Abstract
This article is based on an exploration of the involvement of the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) at congregational level in the struggle against poverty, unemployment and social injustice in present-day South Africa. The exploration arises from the thesis that South African citizens continue to regard poverty, unemployment and social injustice as the key challenges to be met in order to build a healthy nation. Historically, the DRC acted as a prominent partner of the government to address the basic needs of the poor and the sick, especially among the country’s white population. But the structural and social changes that followed the transformation to the new democratic South Africa impacted significantly on this partnership. This in turn required that the role of the DRC in addressing social issues in the country be revisited. The essential purpose of this article is, firstly, to provide better insight into the nature and extent of the current social services rendered by congregations of the DRC in addressing the challenges of poverty, unemployment and social injustice; and secondly, from this vantage point, to present some recommendations in conclusion on how the DRC could, in terms of its own striving towards even deeper and more effective social engagement, further enhance its contribution to address the identified challenges at congregational level.
Highlights
After more than two decades of democracy “South Africa is still battling with issues of poverty, inequality, unemployment and hunger” (Statistics South Africa, 2013a:22)
This article is based on an exploration of the involvement of the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) at congregational level in the struggle against poverty, unemployment and social injustice in present-day South Africa
The exploration arises from the thesis that South African citizens continue to regard poverty, unemployment and social injustice as the key challenges to be met in order to build a healthy nation
Summary
After more than two decades of democracy “South Africa is still battling with issues of poverty, inequality, unemployment and hunger” (Statistics South Africa, 2013a:22). In South Africa the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) was closely associated with the ruling Nationalist Party in the period before 1994 Services by this church were aligned with viewpoints and policies of the government of the day (Clark, Fage, Oliver & Roberts 1975:564-565; Kritzinger 1994:5253; Van der Merwe 2012:148-149, 152-163; Van der Merwe 2014:14-20, 8385). This article is informed by a research project commissioned by the General Synod of the DRC to undertake a preliminary exploration of the nature and extent of the DRC’s involvement at congregational level in combating the problems of poverty, unemployment and social injustice in presentday South African society (Van der Westhuizen, 2013:1). Key social challenges in present-day South Africa: poverty, unemployment and social injustice
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