Papers by Annalet van Schalkwyk
Missionalia : Southern African Journal of Mission Studies, Apr 1, 2002
My mother had the charism of bleeding for people. She would stand washing up at the kitchen sink,... more My mother had the charism of bleeding for people. She would stand washing up at the kitchen sink, the tears dripping from her cheeks onto her work roughened hands and trickling into the soapy water as she washed the dishes one by one. She wept for the people of the town and the people of the location; for the clinker-brick Dutch Reformed Church at the top of the main street and for the little whitewashed ""Dutch"" church on its dusty hill in the location. She wept for people ripped apart by wealth, poverty, selfrighteous religion, violent laws, prejudice.
Scriptura : international journal of bible, religion and theology in southern Africa, Jun 12, 2013
Sallie McFague uses the common creation story (or the postmodern scientific understanding of the ... more Sallie McFague uses the common creation story (or the postmodern scientific understanding of the earth and the cosmos as remythologised by ecological theologians such as Thomas Berry and Anne Primaves) to reinterpret the various phases in the Christian story, namely creation, sin, redemption through the death and resurrection of Christ, human agency and eschatology. She uses especially the metaphor of the Body of God to reinterpret the Christian story. To comprehend the significance of this central metaphor, one needs to investigate McFague's fine comprehension of metaphorical language, sacraments and thought processes as these relate to the (renewal of) worldviews. This also enables one to understand the confluence of sacramental theology and agential theology in her praxis-orientated methodology.
Religion and Theology, 2011
Abstract In a time of ecological crises with huge consequences for humanity and the earth system ... more Abstract In a time of ecological crises with huge consequences for humanity and the earth system which is a result of a mechanistic world view and human exploitation of the earth, there exists a serious need for a ecological, resacralised worldview of which an “ecological” concept of religion and spirituality is part. Eco-spirituality is then the direct consciousness and experience of the Sacred in the ecology which may serve as a sustained source for communities’ and individuals’ practical search to live sustainably from the earth’s resources. The story of Tim Wigley serves as an example of how this balance between eco-spirituality and ecological activism is possible.
Theology, Dec 10, 2012
A global ethics of care for humanity and the earth and the new creation story creates a viable co... more A global ethics of care for humanity and the earth and the new creation story creates a viable common ground for a praxis of interreligious dialogue. ‘The Journey of Doing Christian Ecotheology’, as part of an exercise to revise Christian theology in the light of the ecological crises, may be placed within such a larger interreligious endeavour to rethink the ecological responsibility of world faiths.
Religion and Theology, 2002
This article investigates the history of Christian patriarchy, misogyny and devaluation of the bo... more This article investigates the history of Christian patriarchy, misogyny and devaluation of the body, and the response of the feminist theological movement to this history; namely to reclaim the (female) body as sacred. It uses a metaphorical method to rediscover the goddess traditions as one of the main sources for such are-appraisal of the body as sacred. This is done because, in these ancient traditions, the female (and male) body was regarded as sacred, powerful and
Missionalia, 2019
The central thesis of this article is that the network of living relationships between community,... more The central thesis of this article is that the network of living relationships between community, ecology and land as understood by the Amadiba people of Xolobeni may be recognised as an integral part of the wider context in which public and ecumenical oiko-theology needs to be practised, during a challenging time in South African society. It is dealing with serious challenges regarding mining, land, economic development and communities' struggle to control their own livelihoods and destinies. As part of this article, the story of the Amadiba Crisis Committee's struggle to resist brutal mining and road development is told. This leads to a search for some pointers to guide public oiko-theologians to participate in the struggle for human rights and self-determination for communities threatened by mining. These are: i) a contextual analysis of government's engagement with ecology and economy from the perspective of the oikonomia tou Theou (the economy of God); ii) ecumenical cooperation with the groundswell of community organisations and NGOs who are working for justice for mining-affected communities, and; iii) possible ways of deepening democracy and keeping government accountable.
Journal of Theology for …, 2008
In this article, the author assesses the emerging South African oikotheology discourse in the con... more In this article, the author assesses the emerging South African oikotheology discourse in the context of the ecumenical oikotheology discourse as it relates to some Southern African women's experiences of the Divine in the ecology. The predominantly male South African oikotheology deals with economic and environmental justice issues in a post-1994 South Africa in the light of the threefold set of terms, ecumene, ecology and economy, which is derived from the Greek term oikos (household) as used in certain passages in the New Testament and in ecotheology. She does so in order to determine whether central themes of women's experiences of the Divine in the ecology can be accommodated in the unfolding oikotheology discourse and can relate to the central oikos metaphor in this debate. She then gives an overview of ways in which some Southern African women describe their identification with the Divine in the ecology as well as their work for sustainable communities. She identifies some of the central themes in these women's experiences and assesses how these themes critically interact with the oikos metaphor. By doing so, she adds a distinct ecofeminist / eco-womanist dimension to the unfolding oikotheology discourse in South(ern) Africa.
