The prophetic voice of the South African Council of Churches

A weak voice in post-1994 South Africa

Bibliographic Data

ID23199274
AuthorsMookgo Solomon Kgatle (0000-0002-9556-6597, University of South Africa, corresponding author)
Year2018
Volume74
Issue1
Publication date2018-11-19
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueHTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0259-9422 • E-ISSN: 2072-8050
PublisherAOSIS (PUBLISHER • ZA)
DOI10.4102/hts.v74i1.5153
OpenAlexW2900484178
LanguageEN
Citations received8
References cited4

One of the factors that dismantled the apartheid system in South Africa was the prophetic voice of many religious leaders who emerged from ecumenical formations and fought the system by speaking truth to power. However, many scholars agree that the attainment of democracy in 1994 caused the prophetic voice to become silent. This article argues that the prophetic voice is not silent but rather weak in post-1994 South Africa. There are three reasons for this weakness: (1) the prophetic voice became part of the democratic government system, (2) the system swallowed it, and (3) the prophets retired without passing the baton. The article also seeks to highlight some of the recent events and national challenges in South Africa like Marikana, #FeesMustFall, State Capture, Life Esidimeni and Expropriation of Land, where the prophetic voice has been weak. Ways to strengthen the prophetic voice are proposed here as part of the recommendations.

Democracy · Expropriation · Government (linguistics) · Linguistics · Political science · Politics · Power (physics) · S Voice · State (computer science) · Biblical Studies and Interpretation · Christian Theology and Mission · History · Law · Philosophy · Religion, Society, and Development

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