At what point do a former president’s belongings cease to be his family’s property and become the state’s property? That’s the question an appeals court in South Africa seeks to determine regarding Nelson Mandela, the country’s post-apartheid ruler. The case…
Amidst global chaos, ordinary South Africans are emblem of Muslim-Jewish co-existence
The Israel-Hamas war has fractured Muslim/Jewish community relations in the Middle East, Europe and the U.S. But in South Africa, ordinary people take pride in being an outlier, creating a country where for decades and even now, Jews and Muslims…
45 years after the Soweto uprising, religious leaders call for more racial harmony among South Africans
Forty-five years after a group of young Black students in Soweto, South Africa, took to the streets to protest an educational policy of the ruling South African apartheid government, leading to the death of more than 170 of them, the…
Baptist layman offers lessons from South Africa on overcoming civil war
Talk of civil war is bandied about by Americans reeling from a pandemic, racial injustice, police brutality and a hate-filled election season. But politically motivated violence is no idle talk to Harold Tessendorf, a conflict management consultant and licensed mediator…
White America has been lying to itself about who we really are
We cannot continue to pretend that time will heal the deep wounds that divide us. Generation after generation, we bring our gifts to the altar without stopping first to do the work of reconciliation to which Jesus calls us.
New Baptist Covenant signals resurgence of reconciliation movement, Mandela colleague says
By Jeff Brumley Allan Boesak is a native South African and Reformed Church pastor and theologian who worked shoulder to shoulder with Nelson Mandela and others to defeat apartheid. He is a passionate advocate of the reconciliation and ecumenical movements…
Could we talk about Nelson Mandela?
In the wake of Nelson Mandela’s memorial service at the FNB Stadium in Johannesburg, South Africa, the hyper-partisan, culturally isolated American public has again managed to miss the point of a major figure and event. Instead of having lively, relevant…
South African Baptists rebuke Westboro
This story was edited after posting to correct an error in the seventh paragraph. By Bob Allen Baptists in South Africa denounced Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kan., for comments reported around the world claiming the country’s recently deceased former…
Is a funeral selfie appropriate?
It was the funeral selfie heard seen around the world. British Prime Minister David Cameron, Denmark’s Prime Minister Helle Thorning Schmidt and President Obama took a selfie during Nelson Mandela’s (funeral) memorial service. To the right, Mrs. Obama does not…