Abstract

NAUDE, P.. The Belhar Confession and Church and Society: a comparative reading in five statements. Acta theol. [online]. 2012, vol.32, n.2, suppl., pp.147-161. ISSN 2309-9089.

This essay offers a close comparative reading of the Belhar confession and the DRC witness document, Church and Society. It is argued (in the first statement) that although on the surface there are many similarities in content between the two documents, they are in fact theologically quite distinct (statements two to five). It is hoped that the DRC's decision in 2011 to start a process of adopting the Belhar confession represents a return to its Reformed roots in the confessing church tradition.

Keywords : Church and society; Belhar confession; Reformed tradition.