South African Church Research Articles

Revisiting African Spirituality: A reference to Missiological Institute consultations of 1965 and 1967

This article revisits the hope of the First and Fourth Missiological Institute (MI) consultations in 1965 and 1967 regarding the survival of African Spirituality as relevant to the daily life of South African churches. African Spirituality has played a significant role in the cultural context of Africans. In the African context, African Spirituality is intertwined with life, death, and health, which co-exist with material aspects and the economy as gracious gifts from God. The churches in South Africa and elsewhere in Africa have been challenged by the African worldview of healing and culture. Thus, Africans mostly prefer the African-centred church with more African Christianity, instead of Western Christianity. This has been a serious challenge in African church circles for centuries, even in the current 21st century. The question therefore arises whether this is a matter for the Africanisation, indigenisation, and decolonisation of the church in Africa.Contribution: The article analyses the two MI consultations and whether the church in the 21st century has Africanised and decolonised itself in service of its African members. The study is a historical approach given the history of the MI’s contribution in South Africa. The concept of African Spirituality is unpacked and contextualised within the African Independent Churches’ (AIC) Zionist type churches such as the Zion Christian Church (ZCC), the St John’s Apostolic Faith Mission (AFM), and other Ethiopian type churches such as Lutheran Bapedi Church and others in South Africa and African Traditional Religions (ATR). The article engages the importance of how African Spirituality differs from other spiritualities within the context of Christian spirituality.

Radical inclusivity and the journey on the way to somewhere [irgendwohin unterwegs

This article represents the genre of auto-ethnographic, autobiographical research. It consists of questions which evoke narrative responses because the questions register a life story in itself. Pieter G.R. de Villiers is the interpellator and Andries G. van Aarde the respondent. They are long-standing friends and both professors of New Testament studies. De Villiers is presently the editor at LitNet Academic (Religious Studies), and Van Aarde is the editor of HTS Theological Studies. Since 1990, De Villiers has been Executive Director of the Centre for Christian Spirituality and Ethics and has been a Research Fellow and Professor Extraordinarius in Biblical Spirituality at the Department of Old and New Testament Studies at the Faculty of Theology, University of the Free State (since 2001).Contribution: The article reflects a conversation between Andries G. van Aarde and Pieter G.R. de Villiers. It contributes to an understanding of contemporary South African church history, including the protest by academics in Afrikaans ecclesial circles against apartheid and gender injustice.

‘Sinawe’ [we are with you]: Local churches as change agents in the lives of traumatised youth

The church has a key role to play in addressing the chronic levels of grief and trauma experienced by the youth in South Africa. It has a biblical mandate to bring hope and healing and has a unique station within South African society that positions it to bring about real transformation. ‘Sinawe’ (Zulu for [we are with you]) is a programme developed by Scripture Union South Africa to equip local churches as change agents through a relational youth ministry model that engages trauma, grief and holistic needs, both physically and spiritually. This is an important first step for churches wanting to reach and minister to young people.The South African church has an important and legitimate role to play in the lives of young people. Research indicates that although the church is considered by local residents as an important community resource, it remains ineffectual in intentional community-based youth ministry that leverages significant opportunity. This research identifies the church as an important community change agent and encourages church leaders to step into the open gap to reach local young people while providing the methodology with which to do so. This research paper examines the current South African social context, outlines a theological mandate for church involvement and presents a methodology for a supportive and effective approach to community engagement in the lives of young people led by local churches.Interdisciplinary: The article is relevant to the following disciplines within theology; missiology, family and youth ministry and pastoral care. It also has interfaces with education and sociology.

