https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/4304 2026-05-01T09:17:27Z https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/4370 The Bible, HIV/AIDS and African-South African women: a bosadi (womanhood) perspective Masenya, Madipoane The observation that the Christian Bible has historically played an important role, either for good or for evil, in differing African contexts, be it on the continent or in the Diaspora, cannot be disputed. The reality is that the Bible continues to play a crucial role in the lives of many African Christian believers. Notwithstanding the popularity of the Bible in our contexts, its use, particularly by those in power, has not always been helpful. As a matter of fact, in many of our church contexts, the womenfolk who come to church, overwhelmed by the pressures of everyday life, find some of our biblical interpretations more ‘wounding’ than healing. Yet many of our churches are mostly populated by women and girls. Statistics have shown that women, particularly those of African descent (both on the continent and in the Diaspora), are the hardest hit by the pandemic of our time: HIV/AIDS. The present text seeks to answer the following question: How should the plight of our day, one which hits the womenfolk the most, impact on our biblical hermeneutics as scholars, theologians, pastors and laity alike, in a way that will benefit all persons, but particularly those on the margins of our societies? Peer reviewed 2005-01-01T00:00:00Z https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/4367 Vroue in die teologiese antropologie van die Afrikaanse gereformeerde tradisie Plaatjies, Mary-Ann; Landman, Christina This article presents poststructural systematic theological research on women in the theological anthropology of the Afrikaans reformed tradition between 1924 and 2002. The central aim is to demonstrate, against the development of the women ministries and the discourse about the ordination of women, that the theological anthropology of the Afrikaans Reformed tradition is deeply influenced by the discursive practices which were established during 1928 to1932. This article develops a different approach to the women question. At the heart of the discourse is the shift in the reading process. A poststructural feminist discourse is presented and selected guidelines that the church may wish to take into account in the deconstructing of the theological anthropology are suggested. In future, the frame of reference to the women question would likely be poststructural. Peer reviewed 2005-01-01T00:00:00Z https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/4365 Diskriminasie teen vroue in geloofsverband: 'n regsperspektief Van der Walt, T. Discrimination against women in religious context: a legal perspective South Africa’s Constitution not only protects the right to equality, but also guarantees freedom of religion. The crucial legal question is whether religious practices or structures within religious institutions that clearly discriminate against woman, will be regarded as matters of “pure faith” and offlimits for judicial scrutiny, thus exempting that religious community from the constitutional and statutory provisions on gender equality. Gender equality is an important and legitimate governmental objective, but the Constitutional Court recognises religion and religious belief as very personal, subjective matters that should be accommodated if possible. The challenge lies in balancing these contradictory rights in the diverse South African society. This is complicated, as it is not always possible to ascertain whether the discriminatory practices are indeed core elements of the religion or whether they stem from interpretation of religious principles by men in positions of authority. Peer reviewed 2005-01-01T00:00:00Z https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/4363 "Leefstyl-Bybel vir vroue" : Afrikaans-speaking women amidst paradigm shift Landman, Christina Dutch-Afrikaans women in South Africa have inherited the worst and the best from Dutch piety. On the negative side they have become heir to the guilt-ridden, self-humiliating piety of the Dutch pietists from the seventeenth century, and the patriarchal politics of Abraham Kuyper from the early twentieth century. However, lately Afrikaans-speaking women theologians in South Africa have been positively influenced by the work of Dutch feminist theologians, such as Catharina Halkes and Riet Bons-Storm. This work led to the publication of the Leefstyl-Bybel vir vroue (2003). This commentary on the Bible, written from a woman’s point of view, was written by six Afrikaans-speaking women theologians; their aim was to heal, empower and, indeed, surprise Afrikaans-speaking women with information on the roles played by women in the Bible. It is hoped that this publication is affecting a paradigm shift amongst Afrikaansspeaking women that will stimulate their public agency as women of faith. Peer review 2005-01-01T00:00:00Z