Politics and Religion

By Revd J.A Scholtz

What I am saying to you today is that politics forgets that life is religious, and religion forgets that life is social and political. The church in this country and also in other parts of the African continent has an ambiguous history when it comes to the political situation of the indigenous people.
There were times when churches complied with the purposes of the settlers and oppressors but we have regretted that part of the history and we believe the church has been forgiven. There is also the other side of the history of the church, in all our countries when the church provided prophetic voices, mobilised our people and gave them educational opportunities through mission schools so that they could articulate their struggles and liberate themselves.
An example is Albert Luthuli who stated that he was “in the movement” (ANC) simply because he was a Christian and Desmond Tutu with his dream of a “rainbow people of God”. These were leaders who made connections between their faith and what they understood as God’s politics.
Politics is not for bad people, it is for good people who can carry out their duties with honesty, integrity and conscientiousness. Theologically, the ideal is not just the achievement of political liberation but justice for all people. Therefore there is a need to make the connection which will allow us to understand that the ministry of the church is aimed at making justice a reality.
As the prophet Amos said, “Justice must roll down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream”.
I dare to say that looking at the upheavals, rising prices for basic necessities of life, we will see that kind of people that the church needs are not those who will go with the flow but those who will make connections between religion and the political issues of our country/communities.
We need people who will guide us through an informed and well nuanced prophetic voice- those are people who will seek to change things for the better – and they are not resistant to trying new ways of doing things.•