Cerebral faith and faith in praxis in the churches of European origin: The Presbyterian Church of South(ern) Africa

This article investigated the paradox between church response to apartheid and resulting action at the local level in the South African churches of European origin from the perspective of the Presbyterian Church of South(ern) Africa (PCSA). It indicated that this discrepancy arose between the reflections (cerebral faith) at the highest levels of church councils, which operated in an intermittent manner and at a distance, compared with the responses (praxis as faith in action) of local church members who lived at the coalface of the struggle and sought to witness in a society dominated by racism, where the tension between faith and politics was most evident. The primary focus was on two inter-racial congregations, one of the PCSA, the other a united congregation in which the PCSA participated. This study used primary and secondary sources. The theoretical framework of the article was Thomas Groome’s approach of shared praxis.Contribution: This article contributed to the history of the apartheid era in ecclesiastical contexts. It demonstrated the anomalies that arose within different constituencies within churches of European origin by investigating the situation in one particular denomination. This was a discussion of the relationship of faith and politics in the private and public domains, which takes account of developments within a shared praxis approach.

‘A Policy of Sacrifice’: G.B.A. Gerdener’s Missionally Founded Racial Theory and the Religionization of Apartheid

In 1935 the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) accepted its federal mission policy which had racial segregation enshrined in it as a core and divinely sanctioned principle. As the foremost missiologist within South African church circles during the middle half of the 20th Century, Gustav Bernhard Augustus Gerdener was the chief formulator and disseminator of this policy. Convinced that the future fate of South Africa’s multi-racial society rested squarely on evangelisation, white guardianship, and mission work, Gerdener lobbied for secular racial theory to be based on the formula of the DRC mission church. By 1946 this racial theory espoused by Gerdener, as well as the majority DRC, was internationally questioned by the post-World War Two onset of general human rights and rapid decolonialisation spearheaded by the newly constituted United Nations Organisation. This paper sets out to track the influence Gerdener had on the formulation of the DRC mission policy. It will make the case that as advocate of this policy and through his position as chairman of the DRC Federal Mission Council Gerdener played a critical role during the incubation years of the apartheid ideology leading up to the nationalist’s political victory in 1948. Finally, it will aim to elucidate the justification for apartheid which Gerdener’s racial theory afforded to a religious nation. A justification which formed the moral bedrock of South Africa’s opposition to the broader international context of decolonialisation and advocation of a domestic social system guised as one geared toward equal, albeit separate, development but which ultimately proved to be a new strain of colonialism.

The Church as God’s agent in uniting immigrants and natives: A case from Ephesians 2:11–22

As the number of people migrating from many different countries to South Africa constantly increases, there is bound to be immense tension between the immigrants and the citizens for many and different reasons. Within this context, the South African Church is expected to play a critical role in bringing peace and unity between the immigrants and the natives. In responding to the proposed challenge, this article submits that the Church has a God-given role of uniting immigrants and native South Africans by utilising Ephesians 2:11–22. This conception arises from locating Ephesians 2:11–22 in the broader context of Scripture. In so doing, the article submits that the role of the Church entails both preaching and practising the social aspects of the vertical (God’s reconciliation with humans) and the horizontal (human to human reconciliation) reconciliation that were accomplished by the redemptive work of Jesus Christ. That is to say, the Church should be perceived as the agent of God in uniting the immigrants and the native South Africans by proclaiming the doctrine of vertical and horizontal reconciliation to Christians and non-Christians in both word and deeds.Interdisciplinary implication: This is an interdisciplinary article that conducts a thorough exegetical work on Ephesians 2:11–22. Thereafter, the article alludes to relevant biblical passages to draw some ensuing social implications of Ephesians 2:11–22 in easing the existing tensions between immigrants and native South Africans. In bringing the aforesaid together, the former aspect of the article falls within biblical studies, while the latter falls within practical-missional theology.

Space, Place and the Church: Fostering a Consciousness and a Theology of Spatial Justice in South African Churches

Abstract Located within the wider questions that the South African church is asking about the relationship between reconciliation and restitution in post-apartheid South Africa, this article tracks the emergence of a movement of churches seeking to address the urban and rural land restitution question and puts it into conversation with the praxis of spatial justice. The authors introduce insight into the history of land and specifically church land in South Africa and explore what actions have been taken towards restitution of church-owned land and what this means for the development of a theology of spatial justice. Additionally, it includes an overview of South African churches’ declarations on land over the last thirty years and what has been done since these declarations. Finally, the authors will look at how these actions help develop a theology of spatial justice for a renewed praxis on land and space in South Africa.

