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’n Vergelyking van Calvyn se 1545-Kategismus en die Heidelbergse Kategismus oor die Onse Vadergebed
Get PDFA comparison between Calvin’s Catechism of 1545 and the Heidelberg Catechism on their exposition of the Lord’s Prayer Several studies on the relationship between Calvin’s Catechism (1545) and the Heidelberg Catechism have already been conducted. However, the need for a study of a comparison between the two catechisms on the Lord’s Prayer was emphasised at the South African Calvin Research Conference in 2004. In the sixteenth century Reformation the Lord’s Prayer was a subject of considerable importance. Calvin wrote no less than eight different expositions of the Lord’s Prayer in his commentaries, catechisms of 1538 and 1545 and the different editions of his “Institutes”. In both the Geneva Catechism of 1542/1545 and the Heidelberg Catechism the exposition of the Lord’s Prayer forms an important part. A comparison of these expositions leads to the conclusion that the theological insights of John Calvin played a major role in the formulation of the Heidelberg Catechism. The Heidelberg Catechism is part of our Calvinist heritage and should still be used in the instruction of our children and confessed as our true and living faith
Why the fuss over Brown’s The Da Vinci code? The dynamism of \u27icons\u27 and the in/stability of meaning
Get PDFDan Brown’s book, “The Da Vinci code” (2003) and the sub-sequent motion picture by the same title (2006), have created a considerable stir within, but not limited to, Christian circles. The cause of the controversy is that, despite Brown’s overt pre-sentation of this work as fiction, it draws on figures, events and themes regarded in religious circles as sacred – most par-ticularly in Christian circles. Holy figures, events and themes are sensitive matters to believers: the meanings attached to them are regarded as essentially fixed, with connotations of perma-nence and eternity. Literature of many kinds, however, reinter-pret set meanings, loosening their perceived inflexibility, thus opening up a dynamism quite foreign to popular notions of definite meaning
The necessity of an integral Christian worldview: reconnoitring the challenges for influencing the unbelieving world
Get PDFChristians often conclude from the apostle Paul’s warning: “Do not be yoked together with unbelievers” (2 Cor. 6:14), that he condemns all contact with non-Christians and advocates total withdrawal from the world. However, Christians are called to “influence the world”. They need to find the fine balance between an exclusive and an accommodating Christianity. Being continously aware of and grounded in the Christian worldview will guide Christians to realise their calling to be “reformers” in all spheres of life. Christians are called to contribute to society’s transformation by means of a compre-hensive view of full-time service to God in every area of life. Christianity can only influence the world effectively if it is grounded in an integral Christian worldview and continually addresses the economy, politics, society, culture, religion, education and society as a whole. Flowing from the discussion, proposed guidelines for influencing the unbelieving world will be given at the end of the article
Mentoring novice researchers in higher education: a \u27communities of practice\u27 perspective
Get PDFThis article reports on the mentoring of novice researchers, in particular of women and black academics, at a South African higher education institution. The model used for mentoring was informed by a “communities of practice” perspective which used situated and constructivist learning theories as a conceptual framework. One mentor and eleven protégés were involved. The protégés were divided into three groups of two, four and five participants each. Each group functioned as a community of practice (CoP) and embarked on a research project of its own choice. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the mentoring model, and therefore it explains the participants’ views of their learning and development from a CoP per-spective. Data were collected by means of interviews and observation. The findings indicate how the development of the protégés from legitimate peripheral to more central participation was influenced by the university context, activities and rela-tionships in each CoP, and participants’ individual dispositions. Recommendations to improve the model and for further study are made
Die Kategismus van Calvyn (1545) en dié van Perkins (1590) – enkele vergelykings
Get PDFThe Catechisms of Calvin (1545) and of Perkins (1590) – some comparisons A comparison between Calvin’s Geneva Catechism (1545) and the Catechism of William Perkins, “The foundation of Christian religion” (1590), shows striking differences. These cannot be explained by means of an “anti-Calvinist” stance on the part of Perkins. On the contrary, Perkins regarded himself as a follower of Calvin, which means that a subtle shift occurred within the doctrine of the Calvinist tradition towards the end of the sixteenth century. A comparison of the two catechisms is used here to illustrate the change. By way of introduction com-parisons are made about the addressees and the content of each catechism. With the importance of the Reformation’s “sola fide” in mind, the central issue in this article concerns a closer look at the concept of faith in both catechisms
Die akademie in Suid-Afrika: ’n vervullende professie?
