Research Articles (Centre for Contextual Ministry)

Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://hdl.handle.net/2263/4132

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Just housing : transdisciplinary perspectives from theology and the built environment
(AOSIS, 2024-11-20) Wabel, Thomas; De Beer, Stephanus Francois
In cities worldwide, housing is precarious. Local socio-economic environments can exacerbate existing social differences and exclusions, but can also contribute to alleviate these differences, and to foster high levels of social inclusion. This article introduces a special collection of articles asking how theology should contribute theologically to address the challenges of housing and human settlements. It derives from an assertion that theology and reflection on the built environment should engage each other, made concrete in this collection through exploring issues of housing justice. We explore the question of housing justice with reference to four related questions: (1) How can urban planning interventions enhance affordable, sustainable and aesthetically appealing housing for all? (2) What are the political, economic and legal conditionsimpacting on housing justice, and how can theologians engage in these spaces? (3) How can exclusionary or precarious conditions be addressed architecturally to contribute to ecological sustainability, aesthetics and affordability? (4) What are the dominant social imaginaries that mediate housing and settlement development, and how can theologians help foster inclusive and just social imaginaries? Examples from different countries, cities and socio-cultural contexts are introduced and reflected upon, seeking to identify conditions that enable affordable, sustainable and aesthetically attractive housing in an unequal and precarious world. INTRADISCIPLINARY AND/OR INTERDISCIPLINARY IMPLICATIONS : The article points out the relevance of a theological perspective on the housing problem. At the same time, the implications for architecture, urban planning and politics are addressed
Just housing : constructing a theological praxis-agenda in a (South) African city
(AOSIS, 2024-11-20) De Beer, Stephanus Francois; stephan.debeer@up.ac.za
Against the backdrop of Africa's urban revolution and the vastly unequal housing patterns in most African cities, this article argues for just housing to be a theological praxis-agenda. Drawing from a very local journey in one South African city, it considers David Korten's four generations of development as a possible framework to guide such a theological praxis-agenda in (South) African cities. INTRADISCIPLINARY AND/OR INTERDISCIPLINARY IMPLICATIONS : It proposes simultaneous actions of relief, development, advocacy and global solidarity, grounded in an immersed faith, if the church is to contribute to housing justice in African cities.
Polarisation beyond the pandemic? Fissures within the German public and the role of public theology
(University of Stellenbosch, 2024) Wabel, Thomas
After some initial background information on the relation of church and state in the German context, the article examines reactions by churches and other Christian groups in Germany to the Covid-19 containment measures. While representatives of mainline churches focussed on consolation in the crisis and support state measures, a minority of radical voices acted in a polarising way, offering interpretations in terms of spiritual warfare, betrayal of the gospel, and conspiracy theories, and regarding themselves as victims of health policy. It is argued that the Christian tradition is in itself ambiguous and can be used in destructive ways, and that clarification of concepts is a task of public theology. The paper concludes by pointing out opportunities for the contribution of religions to a critical assessment of the handling of this crisis in the state and society.
Interracial conflict and cultural division in Moreleta circuit : a quest for developing an inclusive missional church
(AOSIS, 2024-07) Fuku, Thozamile Abednego; Nel, Malan; De Beer, Stephanus Francois
Interracial conflict and cultural divisions have been a serious challenge in the church globally. Through the years there has been vast available literature about the phenomenon as it happens and this study will specifically explore it in the Methodist church at the Moreleta circuit in the City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality, South Africa. This article seeks to explore factors affecting developing an inclusive missional church. It aims to contribute to research in this area and suggests developing an inclusive missional church. It is presented as a qualitative study conducted in the churches of the circuit based on semi-structured interviews with some church leaders and pastors in the circuit. The study reveals some factors of interracial conflict and cultural divisions that contributed to the article. It shows that there are various factors affecting developing an inclusive missional in the above-mentioned circuit. This results in a generally unsatisfactory level of relationships. CONTRIBUTION: This article aims to contribute to research in the practice of developing an inclusive missional church in the Methodist church at Moreleta circuit. It hopes to also contribute to the Methodist church of Southern Africa as a whole.
