36TH ASRSA CONFERENCE - NWU A… · 36th asrsa conference association for the study of religion in southern africa in partnership with edu-hright & hreid (nwu) religious freedom and

36TH ASRSA CONFERENCE

ASSOCIATION FOR THE STUDY OF RELIGION IN SOUTHERN AFRICA

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH

EDU-HRIGHT & HREID (NWU)

RELIGIOUS FREEDOM AND HUMAN RIGHTS:

LAW, EDUCATION AND CIVIL SOCIETY

27-29 AUGUST 2014, NORTH-WEST UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF EDUCATION SCIENCES

POTCHEFSTROOM

CONFERENCE PROGRAMME & ABSTRACT BOOKLET

2014

36TH ASRSA CONFERENCE – 2014 POTCHEFSTROOM (NWU)

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© ASRSA 2014

PO Box 392

Unisa

0003

Email: [email protected]


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PREAMBLE:

Dear ASRSA Members and Conference Delegates,

Welcome to the 36th Conference of the Association for the Study of Religion in Southern Africa

(ASRSA). This year’s Conference is co-hosted by EDU-HRight and HREiD (North-West University).

We have the privilege of congregating at North-West University (Potchefstroom) to discuss and

present findings on a pertinent theme, namely: Religious Freedom and Human Rights: Law, Education

and Civil Society. Through evidence embedded in narrative and reflection, Conference participants

will explore emerging trends and trajectories across three thematic areas vis-à-vis:

Religious freedom and human rights: Law

Religious freedom and human rights: Education

Religious freedom and human rights: Civil Society

In total we have 1 x ASRSA Presidential Address; 1 x Prestige Lecture (Open to the Public); 2 x

Keynote Speakers; 20 x Oral Presentations; 2 x Panel Sessions; and 1 x Business Meeting. This three

day Conference will certainly provide ample “food for thought” and reinvigorate old friendship as

you meet and network with ASRSA members and other delegates once again.

On behalf of the ASRSA Executive, I would like to place on record our appreciation to the colleagues

at North-West University (especially Anja Human) for their commitment and effort in making this

Conference a success.

So let’s get ready for a special time together!

Denzil Chetty

ASRSA Secretary


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WELCOME MESSAGE: CORNELIA ROUX

Dear Colleagues and Friends

Cornelia Roux Research Director: Faculty of Education Sciences

It is indeed a privilege for the Faculty of Education Sciences,

the Edu-HRight Research Unit and the HREiD-Research

Group to host the 36th Annual Conference of the Association

for the Study of Religion in Southern Africa at the

Potchefstroom Campus of the NWU. It is the first time that

this university will host an annual conference of ASRSA, and

therefore 27-29 August will be remembered as a highlight on

our 2014 research calendar. Members of this association

concentrate in their research not only on the diversities of

religions in Southern Africa, but contribute to international

research projects, collaborate with peers internationally and

disseminate research outputs in many different research

publications. ASRSA members are well known for

deliberating issues on religion in society. The 2014 theme of

the conference Religious Freedom and Human Rights:

Law, Education and Civil Society, is very timely, taking the

current religious and diverse world events into

consideration.

I personally want to welcome all our members and especially our guest presenters Prof Hermann Abs (University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany), Prof Abdulkader Tayob (University of Cape Town) and Prof Lourens du Plessis (North-West University), as well as all the panel members to this faculty. You will not only share your experiences and scholarly inputs with us, but will also enrich our environment with diverse thoughts and academic inputs. We are looking forward to fruitful and vibrant discussions. You are most welcome and I wish you all a pleasant stay in Potchefstroom.


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ASRSA PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS, PRESTIGE LECTURER AND KEYNOTE

SPEAKERS

ASRSA PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS:

SMIT, JA UNIVERSITY OF KWAZULU-NATAL

INTELLECTUALISING RELIGION: SOME CONTEMPORARY

CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES

Even though much of the intellectual fervor in the study of the

Humanities from postcolonial perspectives appear to have

subsided, this general theoretical framework appears even more

relevant today than the 1980s and 1990s. This is especially the

case in sub-Saharan Africa where the general conditions of state

can be described in post- and neo-colonial terms. Similar to the

past social theories that made such a significant impact on the study of religion, the case today is not

different. Focused on the notion of the contemporary intellectualising of religion in the Humanities,

this keynote address reviews some of the contemporary concepts and theoretical perspectives that

need to be considered when we study religion today. Amongst others, some of the key concepts that

will be dealt with are culture, hegemony, ideology, discourse, and habitus.

PRESTIGE LECTURE:

ABS, HJ UNIVERSITY OF DUISBURG-ESSEN: GERMANY

THE RELATION OF RELIGION, HUMAN RIGHTS AND

DEMOCRACY IN THE REALM OF EDUCATION

In my talk, I will first introduce the ideas of positive and negative

freedom of religion as two interdependent sides of Article 18 in

the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In order to show the

importance of religion in society I will show empirical findings

linking religiosity with central aspects of democratic citizenship.

Thereafter I will be presenting examples on how religious freedom is endangered by both state

agencies and particular civil individuals/groups in the context of education and schooling. These

examples will be taken from Europe and will illustrate how social actors use religion in order to

restrict the freedom of religion of other individuals. Finally, I will discuss various pedagogical

approaches to deal with freedom of religion in state schools within democracies.

(Photo Credit: UDE/Frank Preuss)


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KEYNOTE SPEAKERS:

DU PLESSIS, L NORTH-WEST UNIVERSITY (POTCHEFSTROOM CAMPUS)

AT THE INTERFACE OF RELIGIOUS RIGHTS IN A SECULAR

WORLD “THAT IS” - AND DESACRALIZED RIGHTS IN A

SPIRITUAL WORLD “TO COME”

The organisers requested me to focus my keynote address “on

the aspect of Law within the realm of religious freedom and

human rights” honouring the central theme of the conference.

In doing so, I shall pose – and engage with – a research question

in two parts (the one part mirroring the other): Firstly, does the

Constitution allow for an appeal to any one or more of the

religious rights it entrenches in order to attain a non- or even

anti-religious end? Secondly, does the Constitution allow for an appeal to any one or more of the

desacralized rights it entrenches in order to attain a religious end? Seeking answers to this binomial

and bipartite question holds the key to an increasingly profound understanding of the nature and

modus operandi of the legal and especially constitutional protection afforded to educational and

civil society rights. I shall conclude with examples (some of them in the form of “mini case studies”)

to substantiate any verifiable (or falsifiable) claims I make.