Journal for Semitics, 2014
An ecofeminist perspective is used to relate the Song of Songs, which was primarily written as a ... more An ecofeminist perspective is used to relate the Song of Songs, which was primarily written as a text on the physical relationship between a man and a woman, to the ecology. This is done by finding the overlap in meaning of the words "body", "lover", "beloved", "eros" and "erotic". In both a reading of the Song of Songs and in ecofeminist theology these words have great significance and are centred on an understanding of eros as not only an intensely intimate physical love relationship with a beloved, but also of a physical relationship of love and care between a human being and the ecology. In both readings the word eros has a sacred dimension which is of special significance in ecofeminist theology. This article was not written as a work of biblical scholarship, but rather as an interpretation of Song of Songs from an ecofeminist perspective, albeit with the assistance of feminist biblical scholars. In such an interpretation, Song ...
Sallie McFague uses the common creation story (or the postmodern scientific under-standing of the... more Sallie McFague uses the common creation story (or the postmodern scientific under-standing of the earth and the cosmos as remythologised by ecological theologians such as Thomas Berry and Anne Primaves) to reinterpret the various phases in the Christian story, namely creation, sin, redemption through the death and resurrec-tion of Christ, human agency and eschatology. She uses especially the metaphor of the Body of God to reinterpret the Christian story. To comprehend the significance of this central metaphor, one needs to investigate McFague’s fine comprehension of metaphorical language, sacraments and thought processes as these relate to the (renewal of) worldviews. This also enables one to understand the confluence of sacramental theology and agential theology in her praxis-orientated methodology.
My mother had the charism of bleeding for people. She would stand washing up at the kitchen sink,... more My mother had the charism of bleeding for people. She would stand washing up at the kitchen sink, the tears dripping from her cheeks onto her work roughened hands and trickling into the soapy water as she washed the dishes one by one. She wept for the people of the town and the people of the location; for the clinker-brick Dutch Reformed Church at the top of the main street and for the little whitewashed ""Dutch"" church on its dusty hill in the location. She wept for people ripped apart by wealth, poverty, selfrighteous religion, violent laws, prejudice.
Religion and Theology, 2011
South African Historical Journal, 1995
Religion and Theology, 2002
This article investigates the history of Christian patriarchy, misogyny and devaluation of the bo... more This article investigates the history of Christian patriarchy, misogyny and devaluation of the body, and the response of the feminist theological movement to this history; namely to reclaim the (female) body as sacred. It uses a metaphorical method to rediscover the goddess traditions as one of the main sources for such are-appraisal of the body as sacred. This is done because, in these ancient traditions, the female (and male) body was regarded as sacred, powerful and fruitful and the sexuality of the human body was accepted fully. The author then continues to investigate how three contemporary feminist theologians use this metaphorical approach and combine it with historical, psychological and exegetical approaches to rediscover and re-evaluate the sacredness and the goodness of the (female) body. By doing so, the author also assesses these theologians' understanding of Eros as that primordial life-force in the lives of women and men which include the spiritual-psychological, ...
International Review of Mission, 1994
The title given to me for this article presupposes a missiological orientation when looking at wo... more The title given to me for this article presupposes a missiological orientation when looking at women's issues in South African society. It is from this point that I will embark (with much unease, as I will explain later) to review women's lost place in the church and its (participation in) mission in the broader South African society. I come from a Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) missionary background, my father being a white "missionary" in the Dutch Reformed Church in Africa. The missionaries from my childhood, both women and men, impressed me equally with their commitment and their selfless love. I also remember that it was the black women's spirituality and service that, to a large extent, carried the Dutch Reformed Church in Africa-to say nothing of the fact that the women and children filled up the churches on Sundays, while the men scarcely filled the men's and the church council's benches. It was only later that I began to ask myself: Why do the women in the church work and pray so much, but are not to be seen in the church councilor in the pulpit? Why, if the mission of the Dutch Reformed Church was carried to a great extent by women supporters and missionaries, were they not allowed to serve on the mission commissions (sendingkommissies)? Was the fact that women could not become ordained ministers sufficient reason to exclude them? Why was even the vrouesendingbond (Women's Missionary Union) considered to be an aid to the DRC's mission, rather than a full partner in the church's missions? (see Cronje 1984:9-103). Moreover, why is it that the men of the general synod's Algemene Sendingkommissie (General Mission Commission) could formulate a "mission policy" in 1935, which to a large extent laid the foundation for the policy of apartheid in church and society-a policy that was futher developed and even biblically justified in following documents of the DRC? (Van Schalkwyk 1990:58, 78-80). These questions can be summarized by two basic questions: "What is the reason for the subdued silence of women in church and missions?" and: "What does this convey of the church and its participation in mission?" These two questions uncover the contradiction-in terms of discussing women's issues from a missiological starting point-that women have been * ANNALET VAN SCHALKWYK is a community development worker (and member) of the Dutch Reformed Church in Africa, Mfuleni-congregation (situated in the area surrounding Stellenbosch, Somerset West and Kuilsriver). She is also a part-time lecturer in Missiology at the Huguenot College of the Dutch Reformed Church in Wellington, Cape Province. She is presently engaged in doctoral research at the University of South Africa on the history of women in mission in South Africa.
