scholarly journals Postmoderne kerk-wees in die lig van publieke teologie – eenheid en verskeidenheid

2006 ◽  
Vol 62 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yolanda Dreyer
Keyword(s):  
Practical Theology ◽  
Faith Communities ◽  
Public Theology ◽  
The Public ◽  
Theological Discourse ◽  
Truth Claims ◽  
Institutional Church ◽  
The Church ◽  
Postmodern Thinking

Being postmodern church in light of public theology – unity and diversityFoundationalism criticizes the “relativism” of postmodernity which deconstructs absolute and objective totalitarian truth claims. Although most postmodern scholars deny advocating relativism, they do acknowledge that plurality features significantly in postmodern thinking. Plurality and diversity are important to the theological discourse tool, because the church claims to be catholic and ecumenical. In a postmodern context people who do not necessarily affiliate with the institutional church may nevertheless regard themselves as Christians. The article supports a public theological discourse and aims to provide a framework for reflection on unity and diversity in postmodern faith communities. Public practical theology includes the public as one of its audiences. After a brief overview of the phenomenon of postmodernity, the article explores the role of plurality in ecclesiology. It reflects on the challenge of facilitating a dialogue between members of churches and those who regard themselves as spiritual in the secularized context of a “churchless Christianity”. The purpose of the article is to contribute to the ecumenism and the catholicity of the church.

scholarly journals Pastoral Letters and the Church in the public square: An assessment of the role of Pastoral Letters in influencing democratic processes in Malawi

2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Qeko Jere ◽  
Vhumani Magezi
Keyword(s):  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Church History ◽  
Public Theology ◽  
Checks And Balances ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Square ◽  
Pastoral Letters ◽  
The Voice ◽  
The Church

The contributory role Pastoral Letters play in Malawi’s democracy cannot be underestimated. Historically, Pastoral Letters have been the voice of the Malawian people, and these have forced authorities to accommodate social and political reforms. From colonialism, federations and independence to the birth and consolidation of democracy, Pastoral Letters have been issued by the Church to State authority demanding political change and improvement in governance issues. For instance, Pastoral Letters issued by the Church put pressure on the British to end colonialism in Malawi, and in 1992, Pastoral Letters hugely contributed to the dismantling of Dr Kamuzu Banda’s, and the Malawi Congress Party’s, three-decade autocratic rule. Even in the multiparty dispensation, which was ushered in during 1994, Pastoral Letters have provided checks and balances to government in the consolidation of democracy. Thus, Pastoral Letters represent the voice of the voiceless in every political dispensation. The article is informed by the Pauline Pastoral Letters’ conceptual framework. The main argument governing this article is that unless there is continuity in the issuing of Pastoral Letters by the Church in addressing specific challenges within a democracy, sustainability of democratic value will always be compromised and not realised.Interdisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: This is an interdisciplinary article that touches on practical and public theology focusing on Church history and polity in assessing the role of Pastoral Letters in influencing the sustainability of democratic processes in a public square. The article contributes to a wider debate on the role the Church’s Pastoral Letters play in determining the sociopolitical landscape in Malawi. However, this is the only article written from a Pauline Pastoral Letters’ conceptual framework.

scholarly journals Theology in the Public Sphere in the Twenty-First Century

Horizons ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 351-356
Author(s):  
Bryan N. Massingale
Keyword(s):  
Public Sphere ◽  
First Century ◽  
Public Theology ◽  
The Public ◽  
Theological Discourse ◽  
Church And Society ◽  
Twenty First Century ◽  
The Public Sphere ◽  
The Church

Several decades ago David Tracy wrote that theologians speak to three publics: the academy, the church, and society. Since then many theologians have exhibited, in Tracy's words, “that drive to publicness which constitutes all good theological discourse[,] … a drive from and to those three publics.”1 Our four roundtable authors discuss how and why theologians engage the public sphere in the twenty-first century. In arguing for the necessity of such engagement, they also draw attention to the promise and perils of doing public theology today.

scholarly journals Prophetic witness and public discourse in European societies – a German perspective

2010 ◽  
Vol 66 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Heinrich Bedford-Strohm
Keyword(s):  
Public Discourse ◽  
Public Theology ◽  
Specific Context ◽  
The Public ◽  
Protestant Churches ◽  
Pluralistic Societies ◽  
Prophetic Witness ◽  
The Church