Constructing an urban theology of liberation in South Africa today : a transdisciplinary praxis-approach in the interface between (urban) faith, politics and planning
(Southern African Missiological Society, 2023) De Beer, Stephanus Francois; stephan.debeer@up.ac.za
Urban theologising in South Africa has to solidify its intentionality, commitment, rigour, and outcomes if it is to contribute in liberating, constructive and transformative ways to the shape and content of current and future South African cities. This particular contribution articulates the importance of constructing urban theologies of liberation, reiterating the ongoing importance of liberationist praxis in considering South African cities, as millions of urban dwellers still experience profound “unfreedom.” Starting off by charting urban theologies as they evolved over the past 50 years globally, it insists that more needs to be done in the Global South, generally, and in South Africa, to expound our own urban theologies. It then provides the contours of an urban theology of liberation with reference to key elements. It indicates the validity of this approach in the intersections between faith, politics and planning. It suggests that collaborative and synergetic solidarities between different modes of doing urban theology of liberation might hold great promise for breaking cycles of urban misery and exclusion.
‘Housing’ as Christian social practice in African cities : centering the urban majority theologically
(MDPI, 2023-08-07) De Beer, Stephan F.; stephan.debeer@up.ac.za
Decent, affordable housing and secure housing tenure remain elusive for Africa’s urban majority. The urban majority is expected to live in self-help housing, reflected in the fact that 62% of African urban dwellers live in urban informal settlements. The inability to access safe, decent, and secure housing, and the reality that Africa’s urban majority is perpetually precarious, have a severe impact on Africa’s urban households and the well-being of individuals, families, and neighborhoods. This article articulates housing as a critical and urgent Christian social practice in African cities—an extension of the church’s pastoral and missional concern. It considers housing both as a product and a process: people need housing to live secure lives; yet, the process of housing is as critical as the outcome. It then proposes housing, as a Christian social practice, being engaged in (i) supporting precarious households; (ii) preventing homelessness; (iii) creating housing; (iv) supporting rightsbased land and housing movements; and (v) centering housing pastorally–liturgically. The article grounds itself in Jean-Marc Ela’s insistence on God’s presence ‘in the hut of a mother whose granary is empty’ and in Letty Russell’s ‘household of freedom’.
Urban Africa 2050 : imagining theological education/formation for flourishing African cities
(Sage, 2022-04) De Beer, Stephanus Francois; stephan.debeer@up.ac.za
Africa’s staggering rate of urbanization and the silence of religion or theology in response form the backdrop of this article. Africa’s urban futures, up through 2050, are considered through the lenses of fifteen African cities and theological institutions in these cities. I employ a set of research questions, seeking to contribute theologically to a body of knowledge known as African urbanism. The article imagines theological education/formation in response to Africa’s urban explosion through exploring flourishing cities as an organizing imaginary, but also through outlining concrete embodiments and prospects for reimagining theological education/formation in African cities.
African cities by 2063 : fostering theologies of urban citizenship
(AOSIS, 2022-12-21) De Beer, Stephanus Francois; stephan.debeer@up.ac.za
Grounded in a postcolonial, liberationist urban vision, this article lamented the theological and political paralysis of urban denialism that fails African cities and African urban populations. Considering different possible urban trajectories towards 2063 - ranging from floundering to flourishing, implosion to explosion, and apocalyptic disaster to complete rebirth - it then proposed theologies of African urban citizenship, as response. It sought to articulate a vision of citizen-driven African cities, remaking cities 'from below', through interconnected and intersectional urban movements. It considered urban citizenship not as the decent and orderly conduct of subjects of the nation-state but as the disruptive and transformative presence and participation of citizens of God's new city, breaking into cities across the African continent. While it bemoaned the absence of 'Africa's urban revolution' from mainstream theologies and politics practised in the African context, and the insufficient attention paid to it even by the Africa 2063 manifesto, it dared to evoke hope, in spite of evidence to the contrary. This should be viewed as a conceptual contribution, fusing literature study with deep urban immersion. CONTRIBUTION : Grounded in a postcolonial, liberationist urban vision, this article lamented the theological and political paralysis of urban denialism that fails African cities and African urban populations, contemplating theologies of African urban citizenship instead.
