Pub Date : 2018-01-01DOI: 10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N2A13
E. Linenthal
{"title":"David Chidester: An Appreciation","authors":"E. Linenthal","doi":"10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N2A13","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N2A13","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":42808,"journal":{"name":"Journal for the Study of Religion","volume":"31 1","pages":"276-279"},"PeriodicalIF":0.1,"publicationDate":"2018-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"67489283","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2018-01-01DOI: 10.17159/2413-3027/2018/v31n2a6
Asonzeh Ukah
One of David Chidester’s long-term fascinations in the academic study of religion is his nuanced scrutiny of the sensorial features of contemporary religious life. Chidester uses an approach of multi-sensorial imagination of matter to investigate the plasticity and elasticity of religion to innovate and accommodate changing religious and spiritual desires and how such adaptions ensure the popularity of religious participation in a contemporary, technologysaturated society. Based on an ethnographic investigation of a new religious movement in Uganda, this essay mobilizes some of the analytical concepts developed by Chidester to think through the material dynamics of African religious life in the context of changing socio-economic, cultural, and political contexts of Africa.Keywords: David Chidester, Owobusobozi, Faith of Unity, post-Catholic, material religion, African religion
{"title":"'Everything is Plastic': The Faith of Unity Movement and the Making of a Post-Catholic Religion in Uganda","authors":"Asonzeh Ukah","doi":"10.17159/2413-3027/2018/v31n2a6","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.17159/2413-3027/2018/v31n2a6","url":null,"abstract":"One of David Chidester’s long-term fascinations in the academic study of religion is his nuanced scrutiny of the sensorial features of contemporary religious life. Chidester uses an approach of multi-sensorial imagination of matter to investigate the plasticity and elasticity of religion to innovate and accommodate changing religious and spiritual desires and how such adaptions ensure the popularity of religious participation in a contemporary, technologysaturated society. Based on an ethnographic investigation of a new religious movement in Uganda, this essay mobilizes some of the analytical concepts developed by Chidester to think through the material dynamics of African religious life in the context of changing socio-economic, cultural, and political contexts of Africa.Keywords: David Chidester, Owobusobozi, Faith of Unity, post-Catholic, material religion, African religion","PeriodicalId":42808,"journal":{"name":"Journal for the Study of Religion","volume":"31 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.1,"publicationDate":"2018-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"67489456","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2018-01-01DOI: 10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N2A9
R. Hackett
The article evaluates David Chidester’s Wild religion (2012) for what it teaches us about tracking and studying the ‘indigenous sacred’ in contemporary South Africa, and, by extension, in Africa more generally, and the diaspora. By adopting a more dynamic and open-ended approach to religion as a set of resources and strategies, Chidester provides critical insights on the production, appropriation, and interpretation of indigenous religious myths and rituals in the post-apartheid setting.Keywords: indigeneity, traditional religion, South Africa, symbols, heritage, dreams, media, education, politics, methodology
{"title":"Tracking the Indigenous Sacred, Chidester-style","authors":"R. Hackett","doi":"10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N2A9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N2A9","url":null,"abstract":"The article evaluates David Chidester’s Wild religion (2012) for what it teaches us about tracking and studying the ‘indigenous sacred’ in contemporary South Africa, and, by extension, in Africa more generally, and the diaspora. By adopting a more dynamic and open-ended approach to religion as a set of resources and strategies, Chidester provides critical insights on the production, appropriation, and interpretation of indigenous religious myths and rituals in the post-apartheid setting.Keywords: indigeneity, traditional religion, South Africa, symbols, heritage, dreams, media, education, politics, methodology","PeriodicalId":42808,"journal":{"name":"Journal for the Study of Religion","volume":"31 1","pages":"198-208"},"PeriodicalIF":0.1,"publicationDate":"2018-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"67489492","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2018-01-01DOI: 10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N1A13
R. Nicolson