TAYOB, A UNIVERSITY OF CAPE TOWN

ISLAM AND HUMAN RIGHTS AND THE POLITICS OF

PUBLIC RELIGION

There is much debate on the appropriate role of religion

in the public sphere. Religion is regularly courted for

moral direction, but also castigated for its excesses. In

this paper I bring together a neglected insight of

Habermas on public religion and Wittgenstein’s approach

to ethics. The representative role of religion (Habermas)

helps us to grapple with the dilemma of religion in general and Islam in particular, and human rights

in the public sphere. It helps us to identify the challenges facing Muslims and human rights activists

in their quest for justice and good ethical conduct. But it also points to the limitation of the politics

of representation in which many Muslims are embroiled. Wittgenstein’s deliberation on ethics offers

a way beyond representation. In this perspective, the interface between human rights and religion

will not be negotiated through mutual representations, but through ethical engagement within and

between plural life forms.


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IMPORTANT NOTE TO PRESENTERS AND CHAIRS

Time Allocation: Keynote speakers = 60 minutes (45 minutes presentation & 15 minutes

discussion).

Individual papers = 30 minutes (20 minutes presentation & 10 minutes discussion).

Panel sessions = 10 minutes per presenter and 5 minutes for response.

Please upload all presentations on the provided laptop before your session commences.

Chairs, kindly ensure that all presenters strictly adhere to the time allocation.

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LIST OF PRESENTATIONS

[A] ASRSA PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS:

Smit, JA (UKZN)

Intellectualising Religion: Some Contemporary Critical Perspectives

[B] PRESTIGE LECTURE:

Abs, HJ (University of Duisburg-Essen: Germany)

The Relation of Religion, Human Rights and Democracy in the Realm of Education

[C] KEYNOTE SPEAKERS:

Du Plessis, L (NWU)

At the Interface of Religious Rights in a Secular World that is – and desacralized Rights

in a Spiritual World to come

Tayob, A (UCT)

Islam and Human Rights and the Politics of Public Religion

[D] PANEL PRESENTATIONS:

PANEL 1: RELIGIOUS FREEDOM AND HUMAN RIGHTS: FROM A LAW, EDUCATION AND CIVIL

SOCIETY PERSPECTIVE

Kok, A (University of Pretoria)

The Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act 4 of 2000: How

to balance religious freedom and other human rights

Respondent: De Wet, A (North-West University Potchefstroom Campus)

Ferguson, R (University of the Witwatersrand)

The Many “Faces” of Religious Freedom as Human Right in the Educational Sphere

Respondent: Roux, C (North-West University Potchefstroom Campus)

Clasquin-Johnson, M (University of South Africa)

Religion and Human Rights: Why Religion always Loses in the End

Respondent: Sukdaven, M (University of Pretoria)

PANEL 2: RELIGION, MEDIA AND HUMAN RIGHTS IN A DIGITAL ERA: INSIGHTS FROM A

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PROJECT

Chetty, D (University of South Africa)

Background and Contextualization of the Project

Strijdom, J (University of South Africa)

Framework and Conceptualization


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Clasquin-Johnson, M (University of South Africa)

Methodology

Mason, G (University of South Africa)

Approach to Data Analysis

Rafudeen, A (University of South Africa)

Some Insights from a Pilot Session in Cape Town

[E] PAPERS:

Agdhasi, F (University of Fort Hare)

Trans-Disciplinarity, Human Rights and Justice

Beyers, J (University of Pretoria)

Religion as Political Instrument

Chetty, I (University of Fort Hare)

Christian Zionism, Hermeneutics and Human Rights: A Case Study of ‘Christians United

for Israel’

Du Preez, P (North-West University Potchefstroom Campus)

Toward a Curriculum for Morality, Human Rights and Freedom of Religion(s) and

Belief(s)

Frahm-Arp, M (University of Johannesburg)

Pentecostal Charismatic Evangelical Churches, Social Media and the 2014 South

African Election: A View from Below

Jarvis, J (University of KwaZulu Natal)

Religious and Cultural Discourses and Gender Identity Capital: The Implications for

Classroom Practice/ Praxis

Kealotswe, ON (University of Botswana)

Civil Society: The Quest for Religious Freedom in Secular States

Mason, G (University of South Africa)

Is Samsāra Actually the Same as Nirvāṇa? A Critical Examination of Nāgārjuna’s

Provocative Understanding of Emptiness

Masondo, S (University of KwaZulu Natal)

Why Do You Hate Me so Much? - Exploration of Religious Freedom from the Perspective

African Religion

McDonald, Z (University of Cape Town)

Engaging Doctrine in the Pursuit of Citizenship through Religion Education

Muslim, C (University of KwaZulu Natal)

A Critique of Islamic Institutions and Emerging Trends of Voiceless Youth: Civic

Participation of Muslim Youth in Islamic Institutions

Ngale, SJ

Civil Religious Dynamics in Jose Craveirinha’s Aestheticized Nationalism

Nogueira-Godsey, E (University of Cape Town)

Afro-Brazilian Religious Heritage and Cultural Intolerance: A South-South Educational

Perspective

Parker, G (North-West University Potchefstroom Campus)

Of God or Ancestors?

Rafudeen, A (University of South Africa)

Human Rights Discourse and Neo-Liberalism: A South African Exploration


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Roux, C (North-West University Potchefstroom Campus)

Religious Freedom and Human Rights: Education, Tolerance, Intolerance, Respect –

Paradoxes and Realities in Religion Education

Scharnick-Udemans, L (University of Cape Town)

Religion on Public-Service Television in South Africa: Between Public Pedagogy and

Political Hegemony

Simmonds, S (North-West University Potchefstroom Campus)

Religious Freedom as a Human Right: Are Teachers Creating Cohesion or Contestation

in their Curriculum-Making?

Sukdaven, M (University of Pretoria)

The Ethical and Spiritual Project of Martin Prozesky: Influences and Interests

Vencatsamy, B (University of KwaZulu Natal)

Religion, Human Rights and Education: A Case Study of Boko Haram

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CONFERENCE PROGRAMME

27TH AUGUST 2014 (WEDNESDAY)

10h00-11h30 ARRIVAL AND REGISTRATION VENUE: FACULTY OF EDUCATION SCIENCES, BUILDING C6 HALL

11h30-12h30 LUNCH – VENUE: BUILDING C6 HALL

12h30-13h00 Opening Address and Welcome: Roux, C

13h00-14h00 ASRSA Presidential Address – Chair: ESACK, F (UJ) VENUE: BUILDING C6 HALL

13h00-14h00 Smit, J (UKZN)

ASRSA Presidential Address: Intellectualising Religion: Some Contemporary Critical Perspectives

14h00-15h30 Session 01(Education) – Chair: Strijdom, J (UNISA) VENUE: BUILDING C6 HALL

14h00-14h20 presentation

14h20-14h30 discussion

Nogueira-Godsey, E (UCT)

Afro-Brazilian Religious Heritage and Cultural Intolerance: A South-South Educational Perspective



Roux, C (NWU)

Religious Freedom and Human Rights: Education, Tolerance, Intolerance, Respect – Paradoxes and Realities in Religion Education



Du Preez, P (NWU)

Toward a Curriculum for Morality, Human Rights and Freedom of Religion(s) and Belief(s)

15h30-16h00 TEA/COFFEE – VENUE: BUILDING C6 HALL

16h00-18h00 Session 02 (Education) – Chair: Nogueira-Godsey, E (UCT)

VENUE: BUILDING C6 ROOM 113



Jarvis, J (UKZN)

Religious and Cultural Discourses and Gender Identity Capital: The Implications for Classroom Practice/ Praxis



McDonald, Z (UCT)

Engaging Doctrine in the Pursuit of Citizenship through Religion Education



Simmonds, S (NWU)

Religious Freedom as a Human Right: Are Teachers Creating Cohesion or Contestation in their Curriculum-Making?