Change agency and urban vulnerability : theological-ecclesial paralysis or deep solidarity
(AOSIS, 2021-08-31) De Beer, Stephanus Francois; stephan.debeer@up.ac.za
Globally, cities respond differently to their most vulnerable urban populations, notably so during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. In the City of Tshwane, there seems to be a general paralysis of the church and theological education in relation to urban vulnerability. If the church and theological education are to participate as change agents to help transform urban vulnerability, a deliberate theological praxis and deep urban diaconate – in solidarity with the city’s most vulnerable realities – are proposed. This is done with reference to Harvey Cox’s assertion that the task of the church in the city is that of Diakonos and the provocations of Philippino liberation theologian, Daniel Pilario. CONTRIBUTION : This article proposes that urban vulnerability and various responses to it need to be reflected upon as a priority, much more deliberately, considering how the entire urban household (oikos) is at risk.
Theological education and African cities : an imperative for action
(Southern African Missiological Society, 2020) De Beer, Stephanus Francois
Africa’s urban explosion presents a clear challenge to the way theological education in Africa is done today. The backdrop of this article is a collaborative research project that involved 15 theological institutions across the African continent, contemplating what theological education and formation should look like, considering Africa’s current and future urban realities. It proposes paradigmatic shifts in theological education, grounded in thorough conceptual and hermeneutical self-critique. It explores various approaches to urbanising theological curricula and concludes with a call for a new kind of African urban apostolate
Homelessness and Covid-19 in the City of Tshwane : doing liberation theology undercover – a conversation with Ivan Petrella
(AOSIS, 2020-12) De Beer, Stephanus Francois
Ivan Petrella argues that the goals of liberation theology can sometimes be better served by doing it undercover. This article reflects on responses to homelessness during Covid-19 in the City of Tshwane, describing and reflecting upon it from the perspective of a researchertheologian as well as activist-urbanist. It employed two lenses in its reflection: Petrella’s notion of the ‘undercover liberation theologian’, as well as what is known as deliberative public administration theory, as possibly complementary approaches. It traces ways in which people of faith/theologians participated in the City of Tshwane through means other than explicit theological discourse. It implies that such engagement was not less theological but perhaps more strategic, describing that task of the undercover liberation theologian as that of making space, making plans, making known and making change. Ultimately, it calls for a subversion of suspect models of theological education, suggesting that it is in losing ourselves in the messiness of public processes and multiple solidarities with the poor, that the unfree might experience freedom, and liberation theological goals might find concrete expression. CONTRIBUTION: This article reflects on responses in the City of Tshwane to street homelessness during Covid-19. It unpacks the notion and role of the ‘undercover’ liberation theologian in local political processes, and how losing ourselves in public processes and multiple solidarities with the urban poor, might help gain freedom for the unfree.
A reflection on Vuyani Vellem's longing for liberation : a spirituality of life and freedom
(AOSIS, 2020-11) De Beer, Stephanus Francois; stephan.debeer@up.ac.za
Vuyani Vellem was insistent on fostering a spirituality that could ground and sustain resistance of death as expressed in multiple unfreedoms, and the quest for life and freedom in abundance. After naming a number of themes evident in the life of Vuyani – ranging from racism and pigmentocracy to the managerialist university and the shackled church – this article traces his reflections on a spirituality that embraces the cross, resurrection as rebellion and imvuselelo [revival] as the iziko [fire] that births a new political community. It considers the imvuselelo as both an exorcism and a reconstruction. In conclusion, the intersectionality of violences and oppressions, increasingly addressed in his work, is touched upon. And the charge he left us with, to connect spirituality and liberation – as moral imperative and integrative force – is considered for embrace. CONTRIBUTION: This article contributes an appreciative reflection on the spirituality of Vuyani Vellem that undergirded his Black Theology of Liberation. In contemporary contestations and discourses on race and racial justice, whiteness and oppression, and decoloniality, what is often absent is a clearly articulated spirituality of black liberation. Vellem helps us with that.