My main question in this article is: Is there a place and a future for persons who still hold to the centrality of Christ, or of Jesus of Nazareth, in their lives, but who are agnostic about what traditional Christianity would hold to be central points of dogma or even about the existence of what Cupitt and others have called an ‘objective God’? My view is that the liberal theology which dominated the 1950s and 1960s has given way to more conservative and indeed near fundamentalist views in both Protestant and Catholic Theology. It is to be noted though, that within both evangelical and catholic circles, there is some evidence of a swing back to more liberal views. Most people in the Western world have however lost any link with the church or with institutional Christianity. Yet, according to polls, a surprising number still claim that they ‘pray’ and believe in a ‘higher power’. Movements such as the Sea of Faith, or Progressive Christianity attempt to hold on to Christian imagery and cultus while leaving open the question of whether the concept of God is any more than a human construction. Attendance at Cathedral-type worship where dignified ceremony and beautiful music leave the worshipper free to place his or her own interpretation on the words is steadily increasing. Given this state of affairs, my question is: Does this signify a new form of religious belief, more fluid and less linked to institutional dogma? Following James Fowler, my view is that the direction that the most mature form of faith, is that which acknowledges ambiguity and unknowableness in religious belief. Robert Ellwood also suggests that the Western post-Christian world is moving unto what he calls the ‘folk-religion’ stage where persons may follow many different religious beliefs and practices simultaneously in a syncretistic way without believing any of them in a literal sense, or alternatively believing them all, despite difference and incongruity. Is this the future of religion? Is there a future for a type of Christianity which still reads the scriptures, practices the liturgies, tells the stories but does not necessarily believe that Jesus is God incarnate or indeed that there is any God? These are the issues the chapter addresses.Keywords: agnostic, dogma, God, Liberal Theology, Protestant Theology, Catholic Theology, Sea of Faith, Progressive Christianity, cultus, ambiguity, folk-religion, incarnation
我在这篇文章中的主要问题是:对于那些仍然坚持基督或拿撒勒人耶稣为中心的人，在他们的生活中，他们是否有一个地方和一个未来，但他们对传统基督教将持有的教条中心点或甚至对Cupitt和其他人所说的“客观上帝”的存在持不可知论态度?我的观点是，在20世纪50年代和60年代占主导地位的自由主义神学，已经让位于新教和天主教神学中更保守、更接近原教旨主义的观点。不过，值得注意的是，在福音派和天主教的圈子里，都有一些证据表明，他们的观点又回到了更自由的立场。然而，西方世界的大多数人已经与教会或机构基督教失去了任何联系。然而，根据民意调查，令人惊讶的数量仍然声称他们“祈祷”并相信“更高的力量”。诸如信仰之海(Sea of Faith)或进步基督教(Progressive Christianity)这样的运动试图坚持基督教的形象和文化，同时对上帝的概念是否只不过是人类建构的问题留下了开放性。在庄严的仪式和美妙的音乐中，礼拜者可以自由地对歌词做出自己的解释，参加大教堂式礼拜的人数正在稳步增加。鉴于这种情况，我的问题是:这是否意味着一种新的宗教信仰形式，更加流动，与制度教条的联系更少?按照詹姆斯·福勒的观点，我认为最成熟的信仰形式，是承认宗教信仰的模糊性和不可知性。罗伯特·埃尔伍德还认为，西方后基督教世界正在走向他所谓的“民间宗教”阶段，在这个阶段，人们可以同时以一种融合的方式遵循许多不同的宗教信仰和实践，而不相信其中任何一个，或者选择相信所有的宗教，尽管存在差异和不一致。这就是宗教的未来吗?会有这样一种基督教的未来吗?这种基督教仍然读圣经，做礼拜仪式，讲故事，但不一定相信耶稣是上帝的化身，或者确实有上帝存在?这些都是本章要讨论的问题。关键词:不可知论者，教条，上帝，自由神学，新教神学，天主教神学，信仰之海，进步基督教，文化，歧义，民间宗教，化身
{"title":"O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness: let the whole earth tremble before him' (Psalm 96:9)","authors":"R. Nicolson","doi":"10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N1A13","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N1A13","url":null,"abstract":"My main question in this article is: Is there a place and a future for persons who still hold to the centrality of Christ, or of Jesus of Nazareth, in their lives, but who are agnostic about what traditional Christianity would hold to be central points of dogma or even about the existence of what Cupitt and others have called an ‘objective God’? My view is that the liberal theology which dominated the 1950s and 1960s has given way to more conservative and indeed near fundamentalist views in both Protestant and Catholic Theology. It is to be noted though, that within both evangelical and catholic circles, there is some evidence of a swing back to more liberal views. Most people in the Western world have however lost any link with the church or with institutional Christianity. Yet, according to polls, a surprising number still claim that they ‘pray’ and believe in a ‘higher power’. Movements such as the Sea of Faith, or Progressive Christianity attempt to hold on to Christian imagery and cultus while leaving open the question of whether the concept of God is any more than a human construction. Attendance at Cathedral-type worship where dignified ceremony and beautiful music leave the worshipper free to place his or her own interpretation on the words is steadily increasing. Given this state of affairs, my question is: Does this signify a new form of religious belief, more fluid and less linked to institutional dogma? Following James Fowler, my view is that the direction that the most mature form of faith, is that which acknowledges ambiguity and unknowableness in religious belief. Robert Ellwood also suggests that the Western post-Christian world is moving unto what he calls the ‘folk-religion’ stage where persons may follow many different religious beliefs and practices simultaneously in a syncretistic way without believing any of them in a literal sense, or alternatively believing them all, despite difference and incongruity. Is this the future of religion? Is there a future for a type of Christianity which still reads the scriptures, practices the liturgies, tells the stories but does not necessarily believe that Jesus is God incarnate or indeed that there is any God? These are the issues the chapter addresses.Keywords: agnostic, dogma, God, Liberal Theology, Protestant Theology, Catholic Theology, Sea of Faith, Progressive Christianity, cultus, ambiguity, folk-religion, incarnation","PeriodicalId":42808,"journal":{"name":"Journal for the Study of Religion","volume":"31 1","pages":"237-249"},"PeriodicalIF":0.1,"publicationDate":"2018-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"67489255","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2018-01-01DOI: 10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N1A14
