The other side of whiteness : the Dutch Reformed Church and the search for a theology of racial reconciliation in the afterlife of apartheid
Date
2021-01-18
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Pieter de Waal Neethling Trust
Abstract
This article will provide an overview and analysis of developments in the Dutch Reformed Church's (DRC) General Synod concerning race, racism, and racial reconciliation from 1986 until 2019. It seeks to extend the multiple accounts of the DRC's adoption and rejection of apartheid theology by tracing its further attempts at grappling with questions of racism during and after the transition to democracy, into the present. Three primary discourses are explored, namely the search for an inclusive ecclesiology, the commitment to community involvement in the reconstruction of South Africa after apartheid, and the transformation of interpersonal ethics towards greater respect and care for others. Thereafter, the article highlights four territories that remain largely unexplored within the DRC in the past quarter of a century and argues for their future exploration. These trajectories could contribute to a deeper transformation and conversion from the white Christianity historically tied to the DRC.
Description
CITATION: Van der Riet, L. R. & Van Wyngaard, C. G. J. 2021. The other side of whiteness : the Dutch Reformed Church and the search for a theology of racial reconciliation in the afterlife of apartheid. Stellenbosch Theological Journal, 7(1):1–25, doi:10.17570/stj.2021.v7n1.t2.
The original publication is available at https://ojs.reformedjournals.co.za
The original publication is available at https://ojs.reformedjournals.co.za
Keywords
Apartheid, Reconciliation, Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk
Citation
Van der Riet, L. R. & Van Wyngaard, C. G. J. 2021. The other side of whiteness : the Dutch Reformed Church and the search for a theology of racial reconciliation in the afterlife of apartheid. Stellenbosch Theological Journal, 7(1):1–25, doi:10.17570/stj.2021.v7n1.t2.