The role of religious leaders in anti-Apartheid mobilisation: implications for violence prevention in contemporary South Africa

This study examines how South African religious leaders mobilised spiritual capacity and religious assets to resist and fight against state and structural violence during the 1970s and 1980s. Document analysis and qualitative in-depth interviews were conducted with six key informants who were direct...

Description complète

Enregistré dans:  
Détails bibliographiques
Auteurs: Taliep, Naiema (Auteur) ; Lazarus, Sandy (Auteur) ; Seedat, Mohamed (Auteur) ; Cochrane, James R. 1946- (Auteur)
Type de support: Électronique Article
Langue:Anglais
Vérifier la disponibilité: HBZ Gateway
Journals Online & Print:
En cours de chargement...
Fernleihe:Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste
Publié: Routledge [2016]
Dans: Religion, state & society
Année: 2016, Volume: 44, Numéro: 4, Pages: 331-348
Sujets / Chaînes de mots-clés standardisés:B Südafrika / Mouvements anti-apartheid (Südafrika) / Guide religieux / Histoire 1970-1989
Sujets non-standardisés:B Apartheid
B religious assets
B Religious leaders
B Violence
B peace march
Accès en ligne: Volltext (Verlag)
Description
Résumé:This study examines how South African religious leaders mobilised spiritual capacity and religious assets to resist and fight against state and structural violence during the 1970s and 1980s. Document analysis and qualitative in-depth interviews were conducted with six key informants who were directly or indirectly involved in an interfaith Peace March in 1989 in Cape Town. Our analysis was aimed at identifying and understanding the factors, which enabled individuals from diverse religious backgrounds to work together to combat the Apartheid state and structural violence, drawing out possible roles for interfaith leadership within the prevention of direct violence in South Africa. The analysis shows that interfaith leadership was enacted as five kinds of performances: of safety in sacred spaces, solidarity and community, non-violence, voice and representation, and humanitarian relief and healing. These performances relied on specific religious assets, spiritual capacity and psychological and interpersonal qualities characteristic of transformative leaders. In conclusion, we offer some suggestions for how interfaith leadership alongside other social actors may contribute to the prevention of interpersonal violence.
ISSN:1465-3974
Contient:Enthalten in: Religion, state & society
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1080/09637494.2016.1242890