A practical theology of liberation : mimetic theory, liberation theology and practical theology
(AOSIS OpenJournals, 2020-10) Aguilar Ramirez, J.D. (Joel); De Beer, Stephanus Francois
In this article, the authors bring two personal journeys together: one author’s liberationist journey, sparked by a search for justice and liberation in the slums of Guatemala City, and the other’s lifelong commitment to practical theology and spatial justice in South Africa. A practical theology of liberation is the result of life experiences in countries of the Global South amidst the search for justice and liberation. The worlds that come together in this article are René Girard’s mimetic theory, liberation theology and practical theology. This article raises the question of the cross-contextuality of practical theology and the theological application of mimetic theory to develop innovative theological methodologies that respond to the collective woundedness of the urban context in the Global South. CONTRIBUTION: The main contribution of this article is the use of three seemingly different theological approaches in conjunction. This article opens the door to inform practical theology with René Girard’s mimetic theory and liberation theology.
Young people at the margins in Pretoria central : are the faith-based organisations making a difference?
(AOSIS Open Journals, 2019-12-13) Swart, Ignatius; Rabe, Marlize; De Beer, Stephanus Francois
The authors’ recent case study work in Pretoria Central as part of the international research project ‘Youth at the margins’ (YOMA) constitutes the focus of this article. From this vantage point, the authors offer a presentation of their research findings in order to ultimately answer the question ‘to what extent the faith-based organisations (FBOs) are making a difference in the lives of young people at the margins in this particular case study locality (Pretoria Central)’. The article begins by contextualising the lives of young people in Pretoria Central against the backdrop of far-reaching socio-economic, demographic and religious change in the area since the end of the apartheid era. After explaining the case study methodology and offering a brief profile of the research participants, the discussion then proceeds with a more detailed discussion of distinctive aspects of the case study findings. In the conclusion, the authors argue that the answer to the article’s guiding question seems to be a negative one when the reality of young people’s seemingly permanent structural exclusion is considered. At the same time, this verdict does not withhold them to also conclude with appreciative remarks about the role that churches and FBOs of the non-governmental organisation (NGO) type are playing with respect to marginalised young people in Pretoria Central.
Doing theology with children : exploring emancipatory methodologies
(AOSIS Open Journals, 2019-12-12) De Beer, Stephanus Francois; Yates, Hannelie
This article serves as an introduction to a collection of articles that explores emancipatory methodologies for doing theology and research with children. We focus on both the agency and the participation of children as an ethics and children’s rights imperative as well as the potential impact and outcomes of theology and research that focus on children. The article emphasises that such research should be preceded by an epistemological shift that recognises the validity of local, experiential and different knowledges while insisting on participatory approaches in generating and constructing knowledge. It emphasises a rights-based approach and provides guidelines for ethical and collaborative research with children, moving beyond the paralysis of an ethics conundrum. The life and work of Janet Prest Talbot, who embodies commitment to children’s rights, children’s participation, child justice and God’s joy over children forms a backdrop of and inspiration for this article.
Faith-based agency and theological education : a failed opportunity?
(AOSIS Open Journals, 2019-12-13) De Beer, Stephanus Francois; stephan.debeer@up.ac.za
After attending to shifts in the landscape of theological education at a public university in South Africa, this article explores the re-imagination of theological education as fostering faithbased agency. With reference to the (potential) role faith-based organisations play in response to developmental challenges in local communities, it then suggests a deliberate retrieval of faith-based sources – locatedness, voices, assets, agency and formation – in liberating theological education. It concludes with concrete curriculum recommendations for consideration.
