Browsing by Author "Curle, Neville"

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A Comparative Study of Syncretic Practices between the Zionist Churches of Eswatini and Baal Worship in Ancient Israel.
(South African Theological Seminary Johannesburg) Ward, Ashar Louise 1993; Curle, Neville; Domeris, William R.
Culture and tradition have an influence on how people practice their faith in God. Theology cannot be practiced in a vacuum; there are outside influences that affect how every person lives out their faith. Christianity in Eswatini is no exception. It has been heavily influenced by how it first came to the nation, the missionaries that have taught about faith, and Eswatini’s own history and culture. The Zionist Church in Eswatini represents the largest church body of the country. Yet, the Zionist churches are known for contextualising Christianity into Swati culture. However, where is the line between being culturally relevant and the syncretism of two religions? The Zionist churches in Eswatini have often been labelled as syncretic in practice. This research found that not all Zionist churches can be called syncretic, however many Zionist churches still do practice a syncretism of STR and Christianity. This syncretism is compared to that practiced by Ancient Israel. Israel went through cycles of practicing syncretism by engaging in cultural practices from the surrounding nations that were not compatible with worship of Yahweh. One repeated temptation for Ancient Israel specifically was the lure of Baal worship. Ancient Israel was used as a case study for this research project, specifically to identify the dangers of syncretism and its consequences. The consequences that Ancient Israel faced for abandoning Yahweh were disastrous. In studying both Israel and Zionism in Eswatini, it is clear that the syncretic practices are very similar. This has led to similar consequences too. Eswatini seems to be encountering consequences that were also promised to Israel, such as lack of fertility of land, animals, and humans.
Conspectus Volume 15
(South African Theological Seminary, 2013-03) Asumang, Annang; Aucamp, Andrew; Chan, Ken; Chua, Alton; Lessing, Pelham; Curle, Neville; Erdey, Zoltan L.; Smith, Kevin G.; Joubert, Callie; Lioy, Dan T.; Domeris, William R.; Atterbury, Vincent E.; Brodie, Robert; Domeris, William R.; Erdey, Zoltan L.; Jabini, Frank; Kunhiyop, Samuel W.; Lessing, Pelham; Lioy, Dan T.; Mahlangu, Elijah; Malherbe, Johannes S.; Maré, Leonard; Peppler, Christopher; Pretorius, Mark; Smith, Kevin G.; Song, Arthur; Woodbridge, Noel B.; Wyngaard, Peter; Zoltan, Erdey L.; Smith, Kevin G.
Conspectus Volume 20
(South African Theological Seminary, 2015-09) Curle, Neville; du Toit, Philip; Lioy, Dan T.; Williams, Andrew Ray; Atterbury, Vincent E.; Brodie, Robert; Domeris, William R.; Erdey, Zoltan L.; Jabini, Frank; Kunhiyop, Samuel W.; Lessing, Pelham; Lioy, Dan T.; Mahlangu, Elijah; Malherbe, Johannes S.; Maré, Leonard; Peppler, Christopher; Pretorius, Mark; Smith, Kevin G.; Song, Arthur; Woodbridge, Noel B.; Wyngaard, Peter; Zoltan, Erdey L.; Smith, Kevin G.
Conspectus Volume 22
(South African Theological Seminary, 2016-09) Asumang, Annang; Curle, Neville; du Toit, Philip; Lioy, Dan T.; Woodbridge, Noel B.; Asumang, Annang; Falconer, Robert D.; Atterbury, Vincent E.; Brodie, Robert; Domeris, William R.; Erdey, Zoltan L.; Jabini, Frank; Kunhiyop, Samuel W.; Lessing, Pelham; Lioy, Dan T.; Mahlangu, Elijah; Malherbe, Johannes S.; Maré, Leonard; Peppler, Christopher; Pretorius, Mark; Smith, Kevin G.; Song, Arthur; Woodbridge, Noel B.; du Toit, Philip; Zoltan, Erdey L.; Smith, Kevin G.
Conspectus Volume 23
(South African Theological Seminary, 2017-03) Asumang, Annang; Curle, Neville; Irudayaraj, Dominic S.; Lioy, Dan T.; Falconer, Robert D.; Atterbury, Vincent E.; Brodie, Robert; Domeris, William R.; Erdey, Zoltan L.; Jabini, Frank; Kunhiyop, Samuel W.; Lessing, Pelham; Lioy, Dan T.; Mahlangu, Elijah; Malherbe, Johannes S.; Maré, Leonard; Peppler, Christopher; Pretorius, Mark; Smith, Kevin G.; Song, Arthur; Woodbridge, Noel B.; Du Toit, Philip; Erdey, Zoltan L.; Smith, Kevin G.