Trevor L. Williams
This article focuses on a topic, that is captured in a question that Richard Dawkins raised in 1993: ‘What makes you think Theology is a subject?’ My view is that this question is a symptom of how Theology is under attack from many quarters today – from the fearful believers who see it as a threat to their faith, to the secularists who see it as a threat to truth. Foremost among the opponents is Richard Dawkins. Outraged by a donation to Cambridge for the study of theology, he contrasts the usefulness of science with the uselessness of Theology. The question though, is: What is Theology? In this chapter, I draw a distinction between Confessional Theology and Critical Theology. By Confessional Theology I mean the affirmation of an exclusive point of reference by which all other claims to authority and knowledge are judged. Thus Christians ‘confess Jesus Christ is Lord’, and Confessional Theology is the rational articulation of the Christian Faith from within the circle of Faith – the convictions, experiences, and hopes grounded in the story of Jesus and characterized by commitment and involvement. However, there are ways in which both scientists and theologians, and the two types of Theology, can go wrong. Keywords: Theology, Richard Dawkins, science, Confessional Theology, Critical Theology, Christian Faith
{"title":"What makes you think theology is a subject","authors":"Trevor L. Williams","doi":"10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N1A14","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N1A14","url":null,"abstract":"This article focuses on a topic, that is captured in a question that Richard Dawkins raised in 1993: ‘What makes you think Theology is a subject?’ My view is that this question is a symptom of how Theology is under attack from many quarters today – from the fearful believers who see it as a threat to their faith, to the secularists who see it as a threat to truth. Foremost among the opponents is Richard Dawkins. Outraged by a donation to Cambridge for the study of theology, he contrasts the usefulness of science with the uselessness of Theology. The question though, is: What is Theology? In this chapter, I draw a distinction between Confessional Theology and Critical Theology. By Confessional Theology I mean the affirmation of an exclusive point of reference by which all other claims to authority and knowledge are judged. Thus Christians ‘confess Jesus Christ is Lord’, and Confessional Theology is the rational articulation of the Christian Faith from within the circle of Faith – the convictions, experiences, and hopes grounded in the story of Jesus and characterized by commitment and involvement. However, there are ways in which both scientists and theologians, and the two types of Theology, can go wrong. Keywords: Theology, Richard Dawkins, science, Confessional Theology, Critical Theology, Christian Faith","PeriodicalId":42808,"journal":{"name":"Journal for the Study of Religion","volume":"34 1","pages":"250-259"},"PeriodicalIF":0.1,"publicationDate":"2018-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"67489269","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2018-01-01DOI: 10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N1A9
Munyaradzi Felix Murove
The main goal of this essay is to argue that in a multicultural and globalised world, the indigenisation of knowledge production has to be pursued in a way that demonstrates an element of inclusivity. To achieve this goal this article’s structure has three foci. Firstly , it is argued that the indigenisation of knowledge must be pursued under the presumption of a recognition that all knowledge is cultural or context specific to some degree. As such, the multicultural nature and plurality of knowledge systems formations should be acknowledged, as well as the fact that all knowledge production includes an aspect of the indigenisation of knowledge. Secondly , against this broader background, the argument for the indigenisation of knowledge in Africa goes hand-in-hand with the promotion of the intellectualisation of knowledge that is often regarded by Western scholarship as ‘primitive’, and thus redundant, in the face of modernity. This, however, is not only a universal for the production of all knowledge(s), but also foundational to all knowledge development, and should be recognised as such. Finally , given the plurality of knowledge formations, and the African celebration and development of its own knowledge formations, the quest for the indigenisation and intellectualisation of knowledge in African context, should be seen as a quest for the inclusionary appreciation of a multiplicity of global knowledges, whereby all knowledge is understood as context specific to some degree, and contributing to both local and general human wellbeing. This latter perspective implies a deliberately ethical stance, to the effect that in a globalised and multicultural world, no knowledge system should be privileged as superior to any other knowledge system, and none, regarded as inferior. Keywords: Indigenisation, knowledge, ethnicity, recognition, Africa, ethics, context, anthropology, recognition, multiculturalism, globalisation, inclusionnality
