Re-examining a theology of reconciliation
What we learn from the Kairos Document and its pedagogical implications
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21492893 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Demaine Solomons (0000-0001-6514-0563, University of the Western Cape, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2020 |
| Volume | 76 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Publication date | 2020-06-08 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0259-9422 • E-ISSN: 2072-8050 |
| Publisher | AOSIS (PUBLISHER • ZA) |
| DOI | 10.4102/hts.v76i1.5843 |
| OpenAlex | W3028737898 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 8 |
| References cited | 4 |
This contribution is derived from a more extensive 2018 PhD study in which the contested nature of the discourses on reconciliation is explored. It provides a conceptual analysis of how reconciliation is understood in the Kairos Document (1985). Regarded as an outstanding example of a theological response to the problem of apartheid, what is often overlooked is the tension implicit in its approach which, in turn, has serious implications for how matters of social justice are understood and acted upon. Here, the need for political, economic and cultural liberation is emphasised. It is assumed that social justice can only follow upon liberation, and that reconciliation is only possible on the basis of following justice. In this contribution, I contend that those who take this approach are confronted with the danger of self-secularisation, of reducing the Christian confession to nothing more than an example of religious affiliation that may be tolerated as long as its particular claims are not foregrounded. The obvious danger, as may be the case with the Kairos Document, is one of being socially relevant without having anything distinct to offer. This, in turn, has serious implications for how its history and significance are approached pedagogically
Economic Justice · Epistemology · Kairos · Liberation theology · Nothing · Political science · Politics · Secularization · Social justice · Social science · Sociology · Christian Theology and Mission · Law · Philosophy · Religion, Society, and Development
Haunted by Reconciliation
Trading justice for peace? Reframing reconciliation in TRC processes in South Africa, Canada and Nordic countries
Reconstructing the history of doing Systematic Theology at UWC
Unity for Whom? Theological Reflections on South Africa’s 2024 Government of National Unity
Images of God in the South African Kairos Document (1985)
Revisiting the Kairos document after 40 years
Addressing systemic racism in South Africa
Theological Trajectories of Liberation- A Comparative Analysis of Liberation Theology and Integral Mission in Latin America and their Resonance in South Africa
| Unique citing works | 8 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1,6 |
| Citation span | 2021 - 2026 (6) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 7 |