Vencatsamy, B (UKZN)

Religion, Human Rights and Education: A Case Study of Boko Haram

18h00-19h00 TEA/COFFEE – VENUE: BUILDING C6 ROOM 113


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18h30 PRESTIGE LECTURE VENUE: BUILDING C6 HALL

18h30 SHERRY/JUICE

19h00-19h10 Welcome address and introduction of speaker: Roux, C (NWU)



Abs, HJ (University of Duisburg-Essen: Germany)

The Relation of Religion, Human Rights and Democracy in the Realm of Education

20h00-20h10 Acknowledgement: Smit, JA – President of ASRSA (UKZN)

20h10 REFRESHMENTS

28TH AUGUST 2014 (THURSDAY)


08h45-10h00 PANEL 1: RELIGIOUS FREEDOM AND HUMAN RIGHTS: FROM A LAW, EDUCATION AND CIVIL SOCIETY PERSPECTIVE

CHAIR: SIMMONDS, S

VENUE: BUILDING C6 HALL

08h45-08h55 Kok, A (UP)

The Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act 4 of 2000: How to balance religious freedom and other human rights

08h55-09h05 Ferguson, R (WITS)

The Many “Faces” of Religious Freedom as Human Right in the Educational Sphere

09h05-09h15 Clasquin-Johnson, M (UNISA)

Religion and Human Rights: Why Religion always Loses in the End

09h15-09h20 Respondent on Kok, A: de Wet, A (NWU)

09h20-09h25 Respondent on Ferguson, R: Roux, C (NWU)

09h25-09h30 Respondent on Clasquin-Johnson, M: Sukdaven, M (UP)

09h30-10h00 Open discussion


10h30-11h30 KEYNOTE 01 – CHAIR: SMIT, J (UKZN)


Tayob, A (UCT)

Islam and Human Rights and the Politics of Public Religion


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11h30-13h00 Session 03(General) – Chair: Beyers, J (UP)




Chetty, I (UFH)

Christian Zionism, Hermeneutics and Human Rights: A Case Study of ‘Christians United for Israel’



Kealotswe, ON (UB)

Civil Society: The Quest for Religious Freedom in Secular States



Rafudeen, A (UNISA)

Human Rights Discourse and Neo-Liberalism: A South African Exploration

13h00-14h00 LUNCH – VENUE: BUILDING C6 HALL

14h00-15h30 Session 04 (General) – Chair: Simmonds, S (NWU)




Beyers, J (UP)

Religion as Political Instrument



Parker, G (NWU)

Of God or Ancestors?



Muslim, C (UKZN)

A Critique of Islamic Institutions and Emerging Trends of Voiceless Youth: Civic Participation of Muslim Youth in Islamic Institutions


16h00-18h00 Session 05 (Human Rights/General) – Chair: Chetty, I (UFH)

VENUE: BUILDING C6 ROOM 113



Masondo, S (UKZN)

Why Do You Hate Me so Much? - Exploration of Religious Freedom from the Perspective African Religion



Agdhasi, F (UFH)

Trans-Disciplinarity, Human Rights and Justice



Ngale, SJ

Civil Religious Dynamics in Jose Craveirinha’s Aestheticized Nationalism



Sukdaven, M (UP)

The Ethical and Spiritual Project of Martin Prozesky: Influences and Interests

18h30 LAUNCH OF NWU FACULTY OF EDUCATION SCIENCES RESEARCH FOCUS AREA

PROGRESS OF RESEARCH UNIT



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29TH AUGUST 2014 (FRIDAY)


08h45-10h00 PANEL 2: RELIGION, MEDIA AND HUMAN RIGHTS IN A DIGITAL ERA: INSIGHTS FROM A COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PROJECT

CONVENOR: JAFFER, IE (UNISA)


08h45-08h55 Chetty, D (UNISA)

Background and Contextualization of the Project

08h55-09h05 Strijdom, J (UNISA)

Framework and Conceptualization

09h05-09h15 Clasquin-Johnson, M (UNISA)

Methodology

09h15-09h25 Mason, G (UNISA)

Approach to Data Analysis

09h25-09h35 Rafudeen, A (UNISA)

Some Insights from a Pilot Session in Cape Town

09h35-10h00 Open discussion


10h30-11h30 KEYNOTE 02 – CHAIR: KEALOTSWE, ON (UB)


Du Plessis, L (NWU)

At the Interface of Religious Rights in a Secular World that is – and desacralized Rights in a Spiritual World to come

11h30-13h00 Session 06 (General/ Education/ Media) – Chair: Ferguson, R (WITS)




Mason, G (UNISA)

Is Samsāra Actually the Same as Nirvāṇa? A Critical Examination of Nāgārjuna’s Provocative Understanding of Emptiness



Frahm-Arp, M (UJ)

Pentecostal Charismatic Evangelical Churches, Social Media and the 2014 South African Election: A View from Below



Scharnick-Udemans, L (UCT)

Religion on Public-Service Television in South Africa: Between Public Pedagogy and Political Hegemony

13h00-15h00 LUNCH/ BUSINESS MEETING – VENUE: BUILDING C6 HALL


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ABSTRACTS (PAPERS & PANEL SESSIONS)

AGDHASI, F (UNIVERSITY OF FORT HARE) TRANS-DISCIPLINARITY, HUMAN RIGHTS AND JUSTICE

This article focuses on the research niche area at the University of Fort Hare involving human rights,

science and justice considering the trans-disciplinarity nature of the issues involved. It also takes

into account the concept of religious freedom in the promulgation and application of laws in South

Africa. On one hand efforts are made through the legal instruments of data bank of finger prints and

DNA to identify and prosecute criminals, and on the other hand to preserve the human rights of the

generality of the population. It is shown how the legal instrument of the application of Radio

Frequency Identification is used to follow ex-offenders as a parole mechanism to reduce crime and

on the other hand the idea of the ever presence of God is used to train individuals to abstain from

crime. Throughout human history religions have been powerful instruments of monitoring human

conduct. Many of the technological advances and tools can now be used to curb crime.

