Abraham Kuyper and evolution

This paper explores Kuyper’s approach to evolution and evolutionism. He was opposed to evolutionism as it has roots in monism and pantheism; it promotes atheism. However, he did leave the way open to support some form of evolution that was guided by God and not random chance.   https://doi.org/10.19108/KOERS.87.1.251

“The perpetuity of Christ’s reign ...” Calvin’s interpretation of Psalm 110:1

The discussion of the Messiah in the Old Testament has always been very significant. Matters like the relationship between Old and New Testament, the view of Christ, especially regarding his divine nature, revelation, the view of Scripture etc. – all of these aspects are crucial for the confessions of the church. Considering Calvin’s accentuation on Christology in his theology as such and not least bearing his high regard for the Book of the Psalms in mind, a study of his reflections on Psalm 110:1 is most appropriate for getting more insight in his exegesis. In Calvin’s exposition of Psalm 110:1 Calvin emphasises the significance and consequences for the church (as well as for the world) of Yahweh saying to the Lord Christ that He will be raised to the right hand of the Father, and that his enemies will be subjected beneath his feet. An analysis of Calvin’s exegesis shows his respect of the frame Christ Himself provided when He referred to Psalm 110:1 in Matthew 22 and Mark 12. Calvin thus remains faithful to the text being expounded, but – as always – he does so within the context of the whole history of revelation. Opsomming“Die ewigheid van Christus se heerskappy” – Calvyn se uitleg van Psalm 110:1Die debat oor die Messias in die Ou Testament is deur die loop van die jare van groot betekenis gewees. Temas soos die verhouding tussen die Ou en Nuwe Testament, die beskouing oor Christus, in die besonder ten opsigte van sy goddelike natuur, openbaring, Skrifbeskouing ens. – al hierdie aspekte is wesenlik vir die belydenisse van die kerk. Wanneer Calvyn se klem op die Christologie in die geheel van sy teologie en daarby sy hoë agting van die Psalms in gedagte gehou word, is ’n studie van sy besinning oor Psalm 110:1 meer as gepas om meer insig in sy eksegese te verkry. In sy verklaring van Psalm 110:1 beklemtoon Calvyn die betekenis en konsekwensies vir die kerk (sowel as die wêreld) van Jahweh wat aan die Here Christus sê dat Hy opgeneem sal word tot die regterhand van die Vader en dat sy vyande tot ’n voetbank vir sy voete gemaak sal word. ’n Ondersoek van Calvyn se eksegese toon sy agting vir die raamwerk wat deur Christus self vir die verstaan van hierdie vers verskaf is toe Hy in Matteus 22 en Markus 12 na Psalm 110:1 verwys het. Calvyn bly dus getrou aan die teks in sy verklaring daarvan, maar – soos deurgaans in sy eksegese – doen hy dit binne die konteks van die geheel van die openbaringsgeskiedenis. https://doi.org/10.19108/KOERS.87.1.253

The Trinity, Sexuality, and Gender In Sarah Coakley's Thought

This paper focuses on the thoughts of Sarah Coakley who tried to enter into dialogue with the concepts of the trinity, sexuality, and gender. According to Coakley, the root cause of sexuality and gender lies in desire (eros). Coakley made a strong critique of Sigmund Freud’s thinking. If it was Freud who said the desire for God was really about sex, on the other hand, Coakley asserted, sexual desire was always about the desire for God. Coakley approaches the reality of the Trinity and relates it to the problem of human desire through contemplation. The practice of contemplation provides clues about how one can transcend existing gender and sexuality stereotypes. The contemplation that is at the heart of Coakley’s thinking plays a very important role in approaching the Trinity, and from there he addresses issues of sexuality and gender. https://doi.org/10.19108/KOERS.87.1.253

A Critique of Ladd’s ‘Already but not Yet’ View of the Kingdom

The kingdom of God is an important subject for theology and for a Christian worldview. As one of the most influential theologians of the twentieth century, George Eldon Ladd is arguably the father of the widely held ‘already but not yet’ view of the kingdom. Ladd contends that the kingdom can be both present and future at the same. The key to Ladd’s theory is his definition of the kingdom. If the kingdom can be present and future at the same time, Ladd realises that logically it cannot also be so in the same sense. Therefore, he postulates that Jesus offered a new and unexpected form of the kingdom, arguing that the New Testament radically reinterprets the Old Testament and calling this the mystery of the kingdom. This article critiques Ladd’s definition of the kingdom. The kingdom cannot logically be present and future at the same time. Moreover, Jesus did not offer a new ‘form’ of the kingdom. Regarding the mediatorial kingdom of God, the missing key is the word ‘conditional’. https://doi.org/10.19108/KOERS.87.1.253

Workplace spirituality: The fifth gospel for the modern workplace?

In this article, the argument is developed that workplace spirituality can be used within practical theology to understand developments within the workplace. This can enable the church to give effective guidance to the congregation on finding meaning and purpose within the workplace. The value of workplace spirituality for both practical theology (as science) and the church (as organisation) will be debated in this article. In this article, it is accepted that workplace spirituality is not the same as religion even though the two concepts are not disjoint. This article first attends to workplace spirituality and then to the role of practical theology in workplace spirituality. Based on the discussion of the difference between religion and spirituality, and what spirituality is, including the dimensions of spirituality, the working definition used in this article is that workplace spirituality engenders spiritual growth and development of employees which creates purpose, meaning, and community within the organisational context. In the part on practical theology, it is argued that practical theology has three domains, namely the church, society, and academia (or science). The study presents the perspective that the workplace is a study focus for practical theology. The practice of workplace spirituality should be studied in practical theology thereafter practical theology can develop a faith-based approach to spirituality. This can be useful to understand the construct and practice of faith-based workplace spirituality without the one faith tradition dominating over the other.     https://doi.org/10.19108/KOERS.87.1.253

