Operating in a "site of struggle": Church structures, theological stance and the activist clergyperson

 

 

Anthony Egan

Jesuit Institute South Africa, Braamfontein, Johannesburg, South Africa

 

 

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ABSTRACT

The article proposes that one needs to understand the "action space" of an activist clergyperson in the constraints of his/her church's structures which often form a kind of "Ideological State Apparatus" that limits activism. A more democratic church structure does not necessarily make for greater action space; nor does a liberal theology necessarily translate into effective political praxis. The article concludes with the opinion that a lot more work needs to be done on these structural issues for a better understanding of the role of clergy as activists.

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