Abstract

VAN AARDE, Andries G.. A Reformed theologian on a journey on a surpassing road. Herv. teol. stud. [online]. 2023, vol.79, n.1, pp.1-12. ISSN 2072-8050.  http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/hts.v79i1.9263.

The article aims to discuss facets in the formation of the Covenant of Faith of Reformed Congregations in January 2013 against the background of the views of these conservatives on my theological disposition considered to be representative of a 'strange theology', 'new gospel' and 'heretical views'. The article demonstrates that this church schism is related to other pivotal events in the history of the Netherdutch Reformed Church of Africa (NHKA). One such historical event is when a new Church Order was adopted in which the NHKA no longer utilised the racist ecclesial self-definition of 'ethnic church' [volkskerk] . In practice this meant membership for whites only and the rejection of interracial marriages. Other pivotal events occurred when the General Church Assembly declared apartheid to be a 'sin', and when it decided that sexual orientation should not prevent anyone from the LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning) community to remain or be ordained as a minister in the NHKA. CONTRIBUTION: The article is written in the genre of autobiographical biblical criticism and hermeneutics of suspicion, and represents a reworked and shortened version of existing published autobiographical notes

Keywords : autobiography; Netherdutch Reformed Church of Africa; ecclesial schism; gender justice; sexual orientation; apartheid as sin; doléance.

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