Thesis (M.A. (Political & International Studies)) - Rhodes University, 2009. / A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Politics at Department of Political and International Studies.

No description available.

Previous studies have demonstrated that Zulu Zionists remained peace-loving and politically quiescent in times of racial segregation and political injustice. Since then the political situation in South Africa has shifted dramatically and, despite the dismantling of apartheid structures and the unbanning of major Black political organisations, political violence and instability have becomethe order of the day. The main concern of this dissertation was therefore to explore the response of Zulu Zionists in Kwa Mashu to such a volatile political climate and to ascertain whether they can uphold their reputed apolitical attitude. It emerged from fieldwork, conducted in Kwa Mashu, Durban, over a period of 22 months, that their social boundaries, group cohesiveness and religious identity are threatened by the negative side-effects of an increased politicisation. Like their fellow township dwellers, Kwa Mashu Zionists are expected to take sides and are exposed to political propaganda and intimidation. Young Zionists, in particular, are prone to violate the apolitical stance of their church, for they are not only marginalized within their congregations but they are also the main object of political pressure and recruitment. However, it was found that the majority of Zionists successfully resisted being drawn completely into political participation and insisted on the retention of their religious values. Those who choose political partisanship defend their religious convictions and hold out against taking part in violent political competition. To counteract the intrusion of politically related damage and to prevent their youth from religious alienation, Zionists no longer exclusively emphasise the negative implications of politics but acknowledge the inevitability of being conscious about it. Zionists thereby reach an acceptable definition of politics which does not endanger group-cohesiveness and does little harm to their social boundaries. The conclusion reached in this study is that Kwa Mashu Zionists confront the encroachment of politics by transforming it into a harmless form of political consciousness. In this form Zionists can assimilate politics and employ it as an instrument for achieving their goals in the upliftment of the economic poor and the socially disadvantaged. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, Durban, 1993.

No abstract available. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Durban-Westville, December 1999.

The dissertation focuses on preaching in the context of selected African indigenous churches. The aim of the study was to explore sermon texts as a genre of oral communication. The gathering of data was guided by the hypothesis that the sermons that are preached in the African indigenous churches are composed orally and communicated orally. Three church groups were identified for the purposes of this study. Although the intention, at the planning stage of the study, was to study a mixture of Ethiopian, Zionist and Messianic-type churches, practical considerations and also because of socio-political factors, the study was limited to church groups of the Zionist and Messianic types. The research was carried out through the method of participant observation of services of worship, extended interviews with church leaders, preachers and congregants and also through the use of audio cassette recordings during nine months of field work in Edendale in Pietermaritzburg, Port Durnford near Mtunzimi and Ndabayakhe near Empangeni. A central finding of the study is that in the African indigenous churches a sermon is prepared and has a form (structure). The structure of the sermon is that of an oral text. The oral texture of the sermon is influenced by the following contexts: an oral tradition; the Bible which is a written source with a repertoire of texts' church tradition which is orally transmitted; and the life setting and experience of the congregants. It was also found that the sermon text is presented as a 'performance' involving both the preacher and a live, active, close audience. The study concludes that the communication of the sermon is influenced by the structural form of the sermon text, the ability of the preacher to use literary products and visual resources, and also by the participation of the audience. / Thesis (M.A.) - University of Natal, Durban, 1992.

The upsurge of religious movements and independent churches in the Global South is bringing a new twist to world economic development not anticipated by many theologians and social scientists. With a syncretic soteriology geared toward the liberation of the whole person, religious movements and independent churches of the south are preaching to their adherents, mostly the poor and the marginalized, a message of faith in an omnipotent and compassionate God who is concerned for their weal and woes and who offers them an assured and holistic salvation. By placing their faith in God, the poor and marginalized people are discovering their true selves and are saved/liberated. This assured salvation (certitudo salutis), which is a total liberation of the physical and spiritual world, becomes, in turn, the motivational energy for capital development. The Zion Christian Church (ZCC) soteriological predicament stands at this juncture. Through processes of syncretization and purification, ZCC has managed to deconstruct the European/North American and African Traditional Religions soteriologies to construct a pure soteriology that is relevant to the socio context of its adherents. ZCC deconstructs these soteriologies by broadening, for example, the classic Christian soteriogical theory of Christus Victor in her notion of sin, death and the devil and the African traditional soteriological notion of uBuntu and spirit-power. The purity, or holistic salvation, generated out of these processes serves as grounds for identity and economic empowerment of its adherents. With a holistic salvation that centers on healing, personal integrity and spiritual power, ZCC members have been able to achieve considerable success in the labour market by becoming an army of potential employees. They have also distinguished themselves in their work ethic, where they are seen as hardworking, disciplined, obedient and sober. Empowering its adherents economically through a religious soteriology, the ZCC has become an example of a trend that is shaping the Global South and is reviving the interest of social scientists and theologians to further investigate the impact of religious and theological formulations on the economic conduct of individuals. / Theology / D. Th. (Theological Ethics)

