Abstract:
The role of the laity is at the cutting edge of Christian missions today. The author conducted
a number of interviews and questionnaires to determine the status of the laity across
denominations of the Christian faith in South Africa. His findings are in a number of instances
startling: The picture of the laity, and what lay Christians in South Africa believe, run against
general expectations. Some suggestions and proposals on how to empower the laity in general,
and the churches of the Baptist Union in Southern Africa (BUSA) in particular, are made.
The underlining motive for the research is to encourage the BUSA churches to become truly
missional churches that make a difference in the world in which we live.
Description:
The article is based on the
first author’s PhD thesis on
The rediscovery of the role of
the laity in the mission of the
Church – with reference to
the Baptist Union of Southern
Africa (BUSA), Department
of Science of Religion and
Missiology, University of
Pretoria (April 2009), under
the supervision of Professor
P.G.J. Meiring.
