Christendom at the Cape : a critical examination of the early formation of the Dutch Reformed Church

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dc.contributor.advisorGruchy, John W deen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorNieder-Heitmann, Jan Hendricken_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2014-10-06T11:46:40Z
dc.date.available2014-10-06T11:46:40Z
dc.date.issued2007en_ZA
dc.descriptionIncludes bibliographical references (p. 255-260).en_ZA
dc.description.abstractThe primary research question of this dissertation is: What was the particular form that Christendom took on at the Cape during the formative period of the Dutch East Indies Company (VOC) rule and how did it shape the Dutch Reformed Church as established church in this locale? This question was prompted by my hunch that the Dutch Reformed Church at the Cape and in the later South Africa has since VOC rule displayed signs of regarding itself as an important ecclesiastical partner in a Christian establishment. This was evidenced in the development of the Church2 into a quasi-established position (during British rule and thereafter), and the Volkskerk of the Afrikaner people and nationalism. In post-VOC times Christendom at the Cape Colony and in South Africa has also undergone various transformations. The answer to the primary research question can therefore contribute to our understanding of the contemporary character of Christendom in South Africa and the Church. A secondary research question is how the development of Christendom at the Cape can help us understand the phenomenon of Christendom itself. In order to answer these questions I embarked on a critical and comparative study of the concept of Christendom in various contexts and the position of the church within them - postChristian Europe, post-Vatican II Latin America, and post-1960's North America. In the light of this study an archival and theologically critical analysis was made of Christendom at the Cape, mainly from the vantage point of the Dutch Reformed Church. The findings were categorised under three headings: Church privilege; the control of state and culture over Church and gospel; and, the freedom of the Church. The primary research question yielded a picture of the Church as inheritor of, and involuntary partner in a Christendom that was the result of a colonial venture of capitalist upper middle class Dutch Reformed merchants. The Church imbibed the habit of being co-opted by the powers that be for the sake of material and social benefit and for the sake of promoting its evangelistic, diaconal, and educational charges. In the process it grew accustomed to compromise the integrity of its own faith and order and ultimately its public witness.en_ZA
dc.identifier.apacitationNieder-Heitmann, J. H. (2007). <i>Christendom at the Cape : a critical examination of the early formation of the Dutch Reformed Church</i>. (Thesis). University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Religious Studies. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/8195en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationNieder-Heitmann, Jan Hendrick. <i>"Christendom at the Cape : a critical examination of the early formation of the Dutch Reformed Church."</i> Thesis., University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Religious Studies, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/8195en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationNieder-Heitmann, J. 2007. Christendom at the Cape : a critical examination of the early formation of the Dutch Reformed Church. University of Cape Town.en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Thesis / Dissertation AU - Nieder-Heitmann, Jan Hendrick AB - The primary research question of this dissertation is: What was the particular form that Christendom took on at the Cape during the formative period of the Dutch East Indies Company (VOC) rule and how did it shape the Dutch Reformed Church as established church in this locale? This question was prompted by my hunch that the Dutch Reformed Church at the Cape and in the later South Africa has since VOC rule displayed signs of regarding itself as an important ecclesiastical partner in a Christian establishment. This was evidenced in the development of the Church2 into a quasi-established position (during British rule and thereafter), and the Volkskerk of the Afrikaner people and nationalism. In post-VOC times Christendom at the Cape Colony and in South Africa has also undergone various transformations. The answer to the primary research question can therefore contribute to our understanding of the contemporary character of Christendom in South Africa and the Church. A secondary research question is how the development of Christendom at the Cape can help us understand the phenomenon of Christendom itself. In order to answer these questions I embarked on a critical and comparative study of the concept of Christendom in various contexts and the position of the church within them - postChristian Europe, post-Vatican II Latin America, and post-1960's North America. In the light of this study an archival and theologically critical analysis was made of Christendom at the Cape, mainly from the vantage point of the Dutch Reformed Church. The findings were categorised under three headings: Church privilege; the control of state and culture over Church and gospel; and, the freedom of the Church. The primary research question yielded a picture of the Church as inheritor of, and involuntary partner in a Christendom that was the result of a colonial venture of capitalist upper middle class Dutch Reformed merchants. The Church imbibed the habit of being co-opted by the powers that be for the sake of material and social benefit and for the sake of promoting its evangelistic, diaconal, and educational charges. In the process it grew accustomed to compromise the integrity of its own faith and order and ultimately its public witness. DA - 2007 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2007 T1 - Christendom at the Cape : a critical examination of the early formation of the Dutch Reformed Church TI - Christendom at the Cape : a critical examination of the early formation of the Dutch Reformed Church UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/8195 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/8195
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationNieder-Heitmann JH. Christendom at the Cape : a critical examination of the early formation of the Dutch Reformed Church. [Thesis]. University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Religious Studies, 2007 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/8195en_ZA
dc.language.isoengen_ZA
dc.publisher.departmentDepartment of Religious Studiesen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Humanitiesen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.subject.otherReligious Studiesen_ZA
dc.titleChristendom at the Cape : a critical examination of the early formation of the Dutch Reformed Churchen_ZA
dc.typeDoctoral Thesis
dc.type.qualificationlevelDoctoral
dc.type.qualificationnamePhDen_ZA
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
uct.type.publicationResearchen_ZA
uct.type.resourceThesisen_ZA
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