BEYERS, J (UNIVERSITY OF PRETORIA) RELIGION AS POLITICAL INSTRUMENT

Religion can be an effective instrument in politics. This has been a phenomenon all over the ages

and different political contexts. Politicians utilise religion in order to gain political goals. This paper

wants to investigate the reasons why religion is such an effective instrument within politics. The

investigation is as much a historical investigation as it is descriptive. After careful analysis of

contexts, a deduction is made to reach an understanding of the reasons for the political abuse of

religion. The author identified through investigating two examples (i.e. politics in South Africa and

Japan) several elements to consider when discussing religion within politics: (a.) no separation

between spheres of existence, (b.) culture of religious participation in politics, (c.) politics and

religion touches emotional and sentimental chords, (d.) religion contributes to national identity, (e.)

religion in politics can cause a claim to divine approval of political decisions. In some contexts,

especially contexts subscribing to the African worldview, a holistic understanding of reality causes

that no separation is made between the different spheres of existence. Everything has to do with

everything. The interconnectedness of things makes it acceptable and even desirable for religious

considerations to be part of politics. People in different contexts have different histories of tolerance

of religion influencing political decisions. The South African and even Japanese contexts exhibit a

long tradition of acceptable use of religion within the political terrain. Religious and political

discourses touch upon deep human concerns. From a psychological point of view religious and

political decisions tend to be emotionally and sentimentally driven. The reason behind this is that

religion as well as politics becomes a core identity marker of human existence. Through following a

certain political trajectory, the continuation of the tradition of the ancestors is emphasised. The

interconnectedness of spheres causes religion to be a key identity marker in human existence.

Religion can be a cultural as well as political identifier. Nationalistic sentiments are re-enforced

through religion. By utilising religious jargon within the political discourse a subtle claim to divine

approval of political decisions is made. Opposing political ideas are discredited by indicating the

opposite through religious traditions. The author consciously decided not to investigate the

relationship between Islam and politics as different elements play a role in such considerations.


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CHETTY, D; STRIJDOM, J; CLASQUIN-JOHNSON, M; MASON, G; RAFUDEEN, A

(UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA) RELIGION, MEDIA AND HUMAN RIGHTS IN A DIGITAL ERA: INSIGHTS FROM A COMMUNITY

ENGAGEMENT PROJECT

In 2014 the Department of Religious Studies and Arabic in the College of Human Sciences (CHS) at

the University of South Africa (UNISA) initiated a community engagement project focusing on

“Religion, Media and Human Rights in a Digital Era”. This panel (consisting of the five members of

the project) will discuss the following: (1) A background to the emerging trends in religion and

media, and the institutional context in which community engagement is defined and prioritized as

part of academic engagement in society. (2) How did we go about to identify issues and case studies

related to human rights and religion from South African online news articles and discussion fora?

This will highlight a survey of critical steps. (3) The development of a manual, which entailed

experimentation to find the collaborative tools that suited both the participants and the nature of

the project. Google Docs and Apple Pages were eventually used. A trial run at placing the e-fora

findings in an online database may become a research project in its own right. (4) The

methodological approach, which combined an historical and correlation approach. These two

research methodologies are appropriate to the study because the data are social/historical in nature

and the study assesses the relationships between the various case studies. (5) Finally, we will

highlight our experiences from the first workshop, which took place at an Islamic college in Cape

Town and focused on the concept of freedom of religion. What was striking was how the

participants confidently espoused that concept to argue for the wearing of headscarves at school,

but how diffidently they treated the same concept when it came to recognizing Satanism as a

religion.

CHETTY, I (UNIVERSITY OF FORT HARE) CHRISTIAN ZIONISM, HERMENEUTICS AND HUMAN RIGHTS: A CASE STUDY OF ‘CHRISTIANS UNITED

FOR ISRAEL’

This paper addresses the hermeneutical challenge of Christian Zionism interpreting religious texts with a

selective premillennial dispensational hermeneutic to assert the human rights of one group at the expense

of another. Christian Zionism grounds itself on the interpretation that God has an on-going special

relationship with the Jewish people apart from the church. Jews have a divine right to possess the land of

Palestine. According to Christian Zionists, however, this divine right extends beyond the promise to

Abraham and becomes a command to every Christian to unreservedly support the modern nation-state of

Israel. To hold Israel answerable to any international law other than the interpretation of the Christian

scripture in the form of premillennial dispensationalism is to invoke God's curse on oneself. John Darby,

the founder of dispensationalism, is accused of creating a dualism that has since plagued the church and

now threatens the peace of the Holy Land. He postulated that, contrary to the messianic proclamation of

the one kingdom of God, there are two kingdoms, namely, an earthly, material kingdom promised to the

Jewish people and a spiritual kingdom promised to gentile believers. This viewpoint was promulgated by

the Scofield Reference Bible in 1909, and further entrenched by the Ryrie Study Bible in 1994. Christian

Zionism grew out of a particular selective hermeneutic of premillennial dispensationalism, which

originated in early 19th-century England. John Darby and Edward Irving emphasized the literal and future

fulfilment of teachings as the Rapture, the rise of the Antichrist, the Battle of Armageddon, and the central

role that a revived state of Israel would play during the end days. Present day dispensationalists would not


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necessarily agree with Darby but they do agree on the distinction between Israel and the church.

Accordingly, many of the Old Testament prophesies are yet to be fulfilled in the modern nation of Israel. It

is precisely this theology of the land that Christian Zionism grounds itself in. God has an on-going special

relationship with the Jewish people apart from the church. Out of this "subculture" has emerged John

Hagee, pastor of the Cornerstone Church in San Antonio, Texas, with 20,000 members, author of a number

of best-selling books and a television preacher who reaches millions weekly through Christian television.

Hagee has launched Christians United for Israel (CUFI). His annual CUFI Washington Summits have

attracted many high profile figures from mainstream American politics. John Hagee believes God’s plan for

Israel includes a nuclear war with Iran and pushing the Palestinian people into Saudi Arabia and Egypt. A

case study will be employed as part of a qualitative research methodology using a document analysis of

CUFI. Working from a postcolonial theoretical framework this paper will address the challenges of

Christian Zionism interpreting religious texts with a selective dispensational hermeneutic to assert the

human rights of one group at the expense of another.

CLASQUIN-JOHNSON, M (UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA) RELIGION AND HUMAN RIGHTS: WHY RELIGION ALWAYS LOSES IN THE END

While there are religious individuals and organisations that enthusiastically and consistently

promote Human rights, the main story arc of the last two hundred years has been one of religions

fighting one hopeless rearguard action after another against the spread of rights across global

society. There have been temporary setbacks for Human rights, and temporary gains for religion,

but on the whole, whenever religion and human rights clash over a sufficiently long period, religion

loses. This paper uses a historical model suggested by Trevor Ling (1920-1995) to contextualise the

conflict and extrapolate it.

