The traditional Afrikaans-speaking churches in dire straits

HTS Teologiese Studies/Theological Studies

 
 
Field Value
 
Title The traditional Afrikaans-speaking churches in dire straits
 
Creator Oliver, Erna
 
Subject Church History; theology; Afrikaans-Speaking churches; Death spiral; Dying church; Identity crisis; Reformation; South Africa; Christianity
Description Christianity is entering another revolution or reformation phase. Five hundred years ago, Luther stood up against the Roman Catholic Church, which started the reformation and the reformed movement, culminating in the birth of the Reformed Churches (RC). Today these RCs are seemingly the victims of the new revolution. The traditional Afrikaans-speaking RCs in South Africa serve as a striking example. The symptoms of these churches correspond to those of a dying church, highlighted by scholars like Rainer, Noble, Niewhof and Mattera. Central to this situation is the fact that the relationship with God and his commandments is no longer the focus point of the churches. Thus, the identity crisis that the churches are experiencing is mirroring the chaotic South African society of violence, corruption and hopelessness. For these churches to turn the death spiral around, a reformation is needed that will transform them into alternative societies of peace and hope, founded on a living relationship with God. This article ends with suggestions on how to turn the tide for these churches, or at least how to start doing something positive to get out of the crisis.
 
Publisher AOSIS
 
Contributor —
Date 2019-11-29
 
Type info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion — Survey
Format text/html application/epub+zip text/xml application/pdf
Identifier 10.4102/hts.v75i4.5577
 
Source HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies; Vol 75, No 4 (2019); 7 pages 2072-8050 0259-9422
 
Language eng
 
Relation
The following web links (URLs) may trigger a file download or direct you to an alternative webpage to gain access to a publication file format of the published article:

https://hts.org.za/index.php/hts/article/view/5577/14146 https://hts.org.za/index.php/hts/article/view/5577/14145 https://hts.org.za/index.php/hts/article/view/5577/14147 https://hts.org.za/index.php/hts/article/view/5577/14144
 
Coverage South Africa; World Present-day Na.
Rights Copyright (c) 2019 Erna Oliver https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
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