Papers by Nombulelo Tholithemba Shange
IGI Global , 2021
South Africa's recent higher education protests around fees and decolonizing institutions have sh... more South Africa's recent higher education protests around fees and decolonizing institutions have shone a spotlight on important issues and have inspired global discussion. We witnessed similar resistance during apartheid, where African languages and ideas were limited. The educational space was the most affected by clashes between languages and ideas; we saw this in the prioritizing of English and Afrikaans over indigenous African languages and the prioritizing of Western medicine, literature, arts, culture, and science over African ones. This chapter will show how formal education and knowledge production in South Africa has been used as a tool to repress Black people, while discrediting their knowledge systems. This discussion will draw from impepho, which is rejected by Christians because its main use is for communicating with ancestors. The herb has many other medicinal uses, but it is still rejected. African practices are used and revitalized by AIC like the Shembe Church and revolutionary movements like FMF.
Agenda Feminist Media , 2017
Feminist and womanist resistance in South Africa has not received the attention it deserves, cons... more Feminist and womanist resistance in South Africa has not received the attention it deserves, considering the sacrifice women made during the struggle for freedom. Today sadly not much has changed. Women within the Fees Must Fall (FMF) protest movement have been a little more successful in shaping their own narratives, but unfortunately our ancestors could not do this; so much of the information about their resilience has been lost. Social media today plays a huge role in ensuring that this no longer happens. This perspective piece discusses womanist resistance by drawing on historical examples of social, political and even religious groups created or largely influenced by women. The historical discussion of the Alexandra Women's Council, Bantu Women's League and individuals like Pastor Clarah Maphumulo is juxtaposed with contemporary struggles of young student female activists. This has been done through a discussion about the University of the Witwatersrand naked protest, as well as by highlighting gender inequality within FMF. This perspective also illustrates how recent Fallism protest actions owe their origins to Ubuntu, which informs so many of the Black Consciousness ideals which revolutionaries value. It also maps out how Ubuntu influenced early activism against Christian missionaries and empowered African women to resist Western domination at a time when it was dangerous to do so. The spirit and passion of women acting against Christianity in the 1900s and against the State in the 1950s are the same that shape contemporary womanist resistance.
The Shembe Church’s integration of African Traditional Religion and Christianity has been met by ... more The Shembe Church’s integration of African Traditional Religion and Christianity has been met by many challenges. This merger has been rejected by both African traditionalists and Christians. The Shembe Church has been met by intolerance even though the movement in some ways creates multiculturalism between different people and cultures.
This thesis documents the Shembe Church’s ideas and practices; it discusses how the Shembe Church combines two ideologies that appear to be at odds with each other. In looking at Shembe ideas and practices, the thesis discusses African religion-inspired rituals like ukusina, ancestral honouring, animal sacrificing and virgin testing. The thesis also discusses the heavy Christian influence within the Shembe Church; this is done by looking at the Shembe Church’s use of The Bible and Moses’ Laws which play a crucial role in the Church. The challenges the Shembe Church faces are another main theme of the thesis. The thesis looks at cases of intolerance and human rights violations experienced by Shembe members. This is done in part by looking at the living conditions at eBuhleni, located at Inanda, KZN. The thesis also analyses individual Shembe member’s experiences and discusses how some members of the Shembe church experience the acceptance of the Shembe religion in South African society. This thesis concludes by trying to make a distinction between intolerance and controversy. I try to highlight the idea that what many Shembe followers see as discrimination and intolerance towards them is sometimes a difference in opinion from other cultural groups. Sometimes these differences are not geared towards criticising other religious groups or perpetuating intolerance.
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Papers by Nombulelo Tholithemba Shange
This thesis documents the Shembe Church’s ideas and practices; it discusses how the Shembe Church combines two ideologies that appear to be at odds with each other. In looking at Shembe ideas and practices, the thesis discusses African religion-inspired rituals like ukusina, ancestral honouring, animal sacrificing and virgin testing. The thesis also discusses the heavy Christian influence within the Shembe Church; this is done by looking at the Shembe Church’s use of The Bible and Moses’ Laws which play a crucial role in the Church. The challenges the Shembe Church faces are another main theme of the thesis. The thesis looks at cases of intolerance and human rights violations experienced by Shembe members. This is done in part by looking at the living conditions at eBuhleni, located at Inanda, KZN. The thesis also analyses individual Shembe member’s experiences and discusses how some members of the Shembe church experience the acceptance of the Shembe religion in South African society. This thesis concludes by trying to make a distinction between intolerance and controversy. I try to highlight the idea that what many Shembe followers see as discrimination and intolerance towards them is sometimes a difference in opinion from other cultural groups. Sometimes these differences are not geared towards criticising other religious groups or perpetuating intolerance.
This thesis documents the Shembe Church’s ideas and practices; it discusses how the Shembe Church combines two ideologies that appear to be at odds with each other. In looking at Shembe ideas and practices, the thesis discusses African religion-inspired rituals like ukusina, ancestral honouring, animal sacrificing and virgin testing. The thesis also discusses the heavy Christian influence within the Shembe Church; this is done by looking at the Shembe Church’s use of The Bible and Moses’ Laws which play a crucial role in the Church. The challenges the Shembe Church faces are another main theme of the thesis. The thesis looks at cases of intolerance and human rights violations experienced by Shembe members. This is done in part by looking at the living conditions at eBuhleni, located at Inanda, KZN. The thesis also analyses individual Shembe member’s experiences and discusses how some members of the Shembe church experience the acceptance of the Shembe religion in South African society. This thesis concludes by trying to make a distinction between intolerance and controversy. I try to highlight the idea that what many Shembe followers see as discrimination and intolerance towards them is sometimes a difference in opinion from other cultural groups. Sometimes these differences are not geared towards criticising other religious groups or perpetuating intolerance.