DU PREEZ, P (NORTH-WEST UNIVERSITY POTCHEFSTROOM CAMPUS) TOWARD A CURRICULUM FOR MORALITY, HUMAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOM OF RELIGION(S) AND

BELIEF(S)

Curriculum structure and practice in pre-modern and modern contexts have demonized religions,

silenced the vulnerable and created a culture where human wrongs are ideologically justifiable. In

this chapter I will explore this statement and aim to justify a postmodern conception of curriculum

that is profoundly moral, human rights orientated, and that creates enabling spaces for human

beings to express their freedom of religions and beliefs. Such a conception of curriculum

necessitates that human rights and freedom of religions and beliefs should not exclusively be

addressed in Religion Education, but that they should be infused into the whole curriculum.

Furthermore, the aim will not be to investigate the nature of, and the relationship between morality,

human rights, and freedom of religions and beliefs. Rather, the aim is to generate a profound moral

curriculum theory that enables human begins to bring their private lives into the public domain

through expressing freedom of religions and beliefs, so as to better understand the life-worlds of

fellow human beings in a human rights culture.


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FRAHM-ARP, M (UNIVERSITY OF JOHANNESBURG) PENTECOSTAL CHARISMATIC EVANGELICAL CHURCHES, SOCIAL MEDIA AND THE 2014 SOUTH

AFRICAN ELECTION: A VIEW FROM BELOW

Over the last three decades Pentecostal Charismatic Evangelical (PCE) style churches have used

cutting-edge media technologies in their ministry. This paper shows how three PCE churches in

Gauteng used social media, particularly YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp to spread

messages about a Christian’s role in the 2014 elections. By analysing the messages of these churches

on social media the ideal of civic society and political engagement of these churches is brought to

the fore. All three churches believed that Christians should be politically active, pray for the

country’s leaders, vote in the elections and obey the rules of government. The

churches had different political reasons for supporting democracy which ranged from seeing

political engagement as a way to access government and municipal grants, to seeing themselves as

the ‘chaplains’ to those in the highest offices of government and thus able to influence the way in

which the country was governed.

FERGUSON, R (UNIVERSITY OF THE WITWATERSRAND) THE MANY “FACES” OF RELIGIOUS FREEDOM AS HUMAN RIGHT IN THE EDUCATIONAL SPHERE

This paper aims to critically discuss how religious freedom as a fundamental human right is played

out in the educational sphere. Religious freedom in education cannot however be understood

without making reference to how it is perceived and enacted in civil society. What constitutes

society’s understanding of religion and religious freedom and attitudes towards religious diversity

tends to spill over into the educational sphere, often spurred on by the media. In this paper I argue

that freedom of religion or belief has many “faces”. I attempt to name and problematize what I

perceive these “faces” to be and how these influence the inclusion (or non-inclusion) of teaching and

learning religions and beliefs in public education. I suggest that religious freedom without

limitations is more often than not, not the “face” that is presented in public education. Rather

religious freedom may, ironically, be oppressive, not serving the interests of the human rights

discourse required of a pluralist democracy. The perspectives on religious freedom and human

rights in education presented in this paper have been influenced by my work in teacher education

and subsequent exposure to the public school context. The aim of this paper as a contribution to a

panel discussion is to provoke rigorous discussion on what I perceive to be the limited contribution

that public education (and possibly also private) makes to understanding the meaning of religious

freedom and hence to promoting social justice.

JARVIS, J (UNIVERSITY OF KWAZULU NATAL) RELIGIOUS AND CULTURAL DISCOURSES AND GENDER IDENTITY CAPITAL: THE IMPLICATIONS FOR

CLASSROOM PRACTICE/ PRAXIS

Female teachers’ gender identities inform their approach to gender equality in their classroom

practice. A recent empirical study explored the lived experiences of patriarchy of selected female

teachers of Life Orientation situated in four provinces in South Africa. The findings show that the

participating teachers’ gender identity is shaped by their religious and cultural identities.


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The extent to which they have explored and negotiated the intersectionality between these

identities specifically, informs the way in which they approach gender equality in their classroom

practice. Working within a feminist paradigm, narrative inquiry was employed as the research

methodology providing the opportunity to hear the teachers’ voices in response to the master

narrative of patriarchy. Their responses could be heard in their self-narratives, both written for the

self and/or expressed to an external audience. An analysis of the data, specifically using the

theoretical lens of ‘identity capital’ and the Dialogical Self Theory, shows that the extent and

strength of a teacher’s ‘identity capital’ informs her adoption of a counter-position to patriarchy in

her personal, social and professional domains. Her ‘identity capital’ is either voiced or practised, or

voiced and practised in her personal, social and professional domains. It became evident that

typically, the extent and strength of a teacher’s ‘identity capital’ diminishes as she moves from her

personal to her professional domain. This paper argues that it is imperative for a female teacher not

only to voice, but also to translate a transforming gender identity into her professional domain

where, in her classroom praxis, she explores together with her learners, socially constructed gender

identities and the possibility of disentangling from these. Furthermore, the argument is made for the

inclusion of opportunities in initial teacher education programmes whereby safe spaces are created

for teachers to explore their self-dialogue (to an internal audience) and to share their self-narrative

(with an external audience). By doing so it is argued that teachers will be empowered to fragment

the master narrative of patriarchy and reconstruct their gender identity. This could possibly enable

them to move from classroom practice to classroom praxis with regard to issues of gender equality.

This paper concludes with a suggested model for the exploration of teacher gender identity which

could possibly be included in initial teacher education programmes.

KEALOTSWE, ON (UNIVERSITY OF BOTSWANA) CIVIL SOCIETY: THE QUEST FOR RELIGIOUS FREEDOM IN SECULAR STATES

This paper critically examines the concepts religious freedom, human rights and civil society. It then

critically discusses that which makes a state secular. The paper then discusses how religions, with

much reference to Christianity and African Traditional Religions (ATRs) are affected by the laws

made by secular states with regards to human rights and religious freedom. The paper gives most of

its examples from southern Africa with much focus on Botswana. The method of the paper is

historical in that the paper will demonstrate how religion and religions have always developed side

by side with states in southern Africa. From this historical approach, the paper discusses how

religious freedom and human rights have always related through the ages. With concrete examples

from Botswana, the paper will then demonstrate how religious freedom and human rights relate to

the secular state. The paper will conclude by showing whether religious freedom and human rights

are respected by secular states. The paper will critically conclude by arguing whether the religious

beliefs and practices of the civil society in relation to religious freedom and human rights do exist in

secular states. The theoretical framework of the paper is that of R. Jones who has argued that

religion has a dynamogenic quality which elevates individuals above their ordinary abilities and

capacities. From this standpoint, there is a great need for religious freedom as a human right and

that civil society should be free to express its religious beliefs and practices without any limitations.