{"title":"Indigenous Knowledge Systems Discourse and Inclusionality: An Afro-Centric Quest for Recognition in a Globalised World","authors":"Munyaradzi Felix Murove","doi":"10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N1A9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N1A9","url":null,"abstract":"The main goal of this essay is to argue that in a multicultural and globalised world, the indigenisation of knowledge production has to be pursued in a way that demonstrates an element of inclusivity. To achieve this goal this article’s structure has three foci. Firstly , it is argued that the indigenisation of knowledge must be pursued under the presumption of a recognition that all knowledge is cultural or context specific to some degree. As such, the multicultural nature and plurality of knowledge systems formations should be acknowledged, as well as the fact that all knowledge production includes an aspect of the indigenisation of knowledge. Secondly , against this broader background, the argument for the indigenisation of knowledge in Africa goes hand-in-hand with the promotion of the intellectualisation of knowledge that is often regarded by Western scholarship as ‘primitive’, and thus redundant, in the face of modernity. This, however, is not only a universal for the production of all knowledge(s), but also foundational to all knowledge development, and should be recognised as such. Finally , given the plurality of knowledge formations, and the African celebration and development of its own knowledge formations, the quest for the indigenisation and intellectualisation of knowledge in African context, should be seen as a quest for the inclusionary appreciation of a multiplicity of global knowledges, whereby all knowledge is understood as context specific to some degree, and contributing to both local and general human wellbeing. This latter perspective implies a deliberately ethical stance, to the effect that in a globalised and multicultural world, no knowledge system should be privileged as superior to any other knowledge system, and none, regarded as inferior. Keywords: Indigenisation, knowledge, ethnicity, recognition, Africa, ethics, context, anthropology, recognition, multiculturalism, globalisation, inclusionnality","PeriodicalId":42808,"journal":{"name":"Journal for the Study of Religion","volume":"31 1","pages":"159-176"},"PeriodicalIF":0.1,"publicationDate":"2018-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"67489540","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2018-01-01DOI: 10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N2A0
J. Strijdom, Lee-Shae S. Scharnick-Udemans
{"title":"Materializing Religion: Essays in Honor of David Chidester","authors":"J. Strijdom, Lee-Shae S. Scharnick-Udemans","doi":"10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N2A0","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N2A0","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":42808,"journal":{"name":"Journal for the Study of Religion","volume":"31 1","pages":"1-6"},"PeriodicalIF":0.1,"publicationDate":"2018-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"67489553","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2018-01-01DOI: 10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N1A11
L. Kaufmann
The main question of this article, ‘Can Ethics be Taught?’, is a critical reflection on the years I spent in association with Prozesky developing and presenting ethics training modules to a broad cross-section of professional and other groups. It describes the component parts of the workshops, comments on the rationale behind them, and also provides an analysis of both strengths and weaknesses. In a sense this is a critique of the discipline of Applied Ethics, yet at the same time it offers a possible pedagogy for what Prozesky and I would call ‘ethics at the coalface’. Keywords: ethics, ethics training, workshops, strengths, weaknesses, Applied Ethics, pedagogy, integrity, moral/ morality, integrity, authority, culture, religion, case study
{"title":"Can ethics be taught","authors":"L. Kaufmann","doi":"10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N1A11","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N1A11","url":null,"abstract":"The main question of this article, ‘Can Ethics be Taught?’, is a critical reflection on the years I spent in association with Prozesky developing and presenting ethics training modules to a broad cross-section of professional and other groups. It describes the component parts of the workshops, comments on the rationale behind them, and also provides an analysis of both strengths and weaknesses. In a sense this is a critique of the discipline of Applied Ethics, yet at the same time it offers a possible pedagogy for what Prozesky and I would call ‘ethics at the coalface’. Keywords: ethics, ethics training, workshops, strengths, weaknesses, Applied Ethics, pedagogy, integrity, moral/ morality, integrity, authority, culture, religion, case study","PeriodicalId":42808,"journal":{"name":"Journal for the Study of Religion","volume":"31 1","pages":"207-223"},"PeriodicalIF":0.1,"publicationDate":"2018-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"67489192","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2018-01-01DOI: 10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N1A4
