scholarly journals Gereformeerde teologiese opleiding vir Afrika in die een-en-twintigste eeu

1990 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Van Rooy
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
South Africa ◽  
Christian Higher Education ◽  
Reformed Theology ◽  
African Churches ◽  
Reformed Churches ◽  
The Moment ◽  
Correspondence Course ◽  
Theological Training

Although the numbers and influence of the Reformed Churches in South Africa seem to be dwindling at the moment, they still have a precious heritage which should be passed on to Africa: the reformed faith and reformed theology:. Christianity is growing apace in Africa, but unfortunately this is often a superficial, nominal Christianity. A great need and desire for thorough, biblical, theological training does exist. This need should be answered by the Reformed Churches by providing theological courses for extension training at four academic levels, especially for equipping leaders of the independent African churches, not with the purpose of making proselites, but primarily with the purpose of biblical leaching where it is needed. These courses should be made available at inter alia the Potchefstroom University for Christian Higher Education, which is already involved in the Timoteus correspondence course.

scholarly journals Probleme rondom die Bybel in die gereformeerde teologie: besinning vanuit ’n Christelike filosofie

2008 ◽  
Vol 42 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
B. J. Van der Walt
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Church Leaders ◽  
Reformed Theology ◽  
Philosophical Approach ◽  
Philosophical Perspective ◽  
Reformed Tradition ◽  
The Bible ◽  
God's Word ◽  
The Moment ◽  
The Way

Problems with the Bible in reformed theology: reflections from a Christian philosophical perspective The motivation for undertaking this investigation is the present tension in the reformed theology and in the reformed churches in South Africa. In spite of the fact that the reformed tradition confesses the authority of the Bible, theologians and church leaders are at the moment divided on how to view and interpret the Scriptures. They disagree about the message of God’s Word in the case of topical issues, for instance whether women should be allowed in ecclesiastical offices or on what the Bible has to say about homosexuality. The author is of the opinion that these tensions in the same church are caused, not only by different methods of interpreting the Bible but, at a much deeper level, also by the way in which one views the Bible according to different worldviews. In trying to resolve these problems and the resulting conflict of opinion, a Christian philosophical approach will be taken instead of the current theological efforts.

scholarly journals Theological training in the black Reformed Churches in South Africa (RCSA)

2015 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hulisani Ramantswana
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
New South ◽  
Formal Training ◽  
Local Basis ◽  
Training Policy ◽  
Reformed Churches ◽  
Informal Training ◽  
Theological Training

This article presents a historic analysis of theological training in the black Reformed Churches in South Africa (RCSA) − Southland Synod (Coloured), Synod Midlands (black) and Synod Soutpansberg (black) − and highlights the major trends with regard to theological training. Four phases are identified: (1) 1910–1951, informal training of evangelists and ministers on a local basis; (2) 1952–1960, the beginning of formal training of ministers and evangelists; (3) 1961–1989, training under the 1961 Theological Training Policy for the black RCSA; and (4) 1990 to today, theological training in the black RCSA in the context of the new South Africa.Teologiese opleiding in die swart Gereformeerde Kerke in Suid-Afrika (GKSA). Die artikel bied ’n historiese ontleding van teologiese opleiding in die swart Gereformeerde Kerke in Suid-Afrika − Suidland Sinode (Kleurling), Middellande Sinode (swart) en Soutpansberg Sinode (swart) − en beklemtoon die belangrikste tendense met betrekking tot teologiese opleiding. Vier fases word in die artikel geïdentifiseer: (1) 1910–1951, informele opleiding van evangeliste en leraars op ’n plaaslike basis; (2) 1952–1960, die begin van die formele opleiding van predikante en evangeliste; (3) 1961–1989, opleiding onder die 1961 Teologiese Opleidingsbeleid in die swart GKSA; en (4) 1990 tot vandag, teologiese opleiding in die swart GKSA in die konteks van die nuwe Suid-Afrika.

scholarly journals Unpacking the downside of sustentasie on African theology and theologians: a need for contextual black theology as a liberative ingredient for the black Reformed churches

2016 ◽  
Vol 72 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Elijah Baloyi
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Black Church ◽  
Continuous Process ◽  
Black Theology ◽  
Reformed Theology ◽  
Financial Independence ◽  
African Theology ◽  
Reformed Churches

The practice of the black church being a follower of the leading white church is a continuous process in the Gereformeerde Kerke in Suid Afrika (or Reformed Churches in South Africa in English). This makes it difficult to contextualise Reformed Theology to address African challenges and problems. There are many reasons for the subordination of the black theologians, but for the sake of this article, I identified the issue of sustentasie1 as one of the causes. The lack of financial independence implies that the black church2 cannot determine their destiny by revising, transforming and even Africanising their theology to fit into their context and challenges, since that would mean they are biting the hand that feeds them. This article will argue that it is time that Africans stop being a theological duplication of the Western theologies and that they take responsibility to ensure that their theology addresses the immediate situation of the Black Reformed people (contextualised) with or without the support from the white church.

scholarly journals Wortels en agtergronde van Hervormde teologie en kerkwees in Suid-Afrika

1998 ◽  
Vol 54 (1/2) ◽  
Author(s):  
D. J.C. Van Wyk
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Reformed Theology ◽  
Late Nineteenth ◽  
The University ◽  
Theological Training

Roots and background of reformed theology and ecclesiastical being in South Africa. After investigating researches and publications on the ethical direction taken by Dutch theology in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, J A Loader came to the conclusion that this direction is an important - if not the most important - background to the theology of the Nederduitsch Hervormde Kerk van Afrika. and of its theological training at the University of Pretona, especially during the earlier years and at the time of its inception. In this article the outcome of the research undertaken by Loader is critically reviewed and seriously questioned. It is maintained that his evaluation of ethical theology is too rigid and its influence on the Nederduitsch Hervormde Kerk overemphasised. It seems that the prominent influence of Hoedemaker and confessional theology is overlooked by Loader.