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KOK, A (UNIVERSITY OF PRETORIA) THE PROMOTION OF EQUALITY AND PREVENTION OF UNFAIR DISCRIMINATION ACT 4 OF 2000: HOW

TO BALANCE RELIGIOUS FREEDOM AND OTHER HUMAN RIGHTS

The Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act 4 of 2000 (the Equality Act)

was inter alia promulgated to create a caring South African society. To achieve this goal, the

Equality Act prohibits unfair discrimination, hate speech and harassment on a number of prohibited

grounds, including religion, conscience, belief and culture. The Bill of Rights in the 1996

Constitution also prohibits unfair discrimination on these and other grounds. In addition the Bill of

Rights also contains rights such as the right to freedom of association and the right to freedom of

expression. All laws, including the Equality Act, must be interpreted in accordance with the spirit,

purport and objectives of the Bill of Rights. This paper briefly identifies possible challenges in

applying the Equality Act where the alleged perpetrator attempts to justify the discrimination, hate

speech or harassment based on his/her religious beliefs, freedom of expression and/or freedom of

association.

MASON, G (UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA) IS SAMSĀRA ACTUALLY THE SAME AS NIRVĀṆA? A CRITICAL EXAMINATION OF NĀGĀRJUNA’S

PROVOCATIVE UNDERSTANDING OF EMPTINESS

In this paper I will explore various possible ways of interpreting Nāgārjuna’s claim that a broad all-

encompassing understanding of emptiness leads to a clear appreciation of all things. For example,

some theorists place his assertion within a textual context and others place it in a historical context,

while others again explore the logic of the statement. This article examines three possible

interpretative models of what Nāgārjuna could mean by the interaction between conventional and

absolute knowledge: Model One – The Identity Model. Conventional knowledge is identical to

absolute knowledge, Model Two – The Equivalence Model. There is an equivalent relationship

between conventional knowledge and absolute knowledge, Model Three – The Nihilistic Model. Both

conventional and absolute knowledge are fundamentally indiscernible and therefore devoid of

meaning. Hopefully, by comparing the strengths and viability of the three models, this paper will

contribute to a better understanding of Nāgārjuna’s provocative claim that a clear understanding of

things is attainable through apprehension of emptiness. Further, I will posit that the best possible

model for understanding this claim is the equivalence model. But that does not suggest that the other

two models do not offer useful ideas in the interpretation of Nāgārjuna’s claim. It is, therefore,

important to consider the contribution of each model.


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MASONDO, S (UNIVERSITY OF KWAZULU NATAL) WHY DO YOU HATE ME SO MUCH? - EXPLORATION OF RELIGIOUS FREEDOM FROM THE PERSPECTIVE

AFRICAN RELIGION

It is a well-documented fact that African Traditional Religion was discriminated against by the

missionaries, as well as colonial and apartheid governments. African traditionalist and academic

Nokuzola Mndende pointed out that under these regimes the public profile of African knowledge

systems declined and African religion became an “underground praxis”. Historian of religion

David Chidester has documented a history of intolerance toward African religious traditions from

the time when settlers set foot on South African soil. Initially there was a denial that Africans had

a religion, based on the idea that Africans had no idea of a Supreme Being or God. Such an

assertion implied that Africans were at the same level as animals and therefore had no human

rights, thus justifying the seizure of land and oppression of Africans in general. Later there was

acceptance that Africans did have religion, but it was considered inferior, as it was ‘superstition’.

Section 15 (1) of the Bill of Rights says “Everyone has the right to freedom of conscience, religion,

thought, belief and opinion”. Ebrahim Moosa holds the view that the South African Constitution

has a dualistic view of religion, that is, religion as an abstract and unarticulated dogma and

religion as practice. The translation of belief into practice is severely limited by the constitution.

The constitution individualises religion and confines it to a private space. If religion appears in

public spaces it must be regulated in such a way that it does not interfere with the norms and

values of the secular state. Individuals can hold beliefs and put them in practice as long as they do

not violate the constitution or the law. This paper is a reflection of how African religion and

culture have experienced freedom of religion by looking at three cases; (1) Ethekwini

Municipality dealing the “dumping” of chickens and other items by the AICs and other traditional

practitioners in the beaches; (2) a Rastafarian family being forced to send their children to school

amid protestations about the content of the school curriculum; and (3) Jacob Zuma as a man who

openly embrace African traditions and culture

MCDONALD, Z (UNIVERSITY OF CAPE TOWN) ENGAGING DOCTRINE IN THE PURSUIT OF CITIZENSHIP THROUGH RELIGION EDUCATION

A foundational text on religion and education from South Africa purports that doctrine has no place

in religion education. Furthermore according to that text as well as the National Policy on Religion

and Education, religion education is meant to contribute to the understanding of diversity amongst

citizens. In addition the presence of religion and religious communities has been recognised in

scholarly literature. How one conceives of religion in education thus seems to be of critical relevance

in the pursuit of citizenship. John Rawls an eminent political theorist claims that comprehensive

doctrines, including religious ones, are essential for social cooperation via the development of an

overlapping consensus in plural or diverse societies. In view hereof this paper explores how religion

education could approach religious doctrine. In doing so the paper develops a framework for

doctrine drawing on the work of John Rawls and Max Weber. The paper illustrates the framework

from empirical experiences of religion. In view hereof the paper asserts that, in the pursuit of

citizenship, how religion education approaches religious doctrines requires further exploration.


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MUSLIM, C (UNIVERSITY OF KWAZULU NATAL) A CRITIQUE OF ISLAMIC INSTITUTIONS AND EMERGING TRENDS OF VOICELESS YOUTH: CIVIC

PARTICIPATION OF MUSLIM YOUTH IN ISLAMIC INSTITUTIONS

This paper provides a critique of the civic participation of Muslim youth in Islamic Institutions in

Durban in a post-democratic South African context. After having informal class discussions with

students, I became aware that many Muslim youth attending the University of KwaZulu-Natal

(UKZN) were not active in the Islamic Institutions/organisations in Durban. Under Apartheid, many

Muslim youth had participated in Islamic Institutions to rally for human rights and justice – they had

a common cause. The lack of contemporary participation raised some questions: why did the

Muslim youth not participate in Islamic institutions and what did this mean for the future of the

institutions/organisations – and perhaps the Muslim community - once the elders in leadership

moved on. The paper does not present a formal qualitative research methodology, as the data

gathered was through class discussions with and the narratives of Muslim students who attended

the ‘Islamic Institutions in South Africa’ module I offered at UKZN-HC over a two year period. Much

of the theory is based on Muslim Publics/Public Muslims as coined by Abdulkader Tayob together

with theory extracted from a very similar scenario amongst the Muslim youth and civic participation

in Australia, where findings were that the Muslim youth were creating their own DIY identity and

were more likely to participate in community in ‘once-off’ actions. I found that similar strategies

were followed by the Muslim youth at UKZN as they felt that the elders in Islamic

institutions/organisations side-lined the voice of the Muslim youth, did not provide youth friendly

activities or platforms of participation and that there was too much institutional religious discontent

which they felt was disconcerting and destabilising.

