The contribution that Professor Pieter M. Venter has made to the study of the Old Testament during his academic and ecclesiastic career is reviewed. After a brief biographical introduction, the article surveys the development of his research interests, focusing specifically on his contributions to the study of wisdom literature, narratives and narratology, second temple literature, the formation of the canon, and Old Testament Theology. The review concludes with reference to his way of practising critical theology, taking full cognisance of research (...) into the linguistic, historical critical, narratological and ideological aspects of Old Testament texts, but always with a sensitivity for the needs of the church as interpretive community. (shrink)

In this review article, the book by J.H. van Wyk, Augustine: A study on the ethics of the church father from Africa is presented and discussed. Short overviews of the content of the six chapters are given. They are: Introduction – the necessity for a book on Augustine’s ethics in Afrikaans, Orientation – an overview of his life and works, Grounding – the relationship between dogmatics and ethics, Typology – the character of his ethics, Themes – marriage and sexual ethics, (...) political ethics and animal ethics, Findings – evaluation of Augustine’s ethics. Support is given to the argument that Augustine is an important forerunner to the Reformation. Information is provided on Augustine and the early years of the Reformation in Wittenberg. Critical remarks are made about the author’s understanding of the relationship between faith and works, dogmatics and ethics. The Lutheran understanding of this topic is presented as an important alternative to the Reformed version that is defended in this book. Finally, attention is given to Augustine’s ‘theory of the two cities’. Also in this regard advice is given from one of Luther’s publication. His exposition of Mary’s Song in Luke 1:46–55 is used as an example of how a witness to the government could look like. (shrink)

God, trust and doubt: The women in the concentration camps of the Anglo-Boer or South African War.Many books and articles have been written on the religious concept of the Afrikaner women who suffered in and survived the concentration camps during the Second Anglo-Boer War (1899–1902) in South Africa. It seems as if nothing has been written, though, on their image and understanding of God. This article is an attempt to close the gap in the research. These women’s understanding of God (...) was mainly shaped by the Old Testament. They saw the two Boer republics as the new people of God, elected to exist in freedom, as independent states. To them, God was the God of justice and righteousness, who will defend his chosen people from oppression. The defeat on the battlefield caused a crisis of faith among many women. The war diary of Johanna Brandt (née Van Warmelo) offers useful information about the women’s faith and the shattering of their faith. In the second part of this article, Lutheran perspectives on the God of the Bible and man-made idols are provided as a Christian alternative to the faith of our forefathers. The Psalms and the prophets are also revisited to point out the presence of God, as well as the ethical consequences of the Jewish-Christian religion. Contribution: This is probably one of the first articles written on women’s understanding of God, women who were confined to the concentration camps during the Anglo-Boer War of 1899–1902. The main emphasis falls on Johanna Brandt (née Van Warmelo), who was an assistant nurse in the Irene camp, on the outskirts of Pretoria. She formulated her and the other women’s belief in the God of justice. Their understanding of God motivated them to endure the hardships and thousands of deaths in the camps. (shrink)

Rape is an act of humiliation that leaves the survivors ashamed. They therefore often try and hide from others and rarely seek help. Informal discussions with female ministers revealed that some of them had counselled female rape survivors. A descriptive phenomenological study, aimed at exploring and describing the experiences of female ministers in counselling female rape survivors through individual interviews, was conducted. Six ministers were interviewed. They experienced the dichotomy of being a woman and being a minister during their encounter (...) with rape survivors. As women, they became emotionally involved in the suffering of the rape survivors, and as ministers they experienced that prayer and scripture reading in collaboration with counselling promote healing. They also experienced that rape survivors perceived them as approachable because of their gender, but less approachable because of their status as ministers. (shrink)

Wolfhart Pannenberg would have been 90 years old in 2018. This article is a tribute to his excellent contribution to the ecumenical debate on church unity and the importance to reach an agreement on the doctrine of justification. The first step is to explain Pannenberg's Lutheran understanding of church unity. Secondly, Pannenberg's contribution to mobilise understanding for the ecumenical efforts in coming to an agreement on the doctrine of justification is discussed. His efforts in convincing theologians that one cannot work (...) towards church unity while churches continue to condemn one another for having different views on doctrinal matters, receive special attention. Pannenberg's effort to convince his colleagues that one should approach these sensitive ecumenical matters from the perspective of present-day historical-critical thinking is also mentioned. The article concludes with a judgement on his approach and his success in these matters. (shrink)

Martin Luther and doing theology in the future. The Netherdutch Reformed Church of Africa prides itself for the fact that she has always appreciated the German-Lutheran tradition. The Reformed Theological College has for 15 years contributed to the appreciation of this tradition. This article wants to encourage the new leadership to keep this legacy alive. The main aspects of Luther’s theology are explained. These aspects are: prayer, meditation, constitation, grace of the Spirit, exegesis, and the use of other sciences in (...) understanding the Bible. Attention is also given to the subject-matter of Theology as well as the notion of humbleness. (shrink)