Mpho Tutu van Furth

Mpho Andrea Tutu was born in London, the child of Desmond and Nomalizo Leah (Shenxane) Tutu.[1] Her father Desmond is a famous South African Anglican cleric, and both her parents are known for their work as anti-apartheid and human rights activists. Desmond and Nomalizo had three other children before Mpho: Trevor Thamsanqa, Theresa Thandeka, and Naomi Nontombi.[2] Mpho was 31 years old when apartheid ended in 1994.[3]

As a child, Mpho had no desire to follow in her father's footprints as a priest, and later described her path to the ministry as taking the "scenic route" and said she felt God calling her into the profession.[4]

Tutu was ordained as a deacon in Springfield, Massachusetts, and became an Episcopal priest in 2003.[3] Before her ordination she was the Director of the Discovery Program at All Saints Church in Worcester, Massachusetts.[5] She received a masters from Episcopal Divinity School in Cambridge, Massachusetts,[5] and after her ordination she began preaching at the historic Christ Church in Alexandria, Virginia.[6]

Tutu van Furth has co-authored a number of books including Made for Goodness: And Why This Makes All the Difference, The Book of Forgiving: The Fourfold Path for Healing Ourselves and Our World, and Tutu: The Authorised Portrait; The former two books were written with her father, and the later with journalist Allister Sparks.[6] She has been an outspoken advocate for the importance of forgiveness.[7][8] She made news for forgiving the murderer of her housekeeper in 2012.[9][10] She and her father have advocated for forgiveness in the wake of racial tensions and police shootings in the United States.[11] As a public speaker, and has shared the stage with The 14th Dalai Lama, Eckhart Tolle, Ken Robinson, and others.[12][13]

Tutu van Furth was the founding director of the Desmond and Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation, and served as executive director from 2011 to 2016.[1][14]

Tutu married Marceline van Furth, a Dutch woman, in 2015.[3] However, shortly after the marriage the South African diocese withdrew her license as a priest.[15][16][17] Both her parents, the Archbishop Emeritus Desmond and Nomalizo Leah Tutu, were supportive of her marriage.[18] According to the BBC, the South African Anglican Church is looking at new guidelines for members who enter same-sex unions, but it is "not clear whether there will be any change when it comes to same-sex marriages of church clerics."[15]

In regards to her marriage, Tutu van Furth said "I had the extreme good fortune of growing up in a household with parents who were very clear about their faith, and very clear about full inclusion of all people... regardless of gender and gender identity and regardless of sexual orientation." Her father said in 2013 that he would never "worship a God who is homophobic" and both of them have been active in calls for LGBT equality. Desmond Tutu stated that he was "as passionate about [the campaign against homophobia] as I ever was about apartheid".[3]

She had previously been married to Joseph Burris, with whom she had two children.[19]