NGALE, SJ CIVIL RELIGIOUS DYNAMICS IN JOSE CRAVEIRINHA’S AESTHETICIZED NATIONALISM

This paper looks at the way in which Craveirinha’s aesthetic representation in Karingana-Ua-

Karingana, Xigubo and Cela 1 helped gather a shared repertoire near the longings, desire and wishes

of many Mozambicans (the organic civil religion) into a coherent political project (instrumental civil

religion). That is how, through eschatological symbolism and imagery, Craveirinha’s poems created

an aesthetic platform for the emergence of a Mozambican civil religion, known as Moçambicanidade.

José Craveirinha is known to be the godfather of poets and short story writers in Mozambique, a

towering figure in the literary world who, in life, dreamed of and projected an image of a just and

modern southeast African nation at the end of twentieth century. In key International Award

Winner poems from Karingana-Ua-Karingana, Xigubo and Cela 1, he evoked old Nguni warriors and

larger-than-life figures, such as Maguiguana and Mahazul; and Bantu deities and spirits, such as

Jambul, and Ngungunhane, the Nguni emperor. He summoned the powers of mother Africa, brother

Zambezi and ultimately the Nkulukumba (the Ronga word for the Greatest Supreme Creator or

God); he also painted images of young men melting in the sounds of Xipalapala and bare-chested

young Negroes raising their arms to the light of sister moon and dancing the war dance of ancient

tribes of the river. There are plenty of drumbeats, war songs danced in circles around the fire. He

uses eschatological symbolism and imagery to construct an ideal group (communal in Anderson’s

meaning of the word, tribal or national) identity to which he wants to be part and names it

Moçambique.


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NOGUEIRA-GODSEY, E (UNIVERSITY OF CAPE TOWN) AFRO-BRAZILIAN RELIGIOUS HERITAGE AND CULTURAL INTOLERANCE: A SOUTH-SOUTH

EDUCATIONAL PERSPECTIVE

In 2003, the law 10.639/03 was implemented, which added African History to Brazilian educational

curricula. The revised curriculum sought to promote racial inclusivity and to educate students about

Brazil’s rich African heritage. Despite these efforts many Christians feel that the teaching of African

culture and religion are threatening their values and society. Much of this backlash can be witnessed

on social media platforms (e.g. Facebook). This tension is exacerbated by the fact this law requires

teachers of African history to also implement lessons on Afro-Brazilian religion, for which they are

not qualified or trained. This paper looks at the backlash to the law and argues that more training is

needed for teachers of Afro-Brazilian religious traditions to combat racial and religious intolerance.

Drawing on the South African Constitution, more specifically Chapter 2 on religious freedom of

expression, and the Brazilian social reality, the ongoing South-South dialogue between scholars of

Religion and Education (RE) in Brazil and South Africa is an ideal resource for this training. In

return, the use of these resources gives valuable information to scholars in Religion and Education

about the efficacy of the methods used to employ them.

PARKER, G (NORTH-WEST UNIVERSITY POTCHEFSTROOM CAMPUS) OF GOD OR ANCESTORS?

African Traditional Religions permeate into every aspect of life and emphasize the importance of

being part of the community. These religious traditions are not a set of dogma and have no

scriptures; they are handed down from generation to generation orally. An important aspect of

African Traditional Religion is the belief in ancestors or the living-dead, they are family and friends

who have passed away but are not considered really dead. They still have a relationship with the

living and take an interest in their lives; they in turn are respected and remembered by the living.

Although in South Africa today over 70% of the population consider themselves to be Christians,

many black South Africans still believe in the ancestors. This paper looks at the ability of some black

Christians to accept both belief in God and the ancestors and how they understand this

synchronism. Intergenerational knowledge has an important role to play in passing on traditions

which are internalized at birth and help to define who we are. These traditions are flexible and they

change and are influenced by the milieu in which they occur. In the late Twentieth Century and the

early Twenty-First century the story of Christianity is changing. As Christianity declines in its home

territory, Europe, the largest number of Christians today is found in Africa, Latin America and Asia.

Christianity through its 2000 year history has changed and been influenced by the traditions of the

countries in which it arrived in, these traditions were incorporated in to beliefs and practices of the

newly converted Christians. In contemporary South Africa traditions still have large role to play and

it is this persistence as well as the flexibility of Christianity that enables Black South Africans to

believe in God and the ancestors. This study is part of a larger research project which is a SANPAD-

funded project titled: Human rights education in diversity: empowering girls in rural and

metropolitan school environments (Roux, 2009).


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RAFUDEEN, A (UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA) HUMAN RIGHTS DISCOURSE AND NEO-LIBERALISM: A SOUTH AFRICAN EXPLORATION

Does human rights discourse in South Africa facilitate neoliberalism? Drawing on an emerging

radical literature on the limits and reactionary tendencies of the discourse, our essay answers this

question in the affirmative. The essay begins by looking at how at a ‘softer’ human rights has

coincided with the growing neo-liberal trajectory of the South African state and economy in the

post-Apartheid period. Under this regimen, the deployment of human rights has, both by design and

default, served to maintain the status quo and its underlying structural inequalities. There are a

number of institutional and philosophic reasons as to why this is the case. Institutionally, this is

connected to the fact that business rights are of the same species as human rights; to the necessary

adjudication of rights by the legal machinery of the state and their consequent co-option and

depoliticization by that very machinery; to the fact that the deployment of rights discourse has

become an integral feature of the ‘new empire’. Philosophically, human rights are inscribed in the

same paradigm of commodification that drives the neoliberal agenda. It concludes by noting that the

deployment of individual human rights, such as freedom of religion, is necessarily instrumentalized

within this this agenda and that those who seek to challenge the prevailing hegemony will, by

implication, need to look at alternative, more communally and metaphysically sensitive, rights-

schemes.

ROUX, C (NORTH-WEST UNIVERSITY POTCHEFSTROOM CAMPUS) RELIGIOUS FREEDOM AND HUMAN RIGHTS: EDUCATION, TOLERANCE, INTOLERANCE, RESPECT –

PARADOXES AND REALITIES IN RELIGION EDUCATION

The notion of tolerance, as a behaviouristic attitude and virtue, to enhance and support religious

diversity in education, specifically in schools, has been recently published in academic journals in

South Africa and abroad. The deliberations in these articles play against the background of the South

African education realm. In reading and analysing these notions of tolerance versus intolerance, it

became clear in the theoretical applications to religion education in South Africa; it did not include

the complex contexts and are not in line with the current reality of schooling and our education

environment. My reasoning is that especially in the application of tolerance as behaviouristic virtue

in religion education, as deliberated in Potgieter, Van der Walt and Wolhuter (2012, 2014); it

signified a specific pedagogical and philosophical stance that needs to be questioned when looking

at the complex issues regarding religion education. Since 1994 and onwards the learner and teacher

compositions in schools changed dramatically and the notion that SA is mainly a Christian country is

not true due to the complexities of religious adherences, the implementation of human rights across

the curriculum, the growing liberal thought in society on religion and the freedom of association

imbedded in our constitution and.