Institutional Prosperity: No Money, No Church, No Fellowship in South Africa? Migrant Women’s Relationships in a Context of Lack at Saint Aidan’s Anglican Church

ABSTRACT Monetary relations were embedded in the social practices of the Saint Aidan’s Anglican Church in South Africa. Consequently, when money was needed to employ a priest, additional dimensions of financial relatedness were established. According to Bonnie Hagerty, Judith Lynch-Sauer, Kathleen Patusky and Maria Bouwsema (1993), relatedness is the movement in a circle of connectedness, disconnectedness, parallelism, and enmeshment. This article discusses how money mediated migrant women’s experiences of relatedness while giving them a sense of belonging in the context of migration, xenophobia and other gender-related challenges. This paper demonstrates the way money shaped people’s relationships in a faith community where money was already embedded in the church’s social practices. I argue that St Aidan’s Anglican Church, like many other South African mainstream churches in a similar context, practises institutional prosperity theology. This paper demonstrates that the monetary relations define people’s sense of belonging. The prominence of monetary relations and the commodification of belonging at St Aidan’s suggest that, as an institution, it should be prosperous for the survival of people’s fellowship.

Religious perspectives on Vaccination: Mandatory Covid-19 vaccine for SA Churches

In public health history, vaccinations have been seen as very helpful as they help protect societies from preventable diseases and save many lives around the world. Despite the fact that few religious groups oppose vaccination for a variety of reasons, almost all major religions in the world support vaccination as long as it complies with religious precepts for the preservation, protection, or well-being of livelihoods. However, during the surge of Covid-19 outbreak in South Africa and elsewhere, governments witnessed unprecedented hesitancy and opposition to the Covid-19 vaccination by the general public. Those who opposed the Covid-19 vaccine cited multiple concerns or reasons, ranging from possible side effects, adverse events, vaccine safety, vaccine effectiveness, conspiracy theories, and religious or cultural reasons. Based on a literature search, this paper attempts to discuss various religious views on the subject of vaccination in general and subsequently make use of such perspectives to support calls for a compulsory Covid-19 vaccination, especially for South African churches. This is a timely topic of central concern as it seeks to politely dispel religious misunderstandings and confusion that could arise as a result of debates on mandatory vaccines for Covid-19. Health and religion will be brought together to shape the ongoing discussions about the moral urgency of a mandatory Covid-19 vaccination in South Africa.

Mystery and multiculturalism: Should the musterion of Ephesians 3 encourage multiculturalism in South African churches?

The objective was the examination of the musterion of Ephesians 3, whether it encouraged multiculturalism in South African churches. The knowledge gap was to find further biblical direction for churches experiencing cultural transitions and demographic changes. The research method was a qualitative analysis of biblical texts, as applied specifically in a South African setting, with global implications. The significance would be the cultural transitions of churches from homogeneous, local churches into culturally heterogeneous, local churches. Further questioning the homogeneous unit principle (HUP) in the light of Scripture, especially Ephesians. The results found that the musterion in Ephesians 3 pointed to the Holy Spirit’s original intension for multicultural local churches. This mystery was found to be the witness of the church in this world and cosmically, to allay fear and prejudice. Further research is recommended into addressing the fears of globalisation in local churches. The contextual context affected local churches in post-Apartheid South Africa and many local churches around the world experiencing globalisation. These findings affect possible blind spots in theological studies in the New Testament, cross-cultural care in Practical Theology, Missiological findings for church growth and church planting, along with sociological findings in multiculturalism.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: The article deals with concerns for New Testament, missiology and practical theology. It challenges the homogenous unit principle in the light of Pauline discourse and synthesises research to form a contextual response to the need for multiculturalism in South African churches.