The Effects of Absent Fathers in Spreading HIV/AIDS and the Role of the Church in Swaziland
(South African Theological Seminary Johannesburg, South Africa) Curle, Neville; Kunhiyop, Samuel W.; Smith, Kevin G.
The Nation of Swaziland is steadily losing its understanding of fatherhood as hundreds of thousands of children are born into this world not knowing what it is to have a real father. Sons,having no valid role model, look to the world around them for guidance. Enticed by the lure of wealth, power and prestige, they forsake their understanding of ubuntu and set out on a hedonistic, materialistic journey.Over time, they lose much of their cultural heritage. Yet one aspect remains –the Patriarchalaspect, which dominates their relationship with women.The blend of hedonism, materialism and male chauvinism mixed with female subjugation and poverty are a fertile breeding ground for HIV/AIDS. This thesis demonstrates that the loss of this loss of understanding by men is a major driving force behind the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Swaziland.The study explores the gradual shift that has taken Swazis from a strong cultural background to one that is steadily dying. In so doing, this investigation traces how Swazi men were forced through poverty-induced by big business (aided and abetted by the British, the Afrikaners and later the A.N.C.),as well as by their own personal greed-to leave the moderating restraint of their fathers. Generations of young men chose to leave Swaziland to go and work on the gold mines in South Africa. Far from their homes,living in single hostels,the men chose to drink in bars and sleep with prostitutes or girlfriends, and finally formed second families. Out of reach of the restraining influence of their fathers, the strictly moral Swazi culture was perverted through their interaction with foreign cultures –especially that of the West. The male domination mind set was merged with western “free love” understanding, producing a male chauvinist of extreme proportions. The discarding of a centuries-old cultural/moral structure of Ubuntu, together with the African Traditional Religious belief that there is no eternal judgment makes for a potent cocktail,which has resulted in a generation of self-destructing spiritual orphans.In the meantime, HIV/AIDS had been imported to South Africa from Central and Eastern Africa 11 HIV/AIDS appears to have originated in West Africa from where it was transferred eastwards and southwards to Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and the Congo. [Epstein 2007:41-42]via truckers, migrant labourers and guerrillas,where it found a fruitful home along the trucking routes and on the mines. The Swazis, along with the Tswanas, the Sothos and the South Africans would take the disease home. The combination of extreme male chauvinism, “widespread grazing”(a descriptive Ugandan term associated with sleeping around) [Epstein 2007:162]and no spiritual or cultural constraints have ensured that HIV/AIDS would spread like wildfire –the so called “HIV super highway”.[Epstein 2007: 58]The Church, the governments and the people themselves would spend decades denying the existence of the disease, and now it is almost too late.In an environment where “widespread grazing”is common, even amongst some Pastors, it is little wonder that the nation is dying.The pandemic is steadily bringing Swaziland to its knees. Life expectancy has been reduced to only 31.3 years in 2004 [White side and Whalley 2007: 6] and the quality of life for the vast majority of Swazis leaves much to be desired. The thesis closes with a call to the Church to lead the way by repenting,praying, preaching, living the life we are called to live,and addressing the need for those who are fatherless to be fathered within the Church.
Towards a Theology of Authority and Submission in Marriage Conspectus : The Journal of the South African Theological Seminary, Volume 15, Issue 03, Mar 2013, p. 107 - 139
(South African Theological Seminary Press Johannesburg, South Africa) Curle, Neville
The twentieth and twenty first-centuries have seen a major debate develop over the role of women in society. For the hierarchicalists represented by the 'Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood', male leadership, as raised in Ephesians 5:24, is critical and overrides all other considerations. To the egalitarian 'Christians for Biblical Equality', mutual submissionâ??as required by Galatians 3:28 and Ephesians 5:21-constitutes the point of departure. This article explores the possibility of a bridge between the two moderate positions. To do this, the research focuses on four key areas, namely, (1) what is authority and how should it be applied; (2) how does submission relate to that authority; (3) how does authority work within the Trinity where all are equals; and (4) do Paul and Peter's eschatological beliefs assist us in building a bridge between the seemingly irreconcilable passages. The research concluded that via the application of Paul and Peter's eschatological 'already but 'not yet' beliefs operating in the 'now', a bridge opens up to a third biblical alternative. This view operates across all cultures where 'authority and submission in marriage' is neither hierarchical nor merely mutually submissive, but mutually empowering.