The upsurge of religious movements and independent churches in the Global South is bringing a new twist to world economic development not anticipated by many theologians and social scientists. With a syncretic soteriology geared toward the liberation of the whole person, religious movements and independent churches of the south are preaching to their adherents, mostly the poor and the marginalized, a message of faith in an omnipotent and compassionate God who is concerned for their weal and woes and who offers them an assured and holistic salvation. By placing their faith in God, the poor and marginalized people are discovering their true selves and are saved/liberated. This assured salvation (certitudo salutis), which is a total liberation of the physical and spiritual world, becomes, in turn, the motivational energy for capital development. The Zion Christian Church (ZCC) soteriological predicament stands at this juncture. Through processes of syncretization and purification, ZCC has managed to deconstruct the European/North American and African Traditional Religions soteriologies to construct a pure soteriology that is relevant to the socio context of its adherents. ZCC deconstructs these soteriologies by broadening, for example, the classic Christian soteriogical theory of Christus Victor in her notion of sin, death and the devil and the African traditional soteriological notion of uBuntu and spirit-power. The purity, or holistic salvation, generated out of these processes serves as grounds for identity and economic empowerment of its adherents. With a holistic salvation that centers on healing, personal integrity and spiritual power, ZCC members have been able to achieve considerable success in the labour market by becoming an army of potential employees. They have also distinguished themselves in their work ethic, where they are seen as hardworking, disciplined, obedient and sober. Empowering its adherents economically through a religious soteriology, the ZCC has become an example of a trend that is shaping the Global South and is reviving the interest of social scientists and theologians to further investigate the impact of religious and theological formulations on the economic conduct of individuals. / Theology / D. Th. (Theological Ethics)

A large number of Black patients seen by the mental health team in South Africa consult indigenous healers. An awareness of the diagnosis and treatment given to patients by traditional healers, would therefore enhance both the rapport with and treatment of those patients who seek help from the mental health professionals and para-professionals.

Regional community in southern Africa has been limited to the region’s states. As a result, deeper notions of community emanating from non-state actors, particularly transnational social movements, continue to be ignored. In an attempt to transcend state centrism, this thesis highlights alternative forms of regional community by exploring the Zion Christian Church (ZCC), one of southern Africa’s biggest and fastest growing cross-border movements. The ZCC is a potential agent for developing regional community from the bottom-up, driving a people-oriented regional integration approach in southern Africa. The ZCC, with its extensive following among the region’s poor, offers a compelling example of a grassroots and truly bottom-up approach to regional community. This thesis explores the possibility of the ZCC as a model of alternative community and identity centred on people’s daily experiences and grounded in a shared history and solidarity. It seeks to highlight the significance of transnational movements like the ZCC to policy makers in the region and it argues that grassroots communities are marching ahead of SADC member states and politicians in the area of integration. There exists a transnational cooperation amongst followers of the ZCC and other grassroots communities across the region and this cooperation transcends the traditional notion of state sovereignty, thereby highlighting deeper notions of what it means to be a community at regional level.

The study is about a Zulu male vocal tradition called isicathamiya performed by 'migrants' in all night competitions called ingomabusuku. This is a performance style popularized by the award winning group Ladysmith Black Mambazo. Isicathamiya, both in its symbolic structure and in the social and culturalpractice of its proponents has much in common with the ritual practices of Zionists. And Zionists are worshippers who integrate traditional beliefs and Christianity. This study will reveal that isicathamiya performance and Zionists are linked in three major areas:in the sqcial bases and practice of its proponents, in the structural properties of their performances and tn the meanings attached to these practices. Firstly, Zionists, who are also called a Separatist or African Independent church, and isicathamiya performers have minimal education and are employed in low income jobs in the cities. Most groups are formed with 'homeboy networks'. Furthermore, performers, unlike their brothers in the city, cling tenaciously to usiko [custom and tradition]. Although they are Christians, they still worship Umvelinqangi [The One Who Came First], by giving oblations and other forms of offerings. Amadlozi [the ancestors] are still believed to be their mediators with God. Also commonplace in this category is the practice of ukuchatha, [cleansing the stomach with some prepared medicine]; and ukuphalaza [taking out bile by spewing, which is also done as a way of warding off evil spirits]. These are rural practices that have meaning in their present domiciles. The second area of similarity consists in the structure of the nocturnal gatherings that form the core of the ritual and performance practices among isicathamiya singers and Zionists. Thus, a core of the ritual of Zionists is umlindelo [night vigil] which takes place every weekend from about 8 at night until the following day. Likewise, isicathamiya performers have competitions every Saturday evening from 8 at night until about 11 am the following day. Although Zionists night vigils are liturgical and isicathamiya competitions secular, the structures of both isicathamiya choreography and Zionists body movements appear the same. These movements are both rooted in a variety of traditional styles called ingoma. Thirdly, the meanings attached to these symbolic correspondences must be looked for in the selective appropriation of practices and beliefs taken to be traditional. Using present day commentaries in song and movement, ingoma and other rural styles performed in competitions and Zionists night vigils reflect a reconstruction of the past. Isicathamiya performers and Zionists see themselves as custodians of Zulu tradition, keeping Zulu ethnicity alive in the urban environment. This is why in this study we are going to see rural styles like ingoma, isifekezeli [war drills], ukusina [solo dancing] that were performed on the fields, now performed, sort of feigned and 'held in' as they are p~rformed in dance halls with wooden stages.