Faith-based action and urban regeneration
(AOSIS Open Journals, 2018-11-19) De Beer, Stephanus Francois; stephan.debeer@up.ac.za
After describing the challenges, myths, exclusions and opportunities of urban regeneration, this article explores the potential interface between faith-based action and different forms of urban regeneration. Focusing on different South African cities, it considers how faith-based action could participate in regenerative urban work. Faith-based action will refer to the varied responses of churches and faith-based organisations to urban challenges and transitions. It interrogates whether faith-based action only represents many similar approaches that address urban problems superficially without mediating long-term, systemic change, or whether it indeed contributes to urban transformation in the sense of radical inclusivity and sociostructural spatial justice. Finally, it considers socio-theological sources that could potentially ground urban faith-based action theologically – such as an urban spirituality, an understanding of regeneration as integral liberation and mobilising socio-spiritual capital – whilst making a distinctive contribution to the processes of socially inclusive urban regeneration.
Change-making in a (post)apartheid city : an auto-ethnographical essay
(AOSIS Open Journals, 2018-11) De Beer, Stephanus Francois; De Beer, Wilna; stephan.debeer@up.ac.za
We reflect on living and doing ministry in a (post)apartheid South African city, negotiating ongoing demographic and sociopolitical transitions and discerning appropriate faith responses. We speak about the inevitability of these transitions, but then suggest that a view of theology and ministry as change-making is not inevitable but a vocation and art to be acknowledged, embraced and fostered. We argue for an epistemology from below or within, drawing from Parker Palmer’s notion of knowing as loving – in community – and reflecting on his idea that ‘to know’ is ‘to be known’. In stressing the importance of reading the city, we show how reading the city means to be read by the city too. It is in the journeys of ongoing self-awareness, and personal confrontation, change and conversion – in relation to issues of gender, race, location and class – that transformational urban imaginaries can be birthed. Finally, we reflect on urban change-making as a process of personal, communal, institutional and systemic transformation, happening on many different levels at the same time, through creating conditions and spaces for change to occur. It is an ongoing call for deepening our journeys in response to the overwhelming groans, of humanity and creation alike, for Gods’ urban shalom.
Born from below : urban regeneration through incarnational theological formation in Guatemala City and beyond
(AOSIS Open Journals, 2018-09-06) Ribbens, Michael; Van Dyke, Joel
This article sets out to describe the development of and engagement with a global training collaborative around the formation of urban ministry leadership committed to the act of loving cities and working for peace. The collaborative is an initiative of Street Psalms called the Urban Training Collaborative and each urban training hub has agreed to be shaped and formed by an Incarnational Training Framework (ITF). The ITF was constructed over a 20-year period in the midst of a global missional community made up of leaders from cities all over the world. The ITF is infused by an incarnational theology as interpreted from below and focused on the message, method and manner as exemplified in the life and mission of Jesus Christ such that messengers are free of fear and unleashed to love their cities and seek their peace. The Incarnation of Jesus Christ animates faith-based engagement around the complex issues of poverty, injustice, social inequity and violence, and shifts paradigms from scarcity to abundance, theory to practice and rivalry to peacemaking. To shed light on the practical outworking of an incarnational theology from below, we will critically reflect on Guatemala City as a case study to illustrate how the formation of a city-wide missional community was developed through engagement around the aforementioned ITF which led to the corresponding paradigm shifts and then subsequently seeding a global training collaborative
Urban social movements in South Africa today : its meaning for theological education and the church
(AOSIS Open Journals, 2017-11-27) De Beer, Stephanus Francois; stephan.debeer@up.ac.za
In the past decade, significant social movements emerged in South Africa, in response to specific urban challenges of injustice or exclusion. This article will interrogate the meaning of such urban social movements for theological education and the church. Departing from a firm conviction that such movements are irruptions of the poor, in the way described by Gustavo Gutierrez and others, and that movements of liberation residing with, or in a commitment to, the poor, should be the locus of our theological reflection, this article suggests that there is much to be gained from the praxis of urban social movements, in disrupting, informing and shaping the praxis of both theological education and the church. I will give special consideration to Ndifuna Ukwazi and the Reclaim the City campaign in Cape Town, the Social Justice Coalition in Cape Town, and Abahlali baseMjondolo based in Durban, considering these as some of the most important and exciting examples of liberatory praxes in South Africa today. I argue that theological education and educators, and a church committed to the Jesus who came ‘to liberate the oppressed’, ignore these irruptions of the Spirit at our own peril.

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