Forty Years of Priesthood Celebrated: A Journey of Faith and Selfless Service

By Selby Makgotho – The diocese of Polokwane celebrated the milestone of 40 years of priesthood of one of its icons, Fr Clemens Selemela.

Fr Selemela, the current vicar-general, was ordained on 16 December 16, 1981, at the age of 27.

He has become one of the voices of reason in the diocese, maturing spiritually and well-versed in a diversity of life situations which he experienced in his priestly life.

Bishop Jeremiah Masela of Polokwane praised Fr Selemela as reliable and dependable parish priest whose wisdom, experience and simple approach to life situations has made him a formidable and resilient person to whom the bishop, clergy and people can always turn to.

“He is our big brother in the diocese. He is our elder in many respects, both age-wise and in terms of his years of service in the Catholic Church. We could not have asked for a better gift to our diocese than the presence of Fr Selemela, who continues to nourish us with his counsel, guidance and in-depth knowledge,” Bishop Masela told The Southern Cross.

He recalled many incidents when he reached out to Fr Selemela “both as my elder brother, vicar-general, but also, importantly, as someone who has weathered many storms and yet remains resilient and as strong as always, particularly in his Catholic beliefs”.

Born at Doornspruit village in GaMashashane on April 7, 1954, Fr Selemela grew up herding cattle of his grandparents. He went to school at Paxana and later Pax College before embarking on his religious journey. He never looked back.

After his priestly ordination, his superiors saw potential in Fr Selemela and allocated him key religious responsibilities at Doornspruit. He developed quickly in pastoral ministry and was ready to be assigned to other parishes, including Seshego, Mokopane, Turfloop, Lephalale, and Cathedral (Polokwane). He is now serving the Ga-Ramalapa parish at GaMatlala.

Fr Selemela recently turned 70 and uses his free time to write books to reflect on his priestly journey which he believes will help motivate younger priests and broader society.

He is known as the “Garden Man”, as he spends much of his time in the garden, ploughing vegetables which he shares with his parishioners.

“Gardening is my passion. I find healing in growing vegetables. But what most people do not know is that when I am in the garden, I am actually planning and thinking in a relaxed space. I plan my sermons, chapters in the books, and other strategic inputs which I need to the ministries in the Catholic Church that I am assigned to as the spiritual leader,” he said.

“Besides, I am a rural man. I enjoy spending time with elderly people as they tell stories that help develop me. I am never tired of listening to the stories of elderly people, their past living experiences, and how they seek to influence today’s youth. I bet with my last cent that today’s youth need elderly guidance to be able to live longer, healthier and rich with knowledge,” Fr Selemela said.

He paid tribute to his grandparents who “set a foundation for my destiny”. He recalled that his grandmother Koko Scholastica would say, “Tsogang, tsogang, tsogang”, waking her grandchildren to prepare themselves to go to church in the early hours of every Sunday. He would walk 3km to church every Sunday with his grandparents and cousins, and they never missed Mass, despite the long distance they were walking.  “I think my response to ‘Tsogang, tsogang, tsogang’ could have been the beginning of my vocation, Fr Selemela said.

He paid special tribute to the late Fr Gerald Bam for his contribution and guidance throughout his journey to priesthood.