R. Venter
Contemporary religious and theological scholarship is acutely aware that different contexts result in different ways of thinking and speaking about God. This article situates God-talk intentionally in the present global and post-secular horizon and asks about the implications of this hermeneutical move. Mapping scholarly trends in this regard is a specific aim of the article, which is written from the perspective of Systematic Theology in conversation with the Study of Religion. The development of reflection on God in inter-religious theologies and in the so-called Trinitarian rediscovery is discussed. Two academic challenges are identified as part of a constructive proposal – a re-envisioning of the relationship between the Study of Religion on the one hand and Christian Theology and Systematic Theology respectively on the other at public universities. Possible future constructive avenues are suggested and the article proposes a minimalist way forward to engage the global and post-secular context, and highlighting an inter-subjective ethos, attention to discursive performances and the African context.Keywords: globalised world, post-secular world, God, Trinity, Systematic Theology
{"title":"Thinking God in a Global Multi-Religious Context: Trends, Challenges and Possibilities","authors":"R. Venter","doi":"10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N1A4","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N1A4","url":null,"abstract":"Contemporary religious and theological scholarship is acutely aware that different contexts result in different ways of thinking and speaking about God. This article situates God-talk intentionally in the present global and post-secular horizon and asks about the implications of this hermeneutical move. Mapping scholarly trends in this regard is a specific aim of the article, which is written from the perspective of Systematic Theology in conversation with the Study of Religion. The development of reflection on God in inter-religious theologies and in the so-called Trinitarian rediscovery is discussed. Two academic challenges are identified as part of a constructive proposal – a re-envisioning of the relationship between the Study of Religion on the one hand and Christian Theology and Systematic Theology respectively on the other at public universities. Possible future constructive avenues are suggested and the article proposes a minimalist way forward to engage the global and post-secular context, and highlighting an inter-subjective ethos, attention to discursive performances and the African context.Keywords: globalised world, post-secular world, God, Trinity, Systematic Theology","PeriodicalId":42808,"journal":{"name":"Journal for the Study of Religion","volume":"31 1","pages":"70-85"},"PeriodicalIF":0.1,"publicationDate":"2018-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"67489401","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2018-01-01DOI: 10.17159/2413-3027/2018/V31N2A8
Lee-Shae S. Scharnick-Udemans
In keeping with trends in the academy and the rapidly increasing presence, power, and persuasion of digital and electronic media on the African continent and in the global economy, the study of religion and the media in South Africa has become a flourishing field of intellectual inquiry. The expanse of the field in terms of approaches, both methodological and theoretical, demonstrates the multiple and complex interactions between religion and the media in a diverse range of societies and settings. In light of its recent history of apartheid and transition into democracy in the middle 1990s, when paradigmatic constitutional and political changes took place in which the relationship between religion and the media was reconstituted, the South African context, in particular, is ripe for exploring media technology and practices in relation to the political economy of the sacred. This essay pays tribute to David Chidester by testing the possibilities of his theory of ‘wild religion’ against two vignettes of wild media in South Africa. The first, characterized as TV is the devil explores the apartheid government’s pre-emptive religiously saturated ban on television. The second example, described as the devil is on TV assesses viewers’ responses to the television program, Lucifer. I argue that when read with Chidester’s theorization of the ‘wild ambivalence of the sacred’, these examples evoke the hitherto under-explored wild character of both religion and the media.Keywords: wild media, political economy of the sacred, religious diversity, media politics
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