The religious statement of the Voortrekker Monument as a site of Afrikaner memory: Origin, composition and reception

HTS Teologiese Studies/Theological Studies

 
 
Field Value
 
Title The religious statement of the Voortrekker Monument as a site of Afrikaner memory: Origin, composition and reception
 
Creator Britz, Dolf
 
Subject — Afrikaner nationalism; Afrikaner religion; Afrikaner spirituality; Architecture; Design Voortrekker Monument; Gerard Moerdyk (1890-1958); Memorials; Voortrekker Monument; The Vow
Description The religious statement made by the Voortrekker Monument is part and parcel of its meaning and symbolism. This aspect of its composition and intention has not yet been submitted to thorough theological-critical investigation and scrutiny. Stepping into the gap, this article traces the religious intention and intonation of the Monument. The first part of the article entails the history of the Moerdyk design, based on antique Egyptian religious architecture. Then a discussion of the way in which the architect blended his (Egyptian) design with the religious spirituality and nationalism of the Afrikaner is presented. The last section deals with the altar text in the heart of the building: ‘We for thee, South Africa’. This secular text constitutes the religious statement of the memorial. Care should therefore be taken to embed the symbolism and meaning of the building in the Christian faith or the so-called Calvinism of the Afrikaner. The engagement with the Monument’s religious statement revealed a sacrificed religion trapped in a still remarkable commemorative building.
 
Publisher AOSIS
 
Contributor
Date 2018-11-27
 
Type info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion — —
Format text/html application/epub+zip application/xml application/pdf
Identifier 10.4102/hts.v74i3.5142
 
Source HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies; Vol 74, No 3 (2018); 9 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/5142/12213 https://hts.org.za/index.php/hts/article/view/5142/12212 https://hts.org.za/index.php/hts/article/view/5142/12214 https://hts.org.za/index.php/hts/article/view/5142/12211
 
Coverage — — —
Rights Copyright (c) 2018 Dolf Britz https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
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