scholarly journals An exploration of the idea of ecodomy in Calvin's view of God and the world: Its implications for churches in South Africa today

2015 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jerry Pillay
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
John Calvin ◽  
Church Transformation ◽  
The Poor ◽  
The World ◽  
Theological Foundation

The Faculty of Theology chose as its theme oikodome, which speaks about the fullness of life for all. This article explored this theme by looking at John Calvin�s understanding of God and the world. In this article, working from the premise of the sovereignty of God, the author attempted to show that undergirding Calvin�s theology is the idea of oikodome. The author showed that for Calvin everything in life is connected to God and thus the idea of oikodome is deeply rooted in Calvin�s theology. The author illustrated this by examining significant themes in Calvin�s teachings on the Trinitarian God, creation, humanity and providence, state and church, transformation of society, concern for the poor, and education. The author used this information to show what implications the idea of oikodome has for churches in South Africa today, especially in the context of poverty and struggle. The author calls on churches to embrace the theological foundation explicated by Calvin in their endeavour to work toward the fullness of life for all people.

scholarly journals Toward justice and social transformation? Appealing to the tradition against the tradition

2017 ◽  
Vol 73 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Piet J. Naude
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
21St Century ◽  
Social Transformation ◽  
Public Life ◽  
Karl Barth ◽  
John Calvin ◽  
Christian Life ◽  
Reformed Tradition ◽  
The Poor

This article starts with a brief statement on the well-known contradictory nature of the Reformed tradition in South Africa, defending injustice and struggling for justice in the name of the same tradition. By following the work of Reformed systematic theologian D.J. Smit, it argues that the justice-affirming potential of the Reformed tradition is a hermeneutical task built on three specific re-interpretations: (1) the reinterpretation of Scripture from the perspective of the weak, the poor and the oppressed (against a hermeneutic of creation orders and God-willed division of people) (2) a rereading of John Calvin to affirm the dignity and freedom of all humans (against the grain of neo-Calvinist interpretations) (3) a rereading of Karl Barth with a focus on God’s inclusive grace, Christian confessions and the nature of the Christian life (against the limitation of his influence because of his perceived actualistic view on Scripture or unscientific, foundational methodology). The article closes with a brief look into the agenda for social transformation faced by us in the second decade of the 21st century, and under what conditions the  Reformed faith will be able to make an enduring contribution to public life in (South) Africa.

Exploring Social Entrepreneurship for the Creation of Sustainable Livelihoods in South Africa

2017 ◽  
pp. 1010-1036
Author(s):  
Gnanam Pillay ◽  
Sylvia Kaye
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Social Entrepreneurship ◽  
High Poverty ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Slow Development ◽  
Social And Economic Development ◽  
The World ◽  
Entrepreneurial Development ◽  
Poverty Levels

Although social entrepreneurship has grown rapidly in developed and many developing countries around the world, it is still in its infancy in South Africa. To date, there is limited research available about social entrepreneurship in South Africa. While there are many reasons for its slow development in this country, a significant reason is the poor understanding of the concept, which would preclude investment in programmes, policies and research. This chapter presents an overview of South African issues and analyses how social entrepreneurial development can address some of the problems and issues. The more pressing problems include extreme inequality, high poverty levels and unemployment, a weak Small, Medium and Micro Enterprise (SMME) sector, fragmented communities and an economic system that needs to strengthen both social and economic development. The chapter presents the model developed as a result of research that contextualizes social entrepreneurial development for a South African market.

scholarly journals Church and South African realities today:Towards a relevant missiology of radical discipleship

2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 57-75 ◽  
Author(s):  
ST Kgatla
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Colonial Rule ◽  
Extreme Poverty ◽  
The Poor ◽  
The World ◽  
The Rich ◽  
Democratic Election ◽  
Constituent Elements

South Africa is one of the last African states to attain liberation from colonial rule. It was ushered into democratic order after one of the most prolonged and painful racial struggles. In 1994 it was heralded as an example of peaceful transition with one of the best constitutions in the world. It was called the “Rainbow Nation” and Madiba Magic. At that stage, the world looked at the new state as the shining example for the rest of Africa. But today, the country has the greatest gap between the rich and the poor in the world. Extreme poverty, inequality, and unemployment are at the centre of the economic ills of the country. In fact, South Africa is reckoned to have one of the largest gaps between rich and poor in the world. The important question is: How did the country decline to the position where it finds itself today? This paper attempts to analyse the trajectory the country took after 1994’s first democratic election to where it is today. Extreme poverty, violence, corruption, greed, bitterness, entitlement mentality and political opportunism are the constituent elements that are plaguing the country.

