Originally published as the author's dissertation (doctoral)--Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (p. i-vii [second set of roman numerals]) and index.

published_or_final_version / History / Master / Master of Arts

published_or_final_version / Journalism and Media Studies Centre / Master / Master of Journalism

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No description available.

The study focuses on the National Vision Discussion Document (NVDD) from Zimbabwe, and is a reflection of the need for, and the churches’ approach to, reconciliation in Zimbabwe. The analysis of the social context in which the NVDD was written sets the tone for this study, and provides the basis for discussing and constructing a deeper theology of reconciliation in Zimbabwe. Two criticisms of the NVDD are advanced, namely, the lack for a critical social analysis, and a weak theological reflection. In responding to the first criticism, the study undertakes a detailed analysis of three key areas of enmity, namely, the ethnic conflicts between the Shona and Ndebele, the racial conflicts between white and black centered on land, and the political conflicts between ZANU-PF and civil society and the MDC. In responding to the second criticisms, the theology is deepened through an examination of Miroslav Volf’s, Exclusion and Embrace, John de Gruchy’s, Reconciliation: Restoring Justice, the Kairos Document and the Belhar Confession. Reconciliation was seen to lie at the edge of two parallel truths; justice and forgiveness; truth and reconciliation. In conclusion, the study established the basis for a deeper theology of reconciliation, by focusing on three key areas: social dynamics, theological reflection, and practical and logistical steps to national reconciliation. For a deeper theology of reconciliation, seven levels for reconciliation were suggested: individual, social, cultural, institutional, political, theological and religious. From these seven levels, two strategies for the practice of reconciliation were suggested: ecumenical and strategic partnerships. It should be noted that events in Zimbabwe continue to progress at a rapid rate and the social context changes from week to week. However, these current events suggest that the study remains relevant for national reconciliation and theological praxis because of the abiding issues of conflict that cry out for reconciliation. / Thesis (M.Th.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2008.

This study serves to evaluate the effectiveness of the Catholic Church‟s prophetic voice in the post-independence Zimbabwe. It also serves to show that being prophetic is not enough unless this prophesy engages with the other. This study proposes a dialogical prophetic voice, which engages with the one to whom it is challenging. For the prophetic voice to be dialogical it has to be empathetic and being empathetic in this case points to the ability to understand the other party‟s perspective. Understanding in this context does not mean to sympathise or compromise but to be able to see through the eyes of the other party in dialogue in a bid to constructively challenge or criticize the other. This study suggests an Empathetic Dialogical method as central and foundational to an effective dialogical process. It also proposes Bonhoeffer‟s Church-State model as a conducive ground for an Empathetic dialogue. The study ultimately wants to show that the ineffectiveness of the Catholic Church in Zimbabwe to dialogue with the State is due to its predominately non-empathetic dialogical model. It (the study) specifically points to two trajectories: the first trajectory points to the Catholic Church‟s unwillingness to consult the State, while it has a tendency to prescribe for the State. The second trajectory lies in the failure of the Zimbabwean Catholic Church to speak with one voice, which consequently led it to compromise with the State. This study is informed by the suffering Zimbabwean people at the hands of a ruthless regime and a Church whose prophetic voice is ineffective. / Thesis (M.Th.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.

The Southern Baptist Convention has experienced both tremendous growth and intense turmoil in its relatively short history. After experiencing increasing internal conflicts throughout the late twentieth-century, a decade-long battle over the direction of the denomination resulted in a permanent schism within the Convention. The Shift, as I name it, forever altered the landscape of the Southern Baptist Convention. Notably, The Shift witnessed an apparent replacement of traditional Southern Baptist church-state separationism in favor of overt involvement in partisan politics. In this dissertation, I provide a historical sketch of the Southern Baptist Convention and explore the denomination‘s evolving positions on church and state by analyzing the Southern Baptist political rhetoric at the individual, agency, and Convention levels after The Shift. Considering the work of H. Richard Niebuhr, I argue that Southern Baptist participation in politics can be understood as an attempt to transform culture to a biblical worldview. However, drawing from the work of Richard Hofstadter and Kenneth Burke, I argue that the Convention struggles to achieve its goal because its political rhetoric is characteristic of the paranoid style and employs scapegoating to blame others for society‘s ills. This dissertation reveals that the Southern Baptist Convention suffers from a rhetorical problem of audience. I argue that while the denomination‘s political rhetoric galvanizes its conservative base, it alienates non-religious individuals, members of other religious faiths, and even some within the Southern Baptist Convention. I conclude that in order to be a transformative agent in society, the Southern Baptist Convention‘s political rhetoric must undergo a shift in topoi that has more universal appeal. Namely, I argue that the denomination needs to return to its ―Old Rhetoric‖ and, in doing so, appeal to choice, freedom, religious liberty, free exercise, and free expression.

Van Sendingkerk tot Verenigde Gereformeerde Kerk in Suider Afrika :1960-1997

Thesis (M. Div.)--St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary, 1989. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 114-116).