Rev Modise Molefe: Minister, filmmaker and environmental activist
· Citizen
From the streets of Gauteng’s Boipatong township to international platforms of influence, Rev Modise Molefe has built a life driven by resistance, reinvention and an unwavering quest for justice.
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An ordained minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Church, Molefe has emerged in recent years as a compelling voice in independent cinema.
His latest film, Belong, has struck a nerve with audiences, surpassing 129 000 views in three weeks of its release on 3 March on YouTube.
The film follows the journey of a black South African church minister navigating racism in a Canadian church; an experience that mirrors wider global tensions around race.
For Molefe, storytelling is not separate from activism, but an extension of it.
His early life unfolded under the harsh realities of apartheid and, even then, his creative expression carried political weight.
In 1989, his music project, Prisoners of Peace, was banned before it could be released, with apartheid authorities confiscating the master tapes.
They were only returned in 1994, following the release of Nelson Mandela and the unravelling of apartheid rule.
Following the failed 1988 Bophuthatswana coup attempt, where Molefe served as private secretary to an internal affairs minister, Kgosi Motsatsi, his safety was compromised, forcing him and his family into exile in the United States.
What followed was nearly three decades of institution-building and international engagement.
In the US, Molefe founded the South African Leadership & Development Programme and International Transitions & Development.
These initiatives were designed to equip black South African professionals with the skills and networks needed to navigate and dismantle apartheid-era economic barriers.
Working with global corporations such as AT&T and Lucent Technologies, his programmes connected business, civic and religious leaders across continents.
His work earned recognition at the highest levels, including commendations from US government institutions and acknowledgement from former president Bill Clinton, whose presidential campaign Molefe supported as part of a media rapid response team.
From exile to environmental justice activism in Boipatong
Yet it is perhaps his return home in June 2016 that defines his current mission aptly.
In Boipatong, Molefe was confronted with a community grappling with severe environmental decay; polluted water systems, failing sanitation infrastructure and growing health risks.
In response, he founded the Reliable Environmental Protection & Care Agency (Repca), positioning himself at the forefront of what he describes as the fight against “environmental racism” in the Emfuleni municipality.
His activism has not been without controversy.
After facilitating a parliamentary oversight visit to the area in 2022, Molefe was invited to participate in a Presidential War Room on sanitation.
He declined, citing concerns over the continued involvement of an official he believes contributed to the crisis; an act that stressed his refusal to compromise on principle.
“Being a champion of environmental health justice and human rights, as well as a minister, are one and the same: a calling to protect the sanctity of life,” Molefe said.
Growing up in Boipatong, shaped by the “melting pot” of the Federal Theological Seminary (Fedsem), he learned the gospel must be lived in the streets.
“I was trained at Fedsem under the umbrella of John Wesley College. It is there where I was introduced to the Release Mandela Campaign,” he said.
Academically, Molefe’s credentials reflect a blend of theology and technical training, with master’s degrees from Drew University and New York Theological Seminary, among others.
His filmmaking roots trace back to training in the US, including working alongside legendary actor James Earl Jones.
Today, whether behind the pulpit, the camera or at the forefront of community protest, Molefe continues to occupy the intersection of faith, art, and activism; driven by a singular conviction: that justice, in all its forms, must be both spoken and lived.