitome of a man of God. I pray that he may rest in peace and rise in Glory. I hope others will join with me.
I agree and will happily join in. His prophetic voice on civil rights and human dignity was an inspiration. May he rest in peace.
It's too bad that Tutu's daughter is a lesbian woman priest who was kicked out of South Africa for heresy, and now lives with her lover in the Episcopal Church in the US. And that he celebrated sodomy all his life, as a matter of "equal rights" and "toleration" (Pope Francis vibes). And that he equated Israel with an apartheid state, championing the dissolution of it. And that he openly said he worked for the destruction of capitalism. But hey, he did one good thing in his work in South Africa, so I guess even terrible people can do something good every now and then. I will pray that he converted to the fullness of the Christian faith as expressed in the Anglican tradition before he died.
We can only hope he attained to your moral perfection and obviously charitable heart before he passed.
About 15 years ago I was watching a television interview of Desmond Tutu, being conducted by TV presenter John Bishop. The interview was taking place in the days preceding Easter. Bishop asked Mr. Tutu if he believed that Jesus Christ actually, physically rose from the dead. Mr. Tutu evaded answering this clear, straightforward question, and so Bishop asked him again, only to receive the same evasive religious-sounding, yet empty response. Bishop was obviously not going to let go of this question and thus with appropriate forthrightness he demanded a direct answer to his question, “Do you believe that the body of Jesus Christ actually came back from the dead after three days?” Mr. Tutu answered with great enthusiasm, “It does not matter whether or not Jesus’ body came back to life. What matters is that the spirit of Christ lives on today.” https://brackenhurstbaptist.co.za/the-resurrection-matters/
I proposed offering prayers for the soul of Archbishop Tutu. I did not nominate him for canonisation. If what some have said about him is true then of our charity we should pray for his soul to reduce his time in Purgatory.
Whatever his spiritual condition was, only God knows for certain. May God have mercy on him at the day of judgment.
I think it is true to say, regardless of the finer points, Archbishop Tutu has lifted Jesus higher, and advanced the cause of the Risen Christ further, and been heard to speak the truth of the Gospel on a wider platform, than most of us, and probably than all of us. Whilst there is truth in what @Rexlion says, I am not sure this is the time to be saying it. The briefest perusal of his life tells me that he has done justice, he has loved kindness, and he has walked humbly with his God, and he has inspired and encouraged many others to do the same. He helped to make the world a better place. Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow; Praise Him, all creatures here below; Praise Him above, ye heav’nly host; Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
And here I thought my previous comment was neutral and middle-of-the-road. It's God's call, not ours, because only God knows whether the man persevered in the true faith at death. Pointing to mistakes the man made and wrong thinking he exhibited earlier in his lifetime as evidence of unrighteousness is a form of judging, just as pointing to the good things he did as evidence that he was righteous before God is a form of judging. It isn't our decision to make, and we won't know God's decision until we get there ourselves. Since I am in the camp of belief that once a person dies his eternal fate is sealed, I think praying for him now is useless. But if anyone believes otherwise, they're welcome to pray their tails off if they like.
I think it should be seen as charitable to say that we all will be judged at our deaths. I too will be judged, for all the things I said or didn't say. And so will you. And so will Tutu. The prospect of certain judgment by God is a truly terrifying prospect, which makes our moral lives very different from an atheist's. I truly hope that Tutu remembered that he would be judged by a terrifying judge. Lord have mercy on all of us.
My Grandma taught me that it's basic manners not to speak ill of the dead but not everybody has the same grandma. Apparently others were taught trolling dead people is being a good Christian. I hope they are eulogized with a kinder spirit than they have shown when they pass.