Reforum: A brief but not unimportant chapter in the Dutch Reformed Church’s apartheid saga

In 1985 when storm clouds were gathering over South Africa, and a state of emergency was declared, a group of members of the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) Family, clergy as well as laity, founded an organisation, Reforum. The two-fold aim of Reforum was to provide a prophetic witness against apartheid, calling the DRC to take leave of its theology of apartheid, and, secondly, to work towards the reunification of the DRC Family. The article researches the original Reforum documents, minutes, reports, conference material and letters, that hitherto laid untouched in the DRC Archive, in Pretoria. The programme of Reforum, especially the national and regional conferences held by the organisation over the 7 years of its existence, is discussed. The initial negative reaction of the DRC officials and synods, as well as the critique from some in the Dutch Reformed Mission Church and the DRC in Africa that Reforum was not radical enough in its approach, are recorded. The summation, at the end, is that Reforum did play a significant role, albeit humble and short lived, in the annals of the DRC’s apartheid saga. Relevance: The DRC’s apartheid saga, the story of a church that had over many years lived with apartheid and even provided a theological argument for separate development, eventually came to the point where the DRC not only repented of its past, but declared apartheid and the theology of apartheid a sin and a heresy, continues to fascinate historians, including church historians. For South African Christians, clergy as well as laity, it helps explain their often troubled past, as well as present. The often neglected story of Reforum and the role and contribution of the organisation in this process needs to be recorded. Original research: the author provides original qualitative research, using material that had lain untouched in the DRC Archive for three decades. This may be considered to be a preliminary study. The archival material merits more and deeper attention. It may well provide material for post graduate research.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: The research is of value for the study of South African general history, South African church history, ecumenical studies, and practical theology.

Die herlewing van sekulêre spiritualiteit in Europa en die implikasie daarvan vir die NG Kerk in Suid-Afrika

The revival of secular spirituality in Europe and its implication for the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa. This article critically reflected on the insights of David Tacey in which he notes that there is currently a revival in post-secular spirituality in the West, but that its deep religious roots are lacking. What would be the implication of these trends for the South African religious landscape where traditional mainstream churches such as the Dutch Reformed Church are shrinking significantly? People often say yes to God, but no to the church. Some in the church may totally renounce God. What lessons could be learned by the South African mainstream churches and theology if these trends in the West were taken into account? In this article a critical literature review (desk research) was done and the study was structured as follows: In the first place, the implication of superdiversity, supermobility and the reality of a post-COVID-19 consciousness was discussed. Next we engaged in research by scholars in which it was shown that our time, at least in the West, is characterised by existential anxiety and uncertainty. Thirdly, we engaged in the insights of David Tacey in which he also argued the fact that the uncertainty of the time in which we live, often causes people to return to spirituality. Finally, the implication of these trends for the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa was reflected on.Contribution: This research makes a contribution to the nature and scope of the journal, in that it finds that the rise in secular spirituality, in the context of anxiety and uncertainty in a post-COVID-19 world, provides an opportunity for the Dutch Reformed Church to find meaning and significance.

Hated without a reason (injustice personalised): A case study

This is the second part of an investigation of the subject of injustice relating to the issue of human sexuality in a mainstream South African Christian denomination. The first paper, entitled ‘Hated without a reason I – Contending with issues of human sexuality in a South African ecclesial context: A case study of the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa’, sought to trace the development of the issue from 1999 to 2016. This article considers the issue from the standpoint of an individual. Within the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa (UPCSA), views have polarised along lines determined by views on the authority of scripture and biblical hermeneutics, with little hope for a resolution that will satisfy all the parties concerned despite proposals being made because of a ‘failure of love’. Contribution: This article seeks to extend the discussion on human sexuality in the South African church scene.

