Public Theology:
The South African Experience
June 2-16, 2008
This seminar will convene for one week at each of the two locations:
Johannesburg/Pretoria
Cape Town
Why South Africa?
In an era of newly emerging democracies, South Africa is a remarkable experiment. Against all odds, South Africa has made a largely peaceful transition from an overtly racist and repressive regime to a multi-party, nonracial democracy.The South African situation is both hopeful and fragile, with signs of positive change and deeply entrenched problems. South Africa also straddles two worlds: the technologically driven and affluent world of Europe and its overseas settlements, and sub-Saharan Africa, which is still largely agricultural and economically struggling. At a time when democracy is fragile and even regressing in parts of Africa, and when democratic values are being tested in Europe and the U.S.A., South Africa also reflects some of the political traits of both the West and of greater Africa.
Over the past three decades, South Africa has become the home of some of the most profound and influential expressions of Christian public theology. Its first democratic president, Nelson Mandela, who confessed that he was "not a good Christian," nevertheless championed a "politics of reconciliation" that clearly drew on Christian values.Theologically gifted public intellectuals, most notably Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu, the Nobel laureate who chaired the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), have done much to shape public policy and outlook.There are many more remarkable public leaders--black and white, colored and Asian, Afrikaner and British--who as preachers, community activists, jurists, professors, business leaders and philanthropists, helped build hope for a new commonwealth, even in some very bleak times. Many of these prophets and pioneers are still active and will be accessible to the seminar participants.