Exploring Social Entrepreneurship for the Creation of Sustainable Livelihoods in South Africa

2016 ◽  
pp. 240-266
Author(s):  
Gnanam Pillay ◽  
Sylvia Kaye
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Social Entrepreneurship ◽  
High Poverty ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Slow Development ◽  
Social And Economic Development ◽  
The World ◽  
Entrepreneurial Development ◽  
Poverty Levels

Although social entrepreneurship has grown rapidly in developed and many developing countries around the world, it is still in its infancy in South Africa. To date, there is limited research available about social entrepreneurship in South Africa. While there are many reasons for its slow development in this country, a significant reason is the poor understanding of the concept, which would preclude investment in programmes, policies and research. This chapter presents an overview of South African issues and analyses how social entrepreneurial development can address some of the problems and issues. The more pressing problems include extreme inequality, high poverty levels and unemployment, a weak Small, Medium and Micro Enterprise (SMME) sector, fragmented communities and an economic system that needs to strengthen both social and economic development. The chapter presents the model developed as a result of research that contextualizes social entrepreneurial development for a South African market.

PROCLAIMING THE CRUCIFIED CHRIST IN A BROKEN WORLD: An Asian Perspective

2000 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-67
Author(s):  
A.J.V. Chandrakantan
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Keynote Address ◽  
International Conference ◽  
The Poor ◽  
The World ◽  
Common Agenda ◽  
Broken World

AbstractThis article originally delivered as a keynote address at the IAMS Tenth International Conference in Hammanskraal, South Africa, is a passionate call to attend to the atrocities being committed against Tamils in the "broken world" of contemporary Sri Lanka. As the author puts it: "Disbelief and forgetfulness are the weapons of those who are opposed to humanity therefore to God. Forgetfulness is the antidote to truth and truthfulness of memory. Looking at this indescribable suffering of the innocent I have often felt that we all live in a world that has become unresponsive to the cries of the poor and under privileged. Such an attitude calls for solidarity among the victims and the oppressed. We also live in a world where a common agenda seems to unite all those who have chosen to be the enemies of humanity. It is our duty to fight this mute silence of the world with the power of the WORD. We should allow the word of Truth about the poor and innocent about voiceless women, men and children, to seek refuge and self-exile. Let us speak this word to the powers that be. All that we carry with us now is the memory of our life and that of the death of our fellow Tamils."

The Gratuitiousness of the Presence of Christ in the Broken World of Latin America

2000 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 68-80 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paulo Suess
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Latin America ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Jesus Christ ◽  
Vice President ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
The Poor ◽  
The World ◽  
Broken World

AbstractIn this plenary presentation from the Tenth IAMS Conference in Hammanskraal, South Africa, IAMS (then) vice-president Paulo Suess speaks about the importance of gratuitousness, proximity and universality in developing a Latin American missiology that is not just for the poor and indigenous, but with them as well. As he puts it: "From any point of the world we may access the network of gratuitousness and sharing, that questions accumulation, to the network of proximity, that challenges indifference and exclusion, and to the network of universality, that contests restrictive globalization. To transform the world of exclusion and poverty, and to incorporate the option for the protagonism of the poor in Christian communities and in society, the paschal experience--the experience of Jesus Christ crucified and living in the poor--lends wings to our imagination and sandals to the reasons of our hope."

