https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/431 2026-11-06T06:20:58Z 2026-11-06T06:20:58Z Ballard, Steven Peter https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/33085 2026-09-22T13:45:49Z 2026-01-31T00:00:00Z

The house of God or a place to worship? : a critical phenomenological analysis of the ambiguities of sacred place in the Christian tradition Ballard, Steven Peter This study asks: How do Christians in selected UK congregations understand and experience sacred place, and to what extent do their accounts align with essentialist or socio-constructivist theories of sacred space? It tests whether sacredness is understood as an intrinsic property of the site, as “God's house”, or whether the sacred (or the Holy) is perceived wherever Christians gather to worship. The research adopts a critical phenomenological approach. I collected data through semi-structured interviews with forty-five participants across four Christian traditions in Scotland: the Scottish Episcopal Church, the Roman Catholic Church, the Church of Scotland, and the Society of Friends (in the latter case, I also visited a Quaker meeting house in northern England). I recruited participants through congregational invitations, except at the Scottish Episcopal Church, where the Rector insisted on their selection. The interviews explored personal experiences of sacred places, theological beliefs, and liturgical practices. I also included a quantitative exercise in which participants rated, on a 1-10 scale, their preference for two hymns that represented contrasting understandings of sacred places. Data analysis revealed patterns indicating how participants negotiate transcendence and immanence in the places where they worship. Findings showed that neither essentialist nor socio-constructivist models, taken in isolation, adequately explained participants’ experiences. Quantitatively, denominational averages varied: Roman Catholic participants averaged 4.5, indicating stronger alignment with the “God's house” view, while Scottish Episcopalian participants averaged 6.9, favouring the “where people gather” view. The Church of Scotland and the Society of Friends averaged 6.7 and 6.1, respectively, although the latter score was constrained by low participation at one site and by no engagement at the other. Qualitatively, three patterns emerged. First, participants held a dynamic understanding of sacred place, in which theological belief, liturgical practice, and spatial design interact, rather than viewing it as a static metaphysical reality or a purely social construct. Second, they experienced their places of worship as sites where transcendence and immanence meet, enabling both individual spiritual encounter and communal integration. Third, while some participants reported experiences of conflict or exclusion associated with sacred sites, others described therapeutic effects, including acceptance and social cohesion. The study proposes an integrated model that moves beyond the essentialism-versus-socio-constructivism binary. It argues that a sacred place is best understood as a lived, ongoing human experience in which divine transcendence is embodied in belief, ritual, and design. This model offers a framework for Christians and others to articulate the relationship among place, practice, and perception without reducing sacredness to a location or social context.

2026-01-31T00:00:00Z Langa, Vincent Thulani https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/32979 2026-08-21T13:17:49Z 2018-10-18T00:00:00Z

Islam and ubungoma : case studies of Muslim sangomas in South Africa Langa, Vincent Thulani This thesis explores the intersection of traditional African spirituality and Islam in South Africa through the lens of Muslim sangomas. The study focuses on Ubungoma, a form of divination and healing deeply rooted in the traditional beliefs of South Africa's indigenous peoples. Even though Ubungoma is generally not associated with Islam, it has also been adopted by many Muslims in South Africa, who struggle to reconcile their Islamic faith with their traditional African upbringing. The thesis employs case studies to examine the experiences of Muslim sangomas who face challenges in integrating Ubungoma into their Islamic beliefs and practices. Through interviews and ethnographic observation, the thesis explores how these individuals negotiate the tensions between their Islamic identity and the traditional African beliefs associated with Ubungoma. The study examines the relationship between Islam and culture, specifically in the social and cultural context in which these individuals practice Ubungoma and how their Muslim identity influences their practice. The thesis will thus offer further insights into the complex interplay between religion, culture, and identity in post-apartheid South Africa.

2018-10-18T00:00:00Z Schreuder, Dirk Jan https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/32571 2026-06-25T09:21:43Z 2025-09-01T00:00:00Z

Entering the silence : meditation and the hidden path of Theo Sophia, a treatise on the soundless sound extracted from the teachings of the Order of Christian Mystics and the Voice of the silence Schreuder, Dirk Jan This dissertation aims to show that the eternal spiritual verities to be found within Asian philosophy such as karma, reincarnation and engaging an inner path of meditation to attain Unity with ‘God’ – freedom from repeated reincarnation – is comparable with, and to be found within broad-based Judeo-Christian1 mystical tradition as espoused by The Order of Christian Mystics (1908 - 1949). Its spiritual teachings aimed to show its pupils and disciples how to come into touch with an Inner Divine Power – the Mystic Christ or the Soundless Sound2 – and how this ‘Sound Current’ redeems and transforms the aspirant, leading to God-realisation. It draws on Theosophical teachings to show the universality with Asian philosophy, revealing a system of personal regeneration or spiritual alchemy, by transmuting the base creative energy – understood as kundalini shakti in Asian philosophy – through Divine aspiration and inner contemplative and meditative practices.

2025-09-01T00:00:00Z Haspatel, Zaid https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/32124 2026-03-05T19:21:43Z 2024-01-01T00:00:00Z

The sources of IBN ʿAbidin’s Radd al-Muhtar: a descriptive and numerical study Haspatel, Zaid Text in English with summaries in Arabic

2024-01-01T00:00:00Z