This paper will first reflect on the notions tolerance and intolerance as outlined in selected

publications and will then argue for employing the notion of “respect” in the context of religion

education. Secondly I will present selected examples from an international research project on

religious and cultural practices to illustrate the complexities of religion in schools and why “respect”

as virtue has the propensity to foster religious freedom and celebrating human rights.


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SCHARNICK-UDEMANS, L (UNIVERSITY OF CAPE TOWN) RELIGION ON PUBLIC-SERVICE TELEVISION IN SOUTH AFRICA: BETWEEN PUBLIC PEDAGOGY AND

POLITICAL HEGEMONY

In the post-apartheid South African context Religion Education has long been conceived of as both

an educational imperative and as a nation-building tool. By the same token public service

broadcasting in general and religious broadcasting in particular has been earmarked as a site for

transformation and reparation for the many social injustices committed by the previous

government. While the 1996 Constitution has often been praised as the most liberal, forward-

thinking, visionary constitution in the world, Religion Education as set out in the 2003 Religion in

Education policy has been lauded as the most pedagogically sound, socially relevant and human-

rights centric method for teaching about religion in a constitutional, multi-faith, multi-cultural

democracy. Religious and cultural diversity are considered national assets. The protection of

religious freedom and religious expression is promised by the Constitution. Through a co-operative

model of governance, the state ensures the protection of these rights, insofar that religious beliefs

and practices do not contravene constitutional principles and rule of law. In the South African

context, religion, education and public media imbricate each other in complex and multiple ways,

which raise crucial questions about how freedom of religion, freedom of expression and the concept

of censorship are produced and managed on public pedagogical platforms. By tracing the role of

religion and education in the political economy of public-service television broadcasting in South

Africa, from the apartheid dispensation to the democratic era, this paper situates Religion Education

on public-service television between Henry Giroux’s concept of public pedagogy and Antonio

Gramsci’s concept of political hegemony. By drawing on the work of Talal Asad, I will propose that

Religion Education is caught between these two discourses and argue that the articulation of these

two discourses through religious broadcast material on public service-television plays a substantial

role in ensuring that only the state-authored and state-authorized versions of religion(s) are

represented on public-service television. Furthermore I will explore the ways in which this

arrangement produces a Freedom of Religion or religious freedom, which is contingent on the

fulfillment of the socio-political principles of an imagined, modern constitutional democracy.

SIMMONDS, S (NORTH-WEST UNIVERSITY POTCHEFSTROOM CAMPUS) RELIGIOUS FREEDOM AS A HUMAN RIGHT: ARE TEACHERS CREATING COHESION OR CONTESTATION IN

THEIR CURRICULUM-MAKING?

As articulated in the South African Schools Act (1997) and in the Religion and Education Policy

(2003), the curriculum must embrace multireligious and multicultural diversity. This requires that

teachers need to be both knowledgeable in as well as respectful of diversity. This paper explores

teachers curriculum-making in terms of their professional role as teachers, more so than what their

own human right to religious freedom entails. Therefore, this paper reiterates the professional

obligation that teachers have to promote diversity through the curriculum. To engage with this

phenomenon, this paper explores whether this is happening in our schools. Research was conducted

with secondary school teachers in the Gauteng and North-West province in 2011 (almost 10 years

since the implementation of the Religion and Education Policy, 2003). Life Orientation teachers

participated in semi-structured one-on-one interviews where they shared their experiences as

religion education teachers.


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From the findings it became evident that teachers approach religion education as: a curriculum

context of conflict; it is taught superficially as "holidays and hero's"; and/or accepted as an

individual’s cultural behaviour - not to be questioned in curriculum content. This paper

contemplates whether the experiences of these teachers are creating cohesion or contestation for

religion education curriculum-making. To conclude, questions concerning the extent to which

religious freedom is being facilitated by teachers comes to the fore.

SUKDAVEN, M (UNIVERSITY OF PRETORIA) THE ETHICAL AND SPIRITUAL PROJECT OF MARTIN PROZESKY: INFLUENCES AND INTERESTS

In this paper it was thought fitting to present the life and thought of Professor Martin Prozesky, as

well as his contribution to academia in a way that is both comprehensive and relatively concise.

This was achieved through an interview with him in October 2013 that was recorded and

transcribed. Encapsulated in this paper are his main contributions as an academic to both the

ethical and the spiritual project. Cognizance is taken of various personalities and their influence in

his life and the path he chose in academia.

VENCATSAMY, B (UNIVERSITY OF KWAZULU NATAL) RELIGION, HUMAN RIGHTS AND EDUCATION: A CASE STUDY OF BOKO HARAM

The 14 of April 2014, saw the Islamic fundamentalist group Boko Haram (Western Education is a

Sin) kidnap an estimated 200 schoolgirls from a boarding school in Chibok, Nigeria. While the world

watched in disgust the group claimed that the kidnappings were sanctioned by God. The abduction

in April and subsequent abductions, reiterate Boko Harams hatred for western education; they

therefore consider these kidnappings as an essential element in curbing the spread of

modernization and the western system of education in Nigeria. This paper will critically examine the

Boko Haram insurgence against western education and explore the issues of modernization and

how the education of girls pose a threat to the fundamental values of Islam as upheld by Boko

Haram. While the recent kidnappings in Nigeria are not isolated incidences of religious extremism, it

does raise the question on the extent to which religious beliefs are allowed to override

internationally accepted norms and most importantly human rights in the context of education?

Drawing on Article 13 of the International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights

(ICESCR), under which Nigeria is obliged, which seeks to protect everyone’s right to education and

to take measures that prevent third parties from interfering with the enjoyment of the right, this

ongoing conflict of western education vs. Islamic education provides the ideal case study for the

qualitative analysis of literature both conventional and non-conventional (online articles) under the

broader context of Religion, Human Rights and Education. As with all rights, it is important for

religious groups within civil society to take cognizance of the fact, that the freedom of religion may

not override the rule of law and religious beliefs cannot be allowed to limit or encroach on the

human rights of others with regards to access to education (western or Islamic) and other basic

freedoms.

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Documents

36TH ASRSA CONFERENCE - NWU A… · 36th asrsa conference association for the study of religion in southern africa in partnership with edu-hright & hreid (nwu) religious freedom and