Transforming reality

1988 ◽  
Vol 17 (10) ◽  
pp. 17-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paulo Freire ◽  
Vivian Schelling
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Popular Culture ◽  
Adult Literacy ◽  
Paulo Freire ◽  
Right Wing ◽  
Political Awareness ◽  
Educational Method ◽  
The Poor ◽  
The World ◽  
The Right

One of the key figures in the Popular Culture Movement, Paulo Freire is the founder of a revolutionary educational method which brought literacy — and political awareness — to thousands of the poor in Brazil. His books, which have played a key role in adult literacy movements throughout the world, have been banned by many dictatorial governments, including those of South Africa and, most recently, Haiti. Forced into exile from his own country following the right-wing coup in 1964, Freire finally returned in 1980. In São Paulo he talked to Vivian Schelling about his work

scholarly journals A possible solution for corruption in South Africa with the church as initiator: A practical theological approach

2013 ◽  
Vol 69 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda L. Du Plessis ◽  
Gert Breed
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Action Research ◽  
Global Solution ◽  
Research Method ◽  
1 Corinthians ◽  
Transparency International ◽  
The Poor ◽  
The World ◽  
Practical Theological ◽  
The Church

According to Transparency International, Africa is the most corrupt region in the world. In South Africa, there is an annual ’loss’ of about R30 billion as a result of bribery and corruption. It would appear that it is exactly the poor and the vulnerable who suffer most under the scourge of corruption. The purpose of this research was to investigate the effect of corruption on victim(s) and to evaluate it in an effort to formulate solutions as to how such individuals can be guided and supported in the suffering and hardship that they endure and that specifically emanate from corruption. In the research, an effort was made to move away from the trend of the fragmenting of aid and to present guidelines or suggestions that can lead to a global solution, where multi-disciplinary involvement can be facilitated. The researchers agree that the church can play a key role in this, and the solution was sought in the principles expounded in 1 Corinthians 12. The research method known as action research was investigated as a workable method to be used by the multi-disciplinary aid team in their struggle against corruption. In the final instance, the principles used by Touching Africa in their work were investigated so that these could also be used in the quest for a solution.

scholarly journals The Politics of Land Redistribution and its Implications for the Effectiveness of Land Reform Programmes: Evidence from South Africa and Zimbabwe

sjesr ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 110-124
Author(s):  
Sajjad Ali Khan ◽  
Abdul Shakoor ◽  
Ahmad Ali
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Land Reform ◽  
Land Redistribution ◽  
Center Stage ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Reform Programme ◽  
The World ◽  
Per Se

Land reform programmes around the world are often geared towards the accomplishment of a set of diverse goals. The process of land reform per se epitomizes a set of measures among which the redistribution of land among the poor takes center-stage and is generally regarded as the most consequential pre-requisite of an effective and successful land reform programme. This article seeks to examine the centrality of land re-distribution among the poor and the implications thereof for achievement of the broader set of goals through an analysis of land reform programmes carried out in South Africa and Zimbabwe. The findings demonstrate that in each of the two cases, the provision of land among the landless poor was overshadowed by political considerations during the process of distribution of land amongst the beneficiaries. The inequitable distribution in turn thwarted the accomplishment of the broader set of goals thus calling into question the effectiveness and success of such land reform programmes in each of the two countries.

scholarly journals An economic system that crushes the poor

2014 ◽  
Vol 70 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maake J. Masango
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
World Bank ◽  
Structural Adjustment ◽  
Structural Adjustment Programs ◽  
The World Bank ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Self Interest ◽  
The World ◽  
The Rich ◽  
The International Monetary Fund

The article focuses on economic structures that crush the poor, especially global economic structures that trap and keep people in poverty. The concept of poverty occupies centre stage in South Africa and many other developing countries. There is no longer a middle class. One is either rich or poor. Globalisation has created a system or program that continues to crush the poor, while also breeding greed and selfishness. The rich always accumulate resources while the poor struggle to make ends meet. These problems are created by the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and Structural Adjustment Programs, to name a few. These structures have introduced a system of inequality that widens the gap between the rich and the poor because of self-interest, which continues to crush the latter. The end result is that the concept of Ubuntu or Botho among African communities is destroyed. Injustice becomes the order of the day.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document