Historiese teologie in ʼn veranderende konteks

In this contribution, the author reflects on historical theology as theological discipline. After a short introduction to the precarious situation of church history as a theological discipline in South Africa and the question of faith and history, the contribution presents an analysis of Gerhard Ebeling’s 1947 publication on church history in which he proposed that church history should be understood as a history of Biblical interpretation. Based on some of the principles Ebeling delineated, the author proposes that historical theology could be applied to five areas of research: prolegomena, history of the church, history of missions, history of theology and church polity. The point is made that historical theology, when properly structured and presented, could play a major role in enriching the theological and ecclesial conversation and in assisting the church in the process of reformation and transformation.http://www.hts.org.zaam2016Church History and Church Polic

Glass in the image – image in glass. preaching in fragments and fragments of preaching . . .

Schwier verwys na ’n ‘kritiese metodepluralisme’ wat te midde van die ‘vreemdheid van die teks’ onder meer ‘n blik het op die Bybel as literatuur; wat die rykdom van die Bybelse taal, motiewe, geskiedenisse, beelde, verhale, argumente en literêre strategieë ontgin; wat vra na die verskillende vorms en tekssoorte – wat die narratiewe, profetiese, voorskriftelike, wysheids- en himniese grondvorme van die Bybelse polifonie ondersoek; wat ’n oog het vir retoriek en metaforiese strukture. Naas die veelvuldige vorme van tekskritiek het die sosiaal-historiese, kultuur-antropologiese en kontekstuele of samelewings-betrokke ondersoeke wat gerig is op identiteits- en geloofsbegronding, sowel as verandering van die praxis, ’n wesenlike plek.E.K. (Universiteit van Suid-Afrika) was verantwoordelik vir die deel oor die homiletiek en W.K. (Universiteit van Pretoria) die deel oor die loodglasvensters. Beide dele is geïntegreer en verwerk deur die outeurs.The view that the sermon is an ‘open work of art’, promoted the awareness that the ‘meaning’ of a sermon is not fixed, but that possibilities are presented for the listeners to ‘assign meaning’. ‘Assigning meaning’ does not mean something fully ad libitum: ‘meaning’ is formed within the guidelines of the text from which a sermon stems. Visual works of art could also be based on Biblical texts or stories, analysed and interpreted by the artist. The artist could mould the encounter with the Biblical text into various forms of art, proclaiming the gospel in ways similar to that of a spoken sermon: a work of art could present possibilities for assigning meaning related to faith. In this article the new stained glass windows, symbolically depicting the Liturgical Year, in a Dutch Reformed church in Pretoria, are discussed with a view to the possibilities they present to form part of experience-based religious education in ‘bringing home’ stories from the Bible and aspects of the Liturgical Year. Also asked is how they could function as visual ‘sermons’, speaking and communicating the ‘Word of God’ to the people inside the church, as well as to people on the outside.http://www.hts.org.za/am201