Scriptura, 2012
Sallie McFague uses the common creation story (or the postmodern scientific understanding of the ... more Sallie McFague uses the common creation story (or the postmodern scientific understanding of the earth and the cosmos as remythologised by ecological theologians such as Thomas Berry and Anne Primaves) to reinterpret the various phases in the Christian story, namely creation, sin, redemption through the death and resurrection of Christ, human agency and eschatology. She uses especially the metaphor of the Body of God to reinterpret the Christian story. To comprehend the significance of this central metaphor, one needs to investigate McFague's fine comprehension of metaphorical language, sacraments and thought processes as these relate to the (renewal of) worldviews. This also enables one to understand the confluence of sacramental theology and agential theology in her praxis-orientated methodology.
Missionalia, 2019
The central thesis of this article is that the network of living relationships between community,... more The central thesis of this article is that the network of living relationships between community, ecology and land as understood by the Amadiba people of Xolobeni may be recognised as an integral part of the wider context in which public and ecumenical oiko-theology needs to be practised, during a challenging time in South African society. It is dealing with serious challenges regarding mining, land, economic development and communities' struggle to control their own livelihoods and destinies. As part of this article, the story of the Amadiba Crisis Committee's struggle to resist brutal mining and road development is told. This leads to a search for some pointers to guide public oiko-theologians to participate in the struggle for human rights and self-determination for communities threatened by mining. These are: i) a contextual analysis of government's engagement with ecology and economy from the perspective of the oikonomia tou Theou (the economy of God); ii) ecumenica...
HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies, Feb 21, 2014
The basic motivation for this article is to explore the critical, yet hopeful vision which urban ... more The basic motivation for this article is to explore the critical, yet hopeful vision which urban theologians-and specifically ecofeminist urban theologians-have for justice, reconciliation and abundance of life in urban Gauteng. This requires that urban spatiality, with its conflicting sides in a rampantly capitalist Gauteng, needs to be understood. It also requires an understanding of how urbanity and ecology may-yet so often do not-overlap. According to ecofeminist theologian Anne Primavesi, space and place needs to be understood in relation to the earth as the body of God-a web of interrelated and interconnected subjects and living beings which constitute the earth with its various ecosystems. This belies the established understanding that space and place is created mostly through the anthropocentric activity and mastery of people. Such an ecological understanding of space, place and urbanity leads to my exploration of a missiology of space as the manifestation of the presence of God in the spaces of nature and human civilisation. I conclude by proposing the practice of urban mission as making the liturgical and sacramental links between ecology, space, and the reclamation of urban space as sacred by Christian and other agents of urban activism.
Missionalia, 2019
The central thesis of this article is that the network of living relationships between community,... more The central thesis of this article is that the network of living relationships between community, ecology and land as understood by the Amadiba people of Xolobeni may be recognised as an integral part of the wider context in which public and ecumenical oiko-theology needs to be practised, during a challenging time in South African society. It is dealing with serious challenges regarding mining, land, economic development and communities' struggle to control their own livelihoods and destinies. As part of this article, the story of the Amadiba Crisis Committee's struggle to resist brutal mining and road development is told. This leads to a search for some pointers to guide public oiko-theologians to participate in the struggle for human rights and self-determination for communities threatened by mining. These are: i) a contextual analysis of government's engagement with ecology and economy from the perspective of the oikonomia tou Theou (the economy of God); ii) ecumenical cooperation with the groundswell of community organisations and NGOs who are working for justice for mining-affected communities, and; iii) possible ways of deepening democracy and keeping government accountable.
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Papers by Annalet van Schalkwyk