Bridging the Divide in Cultural Capital? A Tale of Two Capitals

More critical approaches are required in understanding the dynamics of creative economy and the interplay between its social, political and economic dimensions. Among the key contributions to the economic analysis of the creative economy are economist David Throsby, including his concept of ‘cultural capital’. This concept provides new ways of thinking of culture and value, primarily within a defined economic discourse. We also consider the work of Pierre Bourdieu on cultural capital and suggest that some form of synthesis of the two approach opens up possibilities. For one, such an exercise opens up debates within the academic discipline of economics, and secondly it allows fruitful interaction between economics and other social science discourses both disciplinary and transdisciplinary. It also provides us with understanding of the workings of the global economy and at a more abstruse level, to the ways in which contemporary capitalism is structured within the global economy.   https://doi.org/10.19108/KOERS.87.1.253

The The Push and Pull Factors of Teaching as a Profession – the Perceptions and Expectations of Student Teachers

Research has shown that despite the teaching profession being labelled an unattractive career, student teachers’ enrolment in South Africa  continues to rise annually. This study seeks to investigate why student teachers enrol for teaching in South Africa today. 222 first year studentteachers enrolled for education in a South African university participated in the study, which looked at the perceptions and expectations of student teachers in South Africa. A 91-item questionnaire was used to collect data, and the results indicate that these student teachers have more positive perceptions and expectations on the teaching profession than expected. The study recommends improvements in the education  and training environment in South Africa in the form of introducing tax relief measures for teachers; intensified capacity building, and skillingof educators; re-imagining educators’ professional identity through improved professional virtue; improving safety and security in schooling environments; lessening what the author regard as pure administrative functions of teachers which add to the teaching workload; and having inplace effective and sustainable infrastructure development programmes. https://doi.org/10.19108/KOERS.87.1.251

Generaal JH De La Rey in Mei 1902: : ’n Bittereinder vir Vrede

General J.H. de la Rey in May 1902: a die-hard Boer opting for peaceGeneral J.H. (Koos) de la Rey was, according to historians, a Christian Afrikaner and a Boer aristocrat. Not only did he play a leading role in the Boer community of the old Transvaal – in the 1890s he was a well-known member of the Volksraad or highest governing authority in the South African Republic – but in the Anglo-Boer War of 1899–1902 he became a Boer general who distinguished himself by leading his burgers in attacks on British military structures and skirmishes on horseback. De la Rey became known as a military strategist of the first rank. In the run-up to the Anglo-Boer War, which started on 11 October 1899, De la Rey tried to avoid this war with Britain as long as he could. After the war became a reality, he gave himself for his country as a die-hard fighter or “bittereinder”: somebody who fights till the bitter end. Apart from his natural military abilities, General De la Rey had a soft spot and a feeling for stressed people. He helped badly wounded enemies and in May 1902, in Boer talks about peace, he listened with compassion to those Boers who had suffered much and pleaded for peace, convincing him that they had reached the end of their tether – literally the end of the bitter end.De la Rey did not speak much at meetings, but during the peace talks at Vereeniging from 15–31 May 1902, he urged and influenced his people to accept Britain’s peace proposals. In the end, De la Rey and the die-hard fighters among the Boers who had fought for their political independence against British imperialism fought for self-rule under British rule as soon as possible.De la Rey wanted the Afrikaner people to maintain their identity as a nation in new circumstances and not to be wiped out as a nation through the Anglo-Boer War. He died as a leader and a hero of his people in 1914. https://doi.org/10.19108/KOERS.87.1.2537  

Contemporary Orang Lom of Mapur Bangka: Religious Identity and its Transformation

This article investigates the construction of the religious identity of the indigenous Orang Lom of Mapur Bangka, Indonesia, and its transformation during contact with state formal religions of Indonesia. This research is ethnographically based on the observation and separate interviews involving key figures of the tribe, such as the Customary Chairperson, and the numerous members of the tribe. The result of the study indicated that Orang Lom still maintains their beliefs and the tribal cultural practice are still dominant. The contiguity between Orang Lom belief and formal religions particularly Islam has implications for non-sacred cultural practices, while sacred practices are still well preserved.   https://doi.org/10.19108/KOERS.87.1.253

The Role of Ethnopedagogy in Shaping Positive Attitudes towards Traditional Values of Kazakh People among Future Teachers in Kazakhstan

The aim of the research is to establish whether the attitudes held by master’s students majoring in Education towards the traditional values of the Kazakh people change as a result of studying an elective course in Ethnopedagogy. Based on an analysis of works by Kazakh researchers, a classification of the traditional values of the Kazakh people was made. On the basis of this classification, the authors developed a questionnaire to identify attitudes towards these values. A survey was conducted among master's degree students majoring in Education at S. Toraighyrov Pavlodar State University and L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University. The sample of the study was 119 people: 59 students formed the experimental group (the one where the elective course was taught), the remaining 60 were in the control group (that did not study the course). The survey was conducted twice: before the beginning and after the end of the course. The results of the first survey showed no statistically significant differences between the experimental and control groups. The second survey clearly showed positive changes in the attitudes towards the traditional values of the Kazakh people in the experimental group, while in the control group the results remained approximately at the level of the first survey. The authors came to the conclusion that it is necessary to strengthen the national and cultural components in the content of pedagogical education in the Republic of Kazakhstan. https://doi.org/10.19108/KOERS.87.1.243