Nelson Mandela: Day Of Prayer And Reflection

By Emma Hurd, Sky News Correspondent

South Africans are gathering in churches, synagogues and mosques across the country to observe a national day of "prayer and reflection" in honour of the late Nelson Mandela.

President Jacob Zuma will attend a service at the Bryanston Methodist Church in Johannesburg as part of the series of official events to mark the death of the icon.

The events will culminate in a state funeral next Sunday.

Mr Zuma has urged South Africans to head to their places of worship as well as halls and stadiums to celebrate the life of Mr Mandela. 

"We should, while mourning also sing at the top of our voices, dance and do whatever we want to do to celebrate the life of this outstanding revolutionary," President Zuma said.

Jacob Zuma has urged South Africans to celebrate the icon's life

On Saturday, Mr Mandela's family released their first public statement since the former statesman's death, expressing their deep sense of loss.

"It has not been easy for the past two days and it won't be pleasant for the days to come," the statement said.

"But with the support we are receiving from here and beyond in due time all will be well for the family."

Informal vigils are still being held outside Mr Mandela's home in Houghton, Johannesburg, and his former home in Soweto, where hundreds of people have been dancing and singing in the streets.

An impromptu shrine in Johannesburg

On Tuesday, a memorial service will be held at the FNB Stadium in Johannesburg, the place where Mr Mandela made his last public appearance at the World Cup final in 2010. 

At least 80,000 people are expected to attend, including several heads of state.

From Wednesday, crowds will line the streets in Pretoria as a funeral cortege carries the remains of the nation's first black president to lie in state at the Union Buildings.

People will be permitted to file past his body to pay their respects. 

The procession will be repeated for three days with the public urged to form a "guard of honour".

The focus will then switch to Mr Mandela's ancestral home of Qunu, in the Eastern Cape, where the state funeral will be held on Sunday.

Mourners outside Mr Mandela's home in in Johannesburg

US President Barack Obama will be among the many world leaders who will join the Mandela family in a public tribute before a private burial service.

Mr Mandela left it to the South African people to decide how to celebrate his life and legacy.

He said once when asked how he wished to be remembered: "It would be very egotistical of me to say how I would like to be remembered. I'd leave that entirely to South Africans. I would just like a simple stone on which is written, 'Mandela'."

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