Abstract:
The article is authored by the Dean of Faculty of Theology at the University of Pretoria,
celebrating the Faculty’s centenary in 2017. The exposition of the argument is unfolded on the
basis of Ricoeur’s threefold mimesis of prefiguration, configuration and reconfiguration. The
earliest decisive statement with regard to the nature of the Faculty, and which is eagerly
pursued, was made by the Rev. M.J. Goddefroy in 1888, epitomising theological training as of
academic deference, that is as a Faculty at a university and not a seminary. This has been the
fibre of Theology at the University of Pretoria and intellectual inquiry is an uncompromised
value. The article is a critical reflection on the past century and an orientation towards the next
hundred years, identifying the essence of what a real Pretoria Model could and should be and
looking ahead to the next century. ‘History is not a destination, but an orientation’, sounds like
a refrain in the article. The enterprise is contextual with regard to time and space. The
assessment is subsequently done in terms of this continent and this century, that is Africa and
the 21st century. The conclusion of the article is that the Pretoria Model fills a unique niche in
theological inquiry at public universities competing for a position among the top 500 on the
ranking of world universities.
