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Item Open Access To unite or not to unite? a case study of Presbyterianism in South Africa, 1897-1923(Faculty of Theology, University of the Free State, 2018) Duncan, G. A.As from 1891, attempts to bring all Presbyterians of Scottish and Scottish mission descent in South Africa together into one church faced insuperable barriers. Their histories and traditions, as well as their demographic and ethnic composition were all issues, despite their similarities. The Presbyterian Church of South Africa was formed in 1897, and the Bantu Presbyterian Church of South Africa in 1923. Discussions on various forms of relationship started in 1891 and continued in the years following the formation of the Bantu Presbyterian Church in South Africa. This article investigates the issues at stake in the attempts to establish one Presbyterian denomination from the disparate Scottish ecclesiastical bodies, using primary and secondary sources and focusing mainly on the issue of racism.Item Open Access The concept of "the holy seed" as a coping strategy in Ezra-Nehemiah and its implications for South Africa(Faculty of Theology, University of the Free State, 2018) Cezula, N. S.In a study describing the problems experienced by former political exiles who have returned to South Africa since 1990, Majodina argues that the psychological study of reintegration of refugees/exiles deserves a place in mainstream psychological research and not remain on the fringes. One of her basic assumptions is that coping plays a key mediating role in the reintegration process. Taking cue from her deliberation, this article aims to investigate the role played by psychological coping in the return of Judean exiles from Babylon in Ezra-Nehemiah. It examines these coping strategies in light of Tajfel’s and Turner’s theories of the Social Identity Approach (SIA) to give intelligibility to the ideologies that transpire. The article also presents Majodina’s Social Coping strategy to provide background for the discussion of implications for South Africa. The discussion culminates in the examination of implications of this discussion for South Africa. Where necessary, some South African neighbouring countries may be referred to, in order to illuminate the discussion.Item Open Access The 17th century Johannes Hoornbeeck's view on mission, ecumenism and historical theology and its current relevance(Faculty of Theology, University of the Free State, 2018) Hofmeyr, J. W.In this second article (cf. Hofmeyr 2016), like the previous one, I would like to introduce Johannes Hoornbeeck and the Further Reformation, besides other goals, to the Anglo-Saxon world. This article focuses primarily on the 17th-century theologian Johannes Hoornbeeck and some of his views within the context of the Further Reformation. I address the issue related to an analysis of Hoornbeeck’s contributions as a missiologist, a theologian with a clear ecumenical and irenical orientation, and a historical theologian. In my opinion, he can be regarded as the second most prominent theologian, besides Gisbertus Voetius. In some respects, Hoornbeeck even surpasses him. This critical overview also focuses on the Further Reformation as an ecclesiastical and theological development.Item Open Access In search of the origins of Israelite aniconism(Faculty of Theology, University of the Free State, 2018) Kang, S. I.For a long time, aniconism has been presented as one of the most distinctive characteristics of the religion of ancient Israel. Aniconism refers to the absence or repudiation of divine images. Such a tradition was inconceivable to Israel’s neighbours, where the care, feeding, and clothing of a deity, represented in the form of a divine statue, played a central role in national cults (Jacobsen 1987:15-32; Berlejung 1997:45-72; Walker & Dick 2001; Roth 1992:113-147; Roth 1993:57-79). The issue of aniconism has, therefore, been the subject of much scholarly debate. In discussing the concept of aniconism, this article follows Mettinger’s (1995:18) distinction between de facto aniconism (the mere absence of iconic representations of a deity) and programmatic aniconism (the repudiation of such representations). Many theories on the origins of the strong aniconic tradition in Yahwism have been put forward. Some major theories will be critically reviewed, and a new synthesis with reference to archaeological and iconographic data will be presented.Item Open Access Interview with Vuyani S. Vellem(Faculty of Theology, University of the Free State, 2018) Laubscher, M.Abstract not availableItem Open Access Wat het die Wêreldgemeenskap van Gereformeerde Kerke in 1998 en die Wêreldraad van Kerke in 2015 beweeg om die Ned Geref Kerk as volle lid terug te neem?(Faculty of Theology, University of the Free State, 2018) Strauss, P.As members of the World Council of Churches, the two synods of the Dutch Reformed Church broke their ties with this institution in 1961, following the critisism of the Cottesloe Consultation of 1960 on apartheid. The World Alliance of Reformed Churches, which became part of the World Communion of Reformed Churches in 2010, declared a status confessionis against the theological and moral justification of apartheid and suspended the membership of the Dutch Reformed Church at Ottawa in 1982. As a result of the changes effected in South Africa and the Dutch Reformed Church, the latter was readmitted as full member of the Alliance in 1998. In 2007 the Dutch Reformed Church applied for membership of the World Council. It was granted in 2015.Item Open Access Prayer in the Old Testament as spiritual wisdom for today(Faculty of Theology, University of the Free State, 2018) Lombaard, C.The discipline of Biblical Spirituality, with its dual focus on ancient text and modern application, provides the methodological framework for this article. The modern sociological interest in religion, spirituality and prayer is indicated, but not explored, with a shared wisdom orientation in aspects of Old Testament life and in the currently unfolding post-secular religio-cultural climate that forms the bridge between the ancient and the modern in the analysis of prayer. The remainder of this contribution focuses on Deuteronomy 6:4 – the famous Sh’ma prayer – and its historical implications. The editorial history of the book of Deuteronomy, following the theory of E. Otto, forms the basis for understanding more precisely the impact of the Sh’ma in ancient Israel. The link of this prayer to Law inhibited much of its inherent power, testifying to a change in dominant spirituality within post-exilic Judaism. This has had far-reaching implications in the Judeo-Christian history of theology, particularly relating to the grace-law emphases, as indicated in this article, but left to unfold more fully in further research.