Reaction to the death of Nelson Mandela

c. 2013 Religion News Service

(RNS) As the world reacted to the death of South African hero Nelson Mandela, on Thursday (Dec. 5) at age 95, religious and political leaders added their voices to remember the man who brought down his nation’s race-dividing apartheid system. Here’s a sampling:

“We will not likely see the likes of Nelson Mandela again. So it falls to us as best we can to forward the example that he set: to make decisions guided not by hate, but by love; to never discount the difference that one person can make; to strive for a future that is worthy of his sacrifice. For now, let us pause and give thanks for the fact that Nelson Mandela lived — a man who took history in his hands, and bent the arc of the moral universe toward justice.  May God bless his memory and keep him in peace.”