The role of prophetic witness of the churches in the public discourse of modern civil societies is analysed on the basis of three public memorandums of the German Protestant churches on economic questions and their impact on the public. Among the ten systematic conclusions which are drawn from this case study is the importance of the specific context for the role of prophetic statements. The article tries to show how prophetic witness is a necessary element of a public theology, which is not based on fundamental criticism, but develops both critical and constructive perspectives for politics and society. If such public theology is liberation theology for a democratic society it is the task of the church to get involved in the public debate in a ‘bilingual’ way, that is, on the basis of its biblical-theological sources but at the same time with the ability to engage in the secular language of pluralistic societies.

scholarly journals The church as a moral agent: In dialogue with Bram van de Beek

2018 ◽  
Vol 74 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
J. M. Vorster
Keyword(s):  
20Th Century ◽  
Moral Agent ◽  
Kingdom Of God ◽  
Public Theology ◽  
Theoretical Argument ◽  
The Public ◽  
Ulterior Motive ◽  
Seminal Article ◽  
The Church

The latter part of the 20th century is known for a surge in the so-called ‘genitive theologies’. Usually, a genitive theology has an ulterior motive, aiming at the transformation of a society or the promotion of sound politics and economy. In recent years, this trend culminated in public theology. The issue of religion with an ulterior motive was raised by Van de Beek in a seminal article focusing on theology without gaining anything from it as an answer to the surging genitive theologies of the latter part of the 20th century and the public theologies of today. Taking into account Van de Beek’s critique against ‘religion with an ulterior motive’, this article explores the concept of the church as a moral agent in dialogue with Van de Beek. The central theoretical argument of this investigation is that Van de Beek’s ecclesiology is valuable when defining the role of the church as a moral agent. However, the perspective of the Kingdom of God concerning the church can enrich one’s views and can add value to his valid critique on public theology.

scholarly journals Public role of the church in anti-corruption: An assessment of the CCAP1 Livingstonia Synod in Malawi from a kenōsis perspective

2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Qeko Jere
Keyword(s):  
Church History ◽  
Assessment Process ◽  
Public Theology ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Square ◽  
Root Cause ◽  
Critical Areas ◽  
Public Role ◽  
The Church

Corruption, which is a persistent feature in human societies throughout time and space, affects not only the administration of the state but also every societal organ including the church. The ‘virus of corruption’ has penetrated into functioning systems of the various stakeholders both locally and globally. Various approaches have been used in trying to curb corruption at different levels from a secular perspective, but with little progress as the vice eminently still exists in the society. To the contrary and from a theological perspective, the long-lasting solutions in curbing corruption are realised through engaging the main root cause of the problem, which in this case is the heart of man. Theologically, kenōsis as a theoretical framework and solution goes beyond the gist of secular approaches as it addresses issues of the hearts of men which in turn produces reformed systems. In this article, I look into kenōsis of the Synod operational system in relation to imitating the incarnate work of Christ. The article assesses the Synod anti-corruption initiatives from a kenōsis perspective and then identifies and proposes the effective steps to improve and strengthen the Synod’s kenotic actions in Public Square. The CCAP Livingstonia Synod assessment process is geared to show how far kenotic the church must go in emulating and confronting systems as a way of fulfilling the demands of incarnation and works of Christ. This highlights the critical areas that add value in the Synod’s public engagement in anti-corruption.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: This is an interdisciplinary article that focuses on systematic, church history, public theology and social development. The article assesses the public role of the church in anti-corruption and provides a paradigm shift in the fight against corruption from secular to theological based approaches.

scholarly journals Menghasrati Sang Akhir, Mempersembahkan Diri Pada Dunia

2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 219-240
Author(s):  
Christanto Sema Rappan Paledung
Keyword(s):  
Public Sphere ◽  
New World ◽  
Public Theology ◽  
The Public ◽  
The World ◽  
The Public Sphere ◽  
The Church