scholarly journals The role of the church in the #FeesMustFall movement in South Africa: Practical Theological reflection

2018 ◽  
Vol 74 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mookgo S. Kgatle
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
South Africa ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Theological Reflection ◽  
Poor Students ◽  
Practical Theological ◽  
Number Of Publications ◽  
The Moment ◽  
The Many ◽  
The Church

In 2015 and 2016, South Africa experienced one of the unique student-led protests since the dawn of democracy that touched the world, the #FeesMustFall movement. Out of the many demands that the students made in the movement, one is outstanding, fee-free higher education. A large number of publications have been written on the movement from an economical and educational point of view. Most of these publications argue that a fee-free higher education for all students is not an affordable or sustainable option for South Africa at the moment. What is new in this article is a practical theological reflection on the movement in general and the demand for a fee-free higher education by students in particular. The article looks at the possibilities of fee-free higher education for the poor students in South Africa by exploring the roles of the church in the #FeesMustFall movement.

scholarly journals Five hundred years on: Some traces of the Reformation in the Church Orders of two South African Reformed Churches – Seen as temporary expressions of the Church Order of the Reformed Synod of Dordrecht in 1619

2017 ◽  
Vol 73 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Piet Strauss
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
16Th Century ◽  
Dutch Reformed ◽  
Reformed Church ◽  
The Reformation ◽  
African Churches ◽  
Reformed Churches ◽  
The Church ◽  
Dutch Reformed Church

This article examines the influence of the Reformation of the 16th century on the Church Orders of two South African Reformed Churches, namely the Dutch Reformed Church and the Reformed Churches in South Africa. The five so-called solas, namely sola gratia [by grace alone], sola scriptura [by Scripture alone], sola fidei [by faith alone], solus christus [Christ alone] and soli Deo gloria [glory to God alone], are widely accepted as key expressions of the convictions of the Reformation. Although not necessarily in the same terms, the content of the solas are also found in the thought of Calvin. These matters influenced the Synod of Dordrecht (1618–1619) in its acceptance of the Three Formulas of Unity as reformed confessions of faith and its affirmation of the Dordt Church Order. The said South African churches accept the Three Formulas of Unity as confessions of faith and view their church orders as a modern version of the Dordt Church Order – adapted to the demands of the time. This article mainly examines the consequences of sola scriptura and sola fidei on the church orders of the two churches. In terms of these two solas, both have traces of the Reformation after 500 years.

scholarly journals The Heidelberg Catechism: A 16th century quest for unity

2014 ◽  
Vol 70 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wim A. Dreyer
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Wide Spectrum ◽  
16Th Century ◽  
Controversial Issues ◽  
Unique Contribution ◽  
Reformed Theology ◽  
Reformed Churches

In this contribution the view is presented that the Heidelberg Catechism should be regarded as an attempt to promote unity between 16th century reformers and churches in the Palatinate. This, to some extent, determined the content of the Catechism resulting in some controversial issues receiving less attention. This in turn not only made the Catechism acceptable to a wide spectrum of Reformed Christianity, but also resulted in a creative and unique contribution to Reformed theology, almost a ‘third option’. It was soon used in different Reformed territories as a confession and acclaimed for its clarity in formulating the basic Reformed faith. Today the Heidelberg Catechism is regarded as one of the most ‘ecumenical’ documents of the 16th century. As such, it still promotes unity amongst many Reformed churches, including those in South Africa.

scholarly journals Liberating reformed theology, social-embedded economics, and the white Afrikaans Reformed Churches

2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Johan Pieters
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Reformed Theology ◽  
Privileged Position ◽  
The Bible ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Economic Paradigm ◽  
Reformed Churches ◽  
Conventional Paradigm

In this article, the author used a social-embedded framework to analyse the current economic paradigms of the white Afrikaans Reformed Churches in South Africa. He concluded that the current conventional paradigm is problematic in the lack of engagement with both the poor and alternative economic paradigms. He suggested that the notions of covenant, sovereignty and providence could assist the churches to develop an economic paradigm that is informed by solidarity with the poor. For this to happen he concludes that the churches need to develop a liberating hermeneutic in which the Bible is read as a book for the poor, while the readers remain conscious of their privileged position.

scholarly journals The Idea of a “For-Profit” Private Christian University in South Africa

2019 ◽  
Vol 84 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Morné Diederiks
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
South Africa ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Education Institution ◽  
Private Higher Education ◽  
Christian Higher Education ◽  
Christian University ◽  
For Profit ◽  
Private Higher Education Institutions ◽  
The One

The one-sided focus of Christian higher education in South Africa on the field of theology and the lack of integrating faith and learning in other subjects emphasizes the need for a Christian university in South Africa. The question addressed in this article is whether a Christian university can also be for-profit, considering the fact that all Christian private higher education institutions in South Africa are non-profit. There are numerous criticisms against for-profit higher education institutions. The greatest of these are that for-profit private higher education institutions miss the purpose of what it means to be a university and that profitable higher education institutions exploit students. The church also has numerous criticisms of the profit motive, but from the Bible it is clear that there are two lines of thought regarding profit. The one is that profit is dangerous and that it easily becomes an idol; the other is that people are called to be profitable. This article concludes that there is room for a for-profit Christian higher education institution in South Africa. This for-profit Christian higher education institution should be imagined in terms of its understanding of profit regarding its mission, students, faculty and governance.

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