Get PDFAcademe in South Africa: a fulfilling profession? South African academics possess a collective value system. However, other value systems impact not only on their value system but also on their academic work. They typically find themselves working in an institutional, a national and an international context, each with its own hierarchy of values. A theoretical discussion of (the role of) values in the academic workplace is followed by an overview of the professional values held by South African academics as measured by means of the Changing Academic Profession (CAP) Survey, which was carried out in 2008. The survey revealed, for instance, a rift between the institutional value hierarchy and that of the academic profession. It can therefore be concluded that many South African academics seem to lead relatively unfulfilled professional lives, among others, because they find themselves working in an environment (various contexts) with many contradictions. These problems should be addressed for the sake of the well-being of both the academic profession and of the higher education sector
Taal en kerkeenheid: Calvyn se 1545-Kategismus in Latyn
Get PDFLanguage and church unity: Calvin’s 1545 Catechism in Latin In 1545 Calvin wrote a catechism. He defended the fact that he had done it in Latin, saying: “I judge it useful that there should be public testimonies, whereby churches which, though widely separated by space, agree in the doctrine of Christ, may mutually recognize each other.” Although he was constantly being accused by the Roman Catholic Church of being a schismatic, Calvin’s ecumenical intentions were above re-proach. At every opportunity he stressed the sinfulness of schism from a church that bears the marks of the true church. By the time of the Reformation Latin wasn’t regarded any more as a “holy” language, but as a role model for other languages. Although the reformers increasingly propagated the use of the vernacular in religious service, they still maintained cor-respondence with each other in Latin and wrote many of their treatises in this language. The art of printing presented the same phenomenon: both vernacular and Latin (especially academic works), were produced and distributed. Calvin’s “Catechism” of 1545, written in Latin, was soon translated into many languages, even into Greek and Hebrew. Thereby Calvin reached his goal of promoting unity of faith between the different reformation churches. The fact that the catechism was written in Latin gave it a special status as church-historical document: a symbol of Calvin’s hope for church unity
Teaching journalism prior to and after the demise of Christian higher education at Potchefstroom
Get PDFThis article explores how the step-by-step changes to the Potchefstroom University for Christian Higher Education (resulting in the merger with the University of the North-West to form the North-West University [NWU]) impacted on the teaching of journalism at the Potchefstroom Campus. It was particularly relevant in 2009, as 50 years of teaching journalism and other communication subjects were celebrated by the School of Communication Studies on the Potchefstroom Cam-pus of the NWU. The article thus also has a definite historio-graphical intention – more specifically as an attempt at writing micro-historiography. It aims to illustrate how a definite Christian perspective on journalism was substituted for a slimmer “value-driven” approach sans an explisit religious dimension. Although it has been suggested by the vice-chancellor that lecturers had the right to express their views in class (including views based on Christian principles), it is argued here that the termination of the formal Christian approach made it very difficult, if not impossible, for lecturers to continue as in the past. As a result of the value-driven approach professional and institutional ethical codes are now used as a basic point of departure. This, however, does not satisfy those who prefer a more fundamental Christian approach to journalism. It is suggested that if this reading of the situation was erroneous, perhaps those Christians with a more positive view of the “name change” could give clearer leadership on how Christian perspectives on science (and journalism) can realistically be accommodated in the curriculum