Abstrak: Artikel ini membahas Teologi Hari Kedelapan sebagai sum- ber berteologi yang solid untuk mempercakapkan peran gereja dalam ruang publik. Teologi Hari Kedelapan menegaskan bahwa pada Hari Kedelapan yakni hari Kebangkitan Kristus adalah permulaan dunia baru. Dengan demikian, gagasan ini mencakup percakapan liturgis, es- katologis, eklesiologis, penciptaan, dan sebagainya. Percakapan dalam makalah ini juga melibatkan konsep person dan eros dari Christos Yan- naras. Yannaras menegaskan bahwa person merupakan konstitusi yang relasional. Sebab itu, kehadirannya hanya dapat diwujudkan dalam gerak yang erotik. Untuk menegaskan kehadiran gereja dalam ruang publik, saya berargumen bahwa dengan konsep person dan eros, Hari Kedelapan merupakan gerak erotik Allah kepada dunia.   Kata-kata kunci: Hari Kedelapan, eskatologi, eklesiologi, person, eros, teologi publik.   Abstract: This article discusses Theology of the Eighth Day as a sol- id theological source to promote the role of the church in the public sphere. The theology asserts that the Eighth Day as the day the Res- urrection of Christ is the beginning of a new world. Thus, this idea includes liturgy, eschatology, ecclesiology, creation, etc. Conversations in this paper also involve the concept of person and eros from Christos Yannaras. Yannaras emphasized thatperson is a relational constitution. Therefore, its presence can only realize in erotic movements. To underline the presence of the church in the public sphere, I argue that with the concepts of person and eros, The Eighth Day is God›s erotic motion to the world.   Keywords:  The  Eighth  Day,  eschatology,  ecclesiology,  person,  eros, public theology.

scholarly journals The Metamorphosis of Written Devotion in the Age of Vatican II (c. 1948–c. 1998) in Hungary—Guestbooks in Hungarian Marian Shrines

Religions ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 235
Author(s):  
Krisztina Frauhammer
Keyword(s):  
20Th Century ◽  
Vatican Ii ◽  
Virgin Mary ◽  
Combined Effect ◽  
Public Realm ◽  
The Public ◽  
Written Form ◽  
Personal Prayer ◽  
The Church

This article presents the Hungarian manifestations of a written devotional practice that emerged in the second half of the 20th century worldwide: the rite of writing prayers in guestbooks or visitors’ books and spontaneously leaving prayer slips in shrines. Guestbooks or visitors’ books, a practice well known in museums and exhibitions, have appeared in Hungarian shrines for pilgrims to record requests, prayers, and declarations of gratitude. This is an unusual use of guestbooks, as, unlike regular guestbook entries, they contain personal prayers, which are surprisingly honest and self-reflective. Another curiosity of the books and slips is that anybody can see and read them, because they are on display in the shrines, mostly close to the statue of Virgin Mary. They allow the researcher to observe a special communication situation, the written representation of an informal, non-formalised, personal prayer. Of course, this is not unknown in the practice of prayer; what is new here is that it takes place in the public realm of a shrine, in written form. This paper seeks answers to the question of what genre antecedents, what patterns of behaviour, and which religious practices have led to the development of this recent practice of devotion in the examined period in Hungarian Catholic shrines. In connection with this issue, this paper would like to draw attention to the combined effect of the following three factors: the continuity of traditions, the emergence of innovative elements and the role of the church as an institution. Their parallel interactions help us to understand the guestbooks of the shrines.

scholarly journals Social and Political Consequences of the Pandemic for the Russian Orthodox Church

2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 547-558
Author(s):  
Roman N. Lunkin
Keyword(s):  
Civil Rights ◽  
Russian Orthodox ◽  
Orthodox Church ◽  
Russian Orthodox Church ◽  
Political Consequences ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Social ◽  
Cyber Space ◽  
The Church

In the article analyzed the social and political consequences of pandemic of coronavirus for the Russian Orthodox Church in the context of the reaction of different European churches on the quarantine rules and critics towards the church inside Russia. The author used the structural-functional and institutional approaches for the evaluation of the activity of the Russian Orthodox Church, was analyzed the sources of mass-media and the public claims of the clergy. In the article was made a conclusion that Orthodox Church expressed itself during the struggle with coronavirus as national civic institute where could be represented various even polar views. Also the parish activity leads to the formation of the democratic society affiliated with the Church and the role of that phenomenon have to be explored in a future. The coronacrisis makes open the inner potential of the civic activity and different forms of the social service in Russian Church. In the same time pandemic provoked the development of the volunteer activity in the around-church environment and also in the non-church circles among the young people and the generation of 40th age where the idea of the social responsibility for themselves and people around and the significance of the civil rights was one of the popular ideas till 2019. The conditions of the self-isolation also forced the clergy to struggle for their parishioners and once again renovate the role of the church in the society and in the cyber space.

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