Abstract

STRAUSS, Piet J.. Church and state in South Africa and human rights. In Skriflig (Online) [online]. 2015, vol.49, n.1, pp.1-6. ISSN 2305-0853.  http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/IDS.V49I1.1990.

After the Second World War, there was a universal rise and greater acknowledgement of human rights, which entered churches and ecumenical organisations' way of thinking. Human rights influenced the church's understanding of justice and human dignity both internally and externally. The concept of human dignity came from the biblical believe that man is created in the image of God. In South Africa human rights were also increasingly recognised and respected. A charter of human rights was included as chapter 2 of the 1996 Constitution and churches regard human dignity as a central tenet of their approach to members and non-members. Differences between church and state on the issue have arisen as the result of differences on the freedom of religion. Church and state in South Africa can complement each other in the promotion of human dignity.

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