Christianity, art and transformation

CITATION: De Gruchy, J. W. 2020. Christianity, art and transformation. Acta Theologica, 40(29):29:6-27, doi:10.18820/23099089/actat.sup29.1.The original publication is available at http://www.scielo.org.zaIn this article, two papers, previously published in A Theological Odyssey. My Life in Writing (2014a), both based on Christianity, Art and Transformation (2001), are conflated. The first is a paper on "Christianity and Transformation" presented at a symposium on "Christianity and the Arts" at Andover - Newton Theological Seminary, Boston, 26 October, 1999. The second is a paper on "Art, Culture and Transformation" presented at the Conference on Arts and Reconciliation in Civil Society, University of Pretoria, 14-20 March 2005. ... some of the greatest works of art in the Western tradition have discerned and enabled us to see the beauty of God revealed on the cross (and) in the manger (De Gruchy2001:123). Theological aesthetics does not encourage flight from the world but assumes Christian participation in God's mission to transform the world (De Gruchy 2001:129).http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1015-87582020000200003Publisher's versio

Narrative theology in Religious Education

This is an Author's Accepted Manuscript of an article published in British Journal of Religious Education, 20 March 2013. Copyright © 2013 Taylor & Francis. Available online at: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/01416200.2013.785931This article advocates a pedagogy of Religious Education (RE) based upon a narratival framework informed by both narrative theology and narrative philosophy. Drawing on the work of narrative theologians including Stanley Hauerwas, the article outlines the nature of the framework, describes the four phases of learning that comprise the pedagogy, and explains how such an approach can overcome existing difficulties in how biblical texts are handled within RE. Working from the narrative assumption that individuals and communities are formed by reading, sharing and living within stories, it suggests that the pedagogy might encourage pupils to think about how the lives of Christians are shaped by their interpretations of biblical narratives, to offer their own interpretations of biblical and other texts, and to consider the stories – religious, non-religious or both – which shape their own lives. In so doing, the article moves away from a ‘proof-texting’ approach to the Bible towards one in which pupils are enabled to think about the significance of biblical narratives for both Christians and themselves

Reconciliation : Restoring justice

Minneapolisviii, 255 p.; 22 cm

Apartheid is a heresy

Michiganxx, 184 p.; 21 c

What has Lapland to do with Tshwane? Ethics as the bridge between dogmatics and historical contexts

This article explores the question: what does it mean to do theology in South Africa today? It does so in three parts based on a narrative account of the author’s relationship with Johan Heyns from 1972–1990. In the first, the focus is on the reasons for and the significance of the transition of the Dogmatologiese Werkgemeenskap, in which Heyns played an influential role to the Theological Society of South Africa, of which the author was president from 1987–1992. In the second, the author examines the reason for this transition by comparing the role of Beyers Naudé with that of Heyns in doing theology, the one working outside the white enclave of the DRC, and the other from within. He then examines the criticism of Heyns’s theology which was expressed by J.J.F. Durand and which gave rise to the title of the article. In the final part of the article, the author reflects on the narrative in responding to the initial question on doing theology in context today. He highlights the importance of social location, of the willingness to transcend boundaries, and the need to regard the task of dogmatics and ethics as an integrated whole in responding prophetically to historical contexts

What has Lapland to do with Tshwane? Ethics as the bridge between dogmatics and historical contexts

This article explores the question: what does it mean to do theology in South Africa today? It does so in three parts based on a narrative account of the author’s relationship with Johan Heyns from 1972–1990. In the first, the focus is on the reasons for and the significance of the transition of the Dogmatologiese Werkgemeenskap, in which Heyns played an influential role to the Theological Society of South Africa, of which the author was president from 1987–1992. In the second, the author examines the reason for this transition by comparing the role of Beyers Naudé with that of Heyns in doing theology, the one working outside the white enclave of the DRC, and the other from within. He then examines the criticism of Heyns’s theology which was expressed by J.J.F. Durand and which gave rise to the title of the article. In the final part of the article, the author reflects on the narrative in responding to the initial question on doing theology in context today. He highlights the importance of social location, of the willingness to transcend boundaries, and the need to regard the task of dogmatics and ethics as an integrated whole in responding prophetically to historical contexts

The humanist imperative in South Africa

CITATION: De Gruchy, J. W. 2011. The humanist imperative in South Africa. South African Journal of Science, 107(7/8), Art. #804, doi:10.4102/sajs.v107i7/8.804.The original publication is available at http://sajs.co.zaSouth Africa faces numerous crises – those in education, health, housing, crime and corruption come to our attention on a daily basis. There are also more fundamental issues that concern us – economic disparities, the destruction of the environment, ethnic divisions, the rule of law and the ‘national question’, namely our identity as South Africans in a non-racial and non-sexist democracy. The question ‘how can our fledgling democracy not only survive but flourish?’ continually exercises our minds.http://sajs.co.za/humanist-imperative-south-africa/de-gruchy-johnPublisher's versio