This thesis provides a theological and exegetical reflection on the water and
environmental crisis in South Africa. The central aim of this thesis is to create a basis for
the formulation of an African contextual hermeneutic of the environment using the text of
John’s Gospel as a resource. This study will formulate and utilize an African contextual
hermeneutic of the environment to interpret John 7:37-39. This reading will focus on the
three poles of a contextual reading of a text, namely my context as a South African reader
concerned with water and the environment; a literary reading of the text against its own
historical context, and a dialogical appropriation of the text in response to the questions
of the South African environmental crisis. Out of this process, the study will identify
points of agreement between the African understanding of nature and Christian
approaches to nature in ways that can help in the formulation of an African Christian
hermeneutic of the environment.
The study conducts an overview of the water and environmental crisis both globally, and
in South Africa. In this area we look at the contributing factors of the rate of
environmental degradation and the possibility of clean water running out. Also we will
look at the African approaches to fertility and rain making and how their ethics towards
the environment can help in creating a Christian ethic of caring for the environment. This
will be linked to a study of the feast of Tabernacles as a background to reading John
7:37-39. in light of my concerns for the fertility of the earth and the assurance of
abundant rains. / Thesis (M.Th.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2012.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:ukzn/oai:http://researchspace.ukzn.ac.za:10413/8845 |
| Date | January 2012 |
| Creators | Thekiso, Mantima Hadiyo. |
| Contributors | Draper, Jonathan Alfred. |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | en_ZA |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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