Selective Reading and Misconstrued Biblical Text: A Case for the Inclusion of Women in Church Governance Structures in Black South African Churches

This article is a sequel to our article on the marginalisation and exclusion of women from the church governance structures in the Black South African churches. While numerous stereotypes were discussed in our previous article, that justified the exclusion of women, the authors in this article argue for a theological and Biblical basis for their inclusion in both the ministry and governance positions in Black South African churches. The authors followed a literature review approach in this article. In the literature reviewed, texts were unearthed which support the inclusion of women and the need for the consciousness with which Scripture must be read, understood and applied, to help the reader identify the value added by the discussion of the role of women in church leadership positions and ministry with an open mind. The approach which the authors adopted was to, having cited the texts that support the argument for the inclusion of women, treat the texts justly, perusing the Bible widely instead of selecting verses that seemingly support a favoured argument. Among the compelling findings, which revolved around equality, was that God created both man and woman to share dominion over the earth. All through their baptism, constitute the body of Christ; the Great Commission which Jesus commanded his disciples was an instruction to men and women equally; men and women in the Bible have served God in different capacities; When the Holy Spirit bestowed the spiritual gifts, this was meant for all those who constitute the body of Christ; and while the Old Testament emphasises priesthood for males only, the New Testament presents the priesthood of all believers.

Legal Issues Involving Succession Disputes among South African Churches: Some Lessons

South African Christian churches have been widely recognised as major civil institutions that play a role in the provision of social services to complement the state effort. But the concern is there has been an increase in the number of disputes involving leadership succession in these churches that have had to be adjudicated by the civil courts in the last decade. These disputes impact on the governance, growth, reputation and sustainability of churches. The South African Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities (CRL Rights Commission) identifies weak or lack of effective succession planning in the governing policies of churches as the major cause of these disputes. Against this backdrop, this article analyses some specific cases to explore how church policies influence succession disputes in South African churches. It further explores how the courts engage and interpret the governance policies of churches in the resolution of these disputes. The article reveals that the findings of the CRL Rights Commission are justified. It observes that, among other issues, some churches lack effective and workable succession planning in their governing policies. The policies on leadership succession of these churches are poorly drafted, thereby creating significant lacunae and vacuums leading to conflicts. The article concludes by identifying some lessons that churches can learn from the judicial approach in the resolution of disputes in order to enhance the quality of church policies, thereby reducing their exposure to succession disputes.

Missionale ekklesiologie in die Afrikaanse gereformeerde kerke sedert 1990

Missional ecclesiology in the Afrikaans reformed churches since 1990This article argues that “missional ecclesiology” in the last decades became a new mission paradigm for churches in South Africa, especially after the demise of apartheid. After an overview of the development of a “missio Dei” theology, the article examines texts from various South African churches in which this terminology is used. The article concludes with a section which underlines the importance of missional ecclesiology in the context of the local congregation. Congregations are seen as “missional”, challenged to be present in local communities as a living witness to God’s love. Missional ecclesiology has its theological foundation in the “missio Dei”. In missional ecclesiology, mission is understood as part of the nature of God as well as the nature of the church. Without mission there is no church. Mission is not a project, it is existential. However, there are diverse interpretations of “missio Dei”, “missional ecclesiology” and “mission” itself. As a result, many congregations find it difficult to identify with missional ecclesiology and enter a process of transformation. The historical analysis presented here contributes to a better understanding of the terminology as well as the challenges facing churches in the 21st century.

The church and the indispensability and fragility of morality revealed by the COVID-19 pandemic

In this article the view that the Covid-19 pandemic – especially the lockdown that went hand in hand with it – revealed both the indispensability and fragility of morality was substantiated and the response of the church to the moral challenges posed by the pandemic discussed. Findings were based on information gained from South African media regarding the pandemic and the response to it in the South African context interpreted with the assistance of research in academic publications. Various respects in which the pandemic underlined the indispensability of morality were discussed first. This was followed by a discussion of ways in which the pandemic also demonstrated the fragility of morality. The fragility of morality was traced back to the undermining influence of modern life on morality. Finally, the mixed record of South African churches in providing guidance on the moral challenges the Covid-19 pandemic posed, was noted. It was pointed out that the challenge remains to the church to provide moral guidance on life after the pandemic. The church would also have to effectively deal with the challenge to overcome the curtailment of its ability to provide such moral guidance in contemporary modern societies. Contribution: The contribution of the article lies in identifying the moral issues posed by the Covid-19 pandemic and in gauging the response of the church in the South African context to these issues. The challenges that remain to the church to also after the pandemic provide moral guidance and overcome obstacles in providing such guidance were also highlighted.

