Cross Currents

 What is Ubuntu?









Ubuntu (pronounced oo-BOON-too) comes from the Bantu languages spoken primarily in Southern Africa. It is a traditional African philosophy that has been translated in many ways, most notably, “I am who I am because of who you are.”

Sometimes translated as simply “humanity,” the concept is often spoken of in conjunction with post-apartheid South Africa and rebuilding the nation. In some of the more rural areas of South Africa it is a traditional greeting between strangers, friends or family.

When someone says “Ubuntu” to you, they are trying to encourage you to be the best you can be, because your best is beneficial to the community as a whole. It is also meant to remind you that you are tied to others in ways you may never see, and that emotions and attitudes greatly impact those around us.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu said it best when he described Ubuntu in his book, God has a Dream.

“…It is the essence of being human. It speaks of the fact that my humanity is caught up and is inextricably bound up in yours. I am human because I belong. It speaks about wholeness; it speaks about compassion.

A person with Ubuntu is welcoming, hospitable, warm and generous; willing to share. Such people are open and available to others, willing to be vulnerable, affirming of others, do not feel threatened that others are able and good, for they have a proper self-assurance that comes from knowing that they belong in a greater whole.”
The concept of Ubuntu encompasses five areas of life: spiritual, social, emotional, physical, and intellectual. Every two months, students will discuss and pursue growth in these areas through goal-setting, self-reflection and journaling.

The Ubuntu program is designed to help our students become better people in every realm of their lives, so that the entire St. Margaret’s community might live better.


For more info visit the Intranet Ubuntu web page

Email comments about site