Reflecting on the nature of work in contemporary South Africa: A public theological engagement with calling and vocation

This article argues for a rediscovery of a theology of work in South Africa that is based on the Protestant notion of calling and vocation. Such a view has the primary intention of emphasising obedience and faithfulness to God rather than self-fulfilment or achievement as the intentions of work. Such an approach can empower and equip the church and individual Christians for effective and faithful living in all spheres of life – both private and public. The article shows that the influences of theological dualism, an unbalanced view of the clergy as primary agents of ministry and mission, and a structures-centred view of ministry and mission detracted from the importance of the church’s ministry in numerous spheres of society. A consequence of this was the introduction of a subtle dualism between faith and work. In response to this, the article considers how the church could become an agent of mission and transformation in the world of work. The conclusion of this article is that the South African church could benefit from revisiting and rediscovering a theology of work that is based on the Protestant emphasis of calling and vocation in the public sphere. Contribution: While this article engages the traditional protestant theological notions of calling and vocation, it argues that reconsidering these notions in relation to the contemporary world of work can renew a theology of work and ministry for South African churches to serve their members in achieving God’s will in society.

Die Ligdraer as a Grassroots Engagement on URCSA’s Church Unification and Reconciliation between 1990-1997

One of the pre-occupations of God’s mission on earth ( missio Dei ) includes unity and reconciliation. This is well documented in the work of the catholic missiologist, Robert Schreiter (reconciliation), David J Bosch (unity) as well as the ecumenical World Mission Conferences (New Delhi, 1961; Athens, 2005). Unification processes of all the South African Churches (especially between traditionally/originally black and white race-based Churches) coincided with the transition period since 1990. The Churches, including the DRMC and the DRCA, went on a path of unification. This did not come without a wide range of “stumbling blocks.” Die Ligdraer , as the official newspaper of the DRMC, announced the date of the founding Synod between 14-17 April 1994 using the metaphor of a ‘wedding’ to reflect on the union between the two separate, racially-based Churches (NGSK, 1993) . From a missiological perspective, this paper deals with the case of the Uniting Reformed Church in Southern Africa (URCSA) in presenting the perspectives and sentiments on the ‘stumbling blocks’ experienced, particularly the informal conversations and discussions that are mostly presented in the Church’s newspaper ( Die Ligdraer/Ligstraal ). It focuses specifically on the 1990-1997 period of the Church, where most of the letters from members of the congregations, emotions and sensitive issues on the road towards unity were discussed. The paper limits itself to the newspaper of the DRMC, with a focus on the discussions and voices from members at the grassroots but also ministers that were listening to members in congregations to reflect on the ‘sacrifices’, compromises, accommodation and mutual trust that was at play and the strategies of the leadership of these Churches to facilitate reconciliation.

A young church in mission or maintenance mode?: A case study of the Bantu Presbyterian Church of South Africa (1923-1999)

The Bantu Presbyterian Church of South Africa (BPCSA) was the first autonomous South African church to be established in 1923 as the result of the work of the mission of a Church of European origin (CEO). It had taken one hundred years after the first missionaries of the Glasgow Missionary Society and subsequently the Free Church of Scotland and the United Presbyterian Church of Scotland, which united in 1900 to form the United Free Church of Scotland, had arrived in the Eastern Cape to form an autonomous church. It would continue to pursue its missionary strategy for the next seventy-six years until it united with the Presbyterian Church of Southern Africa in 1999 to form the Uniting Presbyterian Church of Southern Africa. The aim of this article is to explore the extent to which it remained true to the mission of its founders and God’s mission as it became institutionalised. The ecumenical aspect of mission has already been dealt with and will not be considered here. This particular article will concentrate on internal church policies and activities including the role of missionaries, evangelists and church associations, theological education and socio-political issues. This